World Series of Poker 2008: The Story So Far

For poker players, it's the greatest show on earth, the big one, the focal point of the year. It's the one everyone wants to play and win. It's the World Series of Poker. In the first of this two-part feature, Card Player takes a look at European performances in the 55-event Series.

The WSOP began with a short opening ceremony, which saw the University of Nevada, Las Vegas band march into the Amazon Room in the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino to the strains of Viva Las Vegas, followed by announcements from WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack and Tournament Director Jack Effel. Then the mic was handed over to 10-time bracelet winner Doyle Brunson, who announced, "Shuffle up and deal."

Event No. 1 -- $10,000 World Championship Pot-Limit Hold'em

Europe rolled out a score of big-game players for the first event, $10,000 world championship pot-limit hold'em. The 352 players created a prize pool of $3.3 million, and the big Euro guns included Alex Kravchenko, Steve Wong, Andy Black, Ben Grundy, Mel Judah, Neil Channing, Barny Boatman, Harry Demetriou, Thierry van den Berg, Alexander Kostritsyn, John Duthie, David Benyamine, Thor Hansen, Markus Lehmann, Max Pescatori, and Dario Minieri.

There were 84 gold-bracelet winners among the field, having amassed a total of 143 bracelets.

Patrik Antonius, from Finland, was on a quest to win his first bracelet and came close, but ultimately fell short, finishing seventh for $124,080 in the first event.

He endured a topsy-turvy existence at the final table, starting as he did with the short stack of 230,000 in chips. Kathy Liebert doubled through the Fin with A-A versus K-K, then Antonius got mixed up in a hand for his remaining chips. He opened a pot for 140,000 and Nenad Medic made the call from the small blind, as did Liebert from the big blind. The flop rolled out A10 Q and Medic checked.

Liebert bet 40,000 and Antonius made an all-in call for his final 25,000. Medic also called, and the side pot was pushed to one side of the table. The 4 fell on the turn and Medic checked. Liebert moved all in and Medic mucked. It was now down to Liebert and Antonius, and they turned up their cards. Liebert flipped up the A 4 for two pair, and Antonius showed down pocket tens for a set. The 7 fell on the river and Antonius tripled up to survive once again.

His respite was short-lived. He raised a pot 120,000, and Andy Bloch reraised to 360,000. Antonius moved all in, and Bloch made the call. Bloch turned up the A 4 and Antonius showed down the K 10. The board rolled out 9 9 5 7 5, and Antonius was eliminated.

Medic went on to win $794,112 and the first gold bracelet of the WSOP 2008.

Phil Laak (now reclaiming his Irish ancestry) finished ninth for $74,448, while England's John Kabbaj placed 10th for $49,632, Russian Nokolay Evdakov finished 12th for $49,632, Germany's Andreas Krause was eliminated in 16th place for $33,088, and Alexander Kostritsyn earned the same for his 17th-place finish. Former Card Player Bureau Chief Rolf Slotboom finished 20th for $26,470.

Event No. 2 -- $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em

Englishman James Akenhead reserved his seat at the final table of the $1,500 no-limit hold'em event, which smashed last year's record field with 3,929 entrants. The Hitsquad member enjoyed a great run, including the elimination of Chris Ferguson in third place. Ferguson moved all in preflop for 815,000, and Akenhead made the call. The two players exposed their holecards: Ferguson showed the K 10 and Akenhead the A 10. With the board showing A Q 8 4 5, Ferguson was gone.

Akenhead was up against Grant Hinkle for the bracelet. In the final incredible hand, Hinkle raised to 350,000 preflop and Akenhead reraised to 1.2 million. Hinkle then reraised all in, and Akenhead quickly made the all-in call. They both flipped up their cards, with Hinkle revealing the 10 10 and Akenhead the A K. Amazingly, the board came 10 4 4 10 5. Hinkle flopped a full house, only to improve to quad tens on the turn.

Hinkle won $831,279, sending the Englishman Akenhead to the rail in second place with $520,219.

Also cashing in this event for less than $10,000 were Pia Jeppesen from Denmark (26th), Frenchman Arnaud Mattern (78th), Swede Chris Bjorin (194th), Jac Arama from the UK (249th), Matthew Zola from the UK (310th), and Ciaran Heaney from Northern Ireland (318th).

Event No. 3 -- $1,500 Pot-Limit Hold'em

Event No. 3, $1,500 pot-limit hold'em, attracted 713 players, who created a prize pool of $973,245 and a first prize of $214,122.

The European contingent didn't fare well, with lowly cashes from Philip Yea from Sweden ($9,732), Martin Green from England ($4,574), Wolbert Bartlema from the Netherlands ($3,061), Sven Schmithuysen from Germany ($3,601), Matthaias Kurschner also from Germany ($3,601), and Ronnie Hoffman from the Netherlands ($3,017).

David Singer won the event. He previously had cashed 18 times in the WSOP, with fourth place his previous highest finish.

Event No. 4 -- $5,000 Mixed Hold'em

The $5,000 mixed-hold'em event drew 332 players, who built a $1.56 million prize pool. Former Irish Open and European Poker Tour winner Roland de Wolfe was the last European standing, making the final table, but he fell short of the finish line when he was knocked out in fourth place by Justin Bonomo. Erick Lindgren emerged victorious, capturing with his first gold bracelet and $374,505 in prize money.

Phil Laak finished 24th for his second cash and $12,483, while Andy Black made his first cash, pocketing $10,992 for his 35th-place finish.

Event No. 5 -- $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em With Rebuys

Day two of this event, $1,000 no-limit hold'em with rebuys, saw Englishman Peter Gould successfully make his way to the final nine. Earlier in the session, with the blinds at 3,000-6,000, Gould and John Juanda put all of their chips in the pot. Juanda had raised to 14,000 from the cutoff, Gould had reraised to 54,000 from the button, and with only 130,000 in chips remaining, Juanda had opted only to call. Juanda immediately pushed his remaining 90,000 in when the flop came Q 7 6. Gould went into the tank, believing Juanda had a strong hand. Ultimately, he made the call and was relieved to see his 10 10 ahead of Juanda's A K. The turn and river were the 9 and Q, respectively, and Gould walked away from the table to celebrate.

At the final table, Gould called an all-in bet twice while holding pocket fives against Jeff Williams. Beaten by Williams' A 9, Gould returned the favour three hands later when his fives withstood Williams' K 4. Gould's dreams of a first bracelet were dashed when Michael Banducci raised to 100,000 preflop and Gould reraised to 480,000. Banducci moved all in with the 7 7, and Gould made the all-in call with the 10 10. The board came J 9 7 2 5, and Gould was eliminated in third place, taking home $245,993 in prize money.

Banducci went on to top the 766-player field and take down $636,736.

Event No. 6 -- $1,500 Omaha Eight-or-Better

Another WSOP record fell when event No. 6 became the largest Omaha eight-or-better tournament, with 833 entrants. The first prize was $243,342 from a prize pool of $1,137,045.

Thang Luu scooped the top prize after beating Englishman Spencer Lawrence heads up in the final. Luu had taken a 3-1 chip lead on Lawrence. Lawrence was not catching anything on any flop, and as a result was forced to commit the rest of his stack with a marginal holding. On the final hand, Luu raised preflop and Lawrence made the call. The flop came down K 8 7, and Luu bet once again. After Lawrence raised, Luu put him all in and Lawrence made the call, showing 9 6 5 5 for a diamond and wrap draw. Unfortunately, his diamonds were dead when Luu showed K 7 4 3. The turn and river were the K and 8, respectively, and Luu made a full house to take the pot, the title, and the bracelet.

Late Night Poker legend Jac Arama from the UK finished 12th for $13,986 while Samuel Hapak and Richard Toth from Hungary made $2,729, as did Rolf Slotboom from the Netherlands with his second cash of the Series.

Event No. 7 -- $2,000 No-Limit Hold'em

The $2,000 no-limit hold'em event attracted 1,592 players. Romanian Mihai Manole and Chris Bjorin from Sweden made the charge for the bracelet, only to be eliminated in fifth and sixth place, respectively. A desperately short-stacked Bjorin moved all in from under the gun for his last 61,000. Both Manole and Carter Gill made the call. The flop came Q 10 5, and Manole and Gill checked. The turn was the 9, and both players checked once again. The river brought the 8, and still there was no action. With no side pot, all three players turned up their hands. Bjorin: K 9, Manole: 6 4, and Gill: 7 6.

Bjorin unknowingly held the lead going to the river, where Gill peeled off an 8 for the inside straight. Gill raked the pot while Bjorin was sent home in sixth place, earning $123,141.

Shortly thereafter, Theo Tran raised to 60,000 from under the gun, and the action was folded around to Manole, who reraised to 160,000 from the small blind. Tran made the call, and the flop came 8 5 3. Manole bet 150,000, and Tran raised to 350,000. Manole reraised all in, and Tran made a quick call. Manole turned over the A 8 for top pair with top kicker, while Tran showed the 5 5 for middle set. The turn brought the 10 and Manole was drawing dead to an inconsequential river card (Q). Manole was eliminated in fifth place, collecting $155,013.

Matt Keikoan emerged victorious from his heads-up battle with Shannon Shorr, earning the gold bracelet and $550,601.

There were also minor cashes (less than $8,000) for players from Sweden, Norway, Scotland, England, and the Netherlands.

Event No. 8 -- $10,000 World Championship Mixed Event

The $10,000 world championship mixed event drew a field of 192 players, creating a prize pool of $1,804,800. Europeans fell short of the final table, with the best performance coming from Denmark's Gus Hansen, who finished 10th for $45,120.
After being crippled just before the scheduled break, Hansen's tournament fate was sealed during the limit hold'em round. Eli Elezra raised from the button, and Hansen three-bet from the small blind. Elezra called. The flop fell J J 8, and all the money went in. Elezra was ahead with the A 9 against Hansen's K Q. The turn and river did nothing for Gus, and Elezra's double-up left Hansen with less than 24,000 in chips. He was eliminated on the next hand by Sam Farha.

The $483,688 first prize was won by Tony Rivera.

Event No. 9 -- $2,000 No-Limit Hold'em Sixhanded

Dutchman Michiel Brummelhuis played fantastically in the $1,500 no-limit hold'em sixhanded event, which attracted 1,236 players. He carved himself out a seat at the final table and a shot at the lion's share of the $1,687,140 prize pool.

However, he was the first to be eliminated of the final six. Rep Porter (754,000) got all of his chips into the middle against Brummelhuis (916,000), and they turned up their hands; Porter: K K, and Brummelhuis: A Q. The board came 10 5 2 3 10, and Porter doubled up.

Brummelhuis earned $53,314, and Porter went on to win the bracelet and $372,843.

German Jan von Halle, husband of last year's bracelet winner Katja Thater, finished 11th for $19,571, while Russia's Nikolay Evdakov finished 24th for $16,243 and his second cash of the Series.

Event No. 10 -- $2,500 Omaha/Seven-Card Stud Eight-or-Better

Event No. 10, $2,500 Omaha/seven-card stud eight-or-better, drew a field of 388 players, all hoping for a piece of the $892,400 prize pool. Farzad Rouhani got the best of it with $232,911 for first place. The final table was expected to run long due to the nature of the game, but because of Rouhani's chip lead throughout, it was all over in six hours. Out of the first 10 events of the Series, this final table was the fastest to produce a winner.

European cashes were lower down the ladder, with former WSOP gold-bracelet winner Jeffrey Lisandro earning $6,247 for 19th place, and Parisian Claude Cohen receiving the same for a slightly better finish of 17th place.

Event No. 11 -- $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em Shootout

The $5,000 no-limit hold'em shootout attracted 360 entrants. The total prize pool amounted to $1,692,000. This was the first all North American final table of the 2008 WSOP, as up to this point, all of the events had a multinational final table.

The Europeans who cashed took home $16,920. They were all knocked out around the same time, with some eliminated one after another. Italian Pier Ruscalla was the first of them to go in 36th place, and Christopher Howard from England was the last in 27th place. In 30th through 33rd place were Andrey Zaichenko (Russia), Mats Gavatin (Sweden), Antanas Guoga (Lithuania), and Paul Roper (Ireland), respectively.

Philip Tom was the champion and the new owner of a gold bracelet and $477,990.

Event No. 12 -- $1,500 Limit Hold'em

A prize pool of $1,201,200, with a first prize of $257,105, was created by 888 players in the $1,500 limit hold'em event. Jimmy Shultz was the last player standing. A couple of Europeans who did well were German Christoph Niesert and Austrian Markus Gosler.

Niesert was eliminated in eighth place after Zach Fellows and Jimmy Shultz both had him covered when he moved all in preflop. The two players checked down a board of J 9 5 K Q before Fellows flipped up the K 8. Shultz and Niesert mucked and Niesert was sent home with $32,432. Niesert finished third in the mixed hold'em competition last year.
Mark Golser had a roller-coaster ride late in the event. Facing elimination, the Austrian - who had not made a final table in the Series since 2000 - went all in and tripled up with the J 9 versus the K 10. However, all was not calm on the horizon when he later called a raise of 40,000 from Shultz preflop. The flop rolled out Q 10 9, and Golser moved all in for 20,000. Shultz made the call and the two players turned up their hands: Golser had the A J, and Shultz the 9 7. The turn and river bricked out and Golser was eliminated in sixth place, for $53,453.

Italian Marco Traniello was eliminated in 53rd place, earning him more WSOP cashes than any other poker player since 2005 -- with the exception of Humberto Brenes, who also has 16. Other Europeans who cashed were Jan Sjavik from Norway ($4,324) and Felix Bohle from Germany ($3,243).

Event No. 13 -- $2,500 No-Limit Hold'em

The $2,500 no-limit hold'em final table was one of the least experienced lineups in the history of the WSOP. None of them had ever played at a World Series final table before, and four of the nine had never cashed in a WSOP event, either. A total of 1,398 players generated a substantial prize pool of $3,213,100, including the first prize of $666,697.

Frenchman Nicholas Levi was the first of the final table to go. He cashed for $59,442. Two hands into play of the final table, Levi was all in for 225,000 and Steve Merrifield made the call. Levi showed down pocket sevens in a race against Merrifield's A 10. The board ran out 10 6 6 8 10, and Levi exited in ninth place.

Duncan Bell battled the remaining seven and successfully took down the top prize.

Only 99 players, significantly less than the typical 10 percent, finished in the money. Included in those 99 were: Jacques Zaicik ($22,170) from France, Matthias Kuerschner ($14,138) from Germany, Asger Boye ($10,925) from Denmark, Mihai Manole ($10,925) from Romania, Peter Robinson ($10,925) from England, Anthony Phillips ($9,961) from England, Charles Chattha ($9,961) from England, David Gent ($8,997) from Scotland, Nicholas Gibson ($8,033) from England, Vladamir Poleshchuk ($7,069) from Russia, and Jamel Maistriaux ($6,426) from Belgium.

Event No. 14 -- $10,000 World Championship Seven-Card Stud

Two Russians who made their mark on the $10,000 world championship seven-card stud event were Alexander Kravchenko and Alexander Kostritsyn.

Kravchenko finished 13th out of 158, earning $29,704. Kostritsyn faired even better when he finished in third place ($163,372). The Russian's roll ended when he raised all in on fifth street and Eric Brooks made the call. Their cards after seventh street were: Kostritsyn, (K 4) 4♣ K 3 10 (10), and Brooks, (A 8) 7 A 7 10 (K). Brooks then went on to scoop the top prize of $415,856 from a total prize pool of $1,485,200.

Event No. 15 -- $1,000 Ladies No-Limit Hold'em World Championship

A field of 1,190 women came out for the $1,000 ladies no-limit hold'em world championship event, making it the second-largest ladies-only event ever. Europe was represented by only one player -- German Michelle Lam -- who cashed out $3,032 in 61st place. Sparsely scattered among a predominantly American field were Argentina, Gibraltar, and Canada. Americans won out, however, and excluded them from the final table, where they went on to fight it out for the championship bracelet, a limited-edition Corum watch, and the cash prize. After a great tournament, Anh Le once again fell just short of her ultimate goal, taking home second-place prize money of $144,567. She finished second to Jennifer Tilly in the same event in 2005. New Yorker Svetlana Gromenkova was crowned the winner, earning her first WSOP bracelet and $224,702 of the $1,082,900 prize pool.

Event No. 16 -- $2,000 Omaha Eight-or-Better

There was no international presence among the final 18 of the $2,000 Omaha eight-or-better event, and with a total prize pool of $1,006,460, only two cashes went to Europe: Thang Nguyen ($5,535) from Germany and James Bord ($4,025) from England. Andrew Brown took the top prize of $226,483 and his first gold bracelet after he topped 552 opponents. The event saw a 3 percent increase over last year's attendance.

Interestingly, the third-place finisher, Jim Pechac, was down to just a single 1,000 chip when the last hand of day two was dealt. Doubling up, he then went on an amazing roll, only to eventually bust out on day three in third place. Pechac's lucky chip earned him $88,065.

Event No. 17 -- $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Shootout

With 10 players remaining out of 1,000 entrants in the $1,500 no-limit hold'em shootout, Russian Rybachenko was knocked out in eighth place and Kyle Bowker in sixth place during the same hand.

Bowker raised 100,000. John Strzemp III called from the cutoff and Mike Schwartz called from the button. Rybachenko moved all in from the small blind for a little more than 250,000. When it got back to Bowker, he too moved all in (637,000), and so did Schwartz. Strzemp folded, and it was a three-way all-in pot. Schwartz had them both covered. The board came J 4 2 9 A. Rybachenko had the K K, Bowker the Q 9, and Schwartz the A Q. Rybachenko led with a pair of kings. The turn gave Bowker a small piece of the board, but the ace on the river gave Schwartz what he needed, and Rybachenko was eliminated, earning $15,698, followed by Bowker, who took home $23,888. Although Rybachenko and Bowker were eliminated on the same hand, Bowker got the better finish based on the fact that going into the hand, he had more chips. Jason Young, who had the chip lead, faced Schwartz in the final duel. Young emerged victorious, taking home $335,565.

Europeans who cashed earlier in the event for $5,596 were: Jesper Hougard (Belgium), Alon Shahar, (Denmark), Patrick O'Connor (Ireland), Paul Ferner (England), Noah Boeken (Netherlands), Anthony Roux (England), Frank Blumlein (Germany), Andrey Zaichenko (Russia), Fabio Coppola (Italy), and Marco Liesy (Germany).

A total prize pool of $1,370,596 was on offer.

Event No. 18 -- $5,000 No-Limit Deuce-to-Seven Draw Lowball With Rebuys

This year's $5,000 no-limit deuce-to-seven draw lowball with rebuys event enjoyed a 9 percent increase over last year's turnout. This made it the largest of its kind in WSOP history with 85 players. The total prize pool of $1,735,020 was also the largest in the history of the event. Apart from the final seven, there were seven others who cashed. They included Dario Alioto ($34,700) from Italy and Nikolay Evdakov ($26,025) from Russia.

Frenchman David Benyamine and Lithuanian Antanas Guoga, aka Tony G, joined five former gold-bracelet winners to make up the final table, fighting it out for the hefty cash prize of $537,857. Benyamine and Guoga were the only players at the final table who had never won bracelets, and they were the first to go as the game progressed to the final two.

Erick Lindgren raised to 40,000, and Guoga made the call. Benyamine then moved all in for 146,000, and Lindgren was the only caller. Benyamine stood pat, and Lindgren drew one. Benyamine then turned over J-8-7-4-2 and Lindgren showed his draw, 8-5-4-2. Lindgren needed a 3, 6, 7, 9, 10, or jack to bust Benyamine. He turned over a 7 to make his hand. Benyamine was sent to the rail in seventh place, taking home $58,991.

Hopes also were dashed for Guoga when he was sent out next in sixth place. Lindgren raised to 40,000 and Guoga moved all in for his last 140,000. Lindgren called and both drew one card. Lindgren drew a 9-8-6-5-4, and Guoga paired his deuce to bust out.

Eventually, it was down to the final two: Jeff Lisandro and Mike Matusow. Lisandro was eliminated in second place, taking home $347,004. Victorious Matusow was awarded his third gold bracelet, as well as $537,857 in prize money.

Despite the fact that, after 18 events, Europeans had yet to win a gold bracelet this year, there have been some valiant attempts. There perhaps could be surprises in store from players who currently are struggling to find their game, and others who have just arrived. Although it is proving to be a disappointing Series for Europe so far, there is still so much left to fight for. They have made it to final tables, so now can they leap that final hurdle and take home the gold?

Check out Card Player next month for a roundup of the remaining events.