Thoughts on the World Series of Poker

To say that the 2008 World Series of Poker exceeded all expectations is an understatement. There were several new events – many with $10,000 buy-ins – and the number of entrants in most of the 55 events was up from last year, some by a substantial margin. Even the main event had about 500 more entrants than last year. Of course, we will have to wait until November until a new champion is crowned, but I think that is a good thing. There has been a lot of controversy over the decision to schedule the final table in November. I know this for sure: If I were one of the nine finalists, I would love it. The reasons are simple. The extra publicity and time to make endorsement deals, plus the time to rest and prepare, would be worth it to me. By the time you make it through that massive field to the final table, you're already exhausted, and in many instances are probably a basket case. The November timing gives you time to regroup, get some rest, and better prepare yourself. Since everybody is guaranteed at least $900,000, and the winner gets more than $9 million, this does not seem like a hardship. The build-up in interest as to who the eventual champion will be is also good for poker, in my opinion. I think the television ratings will go through the roof when the final table is played.



I experienced heartbreak this year in the main event. I got the best run of cards that I have ever had, but lost two key pots when I ran into sets, and went out in the last round of day one. I had aces six times and kings once; I won six out of seven of those hands, but the one I lost crippled me. I had two black aces and made it 2,800 to go preflop. It already had been raised once to 800 and called, so I reraised when it got to me. Both players called, and the flop came K 10 7. I now had the overpair and the nut-flush draw. The original raiser checked, the second player then bet 4,000, and I had to decide what to do. I finally made the decision to move in. I had both players covered, so I would not go broke if I lost, but about two-thirds of my stack would disappear. The first player agonized and finally folded. He later said he had A-K. The other player correctly put me on a big pair and a flush draw. He had flopped a set of tens and made the call. His hand held up, so catching all of those big pairs had not done me much good, because the other pots I had won with them had been small. Later on, I went out when I was down to about 14,000 in chips, when I was in the big blind for 400 and called a standard raise with the J 10. The raiser was a solid player who I thought had A-K or A-Q, so I knew that I would not get into trouble with him after the flop if I didn't like the situation. One other player called the raise. He was the table chip leader and had been playing at least 50 percent of the pots, so he could have almost anything. The flop came 10-7-6. I checked to see what the raiser would do, and planned to check-raise if it was checked to the loose chip leader. Sure enough, the raiser checked, and the chip leader made a smaller-than-normal bet of 2,500. That should have been a red flag, but I already had made up my mind regarding what I planned to do, so I moved in. This time, he had the goods – a set of sixes – so I had to report to the rail, very unhappy with myself, and with nobody to blame but myself. Oh well, there is always next year. On a happier note, I went deep in the seniors event for the second straight year and finished in 28th place out of 2,218 starters. I finished 34th last year, and went broke to a one-outer.



I would like to make a few other comments and observations. I got to play in the $10,000 pot-limit Omaha event and loved the structure. Not only were the blinds set at a reasonable level – 50-100 to start – but they gave us 20,000 in chips to work with, but not all at once. Everyone started with 10,000 in chips and a special chip that they could redeem for another 10,000 anytime during the first three levels of the tournament. Some players redeemed it right away, but most players and I held off until we either lost the original 10,000 or got short-stacked. As it turned out, I went broke in the third level and then used my extra 10,000 in chips to make a strong comeback. Unfortunately, I ran out of steam late on day one after outlasting more than 70 percent of the field. I bet my last chips on a big wraparound straight draw, and got called by a lone pair of aces that had no other draw. Unfortunately, two blanks came off and I was eliminated. Overall, I loved this year's World Series of Poker, even if my results were not as good as I had planned. I bubbled in three other events and played in 17 total. I now have 39 money finishes at the World Series of Poker, which puts me in the select group of lifetime leaders.



If your aces hold up – or you crack them – I hope to see you in the winner's circle at the 2009 World Series of Poker.



Tom McEvoy is a representative of PokerStars.com He plays there under his own name and is happy to chat when he can. You also can watch Tom's advanced poker training videos at ProPlayLive.com/TomMcEvoy.