World Series of Poker Europe

In late September, almost every great poker player on the planet descended upon the Empire Casino in London to try to win millions of dollars and a WSOPE (World Series of Poker Europe) bracelet. The poker world pretty much unanimously agreed that each of the four WSOPE bracelets would count as a coveted WSOP bracelet, and almost every great poker player wants bracelets, baby! The main event had a £10,000 buy-in, approximately $16,000, and first-place prize money was more than $1 million.

I pulled my usual shenanigans and rode 10 blocks through the heart of London in a chariot, dressed as Caesar! It was pretty weird, and way over the top, to be riding through the streets with double-decker busses whizzing by, thousands of people on the streets snapping photos and wondering what was going on, and paparazzi running alongside me. Yes, I did feel a bit stupid, and I felt like it was too much, but I manned up and played Caesar because I think my entrances are fun, good for me, and good for poker. When I arrived at the Empire Casino, I was escorted into the tournament by 11 models attired in white Roman dresses, and that was a lot of fun. There are videos and photos of my entrance at all of the poker sites.

After arriving, I turned my attention from playing Caesar to playing great poker — or I should say that I tried to turn my attention toward playing great poker. You see, I just haven’t been playing my best poker, primarily because I have been trying different tactics over the last year or two. I have migrated away from tight, patient tactics and moved toward looser, more aggressive tactics, with mixed results. I still managed to make six cashes at the WSOP this year, but I made zero final tables for the first time in like 10 years. Ouch!

The problem with calling raises and reraises with the 8 7 is that you put yourself in a tough position most of the time, and playing these types of hands puts you in spots in which you have to make more decisions. Do you call a big bet when it comes down J-8-2, or fold? Of course, occasionally the 8 7 yields a huge winning result, but more often than not, you can get buried with this hand. There is no doubt that playing these suited connectors causes huge swings. I don’t like huge swings. I like being a steady rock! I like showing my opponents extremely strong, sometimes unbeatable hands when I put my big chips into the pot. I like to play from a position of strength, not weakness or uncertainty.

Anyway, at the WSOPE, I raised with the 10 7 from under the gun, and was called by four players. The flop was 10 9 6, and I opted to bet out 1,500 into the 3,000 pot. The gentleman behind me made it 3,000 to go, everyone else folded, and I decided that I had to go with this hand, as I had only 8,500 more, and this gentleman was a very loose player. So, I moved all in, and he called and showed me 10-9; ouch! I now needed an 8 or two spades to hit. The turn was the miraculous 8, and now my opponent couldn’t win with the 9, as it would give me a straight flush. When the river was another harmless 8, I felt very fortunate to still be in the tournament. I also re-evaluated this style of play. I used to be able to go days without ever being all in, and with this style, I was all in on day one! So, now I am going back to my super-tight, “Classic Phil” strategy — and look out, poker world, you’re going to need some dynamite to knock me out of a poker tournament in the next few years!

Learn more about Phil by going to his website, www.PhilHellmuth.com, and visit his webstore at www.PokerBrat.com.