The Top 10 Stories Of The 2012 World Series of Poker

The World Series of Poker main event is now on hold until October, but in the meantime, let’s take a look back at one of the most exciting summers in poker history. There were 60 preliminary events that took place at the Rio, with 67,639 entrants generating prize pools that totaled $157,413,679.

There were 64 countries that had at least one person make the money in an event. Leading the way was the United States, with over 5,200 cashes. Canada came in second, followed by the United Kingdom, France and Russia.

Russian pro Konstantin Puchkov led the way with 11 cashes, breaking the old record of 10 held by fellow countryman Nikolay Evdakov, who passed away earlier this year. Notables Zachary Clark, Terrence Chan and Joe Tehan all finished with nine cashes in a tie for second place.

Here are the top ten major headlines for the 2012 WSOP.

10. Nick Schulman Wins 2-7 Lowball Championship For Second Time

It would have been easy for Nick Schulman to slink into the shadows after his quick exit from the $1 million buy-in Big One For One Drop event, but the dedicated grinder knew that one of his favorite tournaments was right around the corner. Schulman topped a stacked field in the $10,000 2-7 single draw lowball championship for his second career bracelet, the first coming in that exact same event back in 2009.

Schulman was awarded $294,321 for his accomplishment, defeating a final table that included the likes of John Juanda, Mike Wattel, Ashton Griffin, George Danzer and Benjamin Parker. Schulman now has $5.4 million in lifetime tournament earnings.

9. Matt Matros Wins Back-To-Back-To-Back Bracelets

Card Player columnist Matt Matros made history this summer when he won the $1,500 six-max no-limit hold’em event, earning his third gold bracelet in as many years. It’s an accomplishment that has only been done five other times, and never in the modern poker era.

The 35-year-old full-time pro, part-time writer banked $454,835 for his 2012 win, $305,501 for his 2011 win and $189,870 for his 2012 win, making up a decent portion of his $2.4 million career earnings. Matros was featured in a recent issue of Card Player magazine, which you can check out in the archives on the CardPlayer.com homepage.

8. Andy Bloch Finally Earns WSOP Gold After Numerous Close Calls

For years, Andy Bloch was regarded as the best player to have never won a WSOP bracelet. Since 1995, the MIT and Harvard Law School graduate has been plugging away at the summer series, cashing 28 times and making 8 final tables. Twice, the former blackjack card counter finished second. Most notably, he was runner-up to Chip Reese in the inaugural $50,000 Players Championship.

Now, he can breathe a sigh of relief, knowing that his poker legacy has been sealed with his first bracelet victory. Bloch took down event number 7, the $1,500 stud tournament, defeating Barry Greenstein heads-up for the $126,363 first-place prize. Bloch went on to finish third in the 2012 Players Championship for an additional $561,738. He now has nearly $5.1 million in lifetime tournament earnings.

7. Women Dominate At WSOP

There are always going to be more male bracelet winners than female bracelet winners at the WSOP, but this summer, the women outperformed the men, cashing and final tabling far more than their 3 percent of total entries would suggest.

Among the women who excelled this summer were bracelet winners Allyn Jaffrey Shulman, Vanessa Selbst and Yen Dang, along with runner-up finishers Patricia Baker, Amanda Musumeci and Jackie Glazier. Other women with final table appearances included Xuan Liu, Marsha Waggoner, Lori Kirgan, Caroline Hermesh, Bonnie Rossi, and Cherish Andrews.

6. Phil Ivey Makes Five WSOP Final Tables

Last summer, Phil Ivey was a no-show at the World Series of Poker. This summer, he showed up at a final table just about every week. Though Ivey never managed to secure his ninth gold bracelet, he did wow the poker world by cashing a total of seven times, with five final table appearances.

Ivey started off his summer with a seventh-place run in the $5,000 stud eight-or-better event and then followed that up with a min-cash in a shootout. He then took second to Andy Frankenberger in the $10,000 pot-limit hold’em championship and third three days later in the $5,000 Omaha eight-or-better event. Ivey finished off his series with a fifth-place showing in the $10,000 H.O.R.S.E event, an eight-place finish in the $2,500 mixed hold’em event and another min-cash in a massive $1,000 no-limit hold’em tournament. All told, the man regarded as the best player in the world did not disappoint, earning a combined $576,052.

5. The Shulman Family Finals Tables Three Events In One Week

Early on in the series, Card Player publisher Barry Shulman made the final table of a $1,500 no-limit hold’em tournament, finishing in eighth place. That result alone would have been impressive, but making the accomplishment even more unbelievable was the emergence of Card Player CEO Jeff Shulman, who finished in third place in the $5,000 limit hold’em event on the same day.

Not to be outdone, the matriarch of the family, Allyn Jaffrey Shulman, captured her first gold bracelet and $603,713 just a few days later by taking down the $1,000 Seniors Championship, becoming the third member of the family to make a final table at the Series, an accomplishment that has never been done before. All told, the Shulman family collected an impressive $759,876 in 2012 WSOP earnings.

4. Vanessa Selbst Wins Yet Another Open Event At WSOP

Had Vanessa Selbst rested on the accomplishment of her fourth-place finish in a $1,500 no-limit hold’em event for $161,345 it still would have been a solid and profitable summer. Instead, the near miss made her more hungry for a title, which she earned by winning event number 52, the $2,500 10-game mix tournament.

Along with $244,259, Selbst earned her second career gold bracelet and the honor of being only the second woman in poker history to earn two open-event bracelets, the first being Jennifer Harman. The 27-year-old’s first victory came in 2008 in a pot-limit Omaha event. In just seven years of part-time play, the Yale University Law School graduate has pocketed over $5.4 million.

3. The Grinder Wins $50,000 WSOP Players Championship Again

Just a couple years removed from a horrific slump, Michael Mizrachi proved why he is still one of the greatest tournament poker players in the game by taking down his second $50,000 Players Championship title, along with his third career WSOP bracelet and the $1,559,046 first-place prize.

Mizrachi has been on a complete tear since the start of the 2010 series, winning three titles, making 12 final tables and racking up four six-figure scores and three seven-figure paydays. In addition to his second Players Championship title, Mizrachi also made two additional WSOP final tables and recently finished third in the WPT Championship. With $13,883,621, the man known as “The Grinder” now sits in seventh place on the all-time tournament earnings leader board.

2. Phil Hellmuth Increases His Bracelet Lead By Winning Number 12

One year after finishing runner-up on three separate occasions, Phil Hellmuth finally earned his record 12th WSOP gold bracelet, taking down the $2,500 Razz event for $182,793. Hellmuth defeated a field of 308 players, earning his first non-hold’em bracelet, on the same night that Phil Ivey gunned for his ninth. Ivey fell short, Hellmuth did not.

Incredibly, the 48-year-old managed to rack up two other final table finishes during the Series, including a fourth-place showing at the $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. event for another $134,056 and a massive fourth-place finish in the $1 Million Big One For One Drop event that paid out $2,645,333. The man known as “The Poker Brat” now has over $15.6 million in lifetime earnings.

1. Antonio Esfandiari Wins Big One For One Drop, Becomes All-Time Earnings Leader

A total of 48 players put up the $1 million buy-in for the richest tournament in poker history, the Big One For One Drop. The tournament, which awarded $111,111 from every buy-in to the One Drop Foundation, sold out, with as many as 10 players joining a waiting list to get in on the action.

The final table played out live on ESPN and featured a notable group of poker pros and businessmen who were all gunning for the $18,346,673 first-place prize. Among those who made the money were Mike Sexton, Bobby Baldwin, Brian Rast, Phil Hellmuth, David Einhorn, eventual runner-up Sam Trickett and the tournament’s organizer, Cirque Du Soleil founder Guy Laliberté. But the night belonged to Antonio Esfandiari, who became the all-time tournament earnings leader with his victory, giving him a total of $22,978,570. Erik Seidel currently sits in second-place, with $16.9 million. ♠

Honorable Mention Headlines

John Monnette Wins Second Bracelet, Makes Three Final Tables

Andy Frankenberger, Oleksii Kovalchuk Each Earn Second Bracelet In As Many Years

Joe Cassidy Gets On The Board With His First Bracelet

Both Players Named David Baker Claim WSOP Gold

Japan Gets First Bracelet Winner In Naoya Kihara

Germany Nabs Two Titles With Jan Peter Jachtmann And Dominik Nitsche