Meet the 2014 World Series of Poker November Nine

A Record Breaking Summer

Every summer, thousands of poker players descend upon the Rio All Suites Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas for the annual World Series of Poker. A total of 65 different events gave players the opportunity to make history, or perhaps put a sizable dent in their bankroll. For most players, the WSOP is the make or break series of the year. The 2014 series was no different.

This year was yet another record breaking summer for the WSOP, with 82,360 entries recorded and $225,584,873 awarded in prizes. The turnout represented a 3.6 percent increase from the 2013 record of 79,471 players. In the 45-year history of the WSOP, the series has now awarded more than $2 billion in prize money.

“There is only one WSOP,” said Executive Director Ty Stewart. “We’re humbled to have seen this kind of response to our tenth series at the Rio. More than ever before, we embraced the challenge to have something for everyone who loves the game. With some of the biggest events ever organized it is clear poker remains strong and its best days are ahead. We can’t wait to start planning for next year.”

Other records set at the 2014 WSOP included the largest non-hold’em event field size ever, which was the $1,000 pot-limit Omaha event (1,128 entries), the largest Omaha eight-or-better event (1,036 entrants), the largest triple-draw event (348 entrants), and the largest Seniors event ever (4,425 entrants).

Individual Accomplishments

The series also became the stage for a number of individual records. Phil Hellmuth extended his own personal record by adding seven cashes to his resume, bringing his total to 107. He also final tabled two events, giving him 50.

Although Hellmuth was unable to pick up a bracelet, Phil Ivey won one, giving him 10 and moving him into a three-way tie for second place with Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan. Vanessa Selbst took down her third career bracelet, putting her in a tie with Barbrara Enright for the most bracelets won by a female.

Howard “Tahoe” Andrew came to Las Vegas for yet another appearance this summer, marking the 41st consecutive year he has taken part of the summer Series. Tony Cousineau cashed nine times in 2014, making his 67 career cashes the most of any player who has not won a bracelet.

Once again, a player was able to strike gold more than once in a series. German pro George Danzer won both the $10,000 razz and $10,000 seven card stud eight-or-better events as part of his seven total cashes.

Main Event

Not since 2006 has the WSOP main event awarded an eight-figure payday to its champion. This year, it was guaranteed. Caesars Entertainment announced a $10 million first-place prize for the winner, regardless of how big the prize pool became.

After three starting days, a total of 6,683 players entered the $10,000 buy-in event, creating a total prize pool of $62,820,200. The final 693 players made the money, earning at least $18,405. All of the members of the final table are guaranteed at least $730,725.

The average age of a main event participant was 39.28 years old with the youngest being Zachary Zaffos of Weston, Florida, who was 21 years, 1 day old and the oldest being William Wachter of Carmel, New York, who was 93 years old. Once again, the field skewed towards men, with just 282 women entering the tournament.

Among the celebrities who played in the main event were NBA star Paul Pierce, comedians Kevin Pollak and Ray Romano, actor James Woods, NASCAR driver Jason White, French singer Patrick Bruel, soccer player Gerard Pique, cricket player Shane Warne, Hollywood director Nick Cassavetes, and UFC fight announcer Bruce Buffer.

Incredibly, not a single former main event winner made the money. Defending champion Ryan Riess was eliminated on day 3.

The November Nine

After more than a week of grueling tournament action, the field reached the final nine players, otherwise known as the November Nine. A total of 87 different countries entered the main event, so it’s no surprise that the final table will be an international affair, with six nations represented by players from the United States, Brazil, Sweden, Norway, Spain, and the Netherlands.

Each of the final nine players will return in November. The average stack is 22,276,667, and with the blinds at 200,000-400,000 with a 50,000 ante, they’ll be working with an average of nearly 56 big blinds. ESPN will be broadcasting the WSOP starting Sunday, Sep. 28. There will be two hours of coverage each Sunday leading up to the main event final table broadcast on Nov. 10 and 11.

Here’s a look at the November Nine players and chip position.

Seat 1 — William Pappaconstantinou — 17,500,000

William Pappaconstantinou, otherwise known as Billy Pappas, is a 29-year-old world foosball champion from Lowell, Massachusetts. Pappas has very limited poker tournament experience, with just $81,000 in earnings since 2012. His best finish was a fifth-place showing at a WSOP Circuit stop at Palm Beach Kennel Club last year for $52,372.

Seat 2 — Felix Stephensen — 32,775,000

Felix Stephensen is a 23-year-old from Oslo, Norway, who is playing in his second WSOP main event. His experience is even more limited than Pappas, with just one tournament cash on his poker resume, a 92nd-place finish in the 2013 EPT Barcelona main event for $16,791.

Seat 3 — Jorryt van Hoof — 38,375,000

Going into the final table as the chip leader is 31-year-old poker pro Jorryt van Hoof, from Eindhoven, Netherlands. He is the second Dutch player to make the final table in the last two years, joining 2013 seventh-place finisher Michiel Brummelhuis. van Hoof has $188,000 in tournament earnings, with final table appearances at the Master Classics of Poker and on the European Poker Tour.

Seat 4 — Mark Newhouse — 26,000,000

All eyes will be on 29-year-old Chapel Hill, North Carolina’s Mark Newhouse, who became the first player since Dan Harrington to make back-to-back main event final tables. Newhouse has $2.7 million in career tournament earnings, the majority of which came when he won the 2006 WPT Borgata Open for $1.5 million. In 2013, he finished ninth in the WSOP main event for $733,224.

Seat 5 — Andoni Larrabe — 22,550,000

The youngest player at the final table is 22-year-old Andoni Larrabe from Basque, Spain. Larrabe is the first Spaniard to make the final table since Carlos Mortensen won the main event in 2001. He has $98,000 in tournament earnings, with the majority coming from an 11th-place finish at the 2012 EPT Grand Final main event.

Seat 6 — William Tonking — 15,050,000

William Tonking is a 27-year-old online poker player from Flemington, New Jersey. He has $92,000 in tournament earnings with 10 career cashes. His best result came in the 2012 Sands Deepstack Extravaganza main event, where he took fifth place for $28,000. He also cashed in a WSOP event earlier this summer, earning nearly $4,000 for a 77th-place finish in the $1,500 no-limit hold’em mixed max tournament.

Seat 7 — Daniel Sindelar — 21,200,000

Daniel Sindelar is a 30-year-old professional poker player from Columbus, Nebraska who now resides in Las Vegas. He has $527,000 in career tournament earnings including a $105,312 win in the 2007 Fall Poker Classic main event and a $60,000 win in a Card Player Poker Tour event at the Wynn in 2013.

Seat 8 — Martin Jacobson — 14,900,000

The player coming in with the most live tournament experience is Stockholm, Sweden’s Martin Jacobson. The 27-year-old poker pro, who now lives in London, finished sixth in the 2013 WSOP One Drop High Roller for $807,427. He also has two runner-up finishes on the European Poker Tour, earning $762,185 at EPT Deauville, and $382,156 at EPT Vilamoura. He has over $4.6 million in career tournament earnings.

Seat 9 — Bruno Politano — 12,125,000

Bruno Politano is the first ever Brazilian to make the WSOP main event final table. The 31 year old from Fortaleza works as an administrator and only plays poker as a hobby, but does have some previous tournament experience. His best finish was an eighth-place result at the LAPT Brazil main event for $27,206. ♠