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WSOP Event #2: $40,000 final table under way

Sunday, May 31st, 2009

Under the lights of a sparkling television set, our nine final table players chat nervously together as they are introduced to a packed crowd filling every available space to catch the first major final of this year's WSOP. The finalists have carved through a 201-player field to get here, and each already have $230,317 locked up as a result. Nice, but the big prize comes for outlasting everyone - $1,891,012, tantalisingly laid out in bricks of bills just yards from the action.

The table is awash with talent. We have Team PokerStars Pros Greg Raymer, the 2004 Main Event champion now on his sixth WSOP final table, Lex Veldhuis, the Dutch player who wanted everyone to know "the Europeans are here", and PokerStars player Isaac Haxton, who came second at the PCA two year ago for $861,789. Haxton is a philosophy graduate from New York - who said poker was not a thinking man's game?

Raymer is clearly the crowd favourite - as the players were introduced by tournament director Jack Effel, it was the Fossilman who got by the far the biggest cheer. He's being backed by the general poker community, too, which sees a victory for him as being a another big step in cementing the reputation of the game.

That's not to take anything away from the other players, who all seem to have pockets of support in the stands. Veldhuis has some colorful and attractive backing in the shape of his girlfriend Evelyn Ng, and fellow Team PokerStars Pro Maridu Mayrinck from Brazil. The online star, who goes under the name of 'RaSZi' has banked more than $100,000 in live tournaments to date, but he'll be a far richer man by the end of today.

After shuffle up and deal the early stages have been tight - we did not see a flop for several orbits, although Daniel Stern moved all in to pick up the blinds and antes, starting today at 30,000-60,000 (5,000).

Here are the chip counts at the start of play, level 24:

Isaac Haxton, Pokerstars player, 5,820,000
Vitaly Lunkin, 4,565
Lex Veldhuis, Team PokerStars Holland Pro, 3,525,000
Greg Raymer, Team PokerStars Pro, 3,345,000
Alec Torelli, 2,755,000
Daniel Stern, 1,590,000
Justin Bonomo, 1,530,000
Noah Schwartz, 666,000
Ted Forrest, 425,000

*******

During all the excitement of the $40,000 final table, and the general madness of the $1,000 event, we'll be keeping a close watch on Team PokerStars Germany Pro Sebastian Ruthenberg, currently in the final 13 of the $1,500 Omaha Hi/Low 8 or Better and looking good for a final table place.

Posted in $40K No Limit, 2009, 2009worldseriesofpoker, Pokerstars, World Series of Poker | Comments Off

WSOP Event #4: Honey, I shrunk the bankroll

Sunday, May 31st, 2009

While we wait for the beginning of the final table of the $40K, featuring PokerStars players Greg Raymer, Lex Veldhuis and Isaac Haxton, day 1B of the mammoth-like $1,000 no limit event is in full-blooded swing. With such a huge field - 6,008 over two starting days and rising - bust outs are seemingly happening every few seconds. And that generally means countless loved ones dotted around the world are being told in excrutiating detail about bad beats.

Walking down the corridor in the Rio, you can't help but hear players detailing their exit in painful detail, mostly saying "but I was ahead" to explain away a deduction of $1,000 from the family budget. Here's one guy I heard talking to his wife as they stood crestfallen outside the Amazon Room:

"But I had two kings, so I had to raise."

"Why?"

"To get rid of anyone with an ace."

"Oh, so what happened?"

"Someone called with an ace and hit it. So I'm out."

"So you did not play it very well then?"

"You just.... you just.... oh, forget it."

This $1,000 tournament, especially introduced as a low-cost "stimulous" event by the WSOP (though to be fair $1,000 is still quite a lot of money to most people) has attracted record crowds, To have the Rio jumping like this so early in the Series is a great credit to organisers. It's no Mickey Mouse crapshoot, though. The Pros continue to take it seriously - a bracelet is a bracelet, no matter how you get it.

So today you'll find Team PokerStars Pros Daniel Negreanu, Dario Minieri, Chad Brown and Humberto Brenes among the thousands of hobbyist players, many of whom may well be playing their first ever live event.

Negreanu is off to a decent start, up to over 5,000 from his 3,000 starting stack, and chirping away to his tablemates, who will now have a great WSOP story to tell no matter how their day goes.

*****************

Congratulations to Team PokerStars Pro Andre Akkari, from Brazil, who managed to cash in event #3, the $1,500 Omaha Hi/Low 8 or Better. He finished in 48th place for a $4,925 payout.

Posted in $1,000 No Limit Hold'em, 2009, 2009worldseriesofpoker, Pokerstars, World Series of Poker, danielnegreanu | Comments Off

WSOP Event #4: Ivan, the terrible hair

Saturday, May 30th, 2009

As bad hair days go, this one is a bit of a shocker. Now I'm no expert on the male hairstyle, but I'm told Ivan Demidov has quite a nice head of hair - long and flowing, the ladies call it. But today he has pitched up for the $1,000 No Limit sporting something that can only be described as, well, odd.

Gone are the free-flowing locks, replaced by a curious bead effect that makes the Russian Team PokerStars Pro, who final tabled last year's main event, look like a cross between a tyre tread and a corn dolly. The reason for this monstrous makeover? A prop bet gone bad. That's his excuse anyway.

Ivan Demidov

Someone with a bit more style, and well known to PokerStars, is rap star Nelly. Having gotten the bug for playing poker when he joined us at the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo earlier this month - initially for the Ante Up for Africa tournament, but then he stayed on to play the main event - he's back for more in Vegas.

I think it would be fair to say Mr Nelly is normally quite "full-on", but as he takes his place among the heaving masses of players in the $1,000 jamboree he's gone for the covered-up look, complete with shades and hoody. Having met him a few weeks back, I recognised the tell-tale mega diamond earrings, and the blingy diamond-encrusted watch peeking out from the hoodie sleeve.

Nelly

He might be famous for singing "It's getting hot in here", but today he's been putting on all his clothes.

Gone from the $1,000 are Barry Greenstein - shoving from the small blind with K-8 but being looked up in the big blind with 3-3 - and Vanessa Rousso, who's pocket tens were overtaken by A-2.

We'll bring more news of the $1,000 in later days of the tournament - for now we'll be concentrating on Team PokerStars Pros Greg Raymer and Lex Veldhuis, who are down to the last two tables in the $40,000 No Limit event.

And we'll be keeping an eye on Chad Brown and Andre Akkari, both still slugging it out at the Omaha Hi/Low 8 or Better.

Posted in $1,000 No Limit Hold'em, 2009, 2009worldseriesofpoker, Pokerstars, World Series of Poker, ivandemidov, nelly | Comments Off

WSOP Event #4: Madness and carnage… it can only be the $1K

Saturday, May 30th, 2009

After the casino staff played event #1, the high rollers coughed up $40,000 for event #2, and folk who play tricky games like Omaha Hi-Low 8 or Better played event #3, the seething masses today got what they wanted to kick off their WSOP - the $1,000 no limit hold'em "Stimulous" event, so called because tournament staff wanted something big to help the first weekend go with a bang.

Well, let me tell you, it's not so much a bang as an explosion... an incredible 6,000 have registered, with half of them sitting down today for 1A, and the other half coming tomorrow for their shot at World Series glory.

With the relatively small buy-in attracting such huge numbers, some have cruelly called this a donkfest. That's a little unkind, and a quick walk around the rooms (yes, the throng means the players are spread around four rooms, from the main Amazon all the way up to the Rio casino area) shows big names are taking this as seriously as they would any event. And why not? There's a bracelet to be won, after all.

So joining the 6,000 or so "Joe Publics" are some of the game's stars. There's Team PokerStars Pros Barry Greenstein, Vanessa Rousso (fresh from her $78,000 cash in the $40,000 event), Ivan Demidov and there was Maridu Mayrinck, but word reaches us of her early demise.

And while all this blood-letting is going on, day three of the $40,000 event is due to start soon, with Team PokerStars Pros Greg Raymer and Lex Veldhuis in the hunt for big money, as well as day two of the Omaha Hi-Low 8 or Better, where Chad Brown and Andre Akkari are still going strong.

It's going to be a busy day!

Posted in $1,000 No Limit Hold'em, 2009, 2009worldseriesofpoker, Pokerstars, World Series of Poker | Comments Off

WSOP Event #2: Team PokerStars Pros on a roll

Friday, May 29th, 2009

There was never any doubt that players in the elite Team PokerStars Pro were awash with talent, but just to emphasise the point they are currently taking the $40,000 No Limit Hold'em event by storm. With just 40 players left from the 201 who sat down yesterday, two of our big guns are in the top ten, and three more are in a good position to join them.

Heading the pack, and indeed the whole field, is 2004 WSOP Main Event champion Greg Raymer who, after spending the first few levels of the day treading water, has burst into life and now tops 1.6 million chips - the latest chunk of them coming from busting James "Mig.com" Mackey - when his [as][kc] remained ahead of [kc][qs].

Lex Veldhuis

Not far behind, and currently second in chips, is Team PokerStars Holland Pro Lex "RaSZi" Veldhuis, now on 1,250,000. He had been quiet for a level, then lost a pot to Sorel Mizzi sitting to his left, but since building a big stack yesterday he has never really looked back.

Then there is Chris Moneymaker, who won the WSOP the year before Raymer, still going strong on 730,000 and just outside the top ten. He had been nudging one million, but fell back a bit after doubling up Noah Schwartz when his 7-7 was no good against K-K. Moneymaker said he was now able to slow his game down when it mattered, and so far today he's making it work.

On top of these three, Vanessa Rousso is breathing new life into her tournament hopes. Down to 80,000 not so long ago, she's clawed her way back to just under 300,000. And then there's Humberto Brenes. while never actually looking like he was getting anything significant going today, he's actually quietly put together a 400,000 stack.

Top ten chip counts, level 16, blinds 8,000-16,000 (2,000), 39 players left:

Greg Raymer, Team PokerStars Pro, 1,612,000
Lex Veldhuis, Team PokerStars Holland Pro, 1,250,000
Keith Lehr, 1,080,000
Matthew Marafioti, 1,080,000
Matthew Glantz, 1,058,000
Brian Townsend, 1,015,000
Justin Bonomo, 980,000
Ted Forrest, 915,000
Vitaly Lunkin, 915,000
Steve Zolotow, 845,000

Posted in $40K No Limit, 2009, 2009worldseriesofpoker, Pokerstars, World Series of Poker | Comments Off

WSOP Event #2: Strassmann falls to Moneymaker, Raymer soars

Friday, May 29th, 2009

Johannes Strassmann has become a force to be reckoned with in tournament poker, but he ran into the wrong man at the wrong time costing him his place in the $40,000 No Limit event. That man was Team PokerStars Pro Chris Moneymaker, who soars close to the one million chip mark as a result.

Strassmann, a member of Team PokerStars Germany Pro, has built up $820,000 in tournament winnings in EPT and WSOP events, and was deep here, inside the last 50 players with the money looming at 27th. But Moneymaker is a man rejuvinated, and it would take something special to set him back.

Johannes Strassmann

As it was, the pair were locked in a pot with the board showing Q-6-4. Strassmann led out, and Moneymaker re-popped another 55,000. The German moved all in, insta call, and they were on their backs:

Moneymaker: [ks][kh]
Strassmann: [ac][qd]

Moneymaker waked away, not liking the option of watching the remaining two cards come from the deck. But the turn was a 9 and the river a K - and Moneymaker raked in another 200,000.

"You could'nt bear to watch, hey?" shouted a member of the nearby rail.

"No. If I watch bad things tend to happen," came the reply, as Moneymaker stacked up the goods.

Greg Raymer

Also happy right now are Greg Raymer and Vanessa Rousso. Raymer shot through the million mark by busting Huck Seed and then Chad Batista soon after. Seed pushed from the button once too often with [6c][7c]. Raymer pondered, then made the call with [kh][9d], which held up. "I had to call," said the Fossilman. "He'd been pushing with so many hands."

The 2004 WSOP champ then accounted for Batista. The pair saw a flop of [2d][3h][jd] and Batista pushed with [kd][7d] for the flush draw to Raymer's [8h][8c]. Nothing changed and Raymer moved up among the chip leaders.

Rousso, meanwhile, found the golden double up she'd been waiting for when her [ks][4h] overtook fellow short-stack Bruno Fotoussi's [ad][qc] - and then doubled again with 10-10 v A-K to take her to 360,000 on the dinner break.

Vanessa Rousso

When they come back, blinds will be 6,000-12,000 (1,000). With just 45 players left, the average stack is 548,000 - just 45 big blinds. Tournament staff say the plan is to play four more levels after dinner, or down to 18 players, whichever comes first.

Posted in $40K No Limit, 2009, 2009worldseriesofpoker, Pokerstars, World Series of Poker, chrismoneymaker, johannesstrassmann | Comments Off

WSOP Event #3: No luck for Naujoks, Negreanu flying

Friday, May 29th, 2009

Sandra Naujoks proved her poker prowess by winning her home EPT in Dortmund back in March, a spectacular performance that also happened to net her $1.3 million. So what's a girl to do with all that money? Head to Vegas and try and make some more, obviously. But her mission stuttered soon after it started today when she busted from the $1,500 Omaha Hi/Low 8 or Better event.

Sandra Naujoks

The Team PokerStars Germany Pro had dwindled down to just a few hundred chips from her 4,500 starting stack, and lost those on the first hand after moving from the table she had been sharing with Chad Brown for nearly four one-hour levels.

Having watched her play in Dortmund, it's a fair bet she'll be back on the money-making trail here at the WSOP very soon.

Team PokerStars Pros Daniel Negreanu, Barry Greenstein and Brown are faring much better. Negreanu has eased up to 12,500, Brown is on 11,000 and Greenstein is on about 7,000.

Negreanu and Greenstein are both updating their Twitter pages, so you should take a look here, and right here, for news of their progress.

Posted in 2009, 2009worldseriesofpoker, Pokerstars, World Series of Poker, sandranaujoks | Comments Off

WSOP Event #2: Brenes waits… and waits

Friday, May 29th, 2009

There's nothing worse than being card dead, particularly in a tournament such as this. When your stack is trickling away and the blinds are moving north, you're praying for the type of hand that can double you up and get you going once more. When all you are dealt is drivel, it's like the poker gods are sucking the life out of you... painfully and slowly.

Humberto Brenes

Judging by the expressions of Team PokerStars Pro Humberto Brenes, this is exactly what's happening to him on day two of the $40,000 No Limit Hold'em event. He's chewing on his gum faster and harder than ever (there are four packets in front of him), and each time he's dealt two cards, the response seems to be the same.

He looks down at the dealer's offering, the shoulders slump and he glances at the sky in a "not this garbage again" sort of way. The cards go in the muck and he waits patiently to repeat the process again. And it's starting to cost - he's down to little over 150,000, still plenty of play with blinds at 3,000-6,000, but it's a great test of his mental strength.

During all this he had to watch Brian Townsend, sitting to his right, hoovering up chips that sent him over 1,000,000, then got moved to the same table as Chris Moneymaker. Chris, who told us earlier of his improved game, needs to use his new-found patience after dropping 200,000 in the first few levels of play. He's still on over 600,000, so no need to panic.

No need to panic either for Team PokerStars Pro John Duthie. No need to do anything, in fact, because like Friend of PokerStars Bill Chen, he's out. Both fell holding the same hand, pocket tens.

Duthie was particularly unlucky. Starting the day with 188,000, he was in the big blind and when the small blind - Frank Kassela - raised it up, Duthie put out 50,000 more. Kassela insta called. The flop was 2-3-J and Duthie, pushed with 10-10 ("I did not put him on jacks"), and was called by 8-8. But an 8 on the turn ended Duthie's day early.

Meanwhile Greg Raymer was playing a patient game, but has now risen above 400,000 after his A-J overtook Ville Wahlbeck's pocket kings.

Now challenging the chip lead is Team PokerStars Holland Pro Lex Veldhuis, who has broken the one million mark. We'll have more news of his progress soon.

65 players remain in the event, and the money kicks in at 27th place with $71,858.

*******

STOP PRESS: The magic of the blogger works again. No sooner had we put up this post when Humberto Brenes finally found a hand, pushed, and got a caller. His A-K was up against Antonio Esfandiari's A-J - and stayed ahead, putting him on nearly 300,000.

He's a happy Humberto now.

Posted in $40K No Limit, 2009, 2009worldseriesofpoker, Pokerstars, World Series of Poker, humbertobrenes | Comments Off

WSOP Event #2: I’ve got the monkey off my back, says Moneymaker

Friday, May 29th, 2009

Chris Moneymaker's superb run during day one of the $40,000 no limit yesterday impressed not just because of his chip count (805,000), but for the manner in which he got there. Since we watched in awe when he won the WSOP main event in 2003, he'll be the first to admit his form since has been patchy.

Now, in a typically modest interview with the PokerStars Blog, Chris Moneymaker has revealed he understood and came to accept what the shortfalls in his game were - and has been working hard to improve them. And yesterday's performance showed just how far he'd come.

"I've been working on my game on PokerStars a lot because whenever I get chips in a tournament I play too fast and bluff them off. It was a real bad habit, so it's one key thing I have been working on - trying to slow down.

"I think I am better early in a tournament, but that counts for nothing when I would get too excited and play when I shouldn't, which meant I would get into bad spots. When the blinds get bigger and the antes are out there, I would think, 'Wow, look at those chips', and go after them when I shouldn't.

"As I said, that got me into bad spots and I'd lose my chips and momentum - and when I did that I had a second problem with my game... tilt. That's something else I've been working real hard on, and these kinks in my game are something I think I have got rid of now.

"I have a lot of fans, but I know I have a lot of knockers, too. You have to expect that, and they don't bother me. I feel I am a good player, and now that I have tried to improve further I think I can do well here. I've been really looking forward to this World Series because of that."

There was so much expectation on Moneymaker after he won the Main Event that he felt it contributed to the bad points in his game - being too aggressive and then tilting when things started to go wrong.

"Yes, winning the WSOP did create a monkey on my back for a while. But I learnt to live with that, and now I have tried to improve, I think it's gone and I can just let my poker do the talking."

He had some tough tables yesterday, facing off against the likes of fellow Team PokerStars Pro Barry Greenstein and Ireland's Andy Black. And today he kicks off with another tough one, sitting alongside the likes of Doyle Brunson and Ted Forrest.

"But, hey, it's a $40,000 event - so it's bound to be tough," he said.

We said in yesterday's blog that Moneymaker was looking like a man who means business, and now we know he's been working on his game so much, we can see why he is so full of confidence.

You can follow his progress in day two right here today - and Chris will also be updating his Twitter page as often as he can.

Posted in $40K No Limit, 2009, 2009worldseriesofpoker, News, Pokerstars, World Series of Poker, chrismoneymaker | Comments Off

WSOP Event #3: And now for something completely different

Friday, May 29th, 2009

While yesterday's $40,000 no limit event was a day for the high rollers and the elite of the modern game, today the action opens up for the masses with the start of the $1,500 Omaha Hi/low 8 or Better tournament. The buy-in may be considerably smaller, but the end result is still a WSOP bracelet and the prestige that goes with it. That's why you'll find senior Team PokerStars Pros like Daniel Negreanu and Barry Greenstein in the field, mixing it up with the great poker public taking a shot at inking their place in the WSOP history books.

Alex Gomes

Also here are the Team PokerStars Pros from Brazil, Alex Gomes and Andre Akkari, as well as Ivan Demidov, Chad Brown, and Team PokerStars Germany Pros Sandra Naujoks (who won EPT Dortmund in March) and Sebastian Ruthenberg (who won EPT Barcelona last September).

This event will be a change of pace from the $40K - which starts again for day two in a few minutes - and each player begins with 4,500 chips. Entries are currently showing 918, and we'll bring you news of our players' progress throughout the day.

Posted in 2009, 2009worldseriesofpoker, Pokerstars, World Series of Poker | Comments Off

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Archive for the ‘2009worldseriesofpoker’ Category

WSOP Event #2: $40,000 final table under way

WSOP Event #4: Honey, I shrunk the bankroll

WSOP Event #4: Ivan, the terrible hair

WSOP Event #4: Madness and carnage… it can only be the $1K

WSOP Event #2: Team PokerStars Pros on a roll

WSOP Event #2: Strassmann falls to Moneymaker, Raymer soars

WSOP Event #3: No luck for Naujoks, Negreanu flying

WSOP Event #2: Brenes waits… and waits

WSOP Event #2: I’ve got the monkey off my back, says Moneymaker

WSOP Event #3: And now for something completely different