This past weekend, Daniel Negreanu won the BC Poker Championship for more than $370,000. Today, he sent us his thoughts on the event. He takes us through the final table and all the big hands.

by Daniel Negreanu

I won!

It might have been a relatively inexperienced final table, but they were all good players. It amazes me how much better players are getting and I love it. Sure it makes it harder to win, but I thoroughly enjoy the challenge of playing high level poker in the late stages of a tournament.

This final table went very well for me. Here is a brief synopsis of how it all went down:

Hand #1: Literally the first hand dealt at the final table I pick up KK in the cut off. Since there was no small blind I decided to min-raise to 120k instead of my standard 136k at the 30k-60k level with a 6k ante. The player on the button had a bit over a million and shipped it with 10-10. He had no choice I don't think, and he did the right thing as I'd usually fold there unless I had a big hand.

Hand #2: The kid Warren had me confused and outplayed me on back to back hands where I paid him off. The first went like this: He raised from the button and I called with Q-10. Flop K-8-4...check-check. Turn a 4... check-check. river a 10 and I check-called a bet of 310k. He showed KJ.

Hand #3: I raised the kid Warren's blind with KJ and he called. The flop came Q-5-3 with two clubs. check-check. Turn the Qc... check-check. River came a 2 and he bet 350k this time. I called him with the King high and he showed Q-9... oops!

Hand #4: We were three handed at this point and I was behind in chips until I made it 178k from the button with 88, blinds at 40k-80k with an 8k ante. Warren called. The flop came A 8 6 with two clubs. He checked and I fired out a pretty quick bet of 210k. He called. The turn was an Ace and he fired 350k. I called pretty quickly trying to represent a hand like 10-10 and hope he might try to push me off of it on the river. That, plus if he's drawing, I'd like him to hit! Most importantly, though, if a 6 hit the river I might be able to get away from the hand if he has an Ace and figure I'll get paid on the river anyway. The river was a Jack and he moved me in for my last 1.3 million. I called, and he showed 4-5 off.

The heads up match started dead even with 5 million a piece and blinds of 50k-100k. I planned on using my standard approach heads up and would make any adjustments necessary. Based on the way he was playing me heads up, I quickly felt like I had the right strategy and should be able to grind him down with better fundamentals.He later told me he'd never actually played heads up before, which gives me an even bigger advantage.

I think I played perfectly against him. I laid down a pair twice to him on the river and he later told me I was right both times. I never let him win a big pot until he got really short. I raised to 20k with A-10 on the button and he went all in for a million more with Kd Qd. The flop came 9-6-5 and it looked good. The turn was a 7d putting a backdoor flush draw out there, and the Jd hit the river! He doubled up, and bizarre as this is going to sound I think I was genuinely happy for him and cheered for him. He's a really nice kid and I was happy to see him get a bit psyched up, but I still felt strongly that I'd beat him.

The FINAL HAND: I min-raised to 200k with 10h 7h and he called. The flop came 8s 7s 3h. He checked and I bet 200k- he called. The turn was a Qd and he checked again. I felt like he was drawing so I bet 400k. He went all i for 1.6 million more. I didn't think he would play Q-3 based on the heads up action thus far so I ruled that out. If he had a Queen high flush draw, I think he would have gambled with his hand on the flop. If he had the 8, a check-raise had to be his move. I finally felt like it was a move with a hand like J-9 or something like that. I called and he showed: 9-7! I had him out kicked and it held up for the win.

It's the first tournament I've ever actually won with my favorite hand. That was pretty cool so I decided to keep the two cards and will put them somewhere.

690 players showed up for the tournament, the biggest field I'd ever beaten. To do it in Canada was legitimately special and I think it's going to make for great TV when it airs. I'm really hoping that this might help spark an even bigger buy in event at the River Rock next year. I genuinely believe they could hold a 10k buy in and get 300 players easy, especially if they have online qualifiers. I'm looking forward to returning next year. They treated me very well and I had a great time.

After it was over a bunch of all went to dinner. I noticed that Adam, the second place finisher was having dinner with five of his friends. I invited them all to join us and picked up the tab. After dinner we changed and a large group of us, including Adam and his friends went to a club called Republic. Brad Booth hooked us up with a huge area to chill and we hung out there till pretty late. With dinner, and paying the bar tab, the night ended up being pretty expensive for me but it was all worth it.

Now I plan on... sleeping. I just finished doing some TV stuff and really need to catch up on some R and R and am already looking forward to the $15,000 Bellagio event. That event has been very good to me in the past and I'm coming in on a roll feeling very confident. With the Bellagio structure being so deep on the first three days I always feel great about my chances to do well there.

Daniel Negreanu, as we all know, loves him some Canada. So, when he had the chance to go up north for the British Columbia Poker Championship, he didn't hesitate. In fact, he even agreed to do some television commentary if he busted before the final table of six players began. As one exec at the tournament told me, "Daniel was unavailable for commentary."

Negreanu battled through a field of 697 players at the River Rock Casino Resort in Richmond and took first place for $371,000.

Now, news of winning Negreanu winning a tournament is a lot like saying "Breaking News: The sun came up in the east today!" Fortunately, there is a companion story to go along with this news.

Our spies on the ground tell us Negreanu, as usual, had some side action going to keep things interesting. He and Gabe Kaplan had a $2,500 last-longer bet. If either of them made the money, the other player would pay $10,000. If either player made it to the final table it was another $25,000.

And so, late yesterday poor Kaplan was stuck $37,500.

As it turns out, though, there was as escape clause in the bet. If either Kaplan or Negreanu won the event, all bets were off and the winner of the event paid the other $2,500. As we've already noted, Negreanu won. Kaplan went from being stuck $37,500 to winning $2,500 and Negreanu swung $40,000 in the other direction.

Congratulations to Negreanu for his big win...and to Kaplan for getting unstuck.

There is a phenomenon in poker that few people get to experience. While everyone at a tournament table wears a target, those big name pros who have spent hours on television are painted with the biggest bullseye you'll ever see. It doesn't matter what big name pro you talk to, the situation rarely varies. When people come in this room, they are looking for a story to tell. They want to be able to say they busted a big name.

Greg Raymer is no stranger to this phenomenon. Since his $5 million win in the 2004 World Seres Main Event, players around the world have settled their scopes on the FossilMan. Sometimes, it works to his advantage. The following year in the World Series, Raymer had a banner year and threatened a repeat appearance at the final table of the main event. Sometimes, though, it works against him. This World Series was one of those times.

Raymer had one of the most frustrating World Series of his poker career. Out of more than 20 tournaments this summer, he cashed in one. The main event was Raymer's chance to come back, his chance to shake off the bullseye and recover for the year. Before the end of Level 2 today Raymer's opportunity disappeared.

From a distance, it looked almost peaceful. The crowd gave an appreciative clap and recognized the world champion's departure. Raymer stood and put his trademark duffel bag over his shoulder. He walked around the rail and toward the back door. The omnipresent ESPN cameras followed behind. It was only as Raymer drew closer to this reporter's desk that it was clear the FossilMan was done letting the bad beats roll off his shoulders. He had had enough.

The resulting conversation is neither for print--or despite the presence of the TV cameras--for broadcast. Suffice it to say, Raymer found his nemesis at the table today. "He sucked out on me three times," Raymer said. The final time, the guy ended up having an overpair to Raymer's top pair. Raymer, usually a cool customer, was decidedly ready to blow off some steam.

It was an illustration of a reality few people recognize. Even some of the top players in the game can have terrible years. Tens of thousands of dollars can be invested without any significant return. As this room filled up with 1,158 people today, it was clear that for many of them this would be the only big tournament they'll play this year, and maybe in their lifetime. To win this thing...to even make Day 2...takes the confluence of superior skill, good timing, and no small amount of good fortune. The latter did not grace Raymer's cards this year.

It was the same kind of day for Team PokerStars Pro Daniel Negreanu Set over set sent him out in Level 1. He talks about his exit in the video blog below. Be sure to check out all of our video blogs at PokerStars.tv.

Watch WSOP 08: Daniel Busts on PokerStars.tv

After four days of paced, measured play in the $50,000 HORSE event, it's a bit unsettling to watch the fortunes change so drastically. The blinds and limits are such that one or two close hands can take a player from the top to the bottom in no time at all.

Witness the fall of Daniel Negreanu. At the dinner break, Negreanu sat near the top of the leader board. Moments ago, he walked out in 13th place.

As has been mentioned more than a few times, Negreanu helped serve as the inspiration for this event's creation. After winning his bracelet earlier this Series in the $2,000 Limit event, Negreanu aimed to win his fifth. This looked to be one of his best opportunities.

Instead, his 13th place finish earns him $142,080 and the opportunity to play in tomorrow's $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha World Championship.

At this hour, Barry Greenstein is the only member of Team PokerStars Pro remaining in the $50,000 HORSE event. His fortune hasn't been much better in the last couple of hours. His girlfriend Alex described the past several hours with one word: "Rollercoaster"

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While we look for a bit better news to report, Joe Hachem has some ideas about how to balance math and instinct in big poker events. Check it out the video blog below.

Watch WSOP 08: Joe Hachem On Math on PokerStars.tv

With the HORSE feed bag put behind us, we now find ourselves staring at a different breed. The $50,000 event that started with 148 players has now fallen below the 100 mark. Though we're not yet at the point at which the stress causes heart palpatations, things are starting to get more interesting in this five-day event. With still two more levels to play tonight, Team PokerStars Pro and its family are faring quite well.

Of the whole group of PokerStars players who started in this event, only PokerStars-sponsored Alex Kravechenko has been eliminated. The rest still remain in serious contention. Team PokerStars Pro Barry Greenstein is very close to the chip lead and looking to repeat his final table appearance from 2007. Bill Chen, Isabelle Mercier, and Daniel Negreanu are not too far behind.

Speaking of Negreanu, he kept busy in advance of this event. He took off to L.A. for a night. He offered this dispatch from the life of Kid Poker.

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by Daniel Negreanu

Ok, so I’m back from L.A. and the reason that I went is that Phil Ivey invited me along with his mother and his wife to attend a celebrity fund raiser for Barack Obama, and of course I was in on that. So, we hopped on a plane and flew out there.

We got in and there were a lot of celebrities there. I’m not a big name dropper, so I won’t go there. Then what happens is you go through the dinner and everyone takes a picture with Obama. I could tell he was really good at this sort of thing. I mean, I could tell some people were talking and being really annoying and he was still smiling and pretending like he really cares about what they were saying. Anyways, I get up there and I’m walking up there, Obama looks at me and says I know you!

Then, he grabs his buddy and says we played poker last night. One of his aids said he is Canadian and he said, “Hi, I’m a fellow Canadian, nice to meet you.” Then Obama pulls out sixty bucks out of his pocket to sort of prove that he played last night. Anyways, I took a couple pictures, and I wasn’t about to ask him about the UIGEA bill. I’m just not going to be that guy. I mean he has bigger fish to fry, you know? I just told him I was happy he ran a really clean campaign and stuff. Phil Ivey was next and he went up there and Obama said “Can you beat that guy?” Ivey said “I dunno man”

We then went in and had a big dinner, and there was like 100 of us there, and Obama said a couple of words and sat at some of the tables. Then, Seal performed a couple songs, which was pretty strong. Barack Obama spoke, and for some reason Ivey turns to me in the speech and says, “he’s gunna take Hillary” then he lays me ten to one on 10k. I said “you got it,” I didn’t even hesitate. It’s funny that we go there and we still have to gamble. So we have a bet, I have any vice president other than Hillary Clinton, for 10k. Ivey has Hillary Clinton for 100k. He feels he can’t win because I took the bet so quickly.

So we flew back that night, just hopped on a plane. Now we are playing the $50k H.O.R.S.E. I have a pretty rough table draw. I spent way too much time with Ivey, and now he is sitting right on my left, along with John Hennigan, Ralph Perry, Robert Willamson, Perry Friedmen and the two internet guys “OMGclayaiken” Phil Galfond, and DURRRRRRRRRR just sat down at my table. Not crazy about my table but all the tables are going to be tough in $50K HORSE, but it’s a good field and a good prize, and I’m going to try to win it.

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No only that, but Negreanu sat down with the PokerStars Video Blog team to talk about how he looks at the World Series.

Just under the surface of the HORSE event lays the fact that a few players are beginning to feel the heat of the blinds. One of whom is Team PokerStars Pro Daniel Negreanu.

Daniel started the day in typical high spirits and nearly eight hours later remains in the same state of mind. The one thing that has changed though is the size of his stack which has descended steadily from its original 100k to now, hovering tentatively around the 20k mark.

This could all be nonsense, a case of call off the dogs, stop floating around the table like the angel of death – 20k is enough, in a game like this, to mount a comeback, particularly if your name is Daniel Negreanu.

But right now he’ll have to deal with the added attention with a table that features the multiple threats of Phil Ivey on his left, Robert Williamson III and Phil Galfond on his right.

Whilst the merits of Ivey are well known, those in any doubt as to how big a threat Galfond poses should ask Daniel himself. He finished 7th in the Omaha event that Galfond went on to win just over a week ago for a payday of over $800,000.

Daniel was full of praise for the American then and he now sits to his immediate left. They go into the break with one more 90 minute level left to play tonight.

"It was a whole load of hands" Daniel said of his stack. "I couldn't scoop anything. And you can't bluff...not as effectively."

Time for a massage as we enter level 5.

Daniel Negreanu is taking a breather from the World Series. No worries, as it's not very long. Here's a quick note from Negreanu on his day off.

So I think I might have made a strategy error for player of the year. I hope it doesn’t cost me. I didn’t play in the $1,500 pot limit Omaha event with rebuys. That is essentially like an automatic cash, because there’s only 300 some people in it. If you're one of the re-buyers, it very easy to make the money, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you're going to make money.

Other tournament updates: Stud eight or better, I tried my butt off, I really did. I started at about 16K and got anteed down to 8k, and I just never caught a hand. I finally had to go in with two kings, it was heads up, and the guy made his flush. So this morning I actually got some rest, which was nice. I really needed it, I’ve been playing poker every day and I was just exhausted.

In the Omaha 8 or better tournament, I was playing with the most insane poker player ever, Abe Mosseri. He is an absolute insane person. Every time I bet I always call it an Abe, cause he just bets…always bets. He is like bet, bet, bet, bet, bet, bet, bet, bet.

I’ve been hanging out in the Poker Royalty lounge again, I’ve been in there for the last couple of days instead of the VIP room which I’m also a member of. It’s a little more private, just a different vibe in the Poker Royalty lounge you know. My boys are always in here, E-dog and Gavin, and there’s always like 100 people in the VIP room, so this is even better.

Over the weekend I played in two tournaments. I played the triple draw, and I tried real hard in that, and I played like sick good and got beat. Then I foolishly decided to play the $1,500 no limit/limit tournament. No energy, so no results in that one.

I am just exhausted. I’ve got nothing, no energy. So we got a couple days until the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E event, so I’ve decided that until then, I’m done with poker.

I’m getting bored playing poker now which is not good. I am really looking forward to this little two day hiatus from the game and then I’ll come back recharged and ready.

As good as he is, it's easy to imagine Daniel Negreanu never thinks about anything but poker. That would be wrong. Here's a quick dispatch from Kid Poker's World Series. Read to the end to figure out why Negreanu won't be shaking your hand.

by Daniel Negreanu

First of all, congratulations to both Tiger Woods and Rocco Mediate. I didn’t get home till 6 AM that day, so I didn’t wake up till they were on the 18th green and they were putting. I only got to watch that and one playoff hole, but from what I heard it was insane golf. I’ve actually golfed with Rocco Mediate, over at Summerlin TPC last October. He was showing me a few things, and I mean at that point he was only a journeymen just coming back from an injury like he wasn’t going to do anything, and to almost have a chance to beat Tiger. That’s pretty impressive, GO ROCCO.

Congratulations to Barry Greenstien, I had a list of ten players I thought were going to do really well this year, and a lot of them have bracelets; myself, Mike Matusow, Barry, Ted Forrest came in 2nd. My team would be doing pretty good. I think that this year really put to bed the talk that online players are better than live or that online players are taking over the live games. I think this year’s tournaments are playing a lot slower the whole way through so there’s less mathematics and more poker. It really favors the live player’s skill sets.

FYI, I busted out in 7th of the PLO tournament. I had virtually nothing left, a lack of sleep has caused some sickness here. I’ve got me some allergies or some kind of whatever, but I have a box of Kleenex with me at the table, not good.

Anyways back to the final table, I did my best. I lost my final key hand to Galfond. He raised the button and I had to move in with kings, he had aces, end of story. I really had no choice there so, seventh place not too bad.

I want to make a reminder for those out there, and I myself even forgot how dirty and filthy the WSOP can get. With all these different random people and germs everywhere I’ve been shaking everyone’s hand and there have been some wet hands. I mean why if you knew you had wet hands would you ever shake anyone’s hand, instead of just going pound? I mean it’s the worst feeling in the world when you go to shake someone’s hand, and than your like 'OHHH come on what did u just pee on your hands?'

Don’t be offended if I don’t shake your hand. It’s nothing personal, just trying not to get sick like I just done did!

With barely time to grab a meal since Team PokerStars Pro Barry Greenstein won a bracelet in the $1,500 Razz event, we're now looking at two more PokerStars players at a big final table.

Team PokerStars Pro Daniel Negreanu, fresh off his $2,000 Limit Hold'em Bracelet, is sitting at another final table, this one the $5,000 PLO Rebuy event. He will be sitting with PokerStars-sponsored player Kirill Gerasimov as they sit down today to fight for the bracelet.

When Negreanu won his fourth bracelet last week, the first thing he did was hold up five fingers. He no doubt intends to pick up his fifth bracelet during this year's World Series. He does not have the biggest stack going into the day, but the PLO rebuy event has deep stacks and anyone with chips stands a chance of doing some damage.

Good luck to Daniel and Kirill as they head into action today.