Note: This report was filed and updated through Day 1's play on Sunday.
MAIN EVENT HEADLINES – DAY ONE
6,865!
Pay the
Over! Main Event Draws 6,865 Entrants
2011 WSOP
Main Event is Third Largest Live Poker Tournament in History
2011 World
Series of Poker Main Event Championship Begins!
This Year’s
World Poker Champion Set to Collect $8,771,956
A New
Record: 2011 WSOP the Largest in History
– with 75,672 Total Entries
A New Record: 2011 WSOP the Richest in History – with
$191,999,010 in Total Prize Money
Las Vegas’
Last Gold Bracelet of 2011 at Stake – Seven Events Coming to WSOP Europe in
October in Cannes
OVERVIEW
The gold rush
is underway!
The world's
richest and most prestigious poker tournament is now going strong at the Rio
All-Suites Hotel and Casino, in Las Vegas.
The 2011
World Series of Poker Main Event Championship has completed the first step of
the very long march toward the game's ultimate achievement. At present, all four starting flights -- designated
as Days 1-A, 1-B, 1-C, and 1-D – have been completed. The final starting day ended late Sunday
night.
The official
number of entrants for this year’s Main Event Championship is 6,865
players. This is the third-largest live
poker tournament in history.
There are
many ways to interpret this number, and just about everyone will have an
opinion as to the implications of the total number of entries. But the bottom line is, Main Event attendance surpassed just about everyone’s projections. No matter what the challenge, no matter what
the distractions, no matter what the global economy is like, poker players are
drawn to the WSOP like moths to a giant flame.
Indeed, for
anyone who dares to cling to silly myths about WSOP numbers being down this
year, consider these two words: Think again. Attendance for all gold bracelet events
actually increased by 3.7 percent overall (all events). That’s a staggering number considering all
the talk about the WSOP taking a big hit this year. Prize money too, set an all-time record. This year, $191,999,010 in total prize money
will be collected by winners – the most ever (Note: In 2011, the number of gold bracelet events
increased from 57 to 58. However,
numbers would have still been record-breaking based on the 57-event figures).
Based on
number of entrants, this year’s Main
Event is the third largest live poker tournament in history. Only the 2006 and 2010 championships were
bigger. Multiple starting days were
required. Day 1-A began last Thursday
and was completed with 560 players surviving out of 897 starters. Day 1-B
was completed on Friday, with 616 players surviving out of 978 starters.
Day 1-C was completed on Saturday, with 1,471 players surviving from a
considerably larger starting field of 2,181 starters. Day 1-D ended on Sunday, with 1,874 players
surviving from the largest tournament field of all – which had 2,809 starters
(Note: This figure is an estimate at press time).
There are 4,521
players who are still alive in the Main Event, entering Day Two. The exact figure will be released the
following morning).
On Sunday, the
largest group of poker players ever to start the Main Event on a single day jam
packed the Rio, which was the fourth and final shot for all poker players to
enter this year's world poker championship.
Thousands of poker players attended this year's championship, from more
than 100 different nations.
With the
cumulative Day Ones now in the books, several well-known poker players have been
eliminated.
DAY 1-A: From Day 1-A, among those who fell off the victory
train included -- Jerry Yang (2007 Main Event champion), Tom Schneider (2006
WSOP "Player of the Year"), Greg "Fossilman" Raymer (2004
Main Event champion), and many others. But the biggest news of the day
was the elimination of Doyle Brunson (1976 and 1977 Main Event champion).
He was knocked out late in the afternoon, leaving some to wonder if the WSOP
may have seen the last of the great poker legend.
Conversely,
several Day 1-A players made news for quite a different reason -- they're still
alive in the world championship. Some of the more well-known poker
players who will return for Day Two are -- Annette Obrestad (2008 WSOP Europe
Main Event champion), Mickey Appleman (four-time gold bracelet winner), Johnny
Chan (1987 and 1988 Main Event champion), and many others.The
long list of survivors was not limited to big-name poker pros. Poker
enthusiast and actor Jason Alexander (formally George on "Seinfeld")
will also come back for Day Two.
DAY 1-B: Day 1-B continued with many more noteworthy
bust outs. One of the more surprising
early eliminated was that of Michael “the Grinder” Mizrachi, who was never able
to establish any momentum from the instant he sat down at the feature
table. Some of the others who were bounced out on Day 1-B were Eric
Froehlich, Rep Porter, Justin Smith, Nicolas Levi, Melissa Hayden, Tuan Le,
Andre Akkari and a few hundred of the other less-fortunate.
Conversely,
several well-known players survived Day 1-B. Some of these players
included -- Ben Lamb (who is enjoying a breakout series), Patrik Antonius, John
Racener, Sam Stein, Justin Bonomo, Jean-Robert Bellande, Chris Viox, Maxim
Lykov, David "Devilfish" Ulliott, David Bakes Baker, Erick Lindgren,
Eugene Katchalov, David Sklansky, David Hiu, Ted Lawson, Roland de Wolfe, Allen
Cunningham and many others.
DAY 1-C: Among those who busted out on Day 1-C were 2003
WSOP champion Chris Moneymaker, who suffered another disappointing WSOP after
going relatively deep last year. Actor-comedian Ray Romano didn't last
long, either. However, his counterpart Brad Garrett enjoyed a respectable
day and survived with a healthy stack of chips. Other players eliminated from
the third flight included -- David Singer, Jason Young, Steve Billirakis,
Fabrice Soulier, David Benyamine, Robert Mizrachi, Karina Jett, Hoyt Corkins
and several hundred of the other less-fortunate.
Conversely, several
notable players survived. Defending
world champion Jonathan Duhamel made the cut, although he will need a better
performance on the second day to make any kind of run. Some of the other
more well-known poker players who will return for Day Two are --Ted Forrest,
Humberto Brenes, J.P. Kelly, Gavin Smith, Phil Gordon, Marcel Luske, Joe Cada,
Mike Caro, Daniel Negreanu, Scotty Nguyen, Dan Harrington, Bobby
Baldwin and many others.
DAY 1-D: The more notable players eliminated on Day
1-D were Alexander Kravchenko, Antonio Esfandiari, David Williams, Michael
Binger, John Juanda, Dan Heimiller, Jennifer Tilly, Frank Kassela, Steve
Zolotow, Ivan Demidov and Tom Dwan.
Some of the
notable Day 1-D survivors included – Freddy Deeb, Matt Matros, David “Dragon”
Pham, Phil Laak, Alexandre Gomes, J.C. Tran, Robert Varkonyi, Men “the Master”
Nguyen, Thor Hansen, Joe Hachem, Max Pescatori, Jennifer Harman, Kathy Liebert,
Barry Greenstein and others.
The current
overall chip leader is former gold bracelet winner Fred Berger, from Las Vegas,
NV. Berger is originally from the Baton
Rouge, LA area. He has been playing at
the WSOP for the past 15 years. He won
last year’s WSOP Circuit championship at Harrah’s New Orleans.
The Day 1-A
survivors (from Thursday) will combine with the Day 1-C survivors (from
Saturday), who then return for Day 2-A to be played Monday, July 11th.
The restart will be at noon.
Day 1-B
survivors (from Friday) will combine with the 1-D survivors (from Sunday), who
then return for Day 2-B to be played Tuesday, July 12th. Just as the
previous day, the restart will be at noon.
The Main Event Championship
continues through July 19th. On that date, the final nine survivors are
expected to finally be known. The elite band of super survivors will
become this year’s “November Nine,” a term which refers to the nine final
players who will compete at the final table for the world championship, to take
place in November once again at the Rio.
At the
moment, November seems like such a very long way off. Only a few many be
dreaming about what happens if and when the golden road leads to poker magical
kingdom of fame and fortune. For now, most players are determined to play
their best poker and try and survive the early stages of what will prove to be
a marathon contest of physical and mental endurance in addition to a test of
poker skills.
Every
meaningful journey begins with an initial first step. On what is known as
Day One, 4,521 poker players from all over the world took their huge leap
forward in pursuit of poker's ultimate prize -- a WSOP gold bracelet and
immortality as the world champion.
The Main
Event Championship will be televised by ESPN. Live coverage will start
July 14th.
For comprehensive
updates of Event #58, please visit the WSOP.com tournament portal page HERE.
THE MAIN EVENT BEGINS
Every World
Series of Poker always begins with four words that have become synonymous with
the opening kickoff or first pitch. WSOP
tournament directors and their designated guests traditionally say “Shuffle Up
and Deal” just prior to the start of play.
Since there were four Day Ones this year, four starting ceremonies were
performed.
The first day
(1-A) began with poker legend Doyle Brunson onstage for the traditional “Shuffle
Up and Deal” announcement. Ten-time gold bracelet champion Brunson has
been a popular attraction at many WSOPs, ever since he attended the inaugural
tournament, held in 1970. He holds the record for most Main Events played
– currently at 38. Although he’s
performed this ritual countless times over the past 42 years, his presence at
this year's tournament alongside was quite a special moment for all those who were
witnesses.
The second
starting flight (1-B) began with poker superstar Michael "the Grinder"
Mizrachi onstage for the honors. Mizrachi not only won the 2010 Poker
Player’s Championship, netting his first career gold bracelet last year on
national television. He also made it to the 2010 November Nine.
Mizrachi ultimately finished fifth in last year’s Main Event Championship. Mizrachi took a hallowed position alongside
WSOP Tournament Director Jack Effel and performed the "Shuffle Up and
Deal" announcement for the first time ever to the WSOP Main Event.
Shortly thereafter, cards flew into the air for the second time in two days as
the competition to determine the 2011 world poker champion continued.
The third starting flight (1-C)
began with two beloved celebrity poker players onstage together for the announcement.
Actor-comedians Brad Garrett and Ray Romano stood alongside WSOP Tournament
Director Jack Effel and former gold bracelet winner Annie Duke, who then turned
over the microphone to a chef of the Food Network's "Cupcake Wars,"
who officially began the tournament. Only at the WSOP could such an
eclectic mix of personalities all take center stage, at one time.
The final starting flight (1-D)
included poker player and philanthropist Phil Gordon taking the stage to remind
all poker players of the Bad Beat on Cancer initiative. He then presented Poker Hall of Famer Phil
Hellmuth with an award as the player who has pledged the most money this year
to the charity. Performer Holly Madison
was then introduced to the crowd and all three performed the “Shuffle Up and
Deal” announcement in unison.
This is WSOP Tournament Director
Jack Effel’s sixth consecutive year to oversee tournament operations. He has supervised more WSOP tournaments and
awarded more prize money than any tournament official in poker history.
THE
TOURNAMENT NUMBERS
This is the
third-largest live poker tournament in history.
Only the 2006 WSOP Main Event (at 8,773 entrants) and the 2010 WSOP Main
Event (at 7,319 entrants) were bigger. Prior
to this year, the third largest live tournament was the 2008 WSOP Main Event --
with 6,844 players.
Here are the
six largest live poker tournaments in history:
2006 WSOP
Main Event – 8,773 players
2010 WSOP
Main Event – 7,319 players
2011 WSOP
Main Event – 6,865 players
2008 WSOP
Main Event – 6,844 players
2009 WSOP
Main Event – 6,494 players
2007 WSOP
Main Event – 6,358 players
There are 4,521
players still alive in the Main Event.
Play will continue on Day Two, which is divided into two playing
sessions – designated as 2-A and 2-B.
TOURNAMENT PLAY
All players
began this tournament with 30,000 in chips.
Tables began
ten-handed. The reason play was
ten-handed instead of nine-handed was primarily to be able to accommodate the
large number of registrants. However, by
the end of the third level, most tables were down to nine-handed action.
This is the
third year players were given triple the number of starting chips. By contrast, all WSOP Main Events played from
1971 through 2005 gave players 10,000 in starting chips. In years 2006-2008, players began with 20,000
in chips.
Day Ones
played five full levels. Each level is
two hours long. Days generally began at
12:10 p.m. and ended at 12:50 a.m.
Day One (all
flights combined) ended with 4,521 players out of 6,865 starters. This means 66 percent of starters survived the
first day. Last year, this survival figure
was 72 percent but players only played four levels on Day 1.
Fred Berger,
from Las Vegas, NV is the overall chip leader at the conclusion of all Day Ones
(209,000 in chips). Other leaders from
each of the four starting days were Ben Lamb (188,925 in chips), Kevin Song
(163,325 in chips) and Maynard Little (179,450 in chips).
Next, the Day
1-A survivors (from Thursday) will combine with the Day 1-C survivors (from
Saturday), who then return for Day 2-A to be played Monday, July 11th.
The restart will be at noon. There are
2,031 players in that field.
Day 1-B
survivors (from Friday) will combine with the 1-D survivors (from Sunday), who
then return for Day 2-B to be played Tuesday, July 12th. Just as the previous
day, the restart will be at noon. There
will be 2,490 players in that field (estimated at press time).
The Main
Event continues through July 19th when the final table players will
ultimately be determined, otherwise known as the “November Nine.”
FORMER WORLD CHAMPIONS
There are 35
different players who have won the WSOP Main Event Championship. Of this number, 27 champions are alive.
Of the 27 eligible
former world champions, 18 participated in this year’s Main Event.
Current
Status of Former WSOP Main Event Champions:
1975/1976: Doyle Brunson – Eliminated on Day 1
1978: Bobby “the Owl” Baldwin – Survived (27,500 in
chips)
1983: Tom McEvoy – Survived (45,000 in chips)
1986: Berry Johnston – Survived (28,850 in chips)
1987/1988: Johnny Chan – Survived (34,000 in chips)
1989: Phil Hellmuth – Survived (11,800 in chips)
1995: Dan Harrington – Survived (42,000 in chips)
1996: Huck Seed – Survived (42,600 in chips)
1998: Scotty Nguyen
-- Survived (48,325 in chips)
2001: Carlos Mortensen – Survived (105,025 in
chips)
2002: Robert Varkonyi – Survived (59,525 in chips)
2003: Chris Moneymaker – Eliminated on Day 1
2004: Greg “Fossilman” Raymer – Eliminated on Day 1
2005: Joe Hachem – Survived (45,700 in chips)
2006: Jamie Gold – Survived (82,000 in chips)
2007: Jerry Yang – Eliminated on Day 1
2009: Joe Cada – Survived (56,225 in chips)
2010: Jonathan Duhamel – Survived (41,150 in chips)
During the
modern era, at the conclusion of Day One, the eventual WSOP champions and their
chip positions were as follows:
2003 – Chris
Moneymaker, 60,475 in chips (ranked 11th)*
2004 – Greg
“Fossilman” Raymer, 74,400 in chips (ranked 7th)
2005 – Joe
Hachem, 67,350 in chips (not in top 25)
2006 – Jamie
Gold, 100,125 in chips (ranked 23rd)
2007 – Jerry
Yang, 99,700 in chips (not in top 25)
2008 – Peter
Eastgate, 62,325 in chips (not in top 25)
2009 – Joe
Cada, 187,225 in chips (ranked 1st)
2010 –
Jonathan Duhamel, 53,200 in chips (not in top 25)
CELEBRITIES AND NOTABLE PLAYERS
The World
Series of Poker has attracted celebrities and notable personalities since its
inception. This year is no exception.
Current
Status of Poker Hall of Fame members:
Doyle Brunson
– Eliminated on Day 1
Lyle Berman –
Survived (125,575 in chips)
Bobby Baldwin
– Survived (27,500 in chips)
Berry
Johnston – Survived (28,850 in chips)
T.J. Cloutier
– Eliminated on Day 1
Mike Sexton –
Survived (49,000 in chips)
Dewey Tomko –
Survived (16,000 in chips)
Erik Seidel –
Eliminated on Day 1
Dan
Harrington – Survived (42,000 in chips)
Current
Status of former WSOP “Players of the Year”:
2004 -- Daniel
Negreanu – Survived (41,175 in chips)
2005 -- Allen
Cunningham – Survived (21,000 in chips)
2006 -- Jeff
Madsen – Survived (73,725 in chips)
2007 -- Tom
Schneider – Eliminated on Day 1
2008 -- Erick
Lindgren – Survived (3,700 in chips)
2009 -- Jeffrey
Lisandro – Pending Report
2010 -- Frank
Kassela – Eliminated on Day 1
Current
Status of Non-Poker Celebrities:
Ray Romano (actor
and comedian) – Eliminated on Day 1
Brad Garrett
(actor and comedian) – Survived (59,775 in chips)
Rene Angelil (music
manager – Celine Dion’s husband) – Survived (18,300 in chips)
Shane Warne (cricketer)
– Eliminated on Day 1
Jason
Alexander (actor and comedian) – Survived (63,150 in chips)
Teddy
Sherington (UK football star) – Survived
Nelly
(singer-performer) – Eliminated on Day 1
Shannon
Elizabeth (actress) – Survived (19,000 in chips)
Paul Pierce
(NBA’s Boston Celtics) – Survived (63,000 in chips)
Shawn Marion
(NBA’s Dallas Mavericks) – Pending Report
Jennifer
Tilly (actress and former gold bracelet winner) – Eliminated on Day 1
Patrick Bruel
(French singer and actor and former gold bracelet winner) – Survived (24,700 in
chips)
Wendeen
Eolis, from New York, NY played on Day One and survived (20,700 in chips). Eolis was the first woman ever to cash in the
WSOP Main Event, which occurred in 1986.
She has played in a least one WSOP event in every year since then.
Howard
“Tahoe” Andrew, from Walnut Creek, CA played on Day One and survived (33,000 in
chips). Two-time gold bracelet winner
Andrew first attended the WSOP in 1974.
He has played in the WSOP in every year since then and holds the current
streak for consecutive appearances.
DAY ONE ODDS AND ENDS
Based on WSOP
figures during the modern era (2003 to present), the Day One chip leader has a
slightly less than even chance of cashing in the Main Event.
Only a few
Day One chip leaders ended up winning the Main Event. The last this happened was in 2009, when Joe
Cada was the chip leader after Day 1-C.
He went on to win the world championship. Records from the earliest years were not
documented, so there is little way of knowing statistics for all years.
This is the 58th
and final event on the 2011 WSOP schedule which is played in Las Vegas. Seven more gold bracelet events will take
place in Cannes, France, to be held in October 7th through 20th as
part of the 5th Annual World Series of Poker Europe.
This marks
the seventh consecutive year the WSOP has been held at the Rio All-Suites Hotel
and Casino. Prior to 2005, the WSOP was
held at Binion’s Horseshoe in downtown Las Vegas. As a testament to the expansion of the WSOP
since Caesars Entertainment assumed ownership and control of the world most
prestigious poker event, more than twice the money has been awarded to winners
within the Rio during the past six years than during the entire proceeding
35-year period at the Horseshoe.
The most
dominant Day One Main Event performance in history was by three-time WSOP gold
bracelet winner John Bonetti, who passed away four years ago. Bonetti finished the first day of the 1993
Main Event with 500,000 in chips (the figure is an estimate, since there was no
Internet coverage, nor accurate records available from that year). Since there were 231 players registered, he
had a staggering 22 percent of the total chips in play. Bonetti went on to finish third that year, as
Jim Bechtel won the championship.
The total
number of entrants in the WSOP Main Event (all 42 years combined) is 57,657.
Over the past
five years, the average attendance for the WSOP Main Event has been 6,776
entrants. Hence, this year’s figure was
slightly ahead of the average.
ODDS AND ENDS
This tournament
attracted 6,865 entries.
Female
players – 242, representing 3.5% of the field.
Average age
of players – 37.17 years
This is the 950th
gold bracelet tournament event in World Series of Poker history. This figure includes every official WSOP
event ever played, including tournaments during the early years when there were
no actual gold bracelets awarded. It
also includes the 16 gold bracelets awarded to date at WSOP Europe (2007-2010). Moreover for the first time ever, one gold
bracelet was awarded for this year’s winner of the WSOP Circuit National
Championship.
Shortly after
cards flew into the air for the first time on Day 1-A, players began busting
out. Within a half hour, nearly a dozen players had already been
eliminated.
WSOP -- FOR THE AGES
The youngest
player to enter the 2011 WSOP Main Event Championship was Logan Deen, from
Cocoa, FL. He turned 21 on the day he
took his seat in the Main Event. This
means he now holds a record than can only be tied, but never broken (unless age
restriction laws are changed in the future).
He was cheered on Day 1-C by his family, who call themselves the “Deen
Team.” He remains alive entering Day
Two.
The oldest
player to enter the 2011 WSOP Main Event Championship was Ellen “Gram” Deeb,
from Troy, NY. She became the oldest
female participant in Main Event history at the age of 91. Mrs. Deeb was introduced to the huge crowd,
which gave her one of the day’s biggest ovations. After she stood to wave to the crowd, she
grabbed the mircophone from a tournament official and snapped, “I just have one
thing to say! You are all playing for
second!” The crowd went wild. Unfortunately, Mrs. Deeb was eliminated on
Day One. The WSOP looks forward to
welcoming her again in 2012.
A Special Note: Jack Ury was the oldest player
ever to participate in a WSOP tournament.
Last year, he played in the Main Event at the age of 97. Sadly, Mr. Ury passed away before the start
of this year’s tournament. The entire
WSOP staff sends the Ury Family our best wishes and gratitude for leaving us
with so many special memories of Mr. Ury.
WSOP
MAIN EVENT ALL-TIME RECORDS
Most Main
Event Wins (Career):
3
– Johnny Moss (*first win was by vote)
3
– Stu Ungar
2
– Doyle Brunson
2
– Johnny Chan
Most Main
Event Cashes (Career):
10
– Berry Johnston
8
– Humberto Brenes
7
– Bobby Baldwin
7
– Doyle Brunson
7
– Jay Heimowitz
7
– Phil Hellmuth
7
– Mike Sexton
6
– John Bonetti
6
– Johnny Moss
6
– Jason Lester
6
– Steve Lott
6
– Chris Bjorin
6
– John Esposito
6
– Johnny Chan
5
– 14 players tied with 5 cashes each
Most Main
Event Final Tables (Career):
5
– Doyle Brunson
5
– Jesse Alto
4
– Johnny Chan
4
– T.J. Cloutier
4
– Dan Harrington
4
– Berry Johnston
4
– Johnny Moss
4
– Stu Ungar
3
– 6 players tied with 3 final tables each
Youngest
Winner:
Joe
Cada (2009) -- 21 years, 11 months, 22 days
Oldest Winner:
Johnny
Moss (1974) – 66 years, 11 months, 24 days
Oldest
Participant:
97
years -- Jack Ury (2010)
Most Consecutive
Years Played:
38
– Howard “Tahoe” Andrew (1974 to present)
Most Main
Events Played (Career):
38
– Tie: Doyle Brunson (did not play 1999 through 2001); Howard “Tahoe” Andrew
OVERALL 2011 WSOP STATISTICS
Through Event
#58 (all gold bracelet events), the 2011 WSOP has attracted 75,672 combined
total entries. $191,999,010 in prize money
has been awarded.
Through the
conclusion of Event #57, the breakdown of nationality of gold bracelet winners
has been:
United States
(35)
Canada (5)
Ukraine (4)
France (4)
Great Britain
(3)
Russia (3)
Brazil (1)
Pakistan (1)
Sweden (1)
Through the
conclusion of Event #57, the national origin (birthplace) of winners has been:
United States
(31)
Canada (5)
Ukraine (4)
France (4)
Great Britain
(3)
Russia (3)
Israel (1)
Honduras (1)
Indonesia (1)
Germany (1)
Brazil (1)
Pakistan (1)
Sweden (1)
Through the
conclusion of Event #57, the home-states of (American) winners have been:
California (7)
New York (6)
Nevada (6)
Texas (3)
Florida (2)
Illinois (2)
Connecticut
(2)
New Jersey
(1)
Tennessee (1)
Indiana (1)
Maryland (1)
Virginia (1)
Michigan (1)
North Dakota
(1)
Washington
(1)
Ohio (1)
Through the
conclusion of Event #57, the breakdown of professional poker players to
semi-pros and amateurs who won gold bracelets has been:
Professional Players
(44): Jake
Cody, Cheech Barbaro, Eugene Katchalov, Allen Bari, Harrison Wilder, Matt
Perrins, Sean Getzwiller, Viacheslav Zhukov, David Diaz, Andrew Badecker, Tyler
Bonkowski, Brian Rast (2 wins), John Juanda, Aaron Steury, Darren Woods, Jason
Somerville, Bertrand Grospellier, John Monnette, Elie Payan, Mark Radoja, Chris Viox, Dan Idema, Andy Frankenberger, Chris Lee, Sam
Stein, Mark Schmid, Jason Mercier, Mikhail Lakhitov, Fabrice Soulier, Mitch
Schock, Matt Jarvis, Justin Pechie, Ben Lamb, Rep Porter, Andre Akkari, Joe
Ebanks, Lenny Martin, Athanasios Polychronopoulos, Antonin Teisseire, Matt
Matros, Marsha Wolak. Maxim Lykov, Nick Binger
Semi-Pros (6): Sean R. Drake, Amir Lehavot, Oleksii Kovalchuk,
Eric Rosawig, Arkadiy Tsinis, Alexander Anter
Amateurs
(7): Geffrey Klein, Foster Hays, James
Hess, Kirk Caldwell, Ken Griffin, Owais Ahmed, David Singontiko
Since
tracking first started in 2005, this year’s WSOP has the greatest disparity of
professionals winning over semi-pros and amateurs than any year recorded, so
far – with 50 out of 57 events being won by pros or semi-pros.
Through the
conclusion of this tournament, the victories of 12 of the 57 winners (21
percent) marked the first time the new champion had ever cashed at the WSOP.
Every WSOP
held over the past 11 years has included at least one multiple gold bracelet
champion (meaning two or more wins within the same year). The last year the WSOP was comprised
exclusively of single-event winners was back in 1999. The record for most multiple gold bracelet
winners within a single year was in 2009, when five players managed to win two
or more titles. Brian Rast’s victory in
two tournaments – Events #15 and #55 -- means the multi-gold bracelet streak
will continue for at least another year.
The streak of
consecutive male WSOP gold bracelet winners is currently at 213 consecutive
events. Aside from the annual Ladies
Poker Championship, the last female player to win a WSOP tournament open to
both sexes was Vanessa Selbst, in 2008.
The longest “cold” streak for female players occurred between years 1982
and 1996, when 221 consecutive open events passed without a female champion.
The highest
finish by any female (open events) at this year’s WSOP was accomplished by two
players. Maria Ho finished second
($5,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em). Kim
Nguyen also finished as the runner up ($1,500 buy-in Six-Handed Limit Hold’em).
The highest
finish by any defending champion at this year’s WSOP was by David Baker, who
after winning the previous $10,000 buy-in No-Limit Deuce-to-Seven Draw Lowball
World Championship finished in sixth place in defense of his title.
Reigning
world poker champions rarely perform well the following year after their
victory. Chris “Jesus” Ferguson was the
last world champion to win a gold bracelet the next year, which happened in
2001. Perhaps it’s due to the increasing
size of the fields. But there’s also
great pressure on the champions to do well.
What follows is a list of the only world champions in history to win a gold
bracelet after winning the championship during the previous year:
Johnny Moss
(1975)
Doyle Brunson
(1977)
Bobby Baldwin
(1979)
Stu Ungar
(1981)
Johnny Chan
(1988)
Hamid
Dastmalchi (1993)
Chris “Jesus”
Ferguson (2001)
By contrast,
players who make it to the final table of the Main Event Championship (November
Nine) one year tend to do quite well in subsequent WSOP years. Consider that last year, three former Main
Event finalists won gold bracelets – Eric Buchman, Tex Barch and Scott
Montgomery. This year, Matt Jarvis won
his first gold bracelet one year after making it to the November Nine in 2010.
New
tournament records set at the 2011 WSOP (to date):
Biggest
Heads-Up tournament prize pool in history ($3,040,000) – Event #2
Largest
live Omaha High-Low Split Tournament in history (925 entries) – Event #3
Largest
live Six-Handed tournament in poker history (1,920 entries) – Event #10
Biggest
Deuce-to-Seven tournament prize pool in history ($1,184,400) – Event #16
Largest
live $1,500 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em tournament in history with single day start
(3389 entries) – Event #56
Largest
live $1,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em tournament in history with single day start
(3175 entries) – Event #20
Largest
consecutive-days starting field sizes in poker history (combined 6,332 entries)
– Event #18 and Event #20
Largest
live Pot-Limit Omaha tournament in poker history (1,071 entries) – Event #22
Largest
Mixed-Game (Eight-Game Mix) in poker history (489 entries) – Event #23
Largest
Seniors tournament in poker history (3,752 entries) – Event #30
Biggest
Seniors No-Limit Hold’em championship prize pool in history ($3,376,800) –
Event #30
Largest
single-day live tournament start in poker history (3,752 entries) – Event #30
Largest consecutive-days starting field
sizes in poker history (combined 6,580 entries) – Event #30/Event #32 (broke
Event #18/Event #20 record from earlier in 2011 WSOP)
Largest four-consecutive days field sizes in poker history
(2,500+3,752+2,828+3,144 =12,224 entries) -- Events 28, 30, 32, 34, June 16-19,
2011
Largest Mixed Pot-Limit tournament in history (606 entries) –
Event #39
Biggest Pot-Limit Omaha prize pool in live poker history
($3,393,400) – Event #42
New player
records set at the 2011 WSOP (to date):
The
35-year span between Artie Cobb’s first cash in this event (1976) and most
recent cash in the same event (2011) represents the longest time span in WSOP
history. He accomplished this in
Seven-Card Stud High-Low Split (Event #25).
Phil
Hellmuth added to his record as the individual all-time leader in cashes (84)
and final table appearances (43).
Howard
“Tahoe” Andrew added to his record as the player with the longest consecutive
streak of WSOP appearances (entering at least one event), currently at 38 years
and counting (1974 to present).
First
player in history with three second-place finishes within a single year – Phil
Hellmuth
Tony
“Top Cat” Cousineau added to his record as the player with the most WSOP
cashes, but no wins (49).
RAISING AWARENESS: BAD BEAT ON CANCER AND THE WSOP
Bad Beat on
Cancer was created in 2003 by Phil Gordon and Rafe Furst as an easy and fun way
for poker players to donate to the Prevent Cancer Foundation. It all began when Chris Moneymaker pledged 1
percent of his 2003 Main Event winnings and went on to capture the championship,
contributing $25,000 when he was awarded the $2.500,000 first- place prize. By taking the pledge, wearing the patch, and
joining ‘Team 1%’, players can feel good supporting a cause that only benefits
when they win. As the official charity
of the WSOP, pledges simply indicate to the payouts staff that they are
donating 1 percent of their winnings, and the funds are automatically withheld.
A tax receipt is generated and sent to
their mailing address. Several high
profile professionals have made ‘life pledges’ of 1 percent of all their
winnings -- including Annie Duke, Phil Hellmuth Jr., Lee Childs, Paul Wasicka,
Andy Bloch, Dennis Phillips, and others. Since 2003, the initiative has raised over $3,500,000
for cancer prevention research, education, and community outreach programs. Players can pick up a patch and join Team 1%
by stopping by the Bad Beat on Cancer booth, located at the 2011 WSOP opposite
the Amazon Room in the concourse. The Nevada Cancer Institute based in Las Vegas
is a benefiting charity from the Bad Beat on Cancer.
Note:
Various categories and statistics will be updated with each gold
bracelet event as they are completed.