2011 WSOP Index - Tao of Poker Coverage

By Pauly
Los Angeles, CA

What you have here is an index of all of Tao of Poker's coverage of the 2011 WSOP. Yep, quick links to daily recaps along with a few special nuggets. Don't forget you can also check out Tao of Pokeati podcasts as well.



Let's start with a couple of posts that were published before cards went in the air on Day 1. Among those were a few tidbits about the Ivey/Full Tilt lawsuit.

2011 WSOP: Before the Madness Begins - A prelude to the seven-week fiesta of poker.

WTF? Phil Ivey Suing Full Tilt Poker - In one of the most peculiar news stories since Black Friday, Phil Ivey announced he was leaving Full Tilt, suing Tiltware, and sitting out of the WSOP. All of these important announcements were made on his Facebook fan page. Whaaaaa?

Full Tilt's Angry Response to Phil Ivey's Lawsuit - The drama-filled start to the WSOP continued with an angry response from Full Tilt's HQs. That's the fastest they ever responded to anything in the wake of Black Friday.

Finding Pil Ivey and the Doctor Is In - The video crew at Bluff Magazine did an awesome job with their videos this summer, especially the bit Finding Ivey. I got tapped to tape an interview and you can see a teaser in this video.

The Circuit Cover and Interview - I was fortunate that Alexander asked me to be a part of his amazing photo project -- The Circuit. Check out what went down behind the scenes during the photo shoot, including a candid interview about what life is really like on the road following around the tournament circuit.

Okay, and now here are the daily recaps from the 2011 WSOP...

Day 1: Welcome to the Jungle and Phil Ivey's Titanium Balls - The 2011 WSOP kicked off with lots of questions swirling around about which pros would toe the company line and support Full Tilt Poker, and which red pros would ditch the patches and other FT branding. Phil Ivey fired the first shot with his lawsuit (announced via Facebook), but did he incite a mutiny with other red pros following his lead?

Day 2: Ivey's Hippodrome and Bare-Chested Scandis - Gus Hansen wandering around with his shirt undone and the ongoing saga between Phil Ivey and Full Tilt were among the more dramatic topics on the second day of action.

Day 3: Moneymaker and Johnny Fucking Chan Win Grudge Matches and Men the Master Cheating Accusations - A Made-for-TV event occupied the Mothership with Chris Moneymaker and Johnny Fucking Chan winning their Main Event "grudge matches". Meanwhile, in the real WSOP, Men the Master was the center of hurricane of shadiness when he hypocritically accused Hollywood Dave of shorting a pot. A shouting match ensued and both were on the verge of being disqualified.

Day 4: Jake Cody's Emos, Hooligans, and Hat Tricks - Jack Cody, the latest British wunderkind made history when he became only the third member of the Triple Crown club. His victory did not come without a little rail rowdiness along the way.

Day 5: Apocalypse Now (Guest Post by Change100) - Yes, I had the day off and Change100 stepped up to pen an atmospheric piece on the tension in the air at the start of the 2011 WSOP -- the first series in the wake of Black Friday and "money getting stuck on Full Tilt" fiasco.

Day 6: Ho-most for Maria Ho - The lovely Maria Ho went deep in the 5K NL event and came within one spot of winning her first bracelet.

Day 7: British Invasion, Vampire Squids, and the Devil - After the first week of nonstop poker, the first zombie begin to appear at the Rio. The zombies in turn attract the Devil along with treacherous vampire squids.

Day 8: The Marked Cards Conspiracy and the Last 5 Pros I Pissed Next To - It's not the WSOP unless there's a controversy involving the cards. There's always something wrong with the decks. At the 2011 WSOP, a couple of the decks had a printing error that was only visible underneath the groovy purple grow-lights inside the Mothership.

Day 9: Cocking Blocking the Brits - The Brits launched an all-out assault on Las Vegas once again as they threatened to win another bracelet but the bloody 10-level rule was the only thing that prevented them from shipping another bracelet.

Day 10: Banning Booze, World Series of Mormons, and Sweating the Mavs - Despite the financial woes bringing America to the brink of ruin, the WSOP continued to thrive in the face of external adversity on both the political and financial fronts. The influx of players always brought with it a wave of fervor on the rail during final tables. The powers to be did not anticipate a Mardi Gras-like atmosphere inside the Mothership that is a fragile TV set and not a country-western bar. As a result, booze was officially banned at the final table.


Day 11: Social Media in Poker and Tex Dolly Blows Chunks - The poker world has changed for the better (or worst) because of the heavy influence of social media. Oh, and we found out through Twitter that Texas Dolly got ill during the middle of a tournament because of something he ate.

Day 12: Hellmuth Chokes and Prohibition Ends at the Mothership - Phil Hellmuth was on a mission to win his 12h bracelet, yet his attempt was thwarted. Meanwhile, much to the delight of the alkies in Vegas, booze was permitted to be consumed inside the Mothership. Yes, the short-lived prohibition was over.

Day 13: Tweaker City, USA - I experienced a rather sketchy encounter in the parking lot at the Gold Coast while hanging out with Benjo.

Day 14: Subterranean Homesick Alien and Brits Snag Third Bracelet - By the end of the second week of the WSOP, everyone is ridden with homesickness. Despite the malaise, another Brit won a bracelet, meanwhile, we decided to pay homage to old school Vegas with a trip downtown to where it all began -- Binion's.

Day 15: Triple ElkY and The Mark is the 22nd Best PLO Player in the World - The French surged during the beginning of the third week of the series. They won three bracelets in a short period of time and ElkY became only the fourth player to win the Triple Crown. Meanwhile, a close friend of the Tao of Poker went deep in a PLO event. Yeah, The Mark fell short of his first WSOP final table.

Day 16: Le Deux; French Snag 2 Bracelets in 24 Hours - The French surge continued with their second bracelet within a 24-hour period.

Day 17: Mike Sexton Heads-Up for Bracelet and Liquidating the Sahara - The Ambassador of Poker, Mike Sexton, went deep in the Stud 8 event, only to have it suspended due to the 10-level rule. Sexton was heads-up when his tournament was halted. Meanwhile, the big liquidation sale at the Sahara kicked off. Jerome and Camille shot a stunning video of that dreary sale day.

Day 18: No Country For Old Men; Barry Greenstein and Mike Sexton Denied Bracelets - Two poker greats came very close to winning bracelets, yet they fell short of the mark. In addition, the Senior's Event kicked off with everyone standing to attention when the Stars and Stripes were played.

Day 19: The Donkenator and Eating Death - Dominating a donkaments are never an easy task. Woever wins that bracelet damn well deserves it. I delve a bit into Milton's Paradise Lost in this recap. Enter at your own risk.

Day 20: The Egregious Case of the $9 Pizza and Stein Shines - It was a matter of time before I went off on an old-fashioned anti-food rant because of the horrendous $9 pizza that the Poker Kitchen tries to pass off as a culinary delight.


Day 21: A Day in the Life; Hellmuth Denied 12th Bracelet (Again) - This is my favorite piece of the summer, mainly because most of the hijinks happened outside the Amazon Ballroom that eventually morphed into my first Memento moment of the WSOP. Anyway, I went on a classic bender at the Gold Coast while Phil Hellmuth went deep once again and tried to win bracelet #12.

Day 22: Slowdown, Rocky Mountain High, and Chau Giang Confirmed Alien - The WSOP caught its breath at the start of the fourth week of play, while I determined that Chau Giang is really an alien.

Day 23: Timex Flashback, Jason Mercier Wins PLO Bracelet, and More Sordid Tales About Chasing the Dragon - I squeezed in a little personal Pai Gow degeneracy in between a recap about Jason Mercier's victory in the PLO event along with a flashback about the origins of Timex.

Day 24: Dwan Song, Revelry, and Hooligans - Whenever Tom "durrrr" Dwan makes a final table, the entire poker world stops to watch. With a few million in prop bets on the line, Dwan's final tables always have an added element of excitement. Alas, it was the Brits who sucked up all of the attention in the Amazon Ballroom as they railed their boy Middy and even drank Jager bombs out of their shoes.

Day 25: Rubber Soul, Electric Daisies, and Two-Tabling Pai Gow - The Electric Daisy Carnival swept through Vegas and a quarter million ravers invaded Sin City. Fabrice Soulier shipped a bracelet and became the third Frenchie to win one in 2011. Ah, and I also engaged in a live session of Pai Gow again and two-tabled it. I'm lucky I didn't get 86'd.

Day 26: The Sickness - If you've spent a significant amount of time in Las Vegas, then you've seen those afflicted with The Sickness. I spoke about some of my experiences with the dreaded disease.

Day 27: Shaking Down Ravers; November Niner Snags Bracelet - I had a situation when I should've rolled a couple of schwasted ravers in the elevator, but I couldn't cross over to the dark side and take advantage of the party people on the last day of the Electric Daisy Carnival.

Day 28: The Glass Onion; Lamb Leads POY - Donkey slayers, Brazilians, and Ben Lamb seizing the top spot in Player of the Year race.

Day 29: Carnival at the Mothership; Akkari Wins Bracelet - I went to cover a final table and a Brazilian soccer match broke out. The Mothership was transformed into a World Cup final when Brazil's native son Andre Akkari advanced to the final table and was heads-up for a bracelet.


"Vamooooooooooooooo!"
Days 30-33: OFF

Day 34: Happy Birthday, America - On the Fourth of July, America celebrated with its annual Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island. Only in America can we boast about binge eating to celebrate our creation and independence from British tyranny.

Day 35: Catching Up - After a brief holiday away from the Vegas grind, it was time to catch up on everything I missed.

Day 36: Don't Stop Believen' - Hellmuth and the 50K hit a hard stop. Grumbles ensued.

Day 37: Another Runner-Up Finish for Hellmuth; Whiffs on Three Flush Draws to Lose Bracelet#12 - Hellmuth had another disappointing evening after he whiffed on three big flush draws only to lose to Brian Rast, who won his second bracelet in 2011.

* * *
2011 Main Event Coverage

Prelude to the Killing Fields - The 2011 Main Event
With a Little Help From My Friends: The Michael Stevens Story by Change100
Day 38- Main Event Day 1A: Dolly's Abyss
Day 39 - Main Event Day 1B: Luck Rack of Lamb
Prope Bets with Remkos and Micros WSOP Episode
Day 40 - Main Event Day 1C: One More Saturday Nite
Day 41 - Main Event Day 1D: Spiderman Big Records, Perma-Bans, and 6,865
Day 42 - Main Event Day 2A: Torturing the One-Eyed Clown, Hellmuth Awakes, and the Euro Surge
Day 43 - Main Event Day 2B: Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
Day 44 - Main Event Day Off; Annie Duke Wins Media Tournament
Day 45 - Main Event Day 3: Poirier and Jace Are Million Men and Tilt-A-Scandi
Day 46 - Main Event Day 4: Soft Bubbles, Zombie Apocalypse, and the Reincarnation of JRB
Day 47 - Main Event Day 5: There Must Be Some Way Out of Here
The Skinny: Day 6
Day 48 - Main Event Day 6: House of the Rising Sun; NOLA's Ryan Lenaghan Leads with 57 Remaining
The Skinny: Day 7
Day 49 - Main Event Day 7: Buy the Ticket, Survive the Ride
2011 November Nine Set
2011 November Nine Betting Odds

That's it. Thanks for following along this summer.

Photos courtesy of Benjo and WhoJedi.

The Best of Tao of Pokerati Podcast - 2011 WSOP

By Pauly
Los Angeles, CA

This summer was special because we had several different guests on the Tao of Pokerati podcast. I never got to have everyone on that I wanted due to scheduling conflicts, but thanks to everyone who joined us during the 2011 WSOP for the quickest poker podcast on the interwebs.


Thanks to Wolynski for the pic
So here's some of my favorite episodes from the 2011 WSOP. Enjoy!

Summer Favorites - Tao of Pokerati Podcast - 2011 WSOP

Episode 6: Ivey's Lawyer (4:17) - Dan and Pauly chat about the Ivey drama that transformed the opening days of the WSOP into the "World Series of Phil Ivey." Dan also shares some inside info on Ivey's lawyer, renown criminal attorney David Chesnoff.

Episode 7: Sahara Liquidation with Remko and Benjo (6:12) - Benjo and Pauly discussed the Sahara Casino liquidation sale/auction with one of the members of the Dutch press, Remko. Both Remko and Benjo expressed a keen interest in acquiring a slot machine for super cheap, while Pauly has his eyes set on a Pai Gow table. Meanwhile, Benjo and Remko try to figure out how to ship a slot machine from Vegas to France and Holland.

Episode 12: The Tweaker Edition with Benjo (4:02) - Benjo and Pauly hang out at the Gold Coast and watched a tweaker get 86d by security. They later encounter the tweaker in the parking lot, and Benjo asks Pauly for a quick tutorial about the seedy Las Vegas meth scene.

Episode 14: Old School Cheats with Johnny Hughes (6:02) - Pauly sat down and chatted with a special guest -- the legendary Johnny Hughes -- who has been in poker circles for 50+ years. Pauly asks Johnny to share some stories about old school poker cheats and the "fear" of getting caught, which kept a lot of shady characters in line.

Episode 16: Brickless Cash Games Reprise (3:22) - Dan and Pauly recorded a quick follow-up to their previous episode while they hang out on the rail of the high-stakes cash games. They spot Eskimo Clark, "Cowboy", and other broke dicks lingering around seeking handouts from the high rollers.

Episode 17: WSOP Fashion Report with KevMath (5:10) - Pauly chats with KevMath, who is a self-described "fashion expert." The two compare and contrast the different styles of clothing worn by members of the media. KevMath also reveals why he won't wear shorts.

Episode 19: KevMath Keno System with KevMath (6:01) - Pauly and KevMath hang out at the dive bar in a bowling alley at the Gold Coast. KevMath was in the middle of crushing a video Keno game, when Pauly asked him to share a couple of his big secrets to beating the game.

Episode 20: Adieu, Benjo (8:40) with Benjo - After almost a week of speculation and rumors, Benjo confirms that he's leaving Las Vegas and heading home to France. His brief stint at the WSOP is officially over. One chapter ends, and a new one begins. Dr. Pauly, Dan and Benjo hang out in the dive bar inside the bowling alley at Gold Coast to listen to Benjo bid his farewells.

Episode 21: New Dynamic Duo with Snoopy (5:59) - Pauly holds auditions for a new sidekick with only one requirement -- a outrageous accent. Snoopy, a writer from London, nails the audition. In this episode, they discuss modeling their new dynamic duo on the Batman & Robin television series, in addition to re-locating the Bat Cave to England and installing bat poles in the press box.

Episode 23: Brazil's Mothership Invasion with AlCantHang (2:50) - Pauly and AlCantHang are on the rail inside the Mothership watching the heads-up battle between American Nachman "The Landlord" Berlin and Brazil's native son Andre Akkari. Al and Pauly record a quick episode moments after Akkari won a decisive pot to cripple Berlin, and the Brazilians went berserk.

Episode 26: Main Event Begins! (6:34) - The Main Event is upon us and before the cards went in the air, Pauly is hanging out and listening to TD Jack Effel's long-winded introduction and a quick rundown of the rules to all Main Event players. Jack then introduces Texas Dolly to utter the famous phrase, "Shuffle up and deal!"

Episode 27: Almost Famous with Snoopy (3:32) - While players return to their seats after the dinner break, Pauly and Snoopy notice Jason Alexander posing for pictures with fans. Snoopy explains why Seinfeld wasn't a big hit in England and Pauly discovers someone dressed as Snow White in the crowd. Pauly also wonders if Snoopy would ever dress up in a costume for the Main Event.

Episode 29: Media Mania and Golden Toilets with Change100 and AlCantHang (3:08) - Pauly is still in the media event, so Change100 takes the opportunity to chat with AlCantHang. They both busted rather early, especially AlCantHang, who won a dubious honor of being the first player to bust out. His reward? A Golden Toiler trophy for last place.

Episode 33: Two Brits, One Irishman with Snoopy (5:09) - Snoopy gives Pauly the latest British report with three tables remaining in the Main Event. Snoopy clues us in on the two Brits (Sam Holden and JP Kelly) still alive along with Eoghan O'Dea from Ireland. Even though O'Dea is Irish, Snoopy and Brits are still keeping an eye on their "adopted" player.

Episode 36: KevMath WSOP Exit Interview with KevMath (8:50) - Kevin "KevMath" Mathers is officially done with his WSOP assignment, but he stopped by the Rio to watch the action on Day 8. He bumped into Pauly, who sat him down to discuss his favorite moments (and least favorite) during his first ever WSOP. Pauly also quizzes him on any strange "fan" encounters along the way.

Episode 37: Pseudo-Final Table (6:02) - Dan and Pauly are on the rail of the Mothership as action resumes for the pseudo-final table of ten, otherwise known as the November Nine bubble. Plenty of tension in the air because the final table will be set with just one more elimination.

Episode 39: Bruno's New Toy (4:20) - Fun Warren brought a batch of dolls to the WSOP. The dolls, resembling famous poker pros, were custom made in London . He left a couple behind for Pauly and Dan. Pauly got Phil Hellmuth, while Dan seems a little disappointed with Daniel Negreanu. Dan suggests that he'll probably give the Negreanu's doll to his dog Bruno, so Bruno will now have a new play toy.

If you want to listen to more episodes from the 2011 WSOP, visit Tao of Pokerati podcast archives.

November Nine Betting Odds - 2011 WSOP

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV

Do you want to place a bet on who will win the 2011 WSOP Main Event? The Wynn casino released betting odds for the November Nine.

Here's the opening lines...

2011 WSOP Betting Odds
3-1 Martin Staszko - 40,175,000
17-5 Eoghan O'Dea - 33,925,000
6-1 Matt Giannetti - 24,750,000
6-1 Phil Collins - 23,875,000
6-1 Ben Lamb - 20,875,000
7-1 Badih Bounahra - 19,700,000
10-1 Pius Heinz - 16,425,000
11-1 Anton Makievskyi - 13,825,000
14-1 Sam Holden - 12,375,000

Lines courtesy of the Wynn. Check your local bookie to see if lines have moved.

Martin Staszko fromt he Czech Republic is the chipelader and a 3-1 favorite. The longshot on the board is Sam Holden from the U.K. The Americans -- Phil Collins, Ben Lamb, and Matt Giannetti -- are each 6-1.

I like Eoghan O'Dea to win it all, but I'm going to wait to see if it moves to 4-1 or 9-2.

2011 November Nine Set

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV


2011 November Nine
Photo courtesy of Who Jedi
The moment you've all been waiting for...the November Nine is final set. There's nine players remaining in the 2011 WSOP Main Event Championship. Play will be suspended until November, when everyone comes back to the Rio to slug it out for the bracelet and $8.7 million in cash.

2011 November Nine:
Seat 1: Matt Giannetti
Seat 2: Badih Bounahra
Seat 3: Eoghan O'Dea
Seat 4: Phil Collins
Seat 5: Anton Makievskyi
Seat 6: Samuel Holden
Seat 7: Pius Heinz
Seat 8: Ben Lamb
Seat 9: Martin Staszko

November Nine Chip Counts:
1. Martin Staszko - 40,175,000
2. Eoghan O'Dea - 33,925,000
3. Matt Giannetti - 24,750,000
4. Phil Collins - 23,875,000
5. Ben Lamb - 20,875,000
6. Badih Bounahra - 19,700,000
7. Pius Heinz - 16,425,000
8. Anton Makievskyi - 13,825,000
9. Sam Holden - 12,375,000

November Nine - Final Table Payouts
1st - $8,711,956
2nd - $5,430,928
3rd - $4,019,635
4th - $3,011,661
5th - $2,268,909
6th - $1,720,396
7th - $1,313,851
8th - $1,009,910
9th - $782,115

To see who cashed in the Main Event, check out 2011 WSOP Main Event results and money finishers.

Stay tuned for a end of day recap. In the meantime, you can read Change100's stellar recaps over at RISE poker, or sift through my twitter feed @taopauly to glimpse about my thoughts as the day progressed, or listen to the quickie episodes of Tao of Pokerati podcast that we recorded throughout Day 8, including KevMath's exit interview.

New Tao of Pokerati Podcast: Bruno's New Toy (Ep 39)

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV


Fun Warren dropped off a couple of dolls resembling famous poker pros in the pressbox.Dan and Pauly each received one as a gift. Hijinks ensue...

2001 WSOP - Episode 39: Bruno's New Toy (4:20) - Fun Warren brought a batch of dolls to the WSOP. The dolls, resembling famous poker pros, were custom made in London . He left a couple behind for Pauly and Dan. Pauly got Phil Hellmuth, while Dan seems a little disappointed with Daniel Negreanu. Dan suggests that he'll probably give the Negreanu's doll to his dog Bruno, so Bruno will now have a new play toy.

For more episodes, visit the Tao of Pokerati archives.

New Tao of Pokerati Podcast: Pucked Up Hand (Ep 38)

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV


Dan and Pauly continue to hang out at the final table bubble for the November Nine. They pucked up a hand...

2011 WSOP - Episode 38: Pucked Up Hand (4:48) - Dan and Pauly thought they were recording an episode during an elimination hand, but they mistakenly got the players mixed up. Instead of a bustout, they witnessed a double up by Matt Gianetti. The simple error leads to a suggestion that perhaps the WSOP needs to highlight all-in players with special colored spotlights.

For more episodes, visit the Tao of Pokerati archives.

New Tao of Pokerati Podcast: Pseudo-Final Table (Ep 37)

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV


Dan showed up at the perfect time to hang out with Pauly, just as the final ten players were consolidated to one table...

2001 WSOP - Episode 37: Pseudo-Final Table (6:02) - Dan and Pauly are on the rail of the Mothership as action resumes for the pseudo-final table of ten, otherwise known as the November Nine bubble. Plenty of tension in the air because the final table will be set with just one more elimination.

For more episodes, visit the Tao of Pokerati archives.

New Tao of Pokerati Podcast: KevMath Exit Interview (Ep 36)

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV


Kevin Mathers and he sat downw ith Paulyfor a chat about his first ever WSOP...

2001 WSOP - Episode 36: KevMath WSOP Exit Interview with KevMath (8:50) - Kevin "KevMath" Mathers is officially done with his WSOP assignment, but he stopped by the Rio to watch the action on Day 8. He bumped into Pauly, who sat him down to discuss his favorite moments (and least favorite) during his first ever WSOP. Pauly also quizzes him on any strange "fan" encounters along the way.

For more episodes, visit the Tao of Pokerati archives.

New Tao of Pokerati Podcast: Patchwork Orange (Ep 35)

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV


Dan and Dr. Pauly hang out on the rail of the featured TV table and wonder where have all the patch deals gone?

2001 WSOP - Episode 35: Patchwork Orange (6:06) - Dan and Pauly hang out late on Day 7. Dan tells everyone how his girlfriend checked out the Main Event for the first time to check out all the hoopla. The discussion shifts to patch deals and lack of huge sponsorship money on TV tables.

For more episodes, visit the Tao of Pokerati archives.

2011 WSOP Day 49 - Main Event Day 7: Buy the Ticket, Survive the Ride

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV


Off in the distance shortly before the bewitching hour of midnight, a muffled sound resembling a mixture of clapping and two squirrels fighting echoed from the far side of the room. Someone won a pot at one of the outer tables and their friends on the rail celebrated wildly spilling beer on each other and acting like baboons during a spring mating ritual. The hand would be beamed around the world thirty minutes later via ESPN2, but for the moment, the loser sat idle and looked at the unfortunate river card. He was stunned and dazed, sort of like a boxing match when a fighter catches a glancing uppercut to the chin and falls to the canvas, only to pop up two seconds later, and wondering where the fuck did that come from? The film crew, dressed in black, captured his dazed expression as they circled his table, while a couple of field reporters scribbled down the final details of the hand in their own version of poker shorthand.

"Who won the pot," whispered the oblivious railbird in front of me.

"Obvious not the guy who just high-fived his friends on the rail."

With three or four tables left in the Amazon Ballroom, the number of media circling around the tables began to outnumber the remaining players. Add up all the tournament staff and railbirds, and the players were grossly outnumbered. They sat inside the ropes out on the floor or either on the secondary table and the massive, gaudy set inside the Mothership. Alas, for the first time since I started covering poker, agents were not slithering around the rail or trying to chase down big-stacked players on the break. The lack of online poker rooms vying for the hearts and minds of Americans and other poker fans deeply affected the endorsement cottage industry. The cold war is over after a swift round of indictments from the federales. As a result, millions of dollars in potential endorsement deals dried up. Without seven figures of free money in play, the vampires remained in the shadows -- there's no juicy and vitamin-enriched blood to suck dry.

On day 1 of the Main Event, I wandered through the Pavilion glimpsing at a poker tournament filled with thousands of dreamers, delusional gambling addicts, bucket listers, Vegas sharks, semi-pros with a chip on their shoulder, and a horde of amateurs. If I was a tournament player, I'd be drooling like Pavlov's frothing dog at all of the dead money sitting around in a poker-themed circle jerk.

By days 2 and 3, what was once a poker tournament had turned into a spectacle. By day 7, the tournament became its own reality show as the lines between sports and entertainment were blurred once again. The WSOP is definitely entertainment, but with a competitive edge, which is where the argument splinters off -- is it a sport or is it gambling disguised as sports entertainment? Regardless of which side you fall in that debate, the Main Event is the ultimate reality show and the only actors appearing in the tournament are the ones whom use their real names. Sure we might reference Everyone Loves Raymond or AJ Soprano, but that's just the roles we're used to seeing actors portray on the little box in our living rooms (and these days, with more people viewing/streaming programs on their laptops, those portrayals are beamed to their portable devices). The real life persons (Ray Romano and Robert Iler) dug into their pockets and plopped down $10,000. Doesn't matter if you're an NBA player, an electrician from Garfield, NJ, or an former internet pro who lives down the street at Palms Place. They each purchased a ticket to the bacchanal of poker.

As Hunter Thompson once said, "Buy the ticket, take the ride."

The ride is a journey. The journey is the path to fame, riches, and glory. The final step before all of that is achieved is the November Nine. All 6,865 entrants were focused on making to the end of each playing day, eventually advancing all the way to the final nine players, before they take a couple of months off and return for the November hippodrome.

Depending on who you talk to that is wearing a suit, this year at the WSOP has been its most successful yet. Pros will tell you the WSOP has turned tournament poker into one of those cheesy chain restaurants you'll find in an strip mall in America. Jaded vets will tell you otherwise -- how this year lacks the "punch" and "excitement" of previous years.

"It's like attending a funeral," one member of the British press said. "Except they usually have better food at funerals."

Yes, the 2011 WSOP reached new heights with more participants than ever before. How much of that is attributed to the lack of online poker, with junkies are playing more events to get their fix?

Don't forget that the wealth in poker is distributed every single tournament. If a pro wins a tournament, then the money will most likely stay within the inner circle of tournament poker. If a degen wins a tournament, the money will get sucked out of the poker economy and pissed away at the sportsbook or in the pits. Junkies and sex addicts will snort, shoot, and smoke away their profits, while the weak fools with penchant for strip clubs will most likely pay the rent for two or three exotic dancers. If ballers win a tournament, the money will disappear after they blow it in restaurants, clubs, and buying fast cars and luxury items for their lady friends. If a broke dick wins a tournament, most of that windfall gets kicked back into the coffers of backers and staking syndicates. And if an amateur wins a tournament (like Jerry Yang), he's taking the money back to his hometown and most likely never spending a cent of his winnings in Vegas, or circulating it back in play at the cash game or tournament tables.

But that's the beauty of the WSOP Main Event. The ticket cost $10,000. The longevity of the ride is essentially out of your hands. But the ticket gets you a chance at securing $8 million (minus taxes, fees, and loans you have to make to deadbeat friends and family members). The Main Event ride is not a carousel in the park that lasts three archaic waltzes. The Main Event Ride might last an hour or might get prolonged until November. If you fall short of the final nine, you still have a shot at drowning yourself in shit ton of cash. As we know in America (or at least, we've been brainwashed to believe it), money is a shortcut to happiness.

Then again, if you hang out at the cage, you'll see more miserable faces than the ER room at a hospital. It's not easy to get pumped about winning $242,000 when you feel as though you had a legit shot at a $8 million score -- that is, until some Eastern Euro donk ambushed you with a junk hand. One second you're smiling for ESPN cameras, and the next, you're fighting back tears after looking like a chump on the live stream.

* * *


Only 57 players walked inside the Amazon Ballroom on Day 7. After five levels (or 10 hours) of play, only 22 remained. Along the way, the adorable poker couple went busto as Doc Sands was eliminated in 30th place and his partner Erika Moutinho gotknocked out in 29th. The Golden Boy Erick Lindgren and most notable pro left in the field hit the road. Tony Hachem, the jovial brother of former champion Salty Joe Hachem failed in his quest to become the only pair of siblings to win a Main Event. The Gunslinger got gunned down in 45th place. The weird French dude with pink hair, Guillaume Darcourt, got flushed away. And the British wunderkind, JP Kelly, found his fate in 26th place.

Yeah, most of the big stories at the start of Day 7 became obituaries by the time the final 22 bagged up their chips. But that's not to say there's nothing to say about the 22 players who will return on Day 8.

Eoghan O'Dea is the son of the legendary Don O'Dea, otherwise known as the Godfather of Irish poker. O'Dea flew under the radar for the entire tournament until he emerged as one of the chipleaders late on Day 7. Only a Ukrainian ended the day with more chips.

Anton Makiievskyi ended Day 7 as overall leader after seizing the top spot. The 21-year old is still a little wet behind the ears, but he's got a legit shot at the November Nine in a breakout year for Ukrainian poker (the former bread basket of the Soviet Union boasts of four bracelets already in 2011).

Khoa Nguyen is third in chips. The engineer from Canada shares a last name that is synonymous with excellence (and controversy), but I bet you that he was the last Nguyen you thought would make a final table, right?

Andrey Pateychuk is the pride of Vladivostok, Russia. He's also the youngest player left in the Main Event, which makes him even money to advance to the November Nine. It's like a formula -- 21-year old always makes the final table.

Ben Lamb ended up fifth in chips, which is kinda disappointing considering the year he's been having. He already locked up the top spot for POY (after Bach busted) and has to hold off a Hellmuthian assault at the WSOP-Europe in October, but if he can continue his run and kep Helluth at bay, Lamb will secure himself the 2011 Player of the Year.


That rounds out the top 5 in chips, but Bryan Devonshire is probably the most notable pro left in the field. Aside from arranging complex chip structures, Devo's fans showed up with red pails, which they wore upside on their heads in homage to the eclectic 80s pop group. Devo is 15th in chips, but he has one hell of a rail that his opponents must contend with on Day 8.

You can check out Day 8 seat assignments and chip counts here -- The Skinny - Main Event Day 7.

So, there's 22 ticket holders left. Which ones will still be left standing when the ride comes to a complete stop?
* * *
Photos courtesy of Winamax and WhoJedi.

Follow @taopauly for Twitter updates throughout the day.

Also, help support indie writers and buy my books: Lost Vegas: The Redneck Riviera, Existentialist Conversations with Strippers and the World Series of Poker, and my recently released novel, Jack Tripper Stole My Dog. Both are also available for Kindles and iPads.

2011 WSOP Main Event - The Skinny - End of Day 7

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV


Erick and Doc
On Day 7, only 57 players walked inside the Amazon Ballroom. By the end of the night, 22 remained. Stay tuned for a complete Day 7 recap. In the meantime, check out some quick stats, results, chipcounts, and Day 8 seating assignments...

2011 Main Event - Quick Stats

Entrants: 6,865
Players Remaining: 22
Chipleader: Anton Makievskyi - 21,045,000
Payouts: 693
First Place: 8,711,956
Prizepool: $64,531,000
Juice to the WSOP: $4,119,000

Top 10 Chip Counts:
1. Anton Makievskyi - 21,045,000
2. Eoghan O'Dea - 19,050,000
3. Khoa Nguyen - 16,435,000
4. Andrey Pateychuk - 16,245,000
5. Ben Lamb - 14,690,000
6. Phil Collins - 13,805,000
7. John Hewitt - 13,265,000
8. Ryan Lenaghan - 10,415,000
9. Matt Giannetti - 8,920,000
10. Konstantinos Mamaliadis - 8,195,000

The Rest - Chip Counts:
Pius Heinz - 7,510,000
Aleksandr Mozhnyakov - 7,075,000
Scott Schwalich - 6,920,000
Martin Staszko - 6,380,000
Bryan Devonshire - 6,190,000
Sam Barnhart - 4,935,000
Samuel Holden - 4,740,000
Gionni Demers - 4,655,000
Kenny Shih - 4,530,000
Lars Bonding - 4,140,000
Bounahra Badih - 3,385,000
Christopher Moore - 3,040,000

* * *
Day 7 Eliminations and Money Winners

The following players won $302,005:
23 Andrew Hinrichsen
24 Greg Kaplan
25 Jerry Van Strydonck
26 JP Kelly
27 Kyle Johnson

The following players won $242,636:
28 Philipp Gruissem
29 Erika Moutinho
30 Doc Sands
31 Steve Brecher
32 John Esposito
33 Nelson Robinson
34 Nicolas Fierro
35 Guillaume Darcourt
36 Hilton Laborda

The following players won $196,174:
37 Tony Hachem
38 Frank Sinopoli
39 Mario Silvestri
40 James Page
41 Tri Huynh
42 Fabio Sousa
43 Erick Lindgren
44 Ruben Visser
45 David Bach

The following players won $160,036:
46 Stephane Albertini
47 Tom Koral
48 Stuart Tuvey
49 Feming Chan
50 Matthew Kay
51 Stefan Huber
52 Jody Howe
53 Andrew Brokos
54 Zohair Karim

The following players won $130,997:
55 Sebastian Ruthenberg
56 Minh Nguyen
57 Per Linde

Here's a complete list of 2011 WSOP Main Event money finishers.

* * *
Day 8 Seating Assignments

Outer Table 334
Seat 1: Martin Staszko - 6,190,000
Seat 2: John Hewitt - 13,265,000
Seat 3: EMPTY
Seat 4: EMPTY
Seat 5: Ben Lamb - 14,690,000
Seat 6: Ryan Lenaghan - 10,415,000
Seat 7: Andrey Pateychuk - 16,245,000
Seat 8: Eoghan O'Dea - 19,050,000
Seat 9: Bryan Devonshire - 6,190,000

ESPN Feature Table - Mothership
Seat 1: Gionni Demers - 4,655,000
Seat 2: Chris Moore - 3,040,000
Seat 3: Khoa Nguyen - 16,435,000
Seat 4: Konstantinos Mamaliadis - 8,195,000
Seat 5: Kenny Shih - 4,530,000
Seat 6: Samuel Holden - 4,740,000
Seat 7: Lars Bonding - 4,140,000
Seat 8: EMPTY
Seat 9: Anton Makievskyi - 21,045,000

Secondary Feature Table
Seat 1: Matt Giannetti - 8,920,000
Seat 2: Aleksandr Mozhnyakov - 7,075,000
Seat 3: Scott Schwalich - 6,920,000
Seat 4: Pius Heinz - 7,510,000
Seat 5: Phil Collins - 13,805,000
Seat 6: EMPTY- --
Seat 7: Bounahra Badih - 3,385,000
Seat 8: EMPTY
Seat 9: Sam Barnhart - 4,935,000

Chip counts and seating info courtesy of WSOP.com. Photo courtesy of WhoJedi.

* * *
Play resumes at noon on Tuesday. They will play from 22 down to the final nine. Stay tuned for a complete end of Day 6 recap.

New Tao of Pokerati Podcast: Tent City

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV


Dan and Pauly hang out on the smokers' porch and observe "tent city"...

2011 WSOP - Episode 34: Tent City (5:01) - Dan and Pauly went outside and wandered around tent city, where all of the ESPN live feed production trucks and Poker PROductions trailers were located. Pauly hasn't seen much of the semi-live coverage on ESPN and Dan clues him in on what he's been missing...

For more episodes, visit the Tao of Pokerati archives.

New Tao of Pokerati Podcast: Two Brits, One Irishman (Ep 33)

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV


Snoopy joins Pauly for a conversation about the pair of Brits and one Irishman left in the Main Event field...

2011 WSOP - Episode 33: Two Brits, One Irishman with Snoopy (5:09) - Snoopy gives Pauly the latest British report with three tables remaining in the Main Event. Snoopy clues us in on the two Brits (Sam Holden and JP Kelly) still alive along with Eoghan O'Dea from Ireland. Even though O'Dea is Irish, Snoopy and Brits are still keeping an eye on their "adopted" player.

For more episodes, visit the Tao of Pokerati archives.

New Tao of Pokerati Podcast: Semi-Live WSOP, Live from the Palms (Ep 32)

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV


Hey, Dan and Dr. Pauly discuss the latest innovation in the Main Event...

2011 WSOP - Episode 32: Semi-Live WSOP, Live from the Palms (3:21) - The WSOP is being broadcast on ESPN with a 30-minute delay, and it's also being streamed online at ESPN 3. Dan has not been at the Rio, because he's been keeping an eye on the Main Event by watching ESPN's coverage. Pauly mentions that finally watched some of ESPN2's coverage, which was on in the background while he and Dan played in the Pokerati mixed game at the Palms.

For more episodes, visit the Tao of Pokerati archives.

2011 WSOP Day 48 - Main Event Day 6: House of the Rising Sun; NOLA's Ryan Lenaghan Leads with 57 Remaining

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV

At the start to Day 6, I jotted down a couple of potential stories that I needed to keep a keen eye on. Six seemed to be an appropriate number, so my goal was to answer all six questions by the end of the day. Here's a bit of my notes:

Day 6 Stories

1. The last woman standing -- who will it be?

2. JRB Watch - time for an implosion or will the deep run continue?

3. Can Joe Cheong become the first back-to-back November Niner?

4. When will Ben Lamb overtake Phil Hellmuth for POY standings?

5. Which "known pros" will be bagging up chips at the end of the day?

6. Will David Bach cough up the lead to Puis Heinz or Ben Lamb? Or will someone else seize the top spot?

Sometimes you get lucky and most of your questions are answered in a concise manner, especially on a rather strange Sunday in Las Vegas. How strange? Everyone went to dinner at 4:25pm and had a 2-hour break. Very strange indeed. What are we playing a circuit event at the WSOP of Del Bocca Vista? Only retirees hitting up an "Early Bird" buffet are ready to chow down at 4:30pm.

Me? I scurried out of the Rio and played an hour of so of Pai Gow. I wish I was hungry, but at the time, I needed to donk off a few chips while I sorted out the top 6 stories of the day.

* * *
Last Woman Standing

Three women entered the Octogon. Only one survived and collected Wicked Chops Poker's special "cup" for the Last Woman Standing. At my first WSOP Main Event in 2005, Tiffany Williamson made noise during her deep run (15th place) and even got to fling around chips inside Benny's Bullpen at the last ever glimpse of the WSOP at Downtown Las Vegas. In 2006, Sabyl Cohen went deep with a 56th place finish in the largest-ever field at the WSOP. In 2007, Maria Ho took 37th place and almost got drenched by a keg of beer from rowdy railbirds. If you read Lost Vegas, you know about the controversy surrounding Tiffany Michelle's 17th place finish at the 2008 Main Event. In 2009, Leo Margets from Spain finished in 27th place. Last year, it wasn't that great of year for the Ladies because no one finished in the top 3 tables. Alas, Breeze Zuckerman posted a 121st place finish, good enough for the WCP Last Woman Standing cup.

In 2011, a trio of women were still alive at the start of Day 6: Amanda Musumeci, Erika Moutinho, and Claudia Crawford. Crawford hit the rail in 85th while Musumeci waited until the final level of play before she bailed out in 62nd place. Ergo, Erika Moutinho shipped the Last Woman Standing cup.


Amanda Musumeci


Claudia Crawford
Moutinho not only has a name that is ripe to be snarked on via Twitter, but she's also the girlfriend of Doc Sands -- himself ensconced in a deep run at the Main Event. The couple even were seated at the same table late in the day. Sometimes, couples/spouses and siblings/family members are looked upon with suspicious eyes in poker rooms because of a potential collusion factor. I dunno about you and your siblings, but my brother and I grew up in a highly competitive environment. Sure we'd root for each other to win a tournament, but while we're both playing -- anything goes. We've both busted each other in the past and given the shot, we'd go after each other in the Main Event. The Mizrachis had a similar situation last year. Heck, even Annie Duke knokced her brother Howard Lederer out of the Main Event the year in which she bubbled off the final table.

Now boyfriend/girlfriend? That's a little tough, but then again, I've been with my awesome ladyfriend for over 5 years and we've pretty much argued about everything under the sun. You don't last that long in a relationship unless you've run the gauntlet of debate/argument topics -- and still be on speaking terms without chucking sharp objects at each other. So in that regard, I assume Moutinho and Sands would gun each other down if given the opportunity. After all, it's the WSOP Main Event -- a made-for-TV event -- and as the saying goes, "It's not show friends, it's show business!"

I'd expect all eyes are keeping a close watch on the couple, which means it's nearly impossible to pull off any shenanigans because they are under intense scrutiny, especially with 57 players to go. But congrats to Erika Moutinho. She still has a shot at becoming the next (and only second) woman to make the final table.


Erika Moutinho
Oh, and speaking of brothers -- Tony Hachem is trying to make history by becoming the first pair of brothers/siblings to ship the Main Event. His older brother, "Salty" Joe Hachem won the last ever Main Event played out inside Benny's Bullpen in 2005. Ah, that's the locale of the infamous "Oi! Oi! Oi!" chant and let's not forget the "Pass the sugar!" mantra that got beat to a dead horse in the subsequent years.

* * *
JRB Watch

Jean-Robert Bellande (known aliases are JRB, Bobby, or Busto Bobby) is an evil genius and managed to brand himself, quite successfully, as the consummate broke dick poker pro. Bellande crossed over into rare and coveted territory for the poker world -- as a network reality TV star. Poker fame is one thing, but reality TV show fame is an entirely different beast. Many more Americans watch Survivor compared to WSOP broadcasts on ESPN, which means Bobby Bellande is famous in Middle America because he appeared on TVs inside homes, apartments, and trailer parks in various fly-over states.

Bellande is also very open about his deviancy and lack of control when it comes to bankroll management, Much like many young pros who come into money for the first time, JRB and the young guns often opt to keep up their lofty lifestyles at the expense of their bankroll. Hence why "Broke Living" is such a truthful way to band oneself in poker, especially because behind the scenes many well-known pros are struggling financially -- either trying to maintain the baller lifestyle, or they're stuck six or seven figures of makeup to various backers and staking syndicates.

Love or hate JRB, at least he's honest with his financial situation. Plenty of pros issue press releases or brag on social media about why they are skipping the WSOP or other events while whitewashing the real truth -- because they are broke. A few years back when Gus Hansen was rumored to be stuck almost $10 million (most of it to Doyle Brunson), the Great Dane was AWOL from the WSOP preliminaries. I bumped into his "agent" in the hallway and said, "Where the fuck is Gus? Tell me he's banging the Swedish bikini team?" His agent acted coy and said, "Gus is home in Denmark spending time with family and playing golf with friends." I quickly scribbled down in my notebook -- "Agent tried to bluff me. Gus is broke."

JRB is always a fun sweat because his stack has more ups and downs and massive swings than a gold mining stock listed on the NYSE. One moment JRB has his back against the wall and on the brink of elimination. The next thing you know, he's sitting pretty on a big stack and you know it's just a matter of time before he spews off his chips. We took bets in the press box when JRB would implode -- but we were also impressed with another deep run in consecutive years.

JRB haters rejoiced when he busted in 65th place, meanwhile JRB fans were bummed out when he was eliminated late on Day 6. Busto Bobby added $108,412 to his bankroll. I have no idea how much of his action he sold off, but expect it was anywhere from 42 to 98%.

* * *
Back-to-Back Subiime?

Since the inception of the November Nine, there has yet to be a player to make multiple November Nine appearances. Only one player from the 2010 November Nine was still alive -- Joe "subiime" Cheong. After a tough implosion at the final table inside the Penn & Teller Theatre, Cheong busted in third place. He was seeking redemption and attempting to erase last year's bitter memory with another final table stint. Plus, without online poker, Cheong needed to gobble up as much cash as he could to pad his bankroll because grinding live poker is a mind-bending chore in the post-Black Friday world.

Alas, Cheong got knocked out in 114th place and only won $54,000 or so. That's chump change compared to the November Nine payouts, but at least he exited the Amazon Ballroom with the distinction of being the last November Niner left standing. Doesn't he get a lifetime supply of beef jerky for that feat?

* * *
Lambs, Brats, and POY

Phil Hellmuth did everything within his power to win his 12th bracelet this summer. He ended up with three disappointing runner-up finishes, but entered the Main Event in the top spot for the 2011 WSOP Player of the Year race (powered by Bluff Magazine's astute ranking system). At one point Ben Lamb held the lead, until Hellmuth leaped ahead a couple of weeks ago.

But now -- with Hellmuth's elimination and Lamb still alive in the Main Event -- Lamb surpassed Hellmuth once again to reclaim the top spot in the POY race. Of course, David Bach has an outside chance of seizing first place if he ships the Main Event and both Lamb/Hellmuth whiff at the WSOP-Europe.

Oh, in case you didn't know, the WSOP-E counts towards POY points. It was a controversial decision and most pros were against it because they were lazy fuckers who didn't want to have to fly to Cannes in October to play in all of the WSOP-E events in order to secure their leads in the POY. You bet your ass Hellmuth already booked his flights to France and he'll be playing in every preliminary including the WSOP-E Main Event. I guess you can expect Ben Lamb to show up as well in order to preserve his top spot.

* * *
Familiar Faces (of Death)

Who is going to be the token pro at the final table? Every year it seems as though a name pro stands out from the rest of the pack. With Phil Ivey sitting out this year's Main Event, a handful of pros went into Day 6 hoping that they'd step up and become this year's token pro. The exposure is tough to top, especially if you're not considered one of the top-tiered pros in terms of TV popularity and outlandishness. Guys like Allen Cunningham have millions and millions in career earnings, but they are nice, quiet guys at the table, which means they are overlooked by ESPN cameras, who spend more time roaming the floor capturing douchey behavior and other outbursts of uncouth manners

Speaking of Allen Cunningham, he went deep during the year Jamie Gold won and was hoping to add another final table to his already impressive resume. Alas, Allen busted in 69th place. That meant the golden boy -- Erick Lindgren -- became the center of attention.


Lindgren going deep
Lindgren recently got married to Erica Schoenberg before the Main Event began. If there's another reason to hate Lindgren, there you go, because he married one of the cooler chicks in the poker scene. Lindgren finally got the bracelet monkey off his back a couple of summers ago, but why not add a November Nine appearance to his list of accolades?

Lindgren flew under the radar, so low in fact, that my buddy F Train didn't even notice him until Day 6. Sometimes pros will do that to you and sneak up out of nowhere. While everyone was focused on the chipleaders and the race to a 10 million-chip stack, Lindgren got lost in the kerfuffle.

Lindgren ended Day 6 in the second half of the pack (38th to be exact). At this time of the year, he's usually sifting through fantasy football magazines (joke source goes to his agent, Brian Balsbaugh) and gearing up for the upcoming NFL season. But in this instance, the magazines will have to wait because E-Dogg is attempting a shot at the improbable -- a seat at the November Nine.

By the way, speaking of notables, one of the producers from my favorite show Weeds is Matt Salsberg. He finished in 70th place. If you ever wonder where all the random poker references came from -- it's Salsberg! Well done, sir. By the way, if you happen to read Tao of Poker, I'd love to submit writing samples (and hook you up with a copy of Lost Vegas) to be considered as a staff writer on your upcoming series about poker players. Heck, I'd even write for Weeds if given the opportunity. Let me know if we can do lunch when I get back to L.A.!

* * *
Bag It Tag It, Sell It to the Butcher At the Store

David "Gunslinger" Bach began Day 6 as the chipleader. Everyone still left in the Main Event was gunning for the big dog. By the end of four full levels of play, Bach slipped to under 2 million -- a paltry sum indeed. He'll start Day 7 in 42nd place or trailing the leader by 9 million.

Speaking of leaders, Ryan Lenaghan sort of came out of nowhere to finish Day 6 with the lead.He bagged up 12.8 million. Lenaghan, a pro from the Big Easy via Alabama, emerged late on Day 6. Most of the attention throughout the day went to Phil Collins. No, the drummer from Genesis was not playing in the Main Event, rather it was the online pro known as USCPhildo. And no, he didn't go to Southern Cal, rather, he attended South Carolina. Anyway, Collins became the first player to pass the 10 million mark, much to the delight of the media who quickly busted out Phil Collins jokes/lyrics/song titles.

Lenaghan snatched the lead away from Collins, who finished up 7.2 million after dropping a slew of chips. Collins still managed to pull off a Top 5 finish on Day 6.

And then there's Ben Lamb. He seized the lead at one point during Day 6, but couldn't keep pace with Collins or Lenaghan. But never count Lamb out. He finished Day 6 with a shade under 10 million -- good enough for second overall.

By the way, Bryan Devonshire and Puis Heinz (my new favorite name at the Main Event) are 11th and 12th in chips with a smidgen below 6 million. They are both within striking distance of the front pack.

* * *
Photos courtesy of Winamax and Wolynski.

Follow @taopauly for Twitter updates throughout the day.

Also, help support indie writers and buy my books: Lost Vegas: The Redneck Riviera, Existentialist Conversations with Strippers and the World Series of Poker, and my recently released novel, Jack Tripper Stole My Dog. Both are also available for Kindles and iPads.

2011 WSOP Main Event - The Skinny - End of Day 6

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV


There's 57 players left over in the 2011 WSOP Main Event. Stay tuned for a complete Day 6 recap. In the meantime, check out some quick stats, results, chipcounts, and Day 7 seating assignments...

2011 Main Event - Quick Stats

Entrants: 6,865
Players Remaining: 57
Chipleader: Ryan Lenaghan - 12,865,000
Payouts: 693
First Place: 8,711,956
Prizepool: $64,531,000
Juice to the WSOP: $4,119,000


Top 10 Chip Counts:
1. Ryan Lenaghan - 12,865,000
2. Ben Lamb - 9,980,000
3. Matt Giannetti - 7,940,000
4. Andrey Pateychuk - 7,255,000
5. Phil Collins - 7,240,000
6. Hilton Laborda - 7,160,000
7. Nelson Robinson - 6,420,000
8. Tri Huynh - 6,295,000
9. Aleksandr Mozhnyakov - 6,070,000
10. Kyle Johnson - 5,970,000

The Rest - End of Day 6 Chip Counts:
11. Bryan Devonshire - 5,970,000
12. Pius Heinz - 5,695,000
13. Guillaume Darcourt - 5,340,000
14. Chris Moore - 5,260,000
15. Konstantinos Mamaliadis - 5,065,000
16. John Hewitt - 5,045,000
17. James Page - 4,045,000
18. Andrew Hinrichsen - 4,025,000
19. Jerry Van Strydonck - 3,985,000
20. Nicolas Fierro - 3,800,000
21. JP Kelly - 3,750,000
22. Per Linde - 3,750,000
23. Khoa Nguyen - 3,530,000
24. Tom Koral - 3,390,000
25. Ahtoh Makiievskyi - 3,385,000
26. Lars Bonding - 3,370,000
27. Sam Barnhart - 3,145,000
28. Scott Schwalich - 2,940,000
29. David Sands - 2,765,000
30. Gregory Kaplan - 2,760,000
31. Stephane Albertini - 2,635,000
32. Stuart Tuvey - 2,585,000
33. Martin Staszko - 2,550,000
34. Eoghan Odea - 2,535,000
35. Andrew Brokos - 2,505,000
36. Tony Hachem - 2,250,000
37. Samuel Holden - 2,220,000
38. Erick Lindgren - 2,195,000
39. Fabio Sousa - 2,150,000
40. Erika Moutinho - 2,075,000
41. Philipp Gruissem - 2,005,000
42. David Bach - 1,985,000
43. Feming Chan - 1,955,000
44. Bounahra Badih - 1,860,000
45. Steve Brecher - 1,805,000
46. Mario Silvestri - 1,725,000
47. Gionni Demers - 1,625,000
48. Stefan Huber - 1,469,000
49. Matthew Kay - 1,295,000
50. Kenny Shih - 1,240,000
51. Zohair Karim - 1,240,000
52. Frank Sinopoli - 1,105,000
53. Ruben Visser - 1,070,000
54. Jody Howe - 1,065,000
55. John Esposito - 1,000,000
56. Minh Nguyen - 1,000,000
57. Sebastian Ruthenberg - 890,000

* * *
Day 6 Eliminations and Money Winners

The following players won $130,997:
58 Brian Yoon
59 Thomas Grey
60 Tyler Bonkowski
61 Chris DeMaci
62 Amanda Musumeci
63 Marc-Andre Ladouceur

The following players won $108,412:
64 Guy Gorelik
65 Jean-Robert Bellande
66 Jacob Bazeley
67 Peter Gelencser
68 Bryan Follain
69 Allen Cunningham
70 Matt Salsberg
71 Mitchell Cogert
72 Niall Charlton

The Following players won $90,343:
73 Jared Vengrin
74 Aaron Ruppert
75 Ben Mintz
76 Hoi Lee
77 Paul Spitzberg
78 Michael De Gilio
79 Alex Moore
80 Frederick Berger
81 Pablo Ubierna

The following players won $76,146:
82 David Barter
83 Evan McNiff
84 Robin Jens Colbin
85 Claudia Crawford
86 Marc Mclaughlin
87 Jonathan Seelbach
88 Bolivar Palacios
89 Daryl Jace
90 Frank Calo

The following players won $64,531:
91 Benjamin Logan
92 Christian Harder
93 Julian Stuer
94 Mars Callahan
95 Sorel Mizzi
96 Harold Wasson
97 Tahsyn Makani
98 Nathan Meyvis
99 Raymond Henson

The following players won $54,851:
100 Jamie Shaevel
101 Chamath Palihapitiya
102 Ara Melikian
103 Aaron Jones
104 Thomas Pedersen
105 Robert Peltekci
106 Vladimir Geshkenbein
107 Eli Elezra
108 Lance Steinberg
109 Duane Alexander
110 Massimiliano Martinez
111 Sami Kelopuro
112 Alexander Dietrich
113 Jens Kyllonen
114 Joseph Cheong
115 Steve Rawle
116 Wai Cheng
117 Bryan Colin
118 Magnus Persson
119 Guerfi Mesbah
120 Matthew Wantman
121 Matthew Frankland
122 Ryan Jaconetti
123 Seth Davies
124 Peter "Nordberg" Feldman
125 Chris Bonita
126 Blake Bohn
127 Marton Czuczor
128 Thomas Oldcroft
129 Jonathan Pinx
130 Cortland Mcjannet
131 Vasily Tsapko
132 Rupert Elder
133 Cory Albertson
134 Jeff Becker
135 Guiseppe Pastura
136 Patrick McNamara
137 Alexander Debus
138 Jimmie Guinther
139 Marius Maciukas
140 Timothy Adams
141 Carl Olson
142 James Ruszkiewicz

Here's a complete list of 2011 WSOP Main Event money finishers.
* * *
Day 7 Seating Assignments

Table 312
Seat 1: John Esposito - 1,000,000
Seat 2: David Bach - 1,985,000
Seat 3: David Sands - 2,765,000
Seat 4: Ryan Lenaghan - 12,865,000
Seat 5: Pius Heinz - 5,695,000
Seat 6: Stephane Albertini - 2,635,000
Seat 7: EMPTY
Seat 8: Martin Staszko - 2,550,000
Seat 9: Hilton Laborda - 7,160,000

Table 314
Seat 1: EMPTY
Seat 2: Matt Giannetti - 7,940,000
Seat 3: Fabio Sousa - 2,150,000
Seat 4: JP Kelly - 3,750,000
Seat 5: Tom Koral - 3,390,000
Seat 6: Andrey Pateychuk - 7,255,000
Seat 7: Frank Sinopoli - 1,105,000
Seat 8: Minh Nguyen - 1,000,000
Seat 9: Zohair Karim - 1,240,000

Table 324
Seat 1: Phil Collins - 7,240,000
Seat 2: Konstantinos Mamaliadis - 5,065,000
Seat 3: Nelson Robinson - 6,420,000
Seat 4: James Page - 4,045,000
Seat 5: Erika Moutinho - 2,075,000
Seat 6: EMPTY
Seat 7: Gionni Demers 1,625,000
Seat 8: Tri Hyunh 6,295,000
Seat 9: Stefan Huber 1,470,000

Table 326
Seat 1: Bryan Devonshire - 5,970,000
Seat 2: Scott Schwalich - 2,940,000
Seat 3: Ben Lamb - 9,980,000
Seat 4: EMPTY
Seat 5: Nic Fierro - 3,800,000
Seat 6: Eoghan Odea - 2,535,000
Seat 7: Matthew Kay - 1,295,000
Seat 8: Sam Barnhart - 3,145,000
Seat 9: Ahtoh Makiievskyi - 3,385,000

Table 334
Seat 1: Feming Chan - 1,955,000
Seat 2: Jody Howe - 1,065,000
Seat 3: Lars Bonding - 3,370,000
Seat 4: Kyle Johnson - 5,970,000
Seat 5: Andrew Hinrichsen - 4,025,000
Seat 6: Steve Brecher - 1,805,000
Seat 7: Jerry Van Strydonck - 3,985,000
Seat 8: Aleksandr Mozhnyakov - 6,070,000
Seat 9: Gregory Kaplan - 2,760,000

Table 336
Seat 1: Tony Hachem - 2,250,000
Seat 2: EMPTY
Seat 3: Philipp Gruissem - 2,005,000
Seat 4: Sam Holden - 2,222,000
Seat 5: Bounahra Badih - 1,860,000
Seat 6: Mario Silvestri - 1,725,000
Seat 7: Per Linde - 3,750,000
Seat 8: Khoa Nguyen - 3,530,000
Seat 9: Ruben Visser - 1,070,000

Table 340
Seat 1: EMPTY
Seat 2: Andrew Brokos - 2,505,000
Seat 3: Guillaume Darcourt - 5,340,000
Seat 4: Kenny Shih - 1,240,000
Seat 5: Stuart Tuvey - 2,585,000
Seat 6: Sebastian Ruthenberg - 890,000
Seat 7: John Hewitt - 5,045,000
Seat 8: Chris Moore - 5,260,000
Seat 9: Erick Lindgren - 2,195,000

Chip counts and seating info courtesy of WSOP.com. Photo courtesy of WhoJedi.

* * *
Stay tuned for a complete end of Day 6 recap.

2011 WSOP Day 47 - Main Event Day 5: There Must Be Some Way Out of Here

By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV

The demarcation line between pipe dreams and reality falls somewhere toward the end of Day 5 of the World Series of Poker Main Event. If you can survive the onslaught in the killing fields and somehow make it to the end of Day 5 without a scratch, then you're on the verge of fulfilling your wildest dreams. Most players play poker because they are driven by ego, money, and/or fame. And a small category of folks are fired up by all three motivating factors. Sprinkle in a little luck, blessings from the poker gods, a slew of poker acumen -- and you have a recipe for a potent elixir -- one sip from that so-called Holy Grail will attain you immortality.

That is, if you get a shot at have a sip of the sweet nectar.

* * *
"Vegas has no respect for history," blurted out my cab driver and twenty-year inhabitant of Las Vegas as he pined over the eventual destruction of his favorite casinos -- the Dunes, Stardust and the Sahara.

"At least the WSOP hands out bracelets," I assured him. "That's one of the few places in Sin City that recognizes the old in order to tantalize the young."

But aside from the notion of bracelets, you'd have to struggle to find an hints of history at the Rio. Only the Amazon Ballroom housed the massive murals of former Main Event world champions. However, if you walked into the Rio's convention center on Day 5, you might have wondered, "Where did the Wall of Champions go?"

Yeah, for some odd reason, the entire convention center was stripped of WSOP logos and branding. Once the Pavilion went out of commission on Day 4 all of the chairs vanished and were lined up in the back service hallways. I walked down a narrow corridor with a wall of banquet chairs stacked 10 to 12 high or $100,000 to $120,000 worth of buy-ins. Within a ten yard stroll, I passed $1 million worth of dead money.

The Poker Kitchen and the hallways were next on the list. All branding was removed including the wrinkled Player of the Year banners in the hallway connecting the casino to poker's Mecca. The corridors leading up to the Amazon Ballroom were bare -- with just a few tables shilling poker books that everyone already owns and another table hawking cheap sunglasses.

The stripped down hallways gave the WSOP an odd feel on Day 5. Outside the Amazon Ballroom, it seemed like any other day at the Rio instead of "Moving Day" at the WSOP. Then again, aybe that's why they dubbed it Moving Day, because a bunch of workers were packing everything up and carting it away to the depths of some storage facility. In case you wondered where they housed POY banners for Allen Cunningham and Tom "DonkeyBomber" Schneider, it's in the same highly-guarded facility with the Ark of the Covenant, Elvis' brain, and the flying saucer that crashed at Roswell.

* * *
Even though outside the Amazon Ballroom it barely looked like the most prestigious poker tournament was running -- 378 poker players slugged it out for eight hours. When they bagged up chips at the end of the night, only 142 players remained. The field inched closer and closer to a number under three digits and the pay jumps made your eyes grow wider and wider. As the few remaining known-pros busted, the cameras focused on the lesser-known professionals and a couple of amateurs were caught up in the opening minutes of their 15-minutes of fame, as a flock of drooling media reps circled the tables, while the ESPN cameras hovered.

Inside the Mothership, a trio of familiar faces were seated on the center stage --Allen Cunningham, Daniel Negreanu, and Jean-Robert Bellande. Allen Cunningham flew under the radar for most of the Main Event, probably because he's usually the most quiet person in the room and he's also had a bleh WSOP leading up to the Main Event. Allen has a chance to turn his entire summer around with another final table appearance. He was one of the favorites to win the 2006 Main Event, but the cards didn't quite fall his way.

Negreanu fell to the wayside in 211th place. Even an army of Negreanu-heads at home helping log hands couldn't help Kid Poker. I guess the poker gods decided it wasn't his time to win the Main Event.

Jean-Robert Bellande (Busto Bobby or JRB) must have cashed in some karma points because JRB advanced to Day 6 with a healthy stack worth 1.1 million. Maybe this is Bobby's year? He managed to avoid an implosion. Instead, Day 5's Demolition Award (aka the Dimitri Nobles Trophy) for worst implosion goes to Manoj Viswanathan. The New Yorker started the day as the overall leader, took a hit early on, then busted unceremoniously in 191st place.

* * *


Gunslinger
Photo by WhoJedi
Cue the rise of the Gunslinger.

At the 2007 LAPC, one of my colleagues joked that David Bach asked to be put into the chip counts as David "Gunslinger" Bach. It might have been a joke in 2007, but after snatching up a 50K HORSE Championship and ended in Day 5 of the Main Event as the chip leader, maybe it's time to finally bestow the Gunslinger moniker on Bach?

Bach is a character for sure -- the unshaven Bach with a Georgia twang looks like a guy who walked out of a Widespread Panic concert instead of the chipleader at the WSOP. He's usually clad in a cowboy hat and some sort of seasonal shirt. Bach has a bad back and is rarely seen without a massage therapist working on his troubled areas. He even attempted to bring his own chair to WSOP. He's often snagged a dealer's chair to sit in that instead of the creaky banquet chairs -- the same beige chairs that have been used since I started cover the WSOP at the Rio in 2005.

Bach ended Day 5 as the chipleader with 4.7 million. He got most of his chips by ravishing Vanessa Rousso's stack. Last week on Day 3, Bach dragged one monsterpotten with an aggressive call against Rousso, then finished her off shortly after. On Day 5, Bach re-activated his luckbox powers in a decisive hand against Max Bach four-flushed the German... and the rest is history.

* * *
2011 Main Event - Quick Stats

Entrants: 6,865
Players Remaining: 142
Chipleader: David Bach - 4,706,000
Payouts: 693
First Place: 8,711,956
Prizepool: $64,531,000
Juice to the WSOP: $4,119,000

End of Day 5 - Top 10 Chip Counts:
1. David Bach - 4,706,000
2. Pius Heinz - 4,699,000
3. Kyle Johnson - 4,654,000
4. Phil Collins - 4,109,000
5. Ben Lamb - 4,032,000
6. Aleksandr Mozhnyakov - 3,462,000
7. Sebastian Ruthenberg - 3,354,000
8. Lars Bonding - 3,327,000
9. Bryan Devonshire - 3,292,000
10. Thomas Grey - 3,262,000

Notables:
Sam Barnhart 3,065,000
JP Kelly 2,664,000
Fred Berger 2,119,000
Daryl Jace 2,110,000
Tony Hachem 2,067,000
Joseph Cheong 1,988,000
Christian Harder 1,624,000
Jean-Robert Bellande 1,230,000
Sami Kelopuro 936,000
Peter "Nordberg" Feldman
Ray Henson 795,000
Amanda Musumeci 738,000
Steve Brecher 736,000
Eli Elezra 707,000
Allen Cunningham 641,000
Carl Olson 531,000
Sorel Mizzi 500,000
Erick Lindgren 385,000
Cory Albertson 258,000

Click here for a complete list of 2011 WSOP Main Event money winners.

* * *
Follow @taopauly for Twitter updates throughout the day.

Also, help support indie writers and buy my books: Lost Vegas: The Redneck Riviera, Existentialist Conversations with Strippers and the World Series of Poker, and my recently released novel, Jack Tripper Stole My Dog. Both are also available for Kindles and iPads.