WSOP Pool - Main Event

[MJ4H]

Gus Hansen is up to 900k early on today.

[larrymcg421]

Allen Cunningham Marches Toward the Top


This can't be welcome news for the rest of the field--Allen Cunninham is now up to 930,000 chips. He just picked up a big pot when Frank Russo raised to 20,000 and Cunningham reraised to 80,000. Russo called, and when the flop came Russo shipped in his stack holding . Mistake--Cunningham had flopped a set of jacks and ended up making quads on the river. Russo was eliminated and Cunningham now commands a huge stack.

[larrymcg421]

More Cunningham....


Allen Cunningham Eliminates Trevor Reardon
All the money went in before the flop with Cunningham's crushing Reardon's . Cunningham's cowboys held up and he's now up to 1.2 million, while Reardon's tournament came to an end.

[Barkeep49]

Hoops I told you that I was disappointed in the lack of Cunningham as your ME winner.

[larrymcg421]

Here are the current winning scenarios:

MollyMurphy: Is mainly rooting against Hellmuth and Hansen as ME winner picks. She also has to dodge alot of Money Man picks, but those would have to go deep in the final table to be enough to overcome her lead.

Maple Leafs: Needs a combination of a double Phil Hellmuth and single Johnny Chan to outscore a combination of a single Phil Hellmuth, Gus Hansen, and Mike Matusow by 1400 points.

Quiksand: Cannot win. Maple Leafs has his two remaining players.

larrymcg421: There might be some bizaare combo out there, like Hellmuth, Matusow, and Cunningham finishing 1-2-3, but I'm essentially out.

Ryche: Needs Gus Hansen to win the Main Event.

rockboy70: Needs Cunningham to finish at least 6th or higher, and for Hellmuth, Chan, Hansen, or Matusow to come nowhere near that.

CleBrownsfan: Cannot win. Several people above have the same two player combo.

st. cronin: Cronin is looking for a Phil Hellmuth victory. Outside of that, everyone above him has at least one of his guys, and most have at least two of them. He will need all four of these guys to go very far.

timmynausea: The defending champ is done. Cronin has the same two player combo left.

jbergey22: Cannot win. cronin and Maple Leafs have the same three player combo.

Lathum: Cannot win. Several people above also have Hellmuth.

hoopsguy: Needs Hellmuth to win the Main Event.

digamma: Despite being way back in last place, digamma still has a chance to win. He's the only one with Pat Poels, so a Final Table run by Poels could do the trick by itself. A deep run by Cunningham could do it too, but would need help from Poels in that scenario too, since rockboy also has him as Money Man.

[larrymcg421]

dola

updated chip counts in first post...

[MJ4H]

Originally Posted by larrymcg421

dola

updated chip counts in first post...

chan is out

[larrymcg421]

Chan's exit leaves Maple Leafs to look for a 2nd-7th place Phil Hellmuth finish, and cronin can now only win if Hellmuth finishes 1st.

[digamma]

Poels is out.

[larrymcg421]

Yep, Poels is out. This eliminates digamma, although he can still jump up the leaderboard a bit if Cunningham goes far.

[SirFozzie]

Yikes. I'd hate this to happen to me:

Aleksandar Rasic left the Amazon Room at the last break along with all of the other players in the field. It is standard operating procedure here at the WSOP; players are not allowed to be in the tournament room until roughly five minutes are left on break. When he came back from smoking, he was just a bit tardy. He found that his table, Orange #40, had been broken immediately after play resumed. The only problem was, Rasic's stack was gone.

A search was immediately commenced by the floor staff. They went from table to table looking for dead stacks; announcements were made over the P.A. system; and members of the media were consulted to see if they know where Rasic was supposed to be seated. All of those efforts proved fruitless.

Harrah's surveillance staff reviewed the footage of the incident and was able to determine that the player seated immediately beside Rasic at Orange #40, Peter Traply, had accidentally scooped up Rasic's tiny stack (approximately 60,000 chips) when he transferred his own massive stack (over 800,000) to his new table. This appeared to be completely unintentional on Traply's part; the two stacks were very close to each other on Orange #40, and Traply inadvertently swept Rasic's chips up with his own.

Once that determination was made, the floor staff approached Traply, explained the situation, and took 60,000 chips out of his stack to give back to Rasic. Thirty-five minutes into the level, Rasic was finally seated at Blue #36, Seat 3 -- the seat formerly occupied by Maya Antonius, who was one of several players to bust in the interim.

[larrymcg421]

Updated the chip counts with 189 players left.

[larrymcg421]

Gus Hansen is out.

[Lathum]

3 top pros gone in a 10 minute span.

Hansen, Corkins and Chip Jett

[larrymcg421]

155 players left

[Buccaneer]

I don't follow WSOP but I was wondering about the schedule. This appears to have been going on for a long time. Do the players go home and then come back on weekends, or do some of them plan on living there for 2 months or so?

[larrymcg421]

They also play events during the week. And when they're not in an event, I'm sure they want to be there for what I imagine would be fish heavy cash games at that time of year.

[Buccaneer]

So then all of these players (that are left) are professionals and do this for a living?

[larrymcg421]

Here's how the pros are doing now...

Allen Cunningham hasn't been involved in many pots, but just took a bit of a hit and is down to 860,000.

Phil Hellmuth was bluffed several times and was on major tilt. Howver, he did make what looked to be a great laydown before finding a nice hand and doubling up. He has since been bluffed again and is down to 610,000.

Mike Matusow is playing really tight, but just picked up a pot by executing a squeeze play with Queens and is sitting at 700,000

[larrymcg421]

Originally Posted by Buccaneer

So then all of these players (that are left) are professionals and do this for a living?

Actually, most of them aren't, but this is just the Main Event. There were more than 50 events before this one. Many of the people playing now just signed up for the Main Event (or won it through a satellite entry), so they've only been here a week.

[cartman]

Originally Posted by Buccaneer

I don't follow WSOP but I was wondering about the schedule. This appears to have been going on for a long time. Do the players go home and then come back on weekends, or do some of them plan on living there for 2 months or so?

Well, the WSOP is made up of several dozen completely separate, unrelated events. The current Main Event started on July 3rd. Since there were so many entries, there were four different "starting" days for this event. The Main Event (the 54th of this WSOP) is scheduled to run for 8 days of playing.

[Buccaneer]

thanks

[larrymcg421]

Big hand for Hellmuth. My guess is AQ for Melby here.

An unusually quiet hand for Phil Hellmuth. Sitting in the small blind, he called a raise to 30,000 from the player with the button, Cort Kibler-Melby. Both players checked the flop. On the turn , Hellmuth took a stab with a bet of 62,000, but Kibler-Melby raised him to 124,000. Hellmuth called. On the river , Hellmuth fired again for 200,000. Kibler-Melby made a crying call to see Hellmuth turn over for a full house, threes full of nines. His chip stack has increased to about 1,140,000.

[Lathum]

I am rooting hard for Hellmuth.

Can you imagine how entertaining the 4 months before the final table will be if Hellmuth is waiting to play in it.

[larrymcg421]

Originally Posted by Lathum

I am rooting hard for Hellmuth.

Can you imagine how entertaining the 4 months before the final table will be if Hellmuth is waiting to play in it.

I'm rooting for Hellmuth also, but I guarantee you neither of us are rooting for him as hard as the ESPN producers.

[larrymcg421]

Allen Cunningham is out in 117th place.

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by Buccaneer

I don't follow WSOP but I was wondering about the schedule. This appears to have been going on for a long time. Do the players go home and then come back on weekends, or do some of them plan on living there for 2 months or so?

Quite a lot of professional and semi-pro players now move to Vegas for several weeks for the WSOP stretch of events, and the related fanfare around town. There are great events and cash games all over Vegas in June and July now -- it's a great time to be around and play. (I went out for a month last summer)

[Barkeep49]

I can't decide if Phil Hellmuth reaching the final table is good for poker. I'd have preferred it to be someone real involved with the PPA so that message would go out for 3 months.

[larrymcg421]

So it all comes down to two players left...

Phil Hellmuth - 1,022,000
Mike Matusow - 700,000


Winning scenarios

MollyMurphy: Clinches victory if Hellmuth finises worse than 7th.

Maple Leafs: Needs Hellmuth to finish 7th through 2nd, but also must worry about Matusow. The higher Matusow finishes, then the higher he needs Hellmuth to finish.

Quiksand: Cannot win.

larrymcg421: Cannot win.

Ryche: Cannot win.

rockboy70: Cannot win.

CleBrownsfan: Cannot win.

st. cronin: Needs Phil Hellmuth to win.

timmynausea: Cannot win.

jbergey22: Cannot win.

Lathum: Cannot win.

hoopsguy: Needs Hellmuth to finish 1st.

digamma: Cannot win.

[Lathum]

I am actualy rooting for Mark Vos, he always comes off as a really cool, laid back nice guy.

[larrymcg421]

Shawn Sheikhan is out.

[larrymcg421]

With 92 people left...

Phil Hellmuth - 1,280,000 (which seems to be about average stack)
Mike Matusow - 756,000

Other pros still around...

Mark Vos - 1,750,000
Matt Matros - 1,650,000
Kido Pham - 1,265,000
Victor Ramdin - 1,000,000
Thomas Keller - 400,000

[Subby]

Would love to see McManus win this thing.

[larrymcg421]

That's not the same McManus that wrote Positively 5th Street.

[larrymcg421]

dola

But I certainly wouldn't mind seeing a fellow mick win.

[Subby]

Oh well then fuck him.

[larrymcg421]

Hellmuth and Matusow are now both at the feature table, sitting right next to each other. This should be interesting.

Matusow recently doubled up to $1.1 million.

[Lathum]

with 10 5, got caught making a move and lucked out

[Radii]

Hellmuth making the final table is the easiest way to guarantee that I don't watch, they got rid of most of the jackass grandstanding this year with the new rules but there's no rules against being a prima donna crybaby yet so Hellmuth would just be more of the same.

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by Radii

Hellmuth making the final table is the easiest way to guarantee that I don't watch, they got rid of most of the jackass grandstanding this year with the new rules but there's no rules against being a prima donna crybaby yet so Hellmuth would just be more of the same.

man I disagree.

There are few things more entertaining in the world then watching Hellmuth and his antics.


And he is the best tournament player in the world.

[larrymcg421]

I certainly don't condone Phil's actions, as entertaining as they are, but I can understand why he's pissed about this hand...

Cristian Dragomir opened with a raise to 80,000 before Hellmuth made it 255,000 to go from the small blind. "I hope he doesn't have aces," said Hellmuth as Dragomir asked for a count. After a few moments, Dragomir made the call. They saw a flop of and Hellmuth checked to Dragomir, who thought for a moment before firing a healthy bet of 300,000. Hellmuth sighed in disgust before folding face-up on the table. Matusow laughed and said to Dragomir to show the bluff, and Dragomir flipped ! Matusow and the crowd roared in hysterics as Hellmuth jumped out of his seat and stormed around the room berating his opponent for calling his reraise with ten high. "Listen buddy, you're an idiot!" screamed Hellmuth. "This is the Main Event and you are the worst player in history!" he continued as the crowd was loving every moment of the blow-up. Dragomir's entourage continued to cheer as Hellmuth continued the barrage. The TD stepped in and issued a warning to Hellmuth to settle down before Dragomir stood up out of his chair to put Hellmuth back in his place with a cry of, "Enough is enough!" Fortunately for both players the clock ticked over to the end of the level, and the end of the day's play to settle both players down. They eventually shook hands and began to bag up their chips as Mike Matusow summed up the situation best as he shouted, "Thank God for Phil Hellmuth! Thank God for Chris Moneymaker!" What a way to end the day!

[Lathum]

Hellmuth is good for poker.

[albionmoonlight]

So is Hellmuth still that unstable, or has he started playing the Hellmuth part now because we all expect it?

[larrymcg421]

Originally Posted by albionmoonlight

So is Hellmuth still that unstable, or has he started playing the Hellmuth part now because we all expect it?

I honestly think it's a mixture of both.

[Lathum]

I don't think it's an act at all when it comes to his blowups, by all accounts he was like this ( actualy worse) before poker got so mainstream.

I do think he is a self promoter when it comes to things like showing up in a race car, etc...

[QuikSand]

So, unrelated question.

Say you're a "regular guy" with a day job who put in something like $1000 or so to play in satellites, played well or got lucky (or likely both) to win a slot in the main event, and now you're in the remaining field of fewer than 10 tables worth. Let's say you have an average stack right now.

At what point do you completely stop thinking about the amount of money that each increment is worth now (as it creeps toward a hundred thousand dollars, and up into multiples of that) and start thinking exclusively about final table money and massively life-changing results?

I think that's got to be hard, mentally. For the next day or so, each *level* you survive is worth another $20,000 or so. That's pretty meaningful money to your average vinyl siding installer, you know what I mean? Is the lure of *millions* and the fact that you can kind of smell it from here so strong that you become completely indifferent to making another hundred thousand dollars? (basically the difference between, say, finishing #70 and #30)

I haven't been in this situation exactly (my WSOP experiences have both been with such short stacks that I had no liberty to really be thinking about lasting a long, long time) but I think we all reach it at some point. Even at the last few final tables, it certainly seemed there were players very conscious about inching forward rather than leaping, and I have to imagine that the massive payout increments between slots like 9th and 4th or 5th play some role in that. $9 million is awfully nice. But so is adding on another $500,000 just by letting someone else be the next kamikaze. It's gotta be tough to get completely past that if this isn't something that you experience all the time.

[larrymcg421]

Originally Posted by QuikSand

So, unrelated question.

Say you're a "regular guy" with a day job who put in something like $1000 or so to play in satellites, played well or got lucky (or likely both) to win a slot in the main event, and now you're in the remaining field of fewer than 10 tables worth. Let's say you have an average stack right now.

At what point do you completely stop thinking about the amount of money that each increment is worth now (as it creeps toward a hundred thousand dollars, and up into multiples of that) and start thinking exclusively about final table money and massively life-changing results?

I think that's got to be hard, mentally. For the next day or so, each *level* you survive is worth another $20,000 or so. That's pretty meaningful money to your average vinyl siding installer, you know what I mean? Is the lure of *millions* and the fact that you can kind of smell it from here so strong that you become completely indifferent to making another hundred thousand dollars? (basically the difference between, say, finishing #70 and #30)

I haven't been in this situation exactly (my WSOP experiences have both been with such short stacks that I had no liberty to really be thinking about lasting a long, long time) but I think we all reach it at some point. Even at the last few final tables, it certainly seemed there were players very conscious about inching forward rather than leaping, and I have to imagine that the massive payout increments between slots like 9th and 4th or 5th play some role in that. $9 million is awfully nice. But so is adding on another $500,000 just by letting someone else be the next kamikaze. It's gotta be tough to get completely past that if this isn't something that you experience all the time.

I think I would play pretty tight, but not insanely tight that I'm just allowing myself to be blinded off.

Funny anecdote from this year: Someone actually did not show up for day 3. They were blinded down throughout the day, but had enough chips to survive to the money.

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by larrymcg421

I think I would play pretty tight, but not insanely tight that I'm just allowing myself to be blinded off.

Funny anecdote from this year: Someone actually did not show up for day 3. They were blinded down throughout the day, but had enough chips to survive to the money.

they had 1100 left.

I think I would be lying if I said I wouldn't be trying to inch up in the money but I think at some point you have to go for it. When I get dep in a tournament online I usualy play loose right after the money jump then tighten up closer to the next jump, especialy if it is a signefigant amount.

I think I would honestly just play premium hands and try and double up each time.

That's also why the pro's like Hellmuth and Mattasow have such a huge advantage regardless of chipstack. They care far more about the win, have the experience to know how to handle the pressure and can sense who is trying to move up and who is playing to win, and can steal accordingly.

[Lathum]

dola- the WSOP site has been periodicaly showing how much each player would get if there was an equal chop.

It was something like 478,000 with 100 players left.

[digamma]

Originally Posted by Lathum

man I disagree.

There are few things more entertaining in the world then watching Hellmuth and his antics.


And he is the best tournament player in the world.

He may be the best NLHE tournament player in the world against amateurs. I don't think he scares the pros and his results in smaller field professional tournaments and non-NLHE games are evidence of that.