Running World Series of Poker Thread

[Joel_Goodsen]

Cards will be in the air for the first event of the 2007 World Series of Poker in less than 18 hours (the $5000 mixed hold-em event) so we might as well have a thread for all things poker for the next six weeks.

The main event begins July 1st but there will be a bunch of interesting tournaments leading up to it.

Any initial thoughts about it?

I will make the first of many (likely wrong) predictions -- a professional -- and not an obscure one -- will finally break through and win the main event this year.

 

[pallister]

A professional winning the main event at this point would be unbelievable. Any numbers floating around out there as to how many people are projected to enter this year's big one?

 

[zagoshe]

A professional winning the main event at this point would be unbelievable. Any numbers floating around out there as to how many people are projected to enter this year's big one?

Somewhere in the neighborhood of 12,000. Which means, it has become the lottery.

 

[pallister]

I can't imagine a professional can ever win this thing again. I wonder if, at some point, the pros say hell with it and try to create a true championship event. Seems sacrilege to say, but ...

 

[Satchel Pooch]

I'm trying to make it to the $1500 shootout that begins 6/12 ... I need some serious help to get there, though.

What I don't get is if most of the online rooms have been locked from Americans, how can the main event numbers increase to 12K? I'd have thought it would have leveled off by now.

For instance ... I know it's early, but Full Tilt only has 150 qualifiers for the Main Event.

I love the World Series ... and poker in general ... I don't care what the anti-fanboys on here have to say.

 

[Jones]

I can't imagine a professional can ever win this thing again. I wonder if, at some point, the pros say hell with it and try to create a true championship event. Seems sacrilege to say, but ...

I think the $50K H.O.R.S.E. event will become the new "Main Event." The buy-in is prohibitive for most novices and Internet sites, and you have to be a true poker all-rounder to compete, which knocks out the Hold 'Em droves.

Last year, there were 143 entrants, and the final table was filled with big name pros, including Doyle Brunson, T.J. Cloutier, Phil Ivey, Andy Bloch, and the winner, Chip Reese. Heading in, a lot of people felt like he was the best player in the game, and his win confirmed it -- as well as the value of the tournament as a truer test of skill.

That being said, I'm hoping to play in a couple of the smaller Hold 'Em events and maybe one of the Omahas.

Anyone else going -- good luck, Pooch, on making it -- let us know.

 

[pallister]

Good call (no pun intended), Jones. Just caught the final table of the H.O.R.S.E. event on TV a couple weeks back.

 

[Satchel Pooch]

I'll definitely be out there ... whether I play in it is a longshot, but I'll definitely let this thread know.

 

[Birdscribe]

I can't imagine a professional can ever win this thing again. I wonder if, at some point, the pros say hell with it and try to create a true championship event. Seems sacrilege to say, but ...

I think the $50K H.O.R.S.E. event will become the new "Main Event." The buy-in is prohibitive for most novices and Internet sites, and you have to be a true poker all-rounder to compete, which knocks out the Hold 'Em droves.

Last year, there were 143 entrants, and the final table was filled with big name pros, including Doyle Brunson, T.J. Cloutier, Phil Ivey, Andy Bloch, and the winner, Chip Reese. Heading in, a lot of people felt like he was the best player in the game, and his win confirmed it -- as well as the value of the tournament as a truer test of skill.

That being said, I'm hoping to play in a couple of the smaller Hold 'Em events and maybe one of the Omahas.

Anyone else going -- good luck, Pooch, on making it -- let us know.

Excellent call, Jonesie. That event will be the big kahuna with all the swinging dicks playing.

It won't, however, probably get much TV time because it doesn't have the mystique of what has become a cattle call.

And Pooch, hope you make it. I enjoyed your communiques last year. But I'm sure Jonesie will file his own.

He better.

 

[Lucas Wiseman]

I'll be out in Vegas near the end of the month... so I'll probably pop over there to check out some of the action... it's all a bit rich for my blood, but I'm sure it wll be interesting to see the circus, even with the smaller events.

 

[CentralIllinoisan]

I'm booked for Vegas, flying out Thursday morning, June 7 and staying until June 12. I got media credentials for the WSOP and will be writing some follow columns, notes, etc. once I return.

My original plan was to drop $1,500 for the NLH event on June 9, but instead of putting my proverbial eggs in one basket, I'm playing in two of the Deep Stack Extravaganza II events at Venetian ($550 for one, $340 for the other) and trying a couple of $175 single-table satellites on Thursday and Friday(hopefully just one :)), angling to win a seat for the June 9 event. Also, playing in the Venetian events got me one of their 750-square-foot suites at $120 the last night we're in town. So, in effect, the $340 event on Monday is a freeroll.

I'm also looking to jump into some of those fat cash games at the Rio. Some 4-8 Omaha H/L8 or NLH.

As for the main event, the numbers won't approach last year's; the online sites are qualifying very few Americans this year, with the new law cooling off play. I see a "professional" winning the event more likely than the last three years, which had fields bloated with online players.

Man, I love poker. Can't wait until those wheels touch down in Vegas next week and I can belly up to the felt ...

 

[zoucrew]

I can't imagine a professional can ever win this thing again. I wonder if, at some point, the pros say hell with it and try to create a true championship event. Seems sacrilege to say, but ...

I think the $50K H.O.R.S.E. event will become the new "Main Event." The buy-in is prohibitive for most novices and Internet sites, and you have to be a true poker all-rounder to compete, which knocks out the Hold 'Em droves.

Last year, there were 143 entrants, and the final table was filled with big name pros, including Doyle Brunson, T.J. Cloutier, Phil Ivey, Andy Bloch, and the winner, Chip Reese. Heading in, a lot of people felt like he was the best player in the game, and his win confirmed it -- as well as the value of the tournament as a truer test of skill.

That being said, I'm hoping to play in a couple of the smaller Hold 'Em events and maybe one of the Omahas.

Anyone else going -- good luck, Pooch, on making it -- let us know.

Excellent call, Jonesie. That event will be the big kahuna with all the swinging dicks playing.

It won't, however, probably get much TV time because it doesn't have the mystique of what has become a cattle call.

And Pooch, hope you make it. I enjoyed your communiques last year. But I'm sure Jonesie will file his own.

He better.

Actually, the 50K HORSE event is going to draw major TV play, starting this year. ESPN will show six hourts worth of HORSE coverage this year. Makes sense, really -- if the final table this year has anywhere near the names of last year, it will draw viewers.

Even better, the final table of that HORSE event this year will rotate among all five games, rather than being a hold 'em table. Apparently, a lot of the pros were mad last year that, after playing such well-rounded poker to reach the final table, it was nothing but hold 'em shown on TV (thanks to ESPN's demands).

For pros, this is going to be the event to win, for all the reasons stated above.

 

[rascalface]

I hope Negreanu does well. And Phil Laak.

 

[Birdscribe]

I can't imagine a professional can ever win this thing again. I wonder if, at some point, the pros say hell with it and try to create a true championship event. Seems sacrilege to say, but ...

I think the $50K H.O.R.S.E. event will become the new "Main Event." The buy-in is prohibitive for most novices and Internet sites, and you have to be a true poker all-rounder to compete, which knocks out the Hold 'Em droves.

Last year, there were 143 entrants, and the final table was filled with big name pros, including Doyle Brunson, T.J. Cloutier, Phil Ivey, Andy Bloch, and the winner, Chip Reese. Heading in, a lot of people felt like he was the best player in the game, and his win confirmed it -- as well as the value of the tournament as a truer test of skill.

That being said, I'm hoping to play in a couple of the smaller Hold 'Em events and maybe one of the Omahas.

Anyone else going -- good luck, Pooch, on making it -- let us know.

Excellent call, Jonesie. That event will be the big kahuna with all the swinging dicks playing.

It won't, however, probably get much TV time because it doesn't have the mystique of what has become a cattle call.

And Pooch, hope you make it. I enjoyed your communiques last year. But I'm sure Jonesie will file his own.

He better.

Actually, the 50K HORSE event is going to draw major TV play, starting this year. ESPN will show six hourts worth of HORSE coverage this year. Makes sense, really -- if the final table this year has anywhere near the names of last year, it will draw viewers.

Even better, the final table of that HORSE event this year will rotate among all five games, rather than being a hold 'em table. Apparently, a lot of the pros were mad last year that, after playing such well-rounded poker to reach the final table, it was nothing but hold 'em shown on TV (thanks to ESPN's demands).

For pros, this is going to be the event to win, for all the reasons stated above.

That's good to hear, zoucrew. I didn't know that.

And CI, we expect Dispatches from the Felt.

 

[GB-Hack]

They are expecting less players than last year for the main event, since the crackdown on online poker has taken some effect.

In addition, the sites that are still running, Ultimatebet, Fulltilt, Pokerstars etc. are now not allowed to force the players who win the satellites they are running to enter the main event. If they want to just pocket the 12k, they are allowed to. That will also cut into the field.

Projections I've heard are at about 6,000. I also read an over/under-line of 5,325.

In the 50K HORSE event, I'll take Phil Ivey. Instead of the final table being only NL hold 'em this year they're going to continue to rotate the games and I believe keep it limit the entire way, giving players like Ivey, Chip Reese, Barry Greenstein and others a bigger edge, although Reese managed to win it all last year anyway.

 

[zagoshe]

They are expecting less players than last year for the main event, since the crackdown on online poker has taken some effect.

In addition, the sites that are still running, Ultimatebet, Fulltilt, Pokerstars etc. are now not allowed to force the players who win the satellites they are running to enter the main event. If they want to just pocket the 12k, they are allowed to. That will also cut into the field.

Projections I've heard are at about 6,000. I also read an over/under-line of 5,325.

In the 50K HORSE event, I'll take Phil Ivey. Instead of the final table being only NL hold 'em this year they're going to continue to rotate the games and I believe keep it limit the entire way, giving players like Ivey, Chip Reese, Barry Greenstein and others a bigger edge, although Reese managed to win it all last year anyway.

I think a field of 5000 or 6000 would be fine. It is enough for every dreamer to take their shot but also a small enough field that some of the pro's might have a fighting chance.

And I always thought the best way to have a true main event is to have a 50,000 tournament and it sounds like this is what is going to happen, so that'll be good television because I learn far more from watching good players play other good players than from watching donkey's go all in on ridiculous draws or make horrible calls and get lucky.

 

[GB-Hack]

Chip Reese won the 50K HORSE tournament last year, with Andy Bloch second. There really wasn't a no name at the table. One of the highlights was Doyle getting away from Queens when they were higher than anything on the board when Reese had Kings right next to him.

As far as the good TV part, you're right that you learn a lot more from it. But the Professional Poker Tour got no ratings, as good as it was, and they ended up folding up shop. There are still pros who won't play WPT events because of the final table blind structure, but it makes for better TV because you get more confrontations because the blinds and antes increase so quickly.

 

[playthrough]

For TV purposes, I think High Stakes Poker on GSN has lapped the WSOP for the most part. Again, how many more times can you watch some stranger catch a few cards and whoop it up for the cameras? I don't necessarily want to know in advance who wins, but I know I'll be much more likely to watch if the final table has multiple "name" guys battling it out.

Good luck to all of you heading out there to play. I too would rather take my shots in the countless side cash games, but then again I'd tread carefully so as not to be the sucker at my table. Hell, I probably would be anyway. It's gotta be Christmas for the pros with all the dead money that giddily flies into town.

 

[GB-Hack]

You're right about HSP being the best there is right now. It's simply because it's a purer form of poker. Tournaments are good and provide a certain drama, but to watch the best just play is something else.

It'll be interesting to see what happens when they get WPT as well, since they just acquired the rights to that. Run them back-to-back or have them on seperate nights?

 

[GB-Hack]

So, 451 players entered the first event, $5,000 split NL/Limit hold 'em. We'll have to wait to see what happens when the straight NL tourneys start.