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2008 WSOP Main Event To Take Center Stage

After several months of mounting anticipation, the 2008 World Series of Poker Main Event is finally less than a week away, scheduled for November 9th. Appropriately deemed the “November Nine”, the final tablist are as hyped as ever.

A quick change in plans has been issued for the most prestigious live poker event of the year, changing the venue for the 2008 WSOP Main Event. Instead of gathering at the Amazon Room of the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino, the November Nine will take center stage in the Penn & Teller Theater, within the hotel.

At 10:00am (local time) Sunday morning on November 9, chip leader Dennis Phillips (pictured left) will take his seat to battle it out with the other final eight competitors. Blinds will start at 120k/240k with 30k antes. The action will continue until two players remain, followed by an overnight break.

Heads-up play will continue between the final two on Monday, November 10th, and will continue until a bracelet winner emerges.

Seating assignments have yet to be announced. Below are the final tablists – the historic ‘November Nine’ – ordered by chip stacks, largest to smallest. The lowest stack, Kelly Kim, has enough chips remaining to cover 11 Big Blinds.

Dennis Phillips – 26,295,000
Ivan Demidov – 24,400,000
Scott Montgomery – 19,690,000
Peter Eastgate – 18,375,000
Ylon Schwartz – 12,525,000
Darus Suharto – 12,520,000
David ‘Chino’ Rheem – 10,230,000
Craig Marquis – 10,210,000
Kelly Kim – 2,620,000

When all is said and done, a massive purse of $32,633,446 will be divvied up between the November Nine. The first to exit will receive an impressive payoff of little more than $900k, while the bracelet winner takes home the second largest 1st place prize in the history of the WSOP Main Event, $9.1 million. The exact cash prizes for place 1-9 are shown below.

1st: $9,119,517
2nd: $5,790,024
3rd: $4,503,352
4th: $3,763,515
5th: $3,088,012
6th: $2,412,510
7th: $1,769,174
8th: $1,286,672
9th: $900,670

An enormous crowd of spectators is expected to swarm the Penn & Teller Theater as the WOSP Main Event kicks off Sunday morning. Admission is free, opened on a first-come-first-served basis until the ample room reaches capacity, though each of the final nine plan to have a host of friends and family in attendance.

The 2008 WSOP Main Event will come to a close with the winner crowned on November 10th. The event will then be aired on Tuesday, November 11th as ESPN busily edits the previous two days of live poker action to broadcast the most exciting moments, and of course the heads-up finale, of the 2008 World Series of Poker Main Event.

Online Poker Room Awards First 2009 WSOP Seats

Bodog Poker, one of the more popular online poker rooms that continues to accept US players, has made the headlines this week by awarding the very first seats in the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event. As you probably know, the 2008 WSOP hasn’t even been completed, and yet next year’s event has 3 participants waiting in the virtual aisles.

As the 2008 WSOP Main Event was winding down, Bodog Poker’s Mini Series – a series of tournaments designed to parallel the WSOP with 1/100 buy-ins – was also coming to a close. The Bodog Poker Mini Series final event came down to nine players, with the top 3 finishers winning a seat in the 2009 WSOP Main Event.

Now a part of Team Bodog, “pokerfanx789”, “dudix” and “Boswan” have become the very first online poker players to win a seat in the 2009 WSOP Main Event. Each will receive a $12,000 VIP prize package – $10,000 going to the 2009 WSOP Main Event buy-in, and the other $2,000 to cover travel, accommodations and extra spending cash.

The final event of the Bodog Mini Series featured a 27-seater tournament, made up of Bodog Poker’s top four Mini Series leaderboards competitors, eighteen players who qualified through semi-finals, and another 5 players who were wild-cards, randomly selected from all Bodog Poker members who competed in at least three Mini Series events.

Morris Mohawk Gaming Group’s CEO Alwyn Morris commented, “The three winners of our Bodog Poker Mini Series are guaranteed an experience like no other in Las Vegas as they compete for a shot at poker stardom and millions of dollars.”

The Bodog Poker Mini Series saw a total of 3,376 online poker players take to the tables, winning a grand total of $107,000 throughout the series.

“Poker Brat” Phil Hellmuth Controversy Upsets The Poker World

They don’t call him the “Poker Brat” for nothing! Phil Hellmuth’s often inappropriate behavior at the tables has once again caused a stir, this time managing to upset the majority of the entire poker world.

During the 2008 World Series of Poker Main Event, Phil Hellmuth was the butt-end of a $400,000 chip loss that resulted from a bluff by a virtually unknown poker player. Romanian Cristian Dragomir’s superb poker strategy paid off, but not for long. Hellmuth was so upset by the sizeable chip loss that he turned to his dishonorable habit of boorishly criticizing his opponents.

Hellmuth verbally battered Dragomir – at the ESPN featured table, no less – , calling him an “idiot” and declaring him the “worst player in history”. After several minutes of this obnoxious, inconsiderate behavior, the tournament supervisor dealt Hellmuth a one-orbit penalty to be invoked at the start of the next day’s play.

This penalty meant that Hellmuth would be forced to sit-out for the first nine hands dealt – a complete circle around the table – losing all antes and blinds as a result. The next morning, however, the penalty was removed and the Poker Brat received only a warning.

Apparently, there was a meeting early that morning in which Hellmuth apologized to WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack, tournament director Jack Effel and the VP of Harrah’s, Howard Greenbaum.

When it was announced that Hellmuth’s penalty had been lifted, to the dismay of well just about everyone, Pollack defended the decision stating, “The punishment did not fit the crime. Phil has now been warned and put on notice in a way that he never has been.”

Ever since the outrageous occurrence and subsequent slap on the wrist, the poker community has been up in arms, posting on Internet poker forums and blogs with one unanimous opinion: “Why should Hellmuth be let off the hook for something that any “average” poker player would have been penalized for?”

Going one step further, “Would any other lesser-known player have actually received a harsher penalty (that would have stuck, of course)?”

An overwhelming number of poker fans all agreed that Phil Hellmuth was in fact given preferential treatment.

Despite the complaints and universal upset in the poker world, Phil Hellmuth went on to finish the 2008 WSOP Main Event in 45th place, pocketing a $154,400 purse.

WSOP November Nine; From Unknown To Celeb Status In 117 Days?

In recent days, you may have learned that the 2008 WSOP Main Event’s final 9 competitors, affectionately termed the “November Nine”, will not return to battle it out until November. You’ve probably also heard that all 9 finalists are virtually unknown in the professional poker community.

If WSOP Commissioner Jeff Pollack’s reasoning behind the extensive delay in the final table holds true, each of these nine skilled competitors will not only become known, they will likely be household names with “Pro” player status at some of the top online poker rooms – Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars or UltimateBet, to name a few.

According to Jeff Pollack, the delay was integrated to increase the hype around the final WSOP Main Event table. He wanted so many people to anticipate the completion of the tournament, and subsequent awarding of the coveted bracelet and $9.2 million to the winner, that record breaking numbers would tune in to watch the final table go down in November.

Thus far, Pollack’s plan is working like a charm.

Everyone with any interest in the World Series of Poker, or playing poker in general, has learned the story of Dennis Phillips, the current chip leader of the November Nine. Phillips started playing poker as a hobby 4 years ago, works for a trucking company, and certainly never expected to get this far after winning a satellite tournament at his local casino that sent him to Vegas for the big event. Phillips has only cashed in two live tournaments over his non-career poker history, awarding a combined total of less than $5,000.

Next up is Ivan Demidov, the second highest chip leader in the 2008 WSOP Main Event Final Table. Demidov is a self-proclaimed “semi-professional” poker player hailing from Russia who has earned most of his cashes in online poker rooms. Demidov has seen only three live tournament cashes, though his earnings total a much more impressive $65,081.

Canadian Scott Montgomery, the third place chip leader, has a little more experience as a professional poker player. All of his live tournament cashes came in 2008 – 3 of those in the 2008 WSOP, no less – though it was his first live tournament cash, a 5th place finish, that awarded the highest prize just shy of $300,000. Montgomery’s total live tournament earning equal $406,585.

Peter Eastgate is another semi-pro from Denmark, claiming two live tournament cashes over the last two years worth $76,084.

Ylon Schwartz is perhaps the most seasoned competitor in the 2008 WSOP Main Event Final Table, earning 30 live tournament cashes in the last ten years, worth $255,851. As impressive as that sounds, I must point out that the first cash was in 1998, and the other 29 didn’t come until 2004+. Of those profitable endeavors, Schwartz has yet to place better than 3rd in any live poker tournament.

Darus Suharto, another Canadian poker player you’ve probably never heard of, has only produced one live tournament cash for $26,389. This was awarded for a 448th place finish in the 2006 WSOP Main Event, so at least he has some experience at the biggest game in Vegas.

Next we have David “Chino” Rheem, a name you might actually be familiar with. This California native has been playing professional poker for a few years now, topping the profits list with $634,657 over 15 cashes in the last three years. Five of those came from WSOP events, but this will be Rheem’s first WSOP Main Event cash. Unlike most of his fellow November Nine, Rheem has actually taken down at least one live tournament in his professional poker career.

Here’s an interesting story – Craig Marquis of Arlington, Texas. At only 23 years of age, Marquis began playing poker so recently that he remembers the exact date! January 1, 2007. Craig Marquis exhibits most of his skills online, but has pocket 3 live tournament cashes, all of which came from WSOP events; the first two in 2007 and another this year in Event #17. Young Marquis current earnings of $35,759 will certainly increase dramatically this November.

Rounding out the November Nine is poker pro and unlikely hopeful Kelly Kim, with a very small chip stack of only 2,620,000. That may seem like a lot of chips, but compared to the next lowest (Craig Marquis) stack of 10.2 million, and the highest (Dennis Phillips) of 26.2 million, it will be interesting to see if Kim can increase his stack size soon enough to stay in the final table. Kelly Kim’s first live tournament cash came in 2001, earning a measly $798, but those numbers have increased significantly to total 37 cashes and $351,744 in winnings.

Now that you are familiar with all of the 2008 WSOP Main Event hopefuls, let’s see just how famous the November Nine become before the 117 day delay comes to an end, and we all learn the answer to what will be the most overdue question in the gaming world – Who will win the 2008 WSOP Main Event?

Dennis Phillips In-Depth: 2008 WSOP Main Event Leader

When the 2008 WSOP Main Event was whittled from 6,844 participants to the final ‘November Nine’, the anticipation to unveil a champion emanated from the rafters of the Rio Casino’s Amazon Room. So, whilst we wait out the agonizing 117-day break until the final table actually occurs, let’s take an in-depth look at the current 2008 WSOP Main Event chip leader, Dennis Phillips.

 

Passing the time with confidence, current leader Dennis Phillips holds the largest stack with 26,295,000 chips in his corner, nearly 2 million higher than his closest rival, Ivan Demidov at 24,400,000. But how did Phillips, an amateur poker player from Cottage Hills, Illinois, earn such a prestigious position in the most influential live tournament of our time?

 

Apparently the televised broadcast has done even more for the poker gaming community than we had previously realized, having brought the sport back into the limelight in such a fashion that even poker enthusiasts who’ve never cashed in a live tournament have attained astounding skills for the game; enough to rival those of the professional poker players we’ve come to expect such spectacular performances from.

 

Originally from St. Louis, Missouri, Dennis Phillips is a 53-year-old account manager for the Broadway Truck Centers trucking company. Phillips only took up the game of poker four years ago, as a mere hobby more than anything else. He has been spending a good deal of time earning frequent cashes at the local Harrah’s Casino in St. Louis, and one particular win has brought him further than he could have ever imagined.

 

Handing over the $200 buy-in to a Satellite tournament at Harrah’s, Dennis Phillips battled some of the toughest poker players in the region, finally taking down the 2006 WSOP Main Event final tablist Dan Nassif in heads-up action to win a seat in this year’s WSOP Main Event.

 

As far as previous WSOP tournaments are concerned, Dennis Phillips had only cashed in two events, both being WSOP Circuits held in the nearby city of Robinsonville. On September 7, 2007, Phillips bought into a WSOP Circuit NL Hold’em tournament at the Grand Casino Tunica for $550, finishing in 9^th place for $2,386. Only two days later, Dennis reinvested his winnings for another $550 buy-in, this time taking 7^th place for $2,192.

 

Now finding himself holding the largest chip stack at the one and only World Series of Poker Main Event, Dennis Phillips couldn’t be more pleased with his performance. Phillips stated that he couldn’t have been more calm as he offered a perfect poker face, staring into the eyes of his strong-willed competitors while the final three tables took place.

 

According to Phillips, as he went ever deeper into the WSOP Main Event, he resisted numerous offers from online poker companies, making every effort to get him to don their logos. Full Tilt Poker offered a large sum to Phillips simply to wear a Full Tilt Poker cap backwards, but Phillips declined, preferring the bright red cap depicting his favorite St. Louis Cardinals baseball team. Another offer came for him to wear a logo T-shirt, but again, Phillips rejected, choosing to keep his own shirt displaying his employment company logo, Broadway Truck Centers. “Those are my friends. I’m not going to do that to them.” Eventually, PokerStars was able to convince Dennis to wear a logo patch on his company shirt, as well as another on the side of his red baseball cap.

 

One lingering question that had to be on the minds of Phillips co-workers and employers had to be, “Is Dennis Phillips going to retire?”

 

Phillips cleared that question up immediately as the media swarmed in his direction upon discovery of the November Nine. He stated that he will not retire, and will be back to work Thursday. Of course, Phillips may not quite realize the fate in store for him, as the immaculately skilled poker player will be returning a home town hero and local celebrity; his face already plastered across the St. Louis Today newspaper.

 

Dennis Phillips is a modest man; not one easily lured by the camera lights. He didn’t even bother to tell his friends that he had won a seat in the 2008 WSOP Main Event until weeks later, and even then required a few drinks to spill the beans.

 

As much as the world wishes to see a winner crowned, it will unfortunately be another 116 days – Final Table Day 1 and 2, after a 117 day break from the end of the final table setting – before a true winner shall emerge, claiming the coveted WSOP Bracelet and Championship title, along with about $9.2 million.

 

When asked why the WSOP determined it necessary to invoke such a long delay before the WSOP Main Event Final Table, WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack replied, “Now fans will ask ‘who will win’ our coveted championship bracelet and millions of dollars instead of ‘Who won? The excitement and interest that will surround our final nine players will be unprecedented.”

2008 WSOP Main Event Update: Final Nine Revealed

The 2008 World Series of Poker Main Event Final Table has been decided as Day 7 came to a close yesterday, July 14th. And so now we must wait for the final nine to reconvene after a long break – a 117 day break as a matter of fact – not set to converge on the final table until November 9, 2008.

It was a long and grueling battle between the final 27 participants, with Dean Hamrick being the last to go in 10th position. Hamrick pushed all-in with 3,420,000, followed by an over the top all-in from Texan Craig Marquis.  One after another, the table folded all round.

The cards were revealed: Marquis Qh-Qc, Hamrick As-Jc.

Then came the Flop: Kc-10h-3d

Marquis held the lead with his pocket Queens, though Hamrick was now betting on a Straight Draw.

The Turn: 10d

Hamrick would need an Ace to win – nothing else would do. The crowd noise picked up, calling for this card or that, then it came…

The River: Ks

Hamrick was the final player sent to the rails, earning $591,865. Though he pocketed in excess of half a million dollars, the disappointment must have been shattering; to be so close to the “November Nine” – as it’s being so popularly termed – yet to fall so unbearably short.

Another unfortunate ousting from the final three tables was that of Tiffany ‘Hot Chips’ Michelle, the “Last Woman Standing” in the 2008 WSOP Main Event. Women (and men) around the world were rooting for this budding beauty, donning a fatigue cap that did little to hide her obvious daunted spirit as the final cards came down, sending her out in 17th place.

Tiffany Michelle went further into the WSOP Main Event than any other woman since 2000. Had she gone on to the final table in November, Michelle would have become only the second woman in WSOP history to do so. As it was, Michelle’s A-J could not hold up against Peter Eastgate’s Pocket Aces. The Flop brought yet another Ace, but no Jack came to her rescue. Tiffany Michelle was award $334,534 for her 17th place finish.

2008 WSOP Main Event “November Nine”
As it stands, the final nine competitors will take to the final table on November 9, 2008. You’ll find the names and respective chip counts below.

Dennis Phillips – 26,295,000
Ivan Demidov – 24,400,000
Scott Montgomery – 19,690,000
Peter Eastgate – 18,375,000
Ylon Schwartz – 12,525,000
Darus Suharto – 12,520,000
David ‘Chino’ Rheem – 10,230,000
Craig Marquis – 10,210,000
Kelly Kim – 2,620,000

Only 116 days to go now………

Final Day Of 2008 WSOP Main Event; 27 Players Remain

After 11 days of virtually non-stop, heart-pounding action, the 2008 WSOP Main Event will be coming to a close very soon. Today, July 14^th, is the final seating of the world’s most prestigious live poker tournament, and only 27 players remain.

Of those 27 players, there is one notable poker pro that we simply can’t neglect to mention – Tiffany ‘Hot Chips’ Michelle – the “Last Woman Standing” in the 2008 WSOP Main Event. Last year, it was Bodog Pro Maria Ho who took that honor, finding herself under the microphone of reporter Tiffany Michelle. This year, the roles have been reversed as Maria Ho is holding the mic, and Tiffany Michelle is the last female holding the cards. Starting today’s action, Tiffany held the third highest chip stack of 9,755,000.

 

The last three tables of the 2008 WSOP Main Event began in this order:

Table 1

Joe Bishop – 4,855,000 (Cincinnati, Ohio)

Peter Eastgate – 9,325,000 (Odense, Denmark)

Gert Andersen – 6,740,000 (Herning, Denmark)

Kelly Kim – 8,840,000 (Whittier, California)

Brandon Cantu – 4,740,000 (Las Vegas, Nevada)

Dean Hamrick – 2,375,000 (East Lansing, Michigan)

Ivan Demidov – 4,965,000 (Moscow, Russia)

Niklas Flisberg – 1,330,000 (Stockholm, Sweden)

Michael Carroll – 1,015,000 (Carson, California)

Table 2

Scott Montgomery – 4,320,000 (Perth, Ontario, Canada)

Tim Loecke – 2,280,000 (Highland Park, Illinois)

Anthony Scherer – 2,385,000 (Truckee, California)

Owen Crowe – 3,800,000 (Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada)

Craig Marquis – 11,460,000 (Arlington, Texas)

Ylon Schwartz – 3,655,000 (Brooklyn, New York)

Paul Snead – 6,600,000 (Kings Park, New York)

Tiffany ‘Hot Chips’ Michelle - 9,755,000 (Los Angeles, California)

Phi Nguyen – 1,020,000 (Hawaiian Gardens, California)

Table 3

Jason Riesenberg – 3,405,000 (Halbur, Iowa)

Darus Suharto – 4,510,000 (Toronto, Ontario, Canada)

Chris Klodnicki – 6,245,000 (Voorhees, New Jersey)

Toni Judet – 5,000,000 (Bucharest, Romania)

Nicholas Sliwinski – 4,925,000 (Las Vegas, Nevada)

David ‘Chino’ Rheem – 8,280,000 (Los Angeles, California)

Dennis Phillips – 11,910,000 (St. Louis, Missouri)

Albert Kim – 3,675,000 (Staten Island, New York)

Aaron Gordon – 1,790,000 (Brighton, England)

2008 WSOP Results Event #4: Erick Lindgren Finally Wins A Bracelet

Erick Lindgren has a long and lucrative 10-year history as a professional poker player, earning $1.5 million in WSOP and WSOP circuit events alone, but his final 2008 WSOP goal can now be checked off Lindgren’s to-do list – Win a gold WSOP Bracelet. Erick emerged triumphant yesterday from the 2008 World Series of Poker Event #4, $5,000 Mixed Hold’em, taking the bracelet and a 1st place cash of $374,505.

The 3-day event got underway June 2nd, with the final table commencing on the 4th. Lindgren started off with a bang, ousting Isaac Haxton in the second hand. Pat Pezzin was the next to go as his A-Q offsuit did not hold up against Andre Robl’s A-K offsuit. Next to the rails came David Williams as his As-3s was out-flopped by David Williams K-10 off-suit, ending with a 10 top pair.

With competitors left, it would take some time before anyone else exited the World Series of Poker final table. Eventually, Justin Bonomo and Howard Lederer would take up arms. With a run of pre-flop raises, Lederer finally went all-in holding pocket 4s against Bonomo’s Ac-Qc. The flop was no help to either, but the turn river combined for 5d-2d-Ks-5s-Kc – just enough to counter Lederers low pair and give Bonomo the win.

David Rheem was the next to fall, sent to the rail when Roland de Wolfe became the lone caller of a pre-flop raise. When Wolfe hit the nut Straight, Rheem mucked and made his 5th place exit. Soon after, Bonomo took Wolfe all in when he flopped a Flush draw that hit on the river. Robl, Bonomo and Lindgren rounded out the final three.

After another hour of play, Bonomo held a significant chip stack lead, calling Robl’s all in after a pre-flop raise. Robl found himself dethroned as his A-2 failed to pair, losing to Bonomo’s Q-5 when the Queen paired on the flop.

Heads-up play immediately commenced between Justin Bonomo and Erick Lindgren, who had remained fairly quiet up until now. Bonomo grabbed an early chip lead, but not by much. It would last 40 hands before a winner was crowned. Lindgren raised Bonomo before the flop of 10c-5c-3d. Both players checked, revealing a 4h on the Turn. Bonomo bet, called by Lindgren, then came the 8h River, resulting in another bet by Bonomo and a raise from Lindgren. Bonomo pushed all in and Lindgren called immediately. Bonomo confidently revealed a 5s-4s, twice pairing the board. His poise quickly faded, however, as Lindgren unveiled Ah-2d for the Straight.

Poker champion Lindgren would walk away with his first glorious WSOP Bracelet and a 1st place prize of $374,505. Justin Bonomo, the newest member of Team Full Tilt Poker, pocketing $230,259 for his 2nd place finish.

The final table results of 2008 WSOP Event #4 were as follows:

1st – Erick Lindgren ($374,505)
2nd – Justin Bonomo ($230,259)
3rd – Andre Robl ($144,337)
4th – Roland de Wolfe ($117,030)
5th – David Rheem ($93,624)
6th – Howard Lederer ($74,119)
7th – David Williams ($58,515)
8th – Pat Pezzin ($46,812)
9th – Isaac Haxton ($34,109)

2008 WSOP Results Event #3: David Singer Croons Victory

The third event of the 2008 World Series of Poker, a 3-day $1,500 PL Hold’em event, was taken down by professional poker player David Singer yesterday. Of his many lucrative accomplishments, the one achievement that has eluded Singer all these years was the reward of a coveted WSOP Bracelet. I’m sure the 1st place prize of $214,122 was appreciated, as well!

As the WSOP event began its second day, Singer found himself very short-stacked – the second lowest in the tournament, in fact. By day three, things weren’t looking much better – aside from the fact he had not been ousted – entering into the final table of nine with, once again, the second lowest chip stack of 83,000, only slightly better than Glen Bean’s 75,000. Joe Tehan of New York took the high-stack honors with 458,000.

After the first three eliminations – Glen Bean, Al Barbieri and Zachary King respectively – Singer had jumped from second lowest to second highest chip stack, behind Jacob Fernandez. Joe Tehan and Russ Harriman were the next to exit, followed by Robert Lipkin and Gregory Alston.

Heads-up play commenced between David Singer, with the low stack of 935,000, and Jacob Fernandez at 1,245,000. After some a brief skirmish of poker, both stacks were near dead even, and the two agreed upon a dinner break. Upon returning to the table, Singer found his chips slowing dwindling. Just when it looked like Fernandez had him beat, however, Singer gained his second win and began a tenuous come-back march.

The second to last hand saw Singer’s chip stack erupt into an enormous lead, holding 1.7 million to Fernandez 400k. One last hand would see an end to the PL Hold’em event. With a board of 3d-5s-7d-6c, Singer forced Fernandez to call all-in. Singer flipped a Q-4, revealing a Straight, while Fernandez’s 7-3 both paired the board, but could not compete. A Jh on the river sealed his fate as David Singer was awarded $214,131 and his first gold WSOP Bracelet. Fernandez earned $136,643 for a 2nd place finish.

The final table results of 2008 WSOP Event #3 were as follows:

1st – David Singer ($214,131)
2nd – Jacob Fernandez ($136,643
3rd – Gregory Alston ($82,725)
4th – Robert Lipkin ($67,640)
5th – Russ Harriman ($55,474)
6th – Joe Tehan ($43,796)
7th – Zachary King ($34,063)
8th – Al Barbieri ($26,764)
9th – Glen Bean ($19,464)

2008 WSOP Results Event #2: Grant Hinkle’s Wins Astonishing Final Hand

Event #2 of the 2008 World Series of poker began with record breaking entries and ended with what may be the longest running preliminary event in the history of the WSOP. This was certainly one for the books, and 27-year-old Grant Hinkle would be happy to purchase the first copy; to go alongside his brand new gold WSOP Bracelet and 1st-place prize of $831,426!

What was originally scheduled for a mere 2-day event saw an enormous field of 3,929 participants battling it out for what turned into a three-day event with a 16 hour delay to end the second evening. As day 3 began, 18 players took their seats at the last two tables. A lingering six hours later, the remaining nine would take their seats at the final table.

Heads-up play eventually commenced, pitting Grant Hinkle’s high stack of 7,595,000 against James Akenhead’s 4,235,000. It became a marathon competition that last more than two hours before coming down to one of the WSOP’s most intriguing final hands.

With fairly even stacks, Hinkle raised 350,000 on the button, followed by a 1.2 million raise from Akenhead. Hinkle pushed all-in and was immediately called by his formidable opponent. Caught in what would seem to be a bluff, Hinkle unveiled his 10d-4d. Akenhead must have been happily surprised as he flipped an Ac-Kh.

When the flop fell, the crowd burst with astonishment – 10h-4h-10s – giving Hinkle not only a boat, but a Flush draw. There was little hope for Akenhead at this point, but the 10c Turn sealed the deal, resulting in a boisterous eruption of near-deafening enthusiasm from the crowd.

Hinkle’s quad-10’s awarded him the 1st place prize of a WSOP gold bracelet, along with $831,462, while Akenhead earned $520,219 for a 2nd place finish.

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