Day 48

Day 48

Fourteen days in Las Vegas would drive even the sanest of beings round the bend. So, it will come as no surprise to learn that I am currently counting down the remaining hours of this trip in my hotel room. Sin City can do strange things to the body, and combined with a poker tournament that has run into the early hours of every morning bar one since I got here, the body clock is suffering as my nights and days seem like one long nightmare. Okay, that’s a bit over the top, but if I never hear another slot machine again it will be too soon. And why does everything you eat here have to be drenched in cheese? This place is a walking heart attack zone!

But back to the poker; as the dust settles the day after Jerry Yang’s popular Main Event win, the Rio’s Amazon Room looks a desolate place. Six thousand, three hundred and fifty eight players took their seats at this year’s main event, and while Yang may not be the most colourful of characters, I’m convinced, as I said before, that the World Series has found a worthy and likeable champion. Yang is just what commissioner Jeffrey Pollack was looking for.

For me, there are obvious problems with the Main Event and I can understand why many top pros believe it has lost its appeal. But people have to remember this: no matter what professional players and the American public may want to believe, poker is not a sport! Poker is a game. Yes there is a huge element of skill involved, but there is also a huge element of luck. Roger Federer is the number one tennis player in the world because his winning record deserves such status. You know that the odds on him winning three Grand Slam titles out of four are a true calculation of his abilities on the court. Tiger Woods has chalked up 12 major victories in golf because, when on his game, he stands head and shoulders above all other contenders. There are skill sets needed in sport that are similar to those in poker, but Federer and Woods are not relying on how the cards fall for their opponents; their own game ultimately carries them home. Even the much-heralded H.O.R.S.E. event has to offer luck to the players; Chip Reese was only a river card away from losing the title to Andy Bloch last year, and yet he is hailed as the greatest thing since sliced bread over here.

With that point in mind, I’m quite down on the pros continuously putting the boot in where the Main Event is concerned. Yes it is a crapshoot, but it is a fantastic revenue stream for the game. Everyone starts with the same amount of chips, and if the so-called pros out there think this tournament is not what it was, then it is up to them to give it back the prestige it had. Nobody forced Scotty Nguyen to blow almost 17 million in chips in the space of four hands as the final table bubble approached. Nobody forced Gus Hansen to throw away a commanding position with some loose calls on day six. Just an hour after busting out of the Main Event, Hansen could be seem pushing more chips into the middle at the Big Game in Bobby’s Room. Perhaps getting back into the action with the ‘real big boys’ was what the Great Dane wanted all along.

I firmly believe that the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. event remains the truest test of poker skill, and that it is one of the best things to happen to poker for a long time. After meeting high-stakes cash game players like this year’s champion Freddy Deeb and the legendary Doyle Brunson on this trip, my views on the H.O.R.S.E. were quickly confirmed. But the main event is, for many, what the World Series is all about. You can criticise the amateurs all you want, but I doubt Jerry Yang will be losing any sleep as he plans the rest of his life with $8.2 million in the bank.

Day 47

So that’s that then! This year’s WSOP has finally run its course and the game has a new World Champion in Jerry Yang. Yang’s dominance at this year’s final table was a gruelling display of aggression as he busted out seven of the eight final tablists.

A humble man, Yang has donated 10% of his $8 million winnings to charity. He’ll make a fine champion, of that I have no doubt about, and despite being impressed with Jamie Gold after meeting him at the start of the main event, it’s unlikely Yang will be ruffling too many feathers within the poker community.

This guy is the ultimate front man, clean cut through and through. He’s not perfect though, in his celebratory speech, he did spout on about the lord for a bit too long – but we’ll just have to forgive him for that.

Sadly for the UK, John Kalmar’s dream ended when he was busted out by South African Raymond Rahme. Pushing all-in with A-K in the 60th hand of the final, Kalmar failed to improve with Rahme’s pocket Jacks holding firm. It was a sad end to what has been a pipedream for Kalmar, but after speaking with him quickly following his exit, there was a sense of fulfilment in his words anyway, as he said he ‘couldn’t be happier’. With just over $1.2 million in the bank, I have to say I can think of another 6 million reasons Kalmar could be happier.

For me, the WSOP has been a wave of energy, from the moment the Main Event kicked off some 12 days ago, right until Yang hit his straight on the river that brought him the title. Overall, the standard of play has been strong, although the final table was at times very loose with Yang a calling station.

ESPN commentator Phil Gordon was highly critical of Yang’s strategy, arguing that Alex Kravchenko – who busted out in fourth-place – was by far the better player. But to be fair to Yang, who arrived in America chasing his dream of affluence as a Laotian refugee, whenever he called he had the best hand. Find me a better strategy than that and I’ll quit this job and work at McDonalds for the rest of my life!

Bizarrely, ESPN ran a ridiculous poll during the final table, asking the public who they most wanted to see get busted out, and Yang was a 76% favourite. Why people always go for the good guy makes no sense at all.

Yang claimed he will be heading back to work when he gets home, but only to hand his notice in. He also said his family would never have to work again and that he intends to play in future tournaments around the world, but that charity work will remain his highest priority.

Read my final Vegas blog tomorrow where I’ll have more reaction and a full update on Yang’s big day, and be sure to read InsidePoker’s great coverage of the event in our next edition.

Day 45

It’s just approaching 4am on Monday morning, Las Vegas time, and it’s like drawing blood from a stone as the final ten try to shake off the bubble boy at the Main Event. It seems like an eternity since Scotty Nguyen busted out in 11th place three hours ago. Making that final table on Tuesday seems too much to throw away for most, and the short stacks have tightened up considerably as play has moved to the TV table.

Thankfully, there seems little chance of England’s Jon ‘Skalie’ Kalmar missing out. As I wrote in my blog a few days ago, Skalie was still sniffing around on Sunday of last week trying to steal a seat for the big one. He did so through a £500 super satellite; seven days later, his world has been turned upside down.

Overall, his play looks pretty solid and he is playing with an air of confidence that comes as standard with a man hiding behind 20 million chips. If there is an obvious criticism he may be playing a touch loose, calling frequently and leaking some of his orange when he shouldn’t be. He’s hit some cards as well; earlier he busted out William Spadea with pocket Aces against Spadea’s Ace-King.

Inside the Amazon Room, ‘Skalie’ mania has quickly taken root. Sadly, certain sections of support following the man from Chorley have not covered themselves in too much grace, with bad language hurled from the bar area with every hand played. At one point, Kalmar got off his seat and told them to keep it down, saying: ‘You’re bang out of order speaking like that.’ The flow of booze was hardly helping matters and hats off to Kalmar for speaking up.

Nguyen’s exit was a sad one. At one point, he was cruising in third place but three crippling pots eventually sent the 1998 Main Event winner to the rail. He slowly exited the stage, only to come back, grab the microphone and wish the rest of the field well.

Stayed tuned for my next blog before the final table kicks off on Tuesday.

Day 42

I first met Jon ‘Skalie’ Kalmar at last year’s World Series. He was a Ladbrokes online qualifier/professional; a guy who scratched his way to a $91,000 payday in the Main Event in 2005 and who was still riding on the wave of his half-cut celebrity status as a result.

But as Day 3 of the 2007 Main Event drew its curtains, Kalmar was sitting handsomely on 890,000 chips with a guaranteed payday of $39,000. He may not be a poker player of any distinction – but he’ll be sleeping soundly tonight, that I’m sure of.

I could be wrong, but I’m sure Kalmar was still sniffing around during the opening flights, seeking his route to Main Event glory through the satellite passage. That tells you hows crazy this event is. Now, at precisely 3.55am on Friday morning, Vegas time, Kalmar’s chip count is a healthy 1.4 million, keeping him on the shoulder of second-placed Jeff Weiss (1.5 million). Overall chip leader Dario Minieri was breathing easy on 2.4 million – a dominant chip lead.

It has to be said that this Main Event is turning in to a fascinating affair. At one stage, the tournament looked like it was drifting away towards the online qualifiers as the pros pushed and shoved at will, only to face the rail as a result. But Gus Hansen’s aggressive nature kept him in the hunt, despite losing pace on the leaders late on. The Aussie Millions winner has a stack counting just beyond the million-mark, while Kenny Tran – a final tablist in the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E., sits in fifth place with just under 1.2 million.

For the Brits, as well as Kalmar, Julian Gardner is still fighting with a chip count of just under half-a-million.

But anyone at that level needs to beware: all-in calls are coming thick and fast in the Amazon Room, and Day 4 promises to be a cruncher. My money is on Hansen as things stand.

The Dane looked in peerless mood today and wasn’t going to be shaken off any pots he fancied being involved in. When Hansen has a stack, he can torture his opponents. Jon Kalmar’s passage to success is a romantic one, but there’s definitely a feeling in the air here that this Main Event could end up in the back pocket of one of the bigger fish!

Day 40

It’s a case of keeping up with the peaks and troughs over here at the Main Event. One minute you’re eyeing up a deep-stack, and then, before you know it, your cards are dealt and the fat lady starts singing. During the opening flight of Day Two at this year’s Big One, the numbers are falling at a fast rate and it seems no matter how big the chip stacks are, they can always be blown away at the drop of a hat.

That is the stage we’re at now. As the field on Day 2A dwindled down to 350 players, the total number of 6,358 announced on Monday seems like a distant memory, while a slice of the $60 million prizepool, for some, is now within touching distance.

Among the leaders following the first flight of the second day is Kenny ‘The Kid’ Tran on 495,000 chips. Tran has already made a name for himself at this year’s WSOP with a fifth-place finish in the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. event. Heading the pack on 570,000 is John Moonves, but InsidePoker readers will be more concerned with the progress of their very own doctor poker, Willie Tann, who sits within shouting distance of the leaders going into Day 3 with 282,000. Another Brit flying the flag is PokerStars pro John Duthie (381,000), while 2002 main event runner-up, Julian Gardner, carries 130,000 chips into the third day. Other Brits still involved, but severely short-stacked, are Marc Goodwin (32,000), Dennis Waterman (24,000) and Joe Beevers (20,000). Beevers’ good friend and fellow Hendon Mobster Ross Boatman, sadly, failed to make the cut.

Day 2A also marked the end of the Main Event for Bill Chen, Hoyt Corkins, Joe Hachem, Patrik Antonius, Barry Greenstein, Tony G, Paul Wasicka, Dan Harrington, Joe Sebok (who knocked out InsidePoker’s MANSION PokerGod freeroll qualifier Nick Woods on Day 1), and Vicky Coren.

Talking of Miss Coren, the ‘Iron Lady’ was subjected to a fierce moment of embarrassment at a PokerStars press conference on Monday. Reeling off the names of Team PokerStars, 2005 main event winner Joe Hachem was full of praise for his team-mates: Tom McEvoy was a legend; Humberto Brenes was his hero, Barry Greenstein? Well, everybody loves Barry.

Sadly, Joe was slightly lost for words when it came to introducing Vicky – rather to the point where he forgot to introduce her at all, instead referring to his ‘last, but not least’ team member and someone who is a ‘very special lady’…… Shannon Elizabeth. Things were made even worse when the PR girl asked Joe to introduce Coren – something he still failed to do, by the way! By this time the London EPT winner had literally died on her arse! All harsh and slightly unfair… but very funny.

Finally, and I’m sure my editor will agree with me on this, I’m becoming increasingly tired of telling every cab driver in Vegas that I’m from the UK; and that I’m from London; and that I’m going to the Rio for the Poker; and that I’m not playing in the poker; and that I’m a journalist from the UK covering the poker! That cab drive is turning into the most painful five minutes of my life!

Day 38

Handshakes and bad beat stories; they’re everywhere as I walk the floor of the Rio’s Amazon Room as the opening flights of poker’s main event draw day into night.

In fact, it’s becoming something of a chore having to listen to such tales of sick luck. Endless number of river horror stories fill the air in Vegas, and yet still, as I sit here in my hotel room writing this, the numbers for the 2007 WSOP main event are on the increase. A final confirmation is likely to be made later today, with many players still hoping to take their seats as late as 2pm on day 1D. An estimated figure of 5,500 seems to be the favourite’s tip.

But while the ‘everyday man’ dreams of making the cut, the more established players have been offering their hands in a sporting manner thick and fast as the biggest crapshoot in the game claims big gun after big gun.

Britain’s Ram Vaswani started it off only two hours into play on Day 1A. Turning up half-an-hour late for play, the Hendon Mobster – perhaps still grinning wide from his bracelet success in the $1,500 Limit Shootout – was crippled early by Vince Van Patten, and from there the gambling instincts seemed to take their toll.

‘Crazy Horse’s’ exit was the scene setter for many other ‘name’ players to follow. Dave Colclough’s poor main event run continued with an early bust, while Roland De Wolfe, Devilfish and Simon ‘Aces’ Trumper joined El Blondie on the main event scrap heap.

Former InsidePoker columnist Tony Cascarino and England striker Teddy Sheringham forced themselves into the latter stages of day 1A, but it was very much a case of ‘when’, rather than ‘if’.

On lighter note, Manchester’s Julian Gardner, a runner-up at the 2002 main event, took his chip count 120,900 at the end of the opening day’s flight. Joe Beevers always looked in control at a limited table as he raced to 97,400, and John Duthie stretched his count to 151,300.

With just hours remaining on Day 1C, Tinten Olivier was holding the lead with 270,500, with Norway’s Dag Martin Mikkelsen his closest rival on 236,000. Indeed, heavyweights such as Todd Brunson, JC Tran and Allen Cunningham were taking the fight on as time ran out. But in this game, everything can change in a matter of seconds.

In the time it has taken me to write this blog, both Vanessa Rousso and TJ Cloutier have busted out, losing over 100,000 chips between them! Read my next blog with a full first day’s round-up on Wednesday.

Day 35

There’s a strange feeling in the air of Sin City this morning. The World Series of Poker is just hours away from kicking off its 37th instalment of main event madness, but outside the walls of the giant Convention Centre within the huge confounds of the Rio Casino, it’s very much business as usual in the searing heat of Las Vegas.

In fact, stepping foot outside my hotel in the heart of the strip, I’m hard-pressed to find anything that would suggest that the most marketable game for gamblers across the globe is about to hold its World Championship just a short cab ride away. It just feels like another day in this crazy town; The strip’s card rooms are a mixture of high-rollers and drunken fish, old ladies feed the slot machines while outside on the street the latino boys peddle human flesh for minimum wage with a marketing technique that hasn’t changed since I first came to Vegas five years (they slap a pornographic flyer across their thighs before thrusting the paperwork under your nose – it’s a move of real class).

At the Flamingo Hotel where I’m based, the main event seems to be the daily shows by pop star Toni Braxton, while Lionel Ritchie and Celine Dion are taking it down across the street at Caesars Palace. But step inside the Rio, or rather step inside the Rio and walk ten minutes to the hotel’s Convention Centre and Amazon Room, and it is total chaos! Fifty four bracelet events have now passed at this year’s WSOP, but this is what it’s all about at the end of the day. It’s like the Superbowl (whatever that’s like?) and anyone who loves poker wants a piece of it!

But while there is carnage at the Series, it is still somewhat detached from the mayhem on the Strip. The Rio has something of a family feel to it. Dads roam around with the wife and kids; it’s all part of the ‘freeroll wheel’ that is making the main event more of a holiday package than a genuine shot at sporting glory. Qualifiers of all ages are here, from the ‘whizz’ kids to the old and wise pensioners; poker is now a global game that touches such a diverse audience.

Elsewhere, the annual pre main event press conference went down with a real bang. Actor Don Cheadle and Annie Duke served up the charisma as they thanked the media for their support in the battle against the Darfur crisis. Betfair Managing Director Steve Ives and WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack told everyone that the future is Europe (commenting on the exchange giant’s deal to be the WSOP ‘Presenting sponsor in London come the autumn), and Phil Hellmuth and Barbara Enright lapped up the applause as they were both entered into poker’s Hall of Fame. Enright said she was ‘hugely honoured’, while Hellmuth felt he had deserved the induction, saying: ‘I’ve worked so hard for this. I guess, with me, the lines do get a little blurred sometimes.’ Hmmm, not sure they do Phil.

Also, I got to meet with current ‘World Champion’ Jamie Gold. He did a Q&A session in the media room and, I have to say, he came across very well. Shaking his hand as he departed, I asked him when it all started to go wrong (with all the bad press he received for his legal row with Crispin Leyser), to which he said: ‘About two weeks after I won. I just didn’t know how to handle all that money.’ Gold won $12 million from his main event success, since then his father has died, his mother has become unwell and he has been branded everything from vile to greedy by the media. It’s amazing what money can do!

Away from the main event, Britain has a bracelet winner at this year’s Series after Ram ‘Crazy Horse’ Vaswani won the $1,500 Limit Shootout event, enhancing his reputation as our country’s greatest poker talent. Finding a man of Vaswani’s elusive nature will prove a true test for any hard-nosed hack – but I’m confident of my chances. I’ve tracked him down at The Wynn Hotel – it’s seems only a palace is fit for the King of British poker.