WSOP Event #19

The winner of the $2,500 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em championship was Francois Safieddine, from Denver, Colorado. He was born in Lebanon and arrived in the U.S. during the 1980s, Safieddine now owns three of the hottest nightclubs in Denver.

Safieddine is 33-years-old, and is married with four children, his last child, a girl, was born just six months ago.

He has only been playing poker for about four years. This was his fifth time to cash at the WSOP, with 15th place being his best finish up to this tournament. First place paid a whopping $521,785.

The runner-up has suffered a serious case of the "second-place" blues at recent WSOPs. John "the Razor" Phan is a well-respected pro who has won millions in tournament play, yet has not won a WSOP gold bracelet. Last year, Phan finished as the runner-up in a shocking upset to Jon Friedberg. He never had the chip lead when heads-up against the eventual winner and lost the match after about 45 minutes of action.

Two-time gold bracelet winner Humberto "Shark" Brenes now has more cashes than any other player at the WSOP since 2005. He cashed for the 15th time since June 1, 2005, which surpasses Marco Traniello by one count. Brenes is also the first player at this year’s World Series to reach three final tables. He has 3rd, 7th, and 8th –place finishes on his record.

This was another final table heavy with international flavour. Players represented Belarus, Canada, Costa Rica, Denmark, France, Lebanon, and the United States.

Mike "the Mouth" Matusow holds an impressive record, having made it to at least one final table every year at the WSOP since 1999. His bid to extend his record fell just short in this event, as Matusow went out late on Day Two in 11th place.

Final results:
1. Francois Safieddine, Denver, CO, $521,785
2. John Phan, Long Beach, CA, $330,846
3. Marcus Obser, Delray Beach, FL, $212,021
4. Devin Porter, Salt Lake City, UT, $139,794
5. Shawn Hattem, Montreal, Canada, $97,856
6. Lars Bonding, Fairfax, VA, $74,557
7. Humberto Brenes, Costa Rica, $55,918
8. Alex Bolotin, Brooklyn, NY, $40,773
9. Bertrand Grospellier, Paris, France, $29,124