World Series of Poker: More Tournament Numbers

Date: Thu, Jun 19, 2008

Here are some more numbers through 30 events of the 2008 World Series of Poker. These come to us from the newly math-oriented WSOP media group.

Totals through thirty events:

* 24,642 entrants
* 821 average entrants per event
* $59,117,189 in total prize money awarded
* $1,970,573 average prize pool per event
* $439,545 average first place prize per event

* Most events entered this year:
o Thomas McCormick (23)
o Sirous Jamshidi (22)
o Amnon Filippi (21)
o Justin Bonomo (21)
o Phil Ivey (21)

* Most event cashes to date:
o Nikolay Evdakov (6)
o Rolf Slotboom (5)
o Tom Schneider (5)
o Kathy Liebert (5)
o Alex Jacob (5)
o Roland Isra (5)

* Highest cash percentage this year:
o Kathy Liebert - 62.5% (5 of 8 events entered)
o Sarah Bilney - 50% (4 of 8 events entered)
o Tom Lee - 50% (3 of 6 events entered)
o Peter Debest - 50% (3 of 6 events entered)
o Calen McNeil - 50% (3 of 6 events entered)

* Most final tables: 2 (11 players tied)
o Chris Bjorin; Andy Bloch; Alex Bolotin; Scott Clements; Jacobo Fernandez; Fu Wong;
Minh Ly; Daniel Negreanu; J.C. Tran; Theo Tran

* Money leaders:
o Grant Hinkle - $831,462 (1 cash)
o Phil Galfond - $817,781 (1 cash)
o Nenad Medic - $810,608 (2 cashes)
o Scott Seiver - 781,866 (3 cashes)
o Duncan Bell - $666,697 (1 cash)

*Other Stats:
-new food offerings closed due to lack of business: 1
-new food offerings about to close: 1
-energy drink comsumption: +34%
-windage in food court tent: medium to high today
-media tedium factor: 54%
-player fatigue factor: 44%
-useless information offerings: increasing day by day

World Series of Poker: What Makes a Professional?

Date: Wed, Jun 18, 2008

There has been a lot of talk in the media this summer about the "Professionals taking back the Series." I know I have written some of those stories, but do we need to ask the question:

"What actually makes a poker player a professional?"

Nolan Dalla and his WSOP media staff have been keeping a running total of bracelet winners this year. Through twenty-nine events their tally stands at: 23 professionals, 4 amateurs and 2 semi-professionals.

Now I personally am more likely to agree than disagree with what some feel is a very liberal definition of "professional" being used in this statistic. But let's explore what might be considered when determining if some is or is not a professional poker player.

Can a person be considered a professional player if they have another job?

How many players are amateurs now but would be upgraded to pro if they won an event? And does that make them a pro when they win or only the day after?

I certainly don't have the answers to those questions but I do have a lot of data on both sid. However, let's focus on just a couple of players. For several years we have heard:

"Not since Carlos Mortensen (2001) has a professional won the main event".

.
That means the following players were amateurs when they won the WSOP main event:

Robert Varkonyi-2002
Chris Moneymaker-2003
Greg Raymer-2004
Joe Hachem-2005
Jamie Gold-2006
Jerry Yang-2007

Really? Let's compare. Carlos Mortensen made a final table at the WSOP in 2000 and finished 7th. In the three months prior to his main event win in 2001, he won a preliminary event at LAPC and another at Bay 101. Under Nolan's standards and most everone's criteria, he was a professional.

Greg Raymer finished 12th in a WSOP event the year before this main event victory. He had at least four cashes in excess of $10K and one over $40K. Anyone who hung out on the 2+2 poker forums back then knew and respected the opinions of "The Fossilman", but Greg was considered an amateur when he won. By today's standards he was definitely not. Applying those same standards, Joe Hachem was also a professional in '05.

Notice that we have not even dealt with the issue of "internet pro", which would open the floodgates to literally thousands of newly minted and well trained poker professionals.

I think rather than labeling bracelets winners as professionals or not; we should require amateurs to prove their status, which is difficult to do when you put up $10,000 to play a game of cards. Perhaps amateur is better understood not as a measure of skill or victories but more as an attitude toward the game.

Amateur: A person who engages in an art, science, study, or athletic activity as a pastime rather than as a profession.

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ADDENDUM: Here is a new comparison released by the WSOP media staff. We are going to need to talk with them about their criteria for professionalism; until then, here are their stats on pro vs. amateur over the last several years:

2000 – Pros 14 to Amateurs 8
2001 – Pros 18 to Amateurs 7
2002 – Pros 18 to Amateurs 16
2003 – Pros 24 to Amateurs 12
2004 – Pros 21 to Amateurs 11

2005 – Amateurs 26 to Pros 18
2006 – Amateurs 27 to Pros 17
2007 – Amateurs 34 to Pros 20

2008 - Pros 23 to Amateurs 7 (thru 40 events)

World Series of Poker: Half Way Statistics

Date: Tue, Jun 17, 2008

“There are three kinds of lies: Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics.” . . . quote often attributed to Benjamin Disraeli

That being said here are some interesting numbers that have come down to us from the WSOP media office as we approach the mid-point (53.22%) of the Series. Some are interesting (22%), some are prophetic (12% or 78%) and a few are pure publicity hype (104%) or at least that is the opinion of some reporters (9 out of 11) in media row. Of course members of the poker media are at this point of the Series likely to be sleep deprived (56.8%) or simply depraved (23.4%).

Through 27 events, only one player has cashed six times to date – Nikolay Evdakov, from Moscow, Russia. Five-time-in-the-money finishers include Tom Schneider, Roland Isra, and Alex Jacob. All are in contention to challenge the record of eight for "Most WSOP Cashes in a Single Year," shared by four players -- Michael Binger ('07), Chad Brown ('07), Phil Hellmuth, Jr. ('06), and Humberto Brenes ('06).

The current "Player of the Year" standings shows Erick Lindgren on top of the points list with one gold bracelet win and four cashes. Vanessa Selbst, Daniel Negreanu, Barry Greenstein and Jacobo Fernandez are all very close (within the margin of error).

Through the 27th bracelet of this year's World Series of Poker, the "Professionals versus Amateurs" gold bracelet scoreboard reads:

Professionals – 21 wins
Amateurs -- 4 wins
Semi-Pros -- 2 wins

I had to include this last “stat” because I have heard the Shrink going on about what passes for a “professional” these days and I want him to put that post up soon (6 to 5, we get it within 48 hours).

World Series of Poker: Another Loaded Final Table

Date: Mon, Jun 16, 2008

Another packed final table goes off today in Event #28 $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha w/ rebuys. Johnny Chan is after bracelet number eleven and Phil Hellmuth, though short-stacked is in the hunt for number twelve. Add to that mix John Juanda, David Benyamine at another final table, Kirill Gerasimov, some kid named Daniel Negreanu, Phil Galfond enters as chipleader and local professional Brian Rast in second. This will be another of those special final tables.

Here is the line-up as they get ready to go at it later this afternoon.
[We are updating as players are eliminated, summary below]

2 AM: Phil Galfond's sixth WSOP cash is his biggest so far (by about $800,000), as is Adam Hourani's second WSOP cash (about $450K larger). Over 100 hands heads up were needed to settle the bracelet matter between these two well known internet players.

Phil Galfond (Madison, Wisconsin) -- 1st place
Adam Hourani (East Lansing, Michigan) -- 2nd place
David Benyamine (Las Vegas, Nevada) -- 3rd place
Johnny Chan (Las Vegas, Nevada) -- 4th place
Kirill Gerasimov (Moscow, Russia) -- 5th place
John Juanda (Las Vegas, Nevada) -- 6th place
Daniel Negreanu (Las Vegas, Nevada) -- 7th place
Phil Hellmuth (Palo Alto, California) -- 8th place
Brian Rast (Las Vegas, Nevada) -- 9th place

David Benyamine 3rd place. David played his Aces strong but ran into a set of Queens.

Johnny Chan 4th place and the bid for an 11th bracelet is over.

Kirill Gerasimov 5th place.

John Juanda 6th place, Daniel Negreanu 7th place, Phil Hellmuth 8th place Late in level three, three superstars were sent to the rail.

Brian Rast 9th place It took nearly two full levels and lots of chips moving around the table before we lost our first player. Brian Rast, local professional known to many internet players as tsarast, got it in ahead but was run down on the river by the current chipleader: Johnny Chan.

European Poker Tour New Schedule for 2008-09

Date: Sat, Jun 14, 2008

Yes, Virginia there is poker beyond the World Series and there is news beyond Las Vegas.

The very successful European Poker Tour has announced a somewhat reduced schedule for the coming season. The EPT has grown each year but for 2008-09 they have dropped the Dublin Open, reduced the events in Germany from two to one and the Caribbean Adventure is also gone from last year's tour schedule. Here is the EPT schedule for the coming season:

Barcelona Open (Casino Barcelona) - Sept 10-14, 2008 - €8,000
London (Victoria Casino) - October 1-5, 2008 - £5,200
Polish Open (Hyatt Regency, Warsaw) - November 15-19, 2008 - 20,000 PLN
Prague (Hilton Hotel) - December 9-13, 2008 - €5,000
Deauville (Barrière Casino) - January 20-24, 2009 - €5,000
Scandinavian Open (Casino Copenhagen) - February 17-21, 2009 - 50,000 DKR
German Open (Casino Hohensyburg) - March 10 - 14, 2009 - €5,000
San Remo (San Remo) - April 18-23, 2009 - €5,000
Grand Final (Monte Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort) - April 28 - May 3, 2009 - €10,000

World Series of Poker: Week Two Comparison

Date: Fri, Jun 13, 2008

How is the 2008 World Series of Poker holding up against last year?

So far it looks like the Series is still strong as we begin week three.

24 Events to Date:

12 events have increased entries
7 events have decreased
3 events were new tournaments in 2008
2 events had increased buy-ins from $5k to $10K (entries were down at the higher buy-in)

Here are the week two comparisons:

2008 Event #11
$5,000 No Limit Hold'em Shootout
Number of Entrants: 360
2007 Entries: this is a new event
(first time for a $5,000 Shootout)

2008 Event #12
$1,500 Limit Hold'em
Number of Entrants: 880
2007 Entries: 910
(a small decrease from last summer)

2008 Event #13
$2,500 No Limit Hold'em
Number of Entrants: 1,397
2007 Entries: 1,013
(a big 30%+ increase)

2008 Event #14
$10,000 Seven Card Stud
Number of Entrants: 158
2007 Entries: 180
(last year this was a $5,000 event)

2008 Event #15
$1,000 Ladies No Limit Hold'em
Number of Entrants: 1,190
2007 Entries: 1,286
(down about a eight dozen ladies)

2008 Event #16
$2,000 Omaha Hi/Lo 8 or better
Number of Entrants: 553
2007 Entries: 534
(up a smidgen)

2008 Event #17
$1,500 No Limit Hold'em Shootout
Number of Entrants: 1,000
2007 Entries: 900
(up by a full ten tables or is that ten full tables)

2008 Event #18
$5,000 Deuce-to-Seven Lowball w/rebuys
Number of Entrants: 85 w/ 272 rebuys & addons
2007 Entries: 78 w/ 226 rebuys
(a couple more players, a few more rebuys)

2008 Event #19
$1,500 Pot Limit Omaha
Number of Entrants: 759
2007 Entries: 578
(another big increase for an Omaha event)

2008 Event #20
$2,000 Limit Hold'em
Number of Entrants: 480
2007 Entries: 472
(again a small increase)

2008 Event #21
$5,000 No Limit Hold'em
Number of Entrants: 732
2007 Entries: 640
(a good sized increase here)

2008 Event #22
$3,000 H.O.R.S.E.
Number of Entrants: 414
2007 Entries: 382
(another slight increase)

2008 Event #23
$2,000 No Limit Hold'em
Number of Entrants: 1,344
2007 Entries: 1,619
(is this the beginning of the Mid-Series Blues?)

2008 Event #24
$2,500 Pot Limit Hold'em/Omaha
Number of Entrants:
2007 Entries: this is a new event
(good turnout)

To see the first week comparison.

Mike Matusow Wins His Third Bracelet

Date: Thu, Jun 12, 2008

In a masterful performance at an epic final table, Mike Matusow took down the Deuce-to-Seven Lowball evening early this morning. The Poker Shrink was there for every hand at what truly was a final table for the ages. Tomorrow I will give you some details that you will find nowhere else; as many of you know I am working on Mike's biography and we spoke often during the twelve hour final table. In addition, we are going to get together after we both have had some sleep and then we will go over the entire final table from Mike's perspective. I will share some of that insight with you just as soon as Mike and I talk later today.

Until then congratulations Mike and good night or good morning from all of us here in the wee morning hours from Las Vegas.