Business Insider reports that Pius Heinz, who came from seventh place to win the World Series of Poker last week in Las Vegas, won't have to pay a penny of taxes on his $8.7 million winnings.

That's because Heinz is from Germany, which has a treaty that exempts Germans from paying U.S. taxes on gambling winnings. And Germany itself considers gambling winnings as after-tax income (meaning they already got hit once, so they can do what they want with it).

Russ Fox, the guy I call for any questions about gambling taxes, explains more in his article.

Do you see a lot of poker players setting up residency in Germany now? Just saying...

Badih "Bob" Bounahra, a part-time Fort Lauderdale resident, was eliminated Sunday night in the World Series of Poker main event, finishing in seventh place.

He earned $1,313,851.

Bounahra, 49, who runs a poker room in Belize, started Sunday's play in sixth place, but lost a tough hand when he had 10-10 in the big blind, but his opponent, playing J-8, hit a jack on the flop. Then Bounahra was eliminated when his A-5 couldn't improve against A-9.

"I came here to have fun and I'll have fun no matter what," he told ESPN after his elimination.

Things weren't looking good for Bounahra back in July when he was going into the final day of play that would narrow the field to the November Nine. He sat 21st of the 22 remaining players but still made the final table.

The tournament played down to its final three Sunday. Pius Heinz of Cologne, Germany, is the chip leader, with 107.8 million. Ben Lamb of Tulsa, Okla, is at 55.4 milllion and Martin Staszko of the Czech Republic is in third.

They pick up play again at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday Vegas time.

As opposed to past years, when ESPN did a quick edit of only the hands that were crucial and showed the two days of play in a two-hour package, the network is airing the tournament almost live -- it's on a 15-minute delay. Fans can also follow hand-by-hand updates at WorldSeriesOfPoker.com.

For those of you who missed it, ESPN sent out a press release last month detailing the new way they are covering the World Series of Poker. The dates have been moved back one day each, in order for the event to be shown in near real time – with every single hand.

“There are moments when you realize you’re turning an important corner,“ said WSOP executive director Ty Stewart. “This coverage shifts the paradigm for poker’s potential on television and will showcase our championship with unprecedented richness and scale.”

The November Nine return to Las Vegas and the Rio to begin play at 11:30 a.m. Las Vegas time on Sunday and play until three players remain.

ESPN2 will televise every single hand of final table action from 9 players to 3 players-- with player hole cards being shown, on a 15-minute delay. (ESPN2 and ESPN3 begins at 3:30 PM ET)

The final act is at 5:30 p.m. Vegas time Tuesday. ESPN will carry Tuesday’s three-handed play in its entirety, in the same format as Sunday’s action -- with player hole cards being shown, on a 15-minute delay. Coverage on ESPN and ESPN3 will begin at 9 p.m. ET.

But plan on staying up late Sunday and Tuesday nights. Based on previous final tables, this is expected to be up to 18 hours of coverage.

No longer will ESPN post-produce the coverage for quick turnaround.

Badih "Bob" Bounahra, a part-time Fort Lauderdale resident, will play in the biggest poker tournament of his life Sunday, when the final nine players in the World Series of Poker sit down at the Rio All-Suite Hotel in Las Vegas.

Bounahra, 49, is playing it loose.

"It's the same game I've always played," says Bounahra, who runs a poker room in Belize. He currently sits in sixth place, with 19.7 million chips.

Things weren't looking good for Bounahra going into the final day of play that would narrow the field to the November Nine. He sat 21st of the 22 remaining players.

"But I had a good day," he said.

The tournament starts at 11:30 a.m. Sunday Las Vegas time and will play down to the final three. Then at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday Vegas time, those three reconvene and vie for the trophy and the $8.7 million first prize.

As opposed to past years, when ESPN did a quick edit of only the hands that were crucial and showed the two days of play in a two-hour package, the network is airing the tournament almost live -- it's on a 15-minute delay. Fans can also follow hand-by-hand updates at WorldSeriesOfPoker.com. More on ESPN's coverage tomorrow...

A part-time Fort Lauderdale resident has come out of nowhere to have a shot at poker immortality.

Badih "Bob" Bounahra, 49, survived eight days of poker to make the final table at the World Series of Poker main event early Wednesday morning. The final nine players will now take a break and gather in November to play for first place -- worth $8.7 million.

Bounahra, reached by phone before play on Tuesday, said he lives in a Fort Lauderdale condo, and is "a businessman." At least one son attends college at Florida Atlantic University and records show other family members have lived here for about 10 years. He has played "a little" at local poker rooms, he said.

On July 7, 6,865 players, including Bounahra, put down $10,000 to play in the World Series main event. Bounahra said he took the tournament "day by day," and entered Wednesday's play at noon Vegas time as No. 21 of the 22 players left.

But the cards fell his way Tuesday at the Rio All-Suites Hotel in Las Vegas, and player after player around him was eliminated, the final one coming at 2:21 a.m. today Vegas time.

This is by far Bounahra's biggest poker score. The web site Hendon Mob, which tracks player's successes, had his previous biggest win as $11,000 in October 2009. Even if he finishes ninth in November, he'll earn $782,115.

For the first seven days the WSOP was confused about his name, reversing his first and last names. He also had "Fort Lauderdale" listed as his hometown on the web site, but that changed to Belize on the final day. He wore a cap that said "Belize" on it throughout the televised play on Tuesday. (Obviously, I'll try to reach him later today, but figure I should let the guy sleep a little.)

Martin Staszko of Trinec, Czech Republic, leads with 40,175,000 chips. Bounahra has 19,700,000. ESPN profiled the November Nine already. (They're in Vegas; I'm not. Just sayin' ...)

It's the fourth consecutive year that a poker player with Broward ties has made the final table: Previously, David "Chino" Rheem, Kevin Schaffel and Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi have made the November Nine.

None have won.

For more poker and gambling news, bookmark this Action blog and read other entries.

Wednesday was a rest day for the main event of the World Series of Poker, giving folks time to catch up from four Day 1s and two Day 2s.

Now that the smoke has cleared, here are the numbers: 1,866 players remain and 693 will get paid.

One of them might be 21-year-old Hayden Fortini of Vero Beach, who has fared well here in South Florida. Going into Thursday he's in 64th place, with 279,600 chips. Next local I see on the list is Frank Sinopoli, at 244th, with 190,300 chips (anybody know him? Name's not familiar to me...)

Raj Vohra of Lake Worth is 296th, with 178,600 chips and Vanessa Rousso is hanging on, at 1,606th (41,000 chips). Other names on the list: Steve Karp, Jason Mercier, Matt Ezrol, Sharon Levin, Richard Kirsch, Scott Zakheim, and the Zeppo of the Mizrachis, Donny.

Now that the smoke has cleared from four Day 1s of play at the World Series of Poker, a Lake Worth man sits near the top.

It's Raj Vohra, a familiar name in online and South Florida poker circles.

Vohra has 167,450 chips, third-best among the 2,802 entrants in Sunday's Day 1D.

A total of 6,865 entered the $10,000 buy-in main event, and 2,031 remain after the four Day 1s. First prize is $8,711,956.

Day 2A is Monday and combines players from Day 1A and 1C. Hayden Fortini, a former FAU student, sits in 32nd place with 118,500 chips. Vohra will play Tuesday.

As profiled here by CardPlayer Magazine, Vohra grew up in India and was a professional tennis player until an injury ended his career and he took up poker.

Since then, he has been a formidable online player, and has been at or near the top in event at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, the Isle Casino & Racing and elsewhere. He target="new"finished 23rd in the recent WPT event at the Hard Rock, for example and fared well in the Ante Up poker series (OK, he has better highlights than that, but that's his local success).

Those knocked out include: John Juanda, John Dolan, Jason Senti, musician Nelly, Tom Dwan, Ivan Demidov, Alexander Kravchenko, Tom Marchese, Jennifer Tilly, Michael Binger, Antonio Esfandiari, James Mackey, David Williams, Chino Rheem and 2010 WSOP Player of the Year Frank Kassela, according to ESPN.com, which noted Vohra goes by "BadcardsAA," owns both a SCOOP and FTOPS title and had won millions on the virtual felt prior to the indictments.

"On the live felt, he has four previous WSOP cashes, including a fifth-place finish in the $5,000 no-limit hold 'em event in 2008. His live earnings fall just short of $500,000," ESPN.com says. (Figure they should get credit.)

(Coming up later today: Isle's first event draws a HUGE crowd. Let me know if you played...)

Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi, who had a memorable run last year in the World Series of Poker main event, had a much different result this year.

He's already been eliminated.

Mizrachi, of Plantation, finished fifth in last year's main event, earning $2.5 million. This year, he played in Day 1B Friday (there are four Day 1s), and even had the honor of announcing "Shuffle Up and Deal!"

But sitting at the featured table, he "just never got any momentum," according to the WSOP's Nolan Dalla.

"Good luck, my brothers, sorry I left you behind!" Mizrachi posted on his Facebook page.

The three other Mizrachi brothers haven't played yet. Robert will play Day 1C today and Eric and Donny are booked for Day 1D Sunday, which a lot of players enter because there is less dead time before Day 2.

Meanwhile, South Florida local Randy Dorfman had a good day 1B, making it to 24th. He has 79,000 chips. Silly Bandz creator Robert Croak was at 45th, Deepstacks University's Tristan Wade at 90th.

After Day 1A, Hayden Fortini was among the leaders, sitting in 18th.

Hayden Fortini, a name familiar among South Florida poker circles, was among the leaders after Day 1A of the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas Thursday night.

Vegas is new to Fortini, but poker is not. That's because the age restriction is 21 in Nevada, but 18 in Florida. He turned 21 last Aug. 28, too late for the WSOP.

So we've heard of Fortini since 2009, when at age 19 he won both the main event and a heads-up tournament in March 2009 at the Isle Casino & Racing in Pompano Beach's "Battles at the Beach." (Each win netted at least $50K; pictured here.)

Since then, he's been a formidable online player (under the name "Nipsman") and even an instructor for Deepstacks University. He lists his hometown as Vero Beach, and attended Florida Atlantic University. He has $558,169 in live and online tournament earnings, including sharing first in an Isle event last year.
But he just turned 21, so this is his first main event in Sin City. And his debut at the WSOP netted him in 18th place, with 118,500 chips.

Now, there's a long way to go. The WSOP has four Day 1s, and the field is expected to be at about 6,000 -- meaning three-fourths of the field hasn't even played a hand yet. (A field of 897 started Day 1A, and 556 survived.)

But it's a good start.

He's back at the tables on Monday for the tournament's Day 2.

Michael "the Grinder" Mizrachi looked like he was going to earn his second career World Series of Poker bracelet, but Owais Ahmed rallied past him in Las Vegas early Thursday morning.

Mizrachi, of Plantation, finished second in event No. 47, the Omaha/Seven Card Stud Hi-Low-8 or Better. He earned $158,148, which isn't bad except he entered the final day as the chip leader and was out in front most of the way, according to the WSOP web site.

The tournament ended at 3:08 a.m. Thursday Las Vegas time.

Said Mizrachi on his Facebook: "Fell just short of the bracelet this time. Don't worry, I'll be back there soon. Thanks everyone for the support."

And this from Ahmed, via ESPN's poker site: "I'm just representing Pakistan."

Mizrachi had a heck of a WSOP in 2010, winning the $50K event early in the series, then reaching the final table at the main event. He finished fifth.

Jason Mercier has reached poker immortality. Again.

Mercier, a 24-year-old from Fort Lauderdale, won his second career gold bracelet at the World Series of Poker.

He won $619,575 in event No. 35, a six-handed pot-limit Omaha tournament that required a $5,000 buy-in at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

According to the WSOP's Nolan Dalla, "No doubt, given the field size and quality of competition, this was as huge a test as Mercier had ever faced."

Mercier won his first gold bracelet two years ago in a $1,500 buy-in Pot-Limit Omaha tournament.

He graduated from Sheridan Hills School in Hollywood, briefly coached the high school basketball team and attended Florida Atlantic University, until getting the poker bug.

Since then, he's moved toward the top of the poker world, and, in fact is rated No. 2 by Bluff Magazine.

Continue reading "Fort Lauderdale's Mercier wins second gold bracelet at WSOP" »

Now the World Series of Poker even has an official slipper.

They're called Dearfoams, and are booked for a two-year contract beginning May 31 at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino.

The slippers are free to all entrants.

Mused WSOP Vice President Ty Stewart: “Our champion last year won nearly $9 million while wearing flip flops, so we know poker players covet comfort in their pursuit of glory. But let’s face it, flip flops aren’t so comfortable."

Dearfoams also will begin a promotion to give away a seat at the 2012 Main Event.

“Dearfoams will enable players at the WSOP Main Event to ‘make themselves comfortable’ at the table, allowing them to worry about their hand, not about their feet," said Mark Zobel, VP of Marketing for the R.G. Barry Corporation, the parent company of Dearfoams.

And apparently he did so with a straight face.

The World Series of Poker announced it will show the final table action of 55 gold bracelet events live (on a five-minute delay) via the internet at WSOP.com.

It will be two-camera coverage, including a wide overhead shot of the entire table and its participants along with a flop camera, and audio via the tournament’s final table announcer.

Continue reading "WSOP showing 55 final tables on 5-minute delay via the internet" »

The climax of the World Series of Poker Circuit series at Palm Beach Kennel Club got under way Sunday, drawing 712 players and pushing the prize pool over $1 million.

The total prize pool came to $1,035,960. The top 72 finishers will be paid.

Plenty of famous names: Former WSOP champs Greg Raymer (eliminated) and Jerry Yang (still alive), along with Robert Mizrachi and T.J. Cloutier.

Locals still afloat: Stuart Paterson of Boca Raton (among the leaders), Mike May, Marc Levy, Jon Marks. Those already out: Maurice Hawkins, the latest Florida Million champ.

This is the eighth WSOP Circuit stop and ranked No. 3 as far as main event entries. But the other interesting part was the cash game action at the kennel club, as players not in the tournament stuck around for action like the Kennel Club -- or any other South Florida poker room -- has ever seen Poker Manager Noah Carbone said.

"You'll likely not see it like this again, unless there's another WSOP circuit event," he said. Carbone. Also noteworthy: The kennel club ran about 20 satellites a day for the main event, and players were frantic even at 5:30 p.m. Sunday for a quick satellite, hoping to get into the 7 p.m. flight.

PB Kennel Club tournament director Joe Conti said they were delighted with the overall turnout, which drew numbers well in line with the other WSOP Circuit stops, even though the kennel club doesn't have an adjoining hotel (most stops do) or casino (all other stops do).

One other observation by the WSOP officials: South Florida is a late-arriving crowd, with players showing up right at the "Shuffle Up and Deal" call, or even after. (So what if they miss the first level?) My take: Because poker has never been that big here, players have been able to get away with that, without being shut out. And it'll likely be that way even after this week...

I'll catch up with some earlier event winners on Monday (I hope).

Day Two begins at noon today and play is expected to continue until about 2:30 am, making a very long day for all players fortunate enough to survive.

The end of Day One chip leader is Ryan Sponaugle, from Palm Harbor. The top 10:]

Ryan Sponaugle 210,200
Tom Nguyen 135,400
Charles R. Coates 128,600
John Riordan 116,000
William Kerns 113,500
Francisco Hernandez 108,300
Matthew Ehrlich 105,800
Stuart Paterson 102,600
Joshua Hillock 102,400
Paul Sevrei 99,100

The WSOP Circuit Main Event champion at the Palm Beach Kennel Club will receive a top prize totaling $210,180.

He was one player knockout away from another tournament win, but Brent Carter had a problem.

He needed a bathroom break.

But tournament officials said no. The rules don't allow it.

“So I had to do something or it could have been a real mess," Carter said.

His decision: "Ram and jam," according to the World Series of Poker's Nolan Dalla. In other (non-poker) words, Carter just bet big each hand, whether he thought he had a winner or not.

Turns out, he got lucky -- and won World Series of Poker Circuit event No. 5 at the Palm Beach Kennel Club in West Palm Beach. It was a $345 buy-in H.O.R.S.E. event Wednesday, netting him $13,454 and his first WSOP Circuit ring ever.

Dalla notes that because the betting limits were relatively high in proportion to his stack size and he was out-chipped by his opponent, Carter could ill afford to walk away and miss a few hands in order to run to the restroom.

“Honestly, if I did not have to go to the restroom so bad, I would never have played those hands," Carter told Dalla.

Carter, from Oak Park, Ill., is a two-time WSOP gold bracelet winner -- in 1991 for Seven-Card Stud and 1994 for Omaha High -- who has earned nearly $3 million in his career.

The tournament drew 173 entries. Others at the final table were: Tuan Luu (Orlando), Ken Weiss (Palm Desert, Calif.), Morty Benowitz (Lake Worth), Mark Gallo (Atlanta), Michael Palma (Orlando) , Adam Smith (Palm Beach Gardens) and Jim Hagan (Brandon). Ante Up Magazine Christopher Cosenza finished 13th, earning $799.

Meanwhile, Chris Lyons of Kissimmee won Event No. 4. He collected $26,480. The $345 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em tournament attracted 418 entries.

Others at the final table were: Gene Hochman (Coconut Creek), Mark Sykes (New Haven, Conn.), Vincent Renzo (Long Branch, N.J.), Dustin Bradley (Boca Raton), Paul “PR” Ramkissoon, “Sheddy” Siddiqui (Pembroke Pines), Todd Arnold (Fort Lauderdale), Frank Traino (Fort Lauderdale), Johnny Miller (Hollywood).

Event No. 3, a $345 tournament that drew 465, went to Ray Del Cueto, a.k.a. “Tampa Bay Ray.” Others at the final table: Patty Till (Indianapolis), Jonathan Rapp (Davie), Richard Bratter (Ocala), Michael Traylor (Houston), Jason Woodall (Lantana), Ryan Sponaygle (Palm Harbor), Donald Gousse (Port St. Lucie), Matthew Bellucci (Naples), Michael Palumbo (Fort Myers).

http://www.worldseriesofpoker.comIf you want to watch ESPN tonight and see the World Series of Poker results in a "plausibly live" format, click away NOW!

If not, I'll tell you...

Jonathan Duhamel, of Boucherville, Quebec became the first Canadian citizen in history to win the World Series of Poker main event. The 23-year-old poker pro collected $8,944,310.

He arrived at the final table -- which began on Saturday -- with the chip lead. He lost some of his momentum during stage one of the finale, when Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi seized the chip lead. But Mizrachi eventually finished fifth.

The runnerup was John Racener, from Port Richie, who took home $5,545,955. He did some Flip videos with Dave Curley that I'm putting up here.

More at WorldSeriesofPoker.com.

Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi finished fifth at the World Series of Poker main event Saturday night, earning $2.3 million.

Mizrachi, of Miramar, started in seventh place at noon Vegas time, and worked his way up to the chip lead when the players took a dinner break about eight hours later.

Then Mizrachi lost a huge pot when he came out on the wrong end of a coin flip holding pocket threes versus Jonathan Jonathan Duhamel’s A-9. Two nines hit the board, giving Duhamel more than 50 million in chips for the first time in several hours.

"I was really surprised (he called)," Mizrachi said, according to the Casino City Times. "Maybe he felt like gambling or he felt like he was short and gave up."

At about 10:30 Vegas time, Mizrachi then went all-in after his Q-8 connected with a queen on the flop, only to run into pocket aces.

"I'm happy with my performance today," said Mizrachi to Casino City Times. "At one point I was the chip leader, and at other points I was the short stack. Unfortunately I finished fifth, but it could have been worse. I could have been ninth."

Two other players were knocked out after Mizrachi, giving us the final two Duhamel has it all but won. He has 188 million chips. Floridian John Racener has 30 million.

Heads-up play will resume at 11 p.m. EST Monday. Coverage of the final table will air in a two-hour telecast on Tuesday at 10 p.m. on ESPN. (That's why I put up "spoiler alert." Last year I got complaints when I put in the headline how Kevin Schaffel did. Some people want to wait until Tuesday night and take it all in.)

ESPN conducted a telephone media conference on Wednesday to give us all the dope for the World Series of Poker.

Some highlights:

The telecast is adding more statistical language, keeping track of selected play, showdowns won or lost, win percentages and chip swings.

There's going to be free live video streaming (with a five-minute delay) on ESPN3.com. But no hole-card cam.

Lon McEachern on the final table makeup: "Every year you can throw nine darts in the room, hit nine guys and that could be your final table. But this is a decent portrait of where poker is; a bunch of young, aggressive players, with a seasoned pro (Michael Mizrachi) and an amateur."

Norman Chad (pictured): "It's the youngest main event final table ever, with everyone in their 20s, except for the amateur, who is 37. Other than Mizrachi, it’s eight other people that we would’ve never seen play a hand if not for the World Series.

The story of the four Mizrachi brothers cashing carried greater weight than the story of The Grinder's tax situation.

"It’s not something we shy away from; we have stories on players in the past; we’re not the local 11 o'clock news on the other hand; we’re here to tell the story and if it’s part of the story line.

Chad: Grinder is the American dream; a story of redemtion. For what it’s worth, I have tax problems every year; it’s not a huge story line, as we’ve had with other players.

Chad on Grinder's position: He has the three biggest stacks to his right and a couple of even stacks on his left.

Chad on Grinder's style: "I vascillate between thinking he's incredibly brilliant and incredibly lucky."

Each player will walk in with a spotlight, showgirls, signs with their seat number and theme music they individually picked out. A choreographed open, pyro show and confetti at the end.

WSOP VP Ty Stewart: "The first year of the November Nine, we wondered if anyone wouild show up; last year we wondered if anyone would leave."

How the TV works: The crew arrives by Cct. 31 and in the leadup shoots player interviews, edits features, taped elements, Lon and Norm voice pieces. Once the play from nine to two begins, they have 10 edit suites going.

As good hands are completed, they’re shuttled off to edit suites, where they do copious notes. By 6 a.m. Sunday, they’ve finished editing about the first hour of the show, and Lon and Norm voice over the first hour of the show;

Most of the crew doesn’t go to bed for 60 hours. Once the heads up begins, they start editing. The will be finishing voice while the first part is on the air.

Chad: "Lon is heavily medicated. I drink if I can."

Grinder fans, it's time to set the TV recorder.

The World Series of Poker Main Event coverage on ESPN begins at 8 p.m. Tuesday, with the second largest field in poker history, 7,319 players.

Three-time WSOP bracelet winner Mike "The Mouth" Matusow (who was in town for Deepstacks University on Sunday) takes center stage on opening day and brings plenty of entertainment and intensity, ESPN says.

2003 champion Chris Moneymaker, 2004 titlist Greg Raymer and 2010 Poker Players Championship winner Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi of Miramar also get air time.

We all know that Mizrachi makes the final table, but it'll be interesting to see how much of his play ESPN shows in the early stages. As the most recognizable of the November Nine, clearly he'll be the story line in later broadcasts.

Big difference in one year to another: Kevin Schaffel of Coral Springs, who made the final table at the World Series of Poker main event in 2009, got knocked out in day one.

In an smaller WSOP event this year, he played exactly one hand in a $1,000 tournament with 3,000 chips. He got the 5-7 of hearts and the flop came the 6-8 of hearts. Three people were all in, so with the straight flush draw he called, didn't hit and was done. (And, yes, neither player had more than a set, so my math put him at a 15-outer twice = 60 percent.)

Schaffel said he did well in one tournament, with a 26th in a $1,500 no-limit tournament. He also was was a big chip leader after Day 1 of the $5,000 pot-limit Omaha tourney, but "didn’t win a hand the next day" and didn’t even cash.

Then in the main event with blinds at 50-100, he raised early in the tournament with pocket queens to 300, a guy called on the button and the flop came 3-3-7.

Turns out the opponent was playing J-3 and it cost Schaffel about one-third of his chip stack.

"I was lucky that was all it cost me," he said. He ended up getting knocked out in Day One.

"Just one of those things, the flops didn’t connect," he said. Then he went and played a cash game and won the next three hands.

Only one November Niner from 2009, Steven Buchman, cashed, and he was 554th.

As far as fame?

"Certainly everybody knew who I was," but it's not like he was Phil Hellmuth or anything.

Michael "the Grinder" Mizrachi, another South Floridian, made the final table. Might Schaffel offer advice on how to handle the gap in play?

"There's not much I could help him with," Schaffel says. "He's played so much more than me.... he could give me lessons."

Michael "the Grinder" Mizrachi starts his summer of ESPN at 8 p.m. Tuesday, when the network starts airing play from the World Series of Poker.

That's because opening night kicks off with two hours dedicated to the $50,000 buy-in Poker Player’s Championship. The tournament drew 116 "of the most decorated players in the game," according to ESPN, "in a mixed game event which tests players in eight different disciplines."

We know who wins. Mizrachi, who also reached the final table at the WSOP main event on Sunday. He took home $1.5 million, and his brother, Robert, makes the final table.

Visit http://espnmediazone.com and click on the World Series of Poker digital media kit for the latest schedules, news, photos, video and audio clips, and more.

You'll be seeing a lot more of Michael "the Grinder" Mizrachi. The South Florida poker player made the final table at the World Series of Poker Sunday morning in Las Vegas.

The nine remaining players return to Vegas on Nov. 6 and vie for the first prize of $8.9 million.
Mizrachi, who grew up in Hollywood but now lives in Miramar, is in seventh place with 16.8 million chips. Jonathan Duhamel of Canada leads with 55,375,000 chips. John Dolan of Bonita Springs is in second at 45 million.

It happenened at about 6 a.m. Vegas time (9 a.m. our time) after 17 hours of poker. Saturday was the day the field of 27 was trimmed to the final nine, who will play in November. Play was tight all day, with players fearing overplaying a hand and being sent home. It took three hours to knock out the No. 10 player, Brandon Steven.

"I never folded so many hands in my life," Mizrachi said.

Mizrachi, whose three brothers all also won money in the main event, easily had the largest cheering section, according to the WSOP web site, which reported play hand by hand. His family also ordered pizzas for the tables as play went through the night in two-hour shifts, with 20-minute breaks.

The championship final table, also known as the November Nine, will be played 110 days from now, starting on Nov. 6. The initial session of play will whittle the nine finalists down to the last two survivors. They will return two days later to play heads-up for the 2010 world championship.

This year’s winner will receive $8,944,138.

"It’s just an exciting feeling, wherever I finish I’m happy I made the November Nine, it’s an accomplishment. I can’t say it won’t happen for me again, but you’re a long shot to pass through this field. You have to get lucky and survive in this large of a field," Mizrachi said.

Each player who made the November Nine will be paid out the guaranteed prize money which amounts to $811,823 (each). When the Main Event resumes play on Nov. 6, players will compete for all additional money in the prize pool, plus interest on the withheld funds. The prize money payouts are:

1st place – $8,944,138
2nd place – $5,545,855
3rd place – $4,129,979
4th place – $3,092,497
5th place – $2,442,960
6th place – $1,772,939
7th place – $1,356,708
8th place – $1,045,738
9th place – $811,823

Then he started his 2010 World Series started with a $1.5 million win in the Player's Championship.

Now he's looking at poker immortality, and he's the most recognizable name of the final nine. At least year's WSOP, Phil Ivey was the famous name to make the final table. From July into November, he appeared on talk shows and made the cover of ESPN The Magazine. ESPN has an interest because it airs the poker coverage, and one web site said Mizrachi will be a better face for the WSOP because Ivey, called "the Tiger Woods of Poker" even (before Thanksgiving 2009!) is regarded by many as aloof.

The ESPN storyline likely will center on calling Mizrachi, 29, "the comeback kid." In May, his Miramar home and an apartment he and his brother owned were both foreclosed upon, and news surfaced that he owed $339,000 in taxes from poker winnings as far back as 2005. (He's working it out, his lawyer, Steven Chung, says.)

Follow Mizrachi on Twitter at TheGrinder44.

Michael "the Grinder" Mizrachi of Miramar sits 16th in the World Series of Poker heading into Saturday's play, which narrows the field down to the final table of nine.

Right now, 27 players remain. The final nine survivors Saturday night wait until November to play for $8.9 million.

OK, as of 10 p.m. our time, they are down to 15 players and Mizrachi is in 14th. They're taking a 90-minute dinner break and I'm going to bed. Will update again first thing Sunday morning.

7:45 a.m. Sunday update. They're down to 10 and he's in fifth after playing poker all night. Doing a full new, rewritten post in an hour or so even if they don't get down to nine.

Mizrachi, who grew up in Hollywood and now lives in Miramar, started the day in second place Friday, quickly slipped into about 27th, then climbed back up

Mizrachi had 7.5 million chips when he started Friday in second place. By the time the night ended, he had 6.3 million, well behind the leader's 24.4 million. But as former CardPlayer Magazine player of the year, he has the best resume of the remaining players.

The main event, which started with 7,319 entrants, will narrow down to the November Nine. I'll have updates or go to WorldSeriesOfPoker.com.

As they've done in the past two years, the World Series gets played down to the final nine. Then ESPN does a quick edit of the action so far, and shows the main event play that leads up to the final table of nine. In November, those nine play down to two, ESPN does another quick edit, and then those two play it out so ESPN can do same-day coverage (kind of like in the Olympics).

Mizrachi is guaranteed $317,161 even if he busts out immediately on Saturday.

The Grinder is grinding them up.

Michael "the Grinder" Mizrachi of Hollywood moved up to second place after six days of play at the World Series of Poker main event. Only 78 players remain. First prize is $8.9 million.

Mizrachi has 7.5 million chips, within striking distance of Theo Jorgensen of Denmark, who has 9.3 million.

The main event, which started with 7,319 entrants, will narrow down to 27 tonight and then to the November Nine on Saturday. I'll have updates or go to WorldSeriesOfPoker.com.

As they've done in the past two years, the World Series gets played down to the final nine. Then ESPN does a quick edit of the action so far, and shows the main event play that leads up to the final table of nine. In November, those nine play down to two, ESPN does another quick edit, and then those two play it out so ESPN can do same-day coverage (kind of like in the Olympics).

Jacobo Fernandez, a part-time Hollywood resident, is in 74th, with 705,000 chips. Those eliminated Thursday included Robert Mizrachi, 116th place (winning $57,102); Tristan Wade of Boynton Beach, 113th ($57,102) and Richard Kirsch of Pompano Beach, 200th ($48,847).

Mizrachi's 2010 World Series started with a bang when he won $1.5 million in the Player's Championship. That was after it was revealed he owed the feds $339,000 in back taxes and had other issues.

Then came the main event, in which all four Mizrachi brothers cashed. He moved up even more on Thursday.

"It was a great day, everything went my way,” Mizrachi said. “People bluffed at the wrong times when I had hands and I got Aces and Kings a few times, which always helps.” He wore his Player's Championship bracelet during Day Six (talk about letting the bling do the talking...).

No one has ever made the final table in both the Main Event and the Player’s Championship in the same year since the World Series began hosting the $50,000 event four years ago.

Michael "the Grinder" Mizrachi moved up to 30th and his brother Robert is still alive at the World Series of Poker.

The main event is down to 205 players after Wednesday night's action in Las Vegas. Michael has 1.7 million chips, about half of what the leader has. Robert Mizrachi is in 201st place, with 224,000 chips.

The family made history Tuesday night when all four brothers made the money. Eric was eliminated Tuesday night; Donny fell out Wednesday night, in 345th, good for $36,463.

Other South Florida players still in: Tristan Wade, Boynton Beach, 65th with 1.2 million chips.; and Richard Kirsch, Pompano Beach, 186th, 300,000 chips.

Jason Mercier of Davie busted out in 463rd place. He earned $27,519.

The Mizrachis grew up in Miami and Hollywood, and worked at the Seminole Hollywood Classic casino in the past decade.

This year has 7,319 entrants and a prize pool of $68 million. The winner will get $8,944,138.

Twitter: follow The Grinder at TheGrinder44.

The Mizrachi brothers have made history at the World Series of Poker.

All four members of the South Florida family are guaranteed cash in the main event -- the first time in the event's history that many siblings all have done that well.

The main event broke the bubble Tuesday night, meaning everyone still standing wins cash.

Danny Mizrachi is No. 194 in the standings, Robert is 240th and Michael "the Grinder" (at left, with Robert) is 364th. They are among the 574 still alive in a field that started with 7,319. Eric Mizrachi, Michael's twin, also cashed, finishing 718th, good for $19,263. (The site had him busting out at 1,095th place, so I incorrectly at first assumed he did not cash.) Eric's pocket jacks ran into pocket aces. The top 10 percent, 747 players, get paid.

Other Florida notables: Tristan Wade, 51st, with 767,000; Richard Kirsch of Fort Lauderdale, 219th, with 405,000 chips' Jason Mercier of Davie, at 229, with 398,000 and Amir Lehavot, a former Weston resident who was a leader in the early days last year. Now with his hometown listed as San Francisco, Lehavot has 201,000 chips, good for 404th.

The Mizrachis grew up in Miami and Hollywood, and worked at the Seminole Hollywood Classic casino in the past decade.

According to ESPN.com, Donny, a magician by trade, has only recently started taking tournament poker seriously, with the family's success bolstering his confidence. He's the baby of the family, at 23.

"I think they all gave me a great deal of motivation and inspiration to tag along," he told them.. "They've all shown me great support. I always felt like I had the ability because I knew it was in the blood and that we were all gifted with these skills."

Michael made news earlier this year when it was revealed he owed $339,000 in back taxes and had his home and his condo foreclosed upon. A $1.5 million win in the $50,000 champions event (with Robert also making the final table) helped give him money to put toward his bills, attorney Steven Chung said, Michael and Chung also discussed how they were getting finances in order in a recent CardPlayer Magazine interview. Robert won $341,000 in the same tournament.

Some critics in recent years have said the poker fad is dying, but the WSOP numbers indicate otherwise.

The 2010 Main Event is the second-largest live poker tournament ever, bested only by the 2006 WSOP Main Event.

This year has 7,319 entrants and a prize pool of $68 million. The winner will get $8,944,138. in 2006, the record year, 8,773 entered the main event. Last year, 6,494 entered.

This year's WSOP, the 41st annual, awarded the most prize money in its history and had the most entrants ever. Overall, attendance increased more than 20 percent over last year's record numbers.

I'll do another update in the a.m. on Thursday.

Twitter: follow The Grinder at TheGrinder44; follow Eric at EweE420.

We are 12 events into the World Series of Poker, and Michael Mizrachi's name is up there again.

Mizrachi, of Miramar, finished sixth in the 7-Card Stud championships, earning $68,949 over the weekend. Earlier last week, he won the Poker Players' Championship, and $1.56 million. (Funny how a $68K-plus win now seems like "only" $68K, but I'm sure he'll take it.)

The two final-table appearances also puts him well in the lead in the WSOP's Player of the Year standings. He's on Andy Slater's radio show at 1;45 p.m. today (640 AM), according to Twitter.

Meanwhile, another big cash from a South Floridian: Matthew Ezrol of Parkland finished 11th in event No. 8, a $1,500 no-limit hold-em tournament. He earned $32,456 in the 2,341-player event.

Lost in Michael Mizrachi's win at the World Series of Poker was the success of some other South Florida players. I finally got a chance to catch up, and will try to stay with it through the 57 WSOP events.

Event No. 3 (No-limit hold 'em, $1,000 buy-in): Rich Rice of Fort Lauderdale, ninth place ($51,735); Irving Rice of Delray Beach, 10th place, $40,121; Armando Blondin, Weston, 80th, $5,670; Yannick Tessier, Plantation, 323rd, $2,150; Vanessa Rousso, Hobe Sound, 421st, $1,877.

Event No. 4 (Omaha Hi-Lo/8): Matthew Waxman, Parkland, 53rd, $4,295.

Event No. 5: ($1,500 No-limit hold 'em, 2,092 entrants): Sarang Ahuja, Hollywood, 34th, $12,426; Francisco Hernandez, Boca Raton, 104th, $3,516.

Eight hours after winning his first World Series of Poker bracelet, Michael Mizrachi was back in another tournament. Event No. 8 at the WSOP, with only a $1,500 buy-in.

His luck wasn't nearly as good. He got knocked out at 2,299 in the 2,330-player tourney. (Unrelated note: Vanessa Rousso did worse, the fifth player eliminated at No. 2,326.)

I did an update on the Michael Mizrachi story late Wednesday for the print version of the SunSentinel, and here are the parts that are new from my earlier post:

Mizrachi, 29, whose Miramar home was foreclosed on in March, has been working on the debts with Los Angeles attorney Steven Chung. They’re a result of mismanagement of poker winnings, according to Mizrachi who, in an interview last month, called himself “a better poker player than a businessman.”

He couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday. The tournament ended at 3:56 a.m., Las Vegas time.

Poker players commonly have backers who pay a portion of the entry fee in return for part of the winnings. (This WSOP event cost $50,000 to enter.) Such deals are not made public, said Seth Palansky, communications director for the World Series of Poker.

And it is the player’s choice whether to have taxes withheld, Palansky said.

So, how much of the winnings will go to pay the taxes is being sorted out, said Chung, who confirmed that Mizrachi had help with the entry fee. They also have to plan for 2010 taxes, Chung said.

“We will have to wait until the dust settles before we decide what to do next,” Chung said. “But if it’s possible to pay it off, of course he will.”

Meanwhile, the poker world is talking more about the victory itself. Mizrachi, a 2006 Player of the Year, hashad been considered by some to be the best player never to have won a World Series bracelet.

“Take me off that list,” Mizrachi said.

Mizrachi’s family watched the tournament with particular interest because his older brother, Robert, had entered the final table as the leader. But Michael knocked out Robert, who was running short on chips. The former World Series bracelet winner finished fifth.

Said his brother: “Am I still happy I taught him how to play? Yeah. This was as good as winning it myself.”

Meanwhile, the WSOP's Nolan Dalla sends out details after a win. Here's what he had on Mizrachi:

Continue reading "Mizrachi follow-up: Lawyer, World Series poker winner talk finances" »

Michael Mizrachi didn't have a very happy May, but his June might make up for it.

Mizrachi, nicknamed "the Grinder" for his tenacious play, won $1,559,000 and a World Series of Poker bracelet Wednesday morning in Las Vegas.

Last month, Mizrachi had his Miramar home and a condo foreclosed upon and news surfaced that he owed the Internal Revenue Service $339,000 in back taxes from poker winnings. (His lawyer says they are working it out.)

But at 4 a.m. Las Vegas time (7 a.m. Eastern) today, Mizrachi knocked out his final opponent Vladimir Schmelev. Holding 16 million chips to Schmelev's 575,000, Mizrachi held Q-5 and went all-in. Schmelev called and was ahead with Q-8, but a 5 hit the turn and Mizrachi won. The final table lasted 13 hours.

Buy-in was $50,000, although Mizrachi didn't front all the money himself. As is common in poker, he had investors or "backers."

"We will have to see how much of the winnings will go to Mike after expenses are paid," said Mizrachi's lawyer, Steven Chung. "So we will have to wait until the dust settles before we decide what to do next."

Schmelev, a former chess prodigy, took home $963,375.

The event is the second of 57 World Series of Poker tournaments that climax with the main event. It is also the first WSOP bracelet win for Mizrachi, who burst onto the scene in 2005 with a $1.8 million World Poker Tour win, and was CardPlayer magazine's player of the year in 2006.

Mizrachi attended Hollywood Hills High and graduated from Hallandale High in 1999. He had been playing poker since age 15 -- "even underage on cruise ships" -- and started as a poker dealer in 2002 at the Seminole Casino Hollywood, the smoky bingo hall south of the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. That's where he met his wife, Aidiliy, who also was a dealer.

Mizrachi's older brother, Robert, entered Tuesday night's final table as the chip leader but finished fifth, earning $341,429. Robert had already won a WSOP bracelet earlier in his career.

The inaugural Poker Players Championship is the successor to the $50,000 buy-in H.O.R.S.E. World Championship, which began in 2006. The tourney drew 116 players and consisted of eight games, making it a test of all-around poker skill. The games played in rotation are: Triple-Draw Deuce-to-Seven Lowball, Limit Hold'em, Omaha High-Low Split/Eight-or-Better, Razz, Seven-Card Stud, Seven Card Stud Split/Eight-or-Better, Pot-Limit Omaha, and No-Limit Hold'em.

At the request of ESPN, which taped the final table for broadcast, only Texas Hold 'em was played Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. ESPN will edit and air on July 27.

Mizrachi went into heads-up play with a chip lead over Schmelev, but Schmelev regained the lead after six hands.

Earlier in the night, Schmelev was one card from eliminating Mizrachi and winning the tournament after Mizrachi gambled with an ace-seven of clubs against Schmelev's ace-jack of diamonds. Mizrachi was far behind in the hand, but hit a flush on the final community card to pull even with Schmelev. The Las Vegas Sun, as usual, nails the blow-by-blow coverage.

Another topic: Remember to bookmark me for South Florida gambling news, and to get SMS text alerts of the winning lottery numbers send the keyword LOTTO to 23539.

More than 2.1 million viewers watched ESPN’s same-day coverage of the World Series of Poker from Las Vegas on Tuesday.

The telecast earned a 1.8 household coverage rating in an average of 1,806,113 households, a slight decrease from the 1.9 rating earned for the 2008 finale, according to ESPN's release.

ESPN’s 15-week schedule of World Series of Poker coverage in 2009 included 31 telecasts averaging a 1.0 rating, even with last year. However, averages for households (1,024,901) and viewership (1,228,008) increased nine and seven percent, respectively, from 2008, and the important male 25-54 demographic saw a 13 percent jump from 2008.

The tournament was presented by Jack Link's Beef Jerky, ESPN notes, and I'm including it because I am not one to mess with Sasquatch. Feed your wild side! (Sorry, I'm losing it.)

The odds of getting dealt pocket aces are 220 to 1. But Kevin Schaffel was blessed with the best starting hand in poker twice within an hour.

It was one time too many.

Schaffel’s aces were cracked Saturday in the World Series of Poker by Eric Buchman’s four kings, knocking out the Coral Springs resident in eighth place in Las Vegas.

Schaffel, 51, isn’t cursing the fates, although when he went all-in with his pocket rockets he was an 80 percent favorite.

“You might as well get used to it because if you keep playing you’re going to have these kind of beats,” he said Tuesday. “It was still a phenomenal experience. Not just good. Phenomenal.”

His tough-luck elimination also has elicited plenty of sympathy, because poker players love bad beat stories.

“There is no training manual on how to make that long walk to the rail, but if you need an example of how to do it proudly, you can look to Kevin Schaffel,” says Brad Willis, of PokerStars.net.

Now Schaffel says he’s going to get some rest, play some golf and get ready to pay more poker.

“I’ll be back,” he said. “Absolutely.”

I posted Saturday night some results from the World Series of Poker, as the final table played down from nine to two. And I got some complaints that I had spoiled it for TV tonight. ESPN has a two-hour show, from 9-11 p.m., taking us through the final nine.

But I'm not going to post who won the head-to-head matchup, which went off at 1 a.m. our time last night, although I'll give you a link.

I kind of know how you commenters Sunday felt upon reading the Saturday results. I wanted to not know today and watch it "plausibly live" tonight. But WIOD radio spouted out who won at 9 this morning, then I got an email that has photos of the winner, a press release, etc. Part of the travails of being a gambling writer, I guess.

Meanwhile, if you want some Kevin Schaffel, here are some post-tournament comments, via PokerStars link.

So, I want some quick input here: Who is watching cold, and who doesn't care if they already know who won?

The World Series of Poker coverage is from 9-11 p.m. Tuesday on ESPN.

The final nine played down to two on Saturday (actually until 5 a.m. EST Sunday), then the two are set for 10 p.m. Monday Vegas time to play it out.

Bryan Oulton of All in Free Poker says his bar poker leagues will be watching, and also playing. Tuesday's venues:

Birdcage 6870 Stirling Road, Davie
The Irishmen 1745 NW Second Ave., Boca Raton
Mugs Bar 2671 E Oakland Pk Blvd, Fort Lauderdale
Packy's Family Sports Grill 11379 W. Palmetto Park Road, Boca Raton
Yak-Zies 868 S. Federal Hwy, Pompano Beach
Upper Deck Ale & Sports Grill 906 E. Hallandale Beach Blvd., Hallandale Beach

If anyone has any other viewing sites, please post them under "comments" on this blog.

If you're planning on watching World Series of Poker Tuesday night and not know what happened, click away quickly.

Otherwise, Kevin Schaffel of Coral Springs finished eighth in the WSOP at the Rio All-Suite Hotel in Las Vegas.

The final two are Joe Cada and Darvin Moon and it went until about 5 a.m. Vegas time after starting at around noon. They go at it around midnight Monday for the title. Click on the links below for more.

Back to Schaffel: He had entered Saturday's play in sixth place and had made a little bit of a run. Then he ran into some bad luck on his final had. He was dealt pocket aces, and went all-in.

Eric Buchman called with pocket kings. But then a king came on the flop, and another on the turn -- giving Buchman four of a kind and eliminating Schaffel.

It was the second time Schaffel got pocket aces in less than an hour and he also got pocket nines -- which eliminated James Akenhead. His stack had grown to 19 million before he got knocked out.

"Bad luck," said his brother Jordan, Saturday night. "There was 38 million in the pot. If his aces hold up, he's sitting in second place.

"All the poker players here just keep telling him he played great. We're very proud of him."

A note to stats freaks: They say the best all-in you get is when you have pair-over-pair. You're an 80 percent favorite.

He earned $1.3 million, but he had been guaranteed $1.2 million after making the World Series final table of nine in July. So that's a disappointment.

Schaffel had a contingent of about 100 friends and family watching, most of whom wore shirts created by his brother Jordan that said "Schaffel up and deal," a play on words on the opening phrase at most poker tournaments.

Jordan called me just before the cards flew today. He said he couldn't sleep, so he got up at 5 a.m. Las Vegas time. He texted Kevin, who wasn't asleep, either. So they came downstairs and played Texas Hold 'em Bonus poker, a gimmicky kind of game that's at the Hard Rock and other places, where players try to beat the dealer, not each other.

Who else shows up? Darvin Moon, the chip leader. Moon, a logger from West Virginia, and Schaffel yukked it up, playing $10 a hand, and drew a crowd, Jordan said.

For more updates go to ESPN's Andrew Feldman's Poker Blog. Not to turn away business, but most of the stuff I'm getting is coming from there so if you really want to follow it, read his blog tonight. Or join http://twitter.com/WSOP

Think they should have sent me to cover Schaffel?

So we finally got up online a big story I wrote about Kevin Schaffel -- and the overall poker boom -- that ran in Sunday's Sun-Sentinel.

(Had a few computer problems, sorry.)

The chip count:

Darvin Moon: 58,930,000
Eric Buchman: 34,800,000
Steven Begleiter: 29,885,000
Jeff Shulman: 19,580,000
Joseph Cada: 13,215,000
Kevin Schaffel: 12,390,000
Phil Ivey: 9,765,000
Antoine Saout: 9,500,000
James Akenhead: 6,800,000

The best player in the game, a logger with no credit card or cell phone and the possiblity of the youngest champion in World Series of Poker history.

“Those three storylines alone are facscinating,” ESPN’s Norman Chad said Thursday at the network’s pre-series press conference.

He's referring to Phil Ivey, who has won seven WSOP bracelets; Darvin Moon, the chip leader, a logger from West Virginia; and 21-year-old Joe Cada.

ESPN will show a feature at 7 p.m. Tuesday on Ivey in its show, E-60. Coincidentally (?) he's on the cover of this week’s ESPN The Magazine. Then the final table narrows to nine in the 9 p.m. telecast.

Part of the conversation focused on Tuesday's telecast, where Ivey mucked his hand, although it was a winner. He had a pair of eights, and four spades hit the board. He mucked when he saw an overpair, costing him about 2.1 million chips.

"On the tape; my first reaction wwas something’s wrong with the tape; I just couldn’t believe it was happening," Chad said. "It was like watching Michaelangelo drop his paint brush.".

The November Nine meet Saturday, play down to two, who vie at 10 p.m. Vegas time Monday night.

Other topics: Jeff Shulman apparently is the only player with a coach, and he has Phil Hellmuth.

"It’s either the greatest move in history or the greatest mistake in history," Chad said. "He could win the main event and be overshadowed by his coach."

Lon McEachern on Kevin Schaffel of Coral Springs: "He’s not a flash in the pan. He’s been playing longer than anybody else. He carries himself well and is very charismatic."

ESPN.com's new 30-minute poker show, ESPN Inside Deal, focuses on Coral Springs' Kevin Schaffel in its next webisode, which airs at noon Tuesday.

He's in sixth place in th World Series of Poker, which resumes Nov. 7.

The Inside Deal crew will ask him about preparations and how the recent deep runs will affect his confidence heading into the final table. Fans can submit a question via e-mail at insidedeal@espn.com and watch previous episodes of ESPN Inside Deal at http://espn.com/insidedeal.

As far as the TV show goes, it resumes at 9 p.m. Tuesday on ESPN and focuses on Phil Ivey and Jeff Shulman at the feature table, as well as Darvin Moon, a logger from Maryland.

Meanwhile, bracelet winner Antonio Esfandiari is at table two, and out in the field sits the last woman left, Leo Margets whose hope is to become only the second woman ever make the Main Event final table.

So, not much air time for Schaffel this week, either. But his brother, Jordan, says that could be an advantage. For example, on last week's show, chip leader Darvin Moon flopped a straight, and his opponent folded. Moon told him "good fold, I flopped a straight. You'll see it on TV. I'm an honest guy."

Could that info help everyone else? Or are we thinking too much?

Jason Mercier faltered in the final table at the World Series of Poker Europe, but still came home in fourth in the field of 334.

Card Player magazine CEO Barry Shulman, whose son, Jeff, is one of the November Nine, won the tournament, collecting £801,603 for first place. The cash prize is equal to about $1,283,687 in U.S. dollars.

The final table included six former WSOP gold bracelet winners: Daniel Negreanu, Chris Bjorin, Praz Bansi, Matt Hawrilenko, Shulman and Mercier. And two November Nine players, James Akenhead and Antoine Saout.

Mercier, from Fort Lauderdale, has been one of tournament poker’s most successful players over the past year. Mercier, who won the $1,500 buy-in Pot-Limit Omaha event earlier this year, also won the EPT championship at San Remo (Italy) as well as the £1 Million Showdown, in London. He entered the day with the chip lead but lost his lead and was eliminated with £267,267 in prize money, about $400,000.

He is sponsored by PokerStars.net, which made news because it is starting a poker show after NFL football on Oct. 11. The release is below (only lightly edited):

Continue reading "Mercier finished fourth in WSOP Europe; Barry Shulman wins" »

"Sunday Night is Football Night" worked for NBC, as it attempted to create new patterns after Monday Night Football left ABC.

Now ESPN is trying "Tuesday Night is Poker Night."

Nothing like keeping things simple for us guys.

ESPN begins its coverage tonight of the World Series of Poker, with three weeks of pre-Main Event coverage, then hitting the Main Event hard. Tonight at 8 is the $40,000 buy-in tournament; the Champions Invitational airs at 8 p.m. Aug. 4 and Ante Up for Africa is at 8 p.m. Aug. 11.

The Main Event gets started Aug. 18 and will run each Tuesday through Nov. 3, showing us how it got to the final nine, which includes Kevin Schaffel of Coral Springs.

The players reconvene on Nov. 7 andl play down until two remain. The final two will finish play early on Nov. 10, and ESPN does a quick edit and shows it at 8 p.m. that night.

Poker isn't the easiest activity to convert to TV. There were 6,494 players in the Main Event, and getting the nine who make it from the first hand on is quite improbable.

"We record everything,” ESPN coordinating producer Jamie Horowitz said. “It is hours upon hours of (production) time in New York City, going through the logs and trying to re-create the tournament.

"It’s funny because you reverse engineer," he said. "You have to wait to see who made the final table, then you try to find their hands. But once they make the final table you scurry around and say 'Did we have (chip leader) Darvin Moon covered?'"

At the ESPN press conference last week, I asked specifically about Schaffel, who is as unknown as they come to the poker world, and never was a chip leader, always hanging around at No. 15 or so the last two or three days.

Announcer Lon McEachern said: "Again you hope and you go back and go through logs and see if you can find Kevin at an early part of the main event.

"You’re doing the legwork out there, the producers, they’re all trying to talk to players, families and friends to try to discover a strong story.

"Certainly his whole story will be told now."

And if you think the WSOP is weighting its coverage more toward the main event, you're right. This year they'll have 24 hours of main event coverage, compared to 18 last year and just six five years ago.

"Every off-season people tell us 'More main event,’" Horowitz says. "They especially like more of the latter stages of the final table."

Jeremy Schaffel didn’t want to give his dad an ordinary Father’s Day card. He wanted to motivate him for the upcoming World Series of Poker.

So he found a picture of 2008 WSOP winner Peter Eastgate and his $9.1 million prize and went to work on the computer. He replaced Eastgate’s face with his father’s.

“I had been reading the book, The Secret, and the money portion said to visualize the money,” said Schaffel, a 2007 graduate of Everglades High School in Miramar.

Something must have worked: Jeremy’s father, Kevin, reached the final table in the WSOP main event last week.

Kevin Schaffel kept the picture in his wallet and even pulled it out when Eastgate himself sat next to him midway into the tournament. Schaffel said he asked: “Are these your arms?”

“The table had been pretty quiet until then, but everyone got a good laugh,” he said.

Jeremy Schaffel lives with his mother in Pembroke Pines but spends a lot of time with Kevin, who lives in Coral Springs. He flew out to Las Vegas when his dad reached the final 64.

“He was a huge help,” Kevin Schaffel said. “He helped me stay focused and stay positive.”

One day your residence is a buddy’s spare bedroom, the next you’re a TV star with $1.2 million in your pocket.

That’s how fast life changed this week for Kevin Schaffel of Coral Springs.

“Surreal,” says Schaffel, who has received almost 100 calls and texts since Thursday. “I’m not exactly certain what’s in store, but I’m sure looking forward to it.”

Late Wednesday, Schaffel won one of nine seats at the final table of the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas. He got a check for $1.2 million, an endorsement deal with PokerStars.net and a shot at $8.5 million more in the finals, on Nov. 7, where he’ll get as much ESPN air time as Dwyane Wade.

On Aug. 18, ESPN will start airing the poker action that narrowed the field from 6,494 players to the final nine.

Schaffel grew up in North Miami Beach, divorced in 2006, and has been on the road playing poker more in recent years as his printing and direct mail business faded. He has played in the World Series since 2004 but wants to stay in South Florida because his two college-age children and his friends are here.

So he has crashed at a friend’s house near the TPC at Eagle Trace, where he plays golf (he’s a former club champion). It works out because both are often away.

“I think I’ll be able to afford a place of my own now,” he says.

At 51, Schaffel also is a poker anomaly. It’s a young man’s game, with an aggressive tone spawned by the rapid-fire style on the Internet. Six of the nine at the final table are 34 or younger.

Schaffel, tapping into the gentlemanly nature of golf, is different.

“I was watching Wimbledon and they asked Serena Williams what helped her perform well under pressure,” Schaffel says. “She used two words: ‘calm’ and ‘patient.’

“I wrote them down and it stayed with me the entire tournament,” says Schaffel, who played for eight 10-hour days before making the finals.

Says his son, Jeremy, who lives with his mother in Pembroke Pines, but joins him for games at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino: “I’ve never seen him yell or get upset over a poker hand, even when he’s getting bad cards.”

Early in the first day in Las Vegas, Schaffel was one card away from elimination after betting all his chips with three 10s against a straight. (The flop was 8-10-J; the player had raised and then pushed with 7-9.)

But after 4 on the turn the final card was a jack for a full house, winning the pot.

"In the past, I'd stand up at the table and reach for my bag if I were behind like that," he said. "But this time, I just knew. I can't describe it."

He had a few “all-in” moments later in the tournament, but always when the odds appeared to be well in his favor.

The 2009 final table is one of the most decorated in recent World Series history. Schaffel’s table mates will include Card Player magazine editor Jeff Shulman and Phil Ivey, called “The Tiger Woods of Poker,” who has won seven World Series events.

Schaffel is considering hiring a top pro to coach him until November, which would cost him at least $50,000, or he may just go with patience and good instincts.

“There are lots of decisions to be made,” he says. “But then, I don’t want to over-think things.”

But he had breakfast Friday with Dennis Phillips, who finished third in last year's World Series, about how to handle the upcoming days and how to make the most of "other opportunities."

You could see how those two would get along. They have similar demeanors.

Schaffel said he was a cash-game player who hadn't had a losing year until this one, and was starting to doubt himself. But a tournament hot streak, with four out of five cashes, helped right him.

Kevin Schaffel has made the November Nine.

Schaffel, of Coral Springs, played his way to the final table at the World Series of Poker late Wednesday night, meaning he's among the nine players remaining who have a chance at the $8.5 million first prize. (He's the eighth from the left, or second from right.)

As happened last year, the World Series now stops play for 115 days, while ESPN airs footage of what has happened so far in the 6,494-player main event. Then in November, Schaffel and the eight others will play it off while ESPN does a quick live-to-tape edit and same-day coverage (like in the Olympics).

Schaffel sits in sixth place with about 13 million chips, well behind leader Davin Moon with 58 million. There's also two noted poker pros alive: Jeff Shulman is in fourth and Phil Ivey in eighth. Schaffel, who had been battling the flu slept in Thursday (can't blame him), then had a WSOP 2-hour meeting in Las Vegas in the afternoon. He'll fly home Friday, and I'll try to catch him before he gets on the plane.

That WSOP orientation also includes issuing a check to all nine players for ninth place, the worst they can finish. They get $1,263,602 right now.

Schaffel's brother, Jordan, said Kevin has been playing poker since age 11.

"We played for nickels and dimes," Jordan said, noting that Kevin also is a scratch golfer who has won the club championship at Eagle Trace Country Club in Coral Springs.

They both graduated North Miami Beach High (Kevin in 1975) and helped in their father's print shop, The Mail Man. When the direct mail industry went south last year, Kevin began playing in more professional events in Las Vegas and California. That included a run where he finished in the money in four out of five events in 2008-09.

Jordan, who now lives in Washington, D.C., received updates from Kevin's son, Jeremy, who also is in Las Vegas, and via the internet. He then relayed info to friends and family.

"It's been unbelieveable," he said. "I have an email list, a Skype list, a text list and a phone list."

Last night Jordan set up a "conference bridge" for four cousins, two sisters and friends, scattered across Texas, central Florida and Maryland.

"Everybody has carpal tunnel from clicking the refresh button every 10 seconds," he said, about following the results on poker sites.

Jeremy called often, including about 2 a.m. Thursday, when the players were down to 10, and Darvin Moon was trying to knock out Jordan Smith. Jordan Schaffel patched in the call to everyone.

When the river card came up a blank, eliminating Smith and cutting the field to nine

"All I hear is pandemonium over the phone," Jordan said.

For more info, go to www.worldseriesofpoker.com.

Also, PokerStars.net did this interview with him.

Kevin Schaffel went into the nighttime with a good chance still to make the final table at the World Series of Poker main event.

Schaffel, a South Florida native, is No. 8, with 14 players still alive. He has 9.5 million chips; the leader has 27 million, and the No. 14 player has 2 million. The No. 15 player was just knocked out and earned more than $633,000.

They just took a 90-minute dinner break, starting about 10 p.m. Eastern time. They're playing tonight in Vegas until they reach the final 9.

(material from an earlier post is below)

As I wrote earlier, a final table at the World Series of Poker would make Schaffel, of Coral Springs, a media star. ESPN follows you, blogs and poker magazines tell your story and, oh, you'll win at least $1 million.

The World Series plays down to the final table today, then delays the rest of the action until November to a.) give it some build-up and b.) air all the play leading up to the final table. (If you're new to all this, poker is a bear to edit for TV, with tons of dead time. So it's difficult to show 'live.')

Meanwhile, Ryan Fair of Fort Lauderdale busted out at No.31, but he can't feel too bad: he earned $253,941. Plus, Tuesday he was at ESPN's "featured table," meaning he'll get some air time. He went all-in with ace-king, against Jeff Shulman's king, and didn't get an ace on the flop, turn or river.

Schaffel has lived in Pembroke Pines, Weston and Coral Springs in recent years, is 51 years old and is divorced with two children, according to poker web sites. He also is a pretty good golfer, according to our clips, winning the club championship at Eagle Trace and being in the running for the U.S. Mid-Amateur qualifying.

I have some more bio that I'll likely put up on Thursday.

Kevin Schaffel is now fifth in the World Series of Poker main event, and there's only 27 players still left.

That means he has a better-than-average chance to (shhh!) reach the final table.

A final table at the World Series of Poker would make Schaffel, of Coral Springs, a media star. ESPN follows you, blogs and poker magazines tell your story and, oh, you'll win at least $1 million.

The World Series plays down to the final table today, then delays the rest of the action until November to a.) give it some build-up and b.) air all the play leading up to the final table. (If you're new to all this, poker is a bear to edit for TV, with tons of dead time. So it's difficult to show 'live.')

Meanwhile, Ryan Fair of Fort Lauderdale busted out at No.31, but he can't feel too bad: he earned $253,941. Plus, Tuesday he was at ESPN's "featured table," meaning he'll get some air time. He went all-in with ace-king, against Jeff Shulman's king, and didn't get an ace on the flop, turn or river.

Darvin Moon leads with 20 million chips, and Phil Ivey is in fourth with 11.3 million, just ahead of Schaffel's 11.2 million.

Average stack: 7,215,555

Schaffel has lived in Pembroke Pines, Weston and Coral Springs in recent years, is 51 years old and is divorced with two children, according to poker web sites. He also was a pretty good golfer a few years back, according to our clips, just missing out on the club championship at Eagle Trace and being in the running for the U.S. Mid-Amateur qualifying.

Looks like we're down to two from Broward-Palm in the World Series of Poker, but they're in good shape.

Kevin Schaffel of Coral Springs, who has been among the leaders since the tournament started, completed Day Five on Sunday in 16th place, with 2.1 million chips.

The field, which started with 6,494, is down to 185 players.

Ryan Fair of Fort Lauderdale is in 46th place, with 1.3 million chips.

5 p.m. Monday Update: Schaffel has slipped to about No. 30, losing 250,000 chips; meanwhile Fair is at ESPN's "second featured" table, meaning he'll likely get some air time when the telecast hits in a couple of months.

And the field is down to 145.

Schaffel has been playing in the World Series just as poker started to grow; his biggest cash was in the 2004, WSOP, when he earned $60,000 for finishing 40th.

Matthew Waxman of Parkland got his fourth cash of this year’s Series, finishing with just shy of $200,000 in prize money. He came in 399th, after his pocket jacks were called by an A-K and an ace hit the board. He earned $27,469.

Day two chip leader Amir Levahot of Weston busted out in 226th after he bet his 364,000 stack with K-J and ran into pocket aces. He took home $32,963.

Looks like Steven Feren, the Broward circuit court judge, met his goal.

He finished in the money at the World Series of Poker . He came in 472nd, earning $25,027.
As I posted below, he won the seat in a charity event, then made it through Friday and into Saturday before being eliminated.

"I'm very happy," said Feren this afternoon, from the Los Angeles airport. He's returning to work Monday. "This is something I have wanted to do for a long time."

Feren entered Saturday play in 633rd place; 648 of the remaining 789 would cash.

"I tried to conserve my chips, and I just kept my ahead above water," he said. "Meanwhile, it seemed like someone was dropping every 45 seconds."

He'll give $2,500 to the Boys and Girls Club of Hollywood, he said. He won the seat -- which normally costs $10,000 -- in a Boys and Girls Club charity event in spring 2008, when he was mayor of Sunrise. He then deferred playing in the 2008 WSOP because he was busy running for judge.

Meanwhile, other Broward-Palm players still alive as of Sunday's start are:

Kevin Schaffel, Coral Springs, in 17th, with 1.2 million chips;
Amir Lehavot, Weston, in 169th, with 472,000;
Ryan Fair, Fort Lauderdale, 250th, 307,000;
Matthew Waxman, Parkland, 286th, 252,000.

They're kind of getting shorted in my print story for Sunday (sorry, guys!) but I'll write a new update them on Monday morning.

Also cashing:
507th: Kenneth Weiner, Wellington, who won $23,196;
552nd: Terry McKerchie, Davie, $23,196;
571st: Kyle Brown, Fort Lauderdale, $23,196

Broward Circuit Court judge Steven Feren is one day closer to meeting his goal at the World Series of Poker.

He sits in 633rd place after play ended late Friday night, Vegas time. The top 648 finishers get paid.

There are 789 players left in the tournament, which started with more than 6,000 players. Feren entered Friday's field of 2,044 remaining in the top one-third, and apparently has hung on. (It's real early out there, so no way I'm calling him, and I'm going to be away from the computer until tomorrow.)

Feren has 104,500 chips, down from the 108,000 he started with. (See post below for full story.)

Meanwhile, Amir Lehavot of Weston, who entered Friday as the chip leader, slipped but is still in good shape. He's in 128th, with 387,000 chips.

The new South Florida leader is Kevin Schaffel of Coral Springs, with 649,000 chips. He's in 24th place.

Play will likely tighten up today as players on the bubble of making the money will throw away marginal hands, hoping those around them get knocked out. Play slows down so much that as the "bubble" approaches, they play only one table at a time, to cut out the stalling.

More info at www.WorldSeriesOfPoker.com.

Ante Up Magazine took the time to troll through all the results, and has them. (I'd like to have done it, but in this case, I'll just thank them and move on to the next story.)

In addition to Amir Lehavot from Weston, the chip leader, two other South Floridians are in the top 100: Kevin Schaffel of Coral Springs at No. 40; and Matthew Waxman of Parkland at No. 72.

The World Series of Poker — the one you see on ESPN — makes stars out of people who play their cards right.

If his luck holds up, you might be seeing Broward Circuit Court judge Steven Feren.

He has done quite well so far.

Feren will sit down at the World Series main event’s third round today in the top one-third (No. 667) of the 2,044 surviving players.

Starting field: 6,494.

“I’m thrilled,” said Feren, who was a Sunrise mayor for 12 years before become a judge this year. (He also was a commissioner and state legislator.) “So many great pros are out and I’m still here.”

Feren, who is burning his vacation time, didn’t tell many people he was going to Las Vegas. He didn’t want to open his mouth, then get sent home early.

A main event entry costs $10,000, but Feren is playing on house money: He won a seat in a charity event.

“I’d never spend $10,000 of my own money to play,” he said.

Feren made news earlier this year when he asked the city to bump the $200-a-month health insurance check for retiring city leaders up to $350 a month, to match what the city’s general employees get. He makes $145,080 as a circuit court judge.

He won the seat in a Boys & Girls Clubs of Broward County charity tournament in spring 2008. But he was busy running for circuit judge, so he deferred until this year.

Feren’s goal today is to finish in the money. That’ll be the top 648, and pay at least $20,000.
“To be in the poker records for all time, to me that would mean something,” he said.

If he cashes, he’ll give a portion to the Boys and Girls Club — after he clears the unexpected expenses of staying in Las Vegas longer.

“I really didn’t expect to make Day 3,” he said.

11-time WSOP gold bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth made another grand entrance into the Main Event at the World Series of Poker.

Last year, Hellmuth came adorned as General George S. Patton, rolling into the Rio parking lot atop an army tank. This year, the “Poker Brat” was carted into the Rio while sprawled out across a special platform carried by several centurions, according to the WSOP's Nolan Dalla.

Hellmuth, decked out as Roman Emperor Julius Caesar, made his way into the Rio as flocks of scantily-clad “servants” threw rose petals on the ground. When Hellmuth finally assumed his throne on the ESPN stage, hundreds of poker fans engulfed the area. Then he gave this interview with WSOP media:

Question: Last year it was Patton. This year, it’s Caesar. Why Caesar?

Hellmuth: We are just having as much fun as we can have. Caesar was one of the ideas on our list. We actually talked about me being a gladiator or Caesar, and even Uncle Sam was an idea we wanted to do. We just decided on Caesar. You know that Caesar is going to be the main theme at WSOP-Europe. When you do Caesar, you want to do him big and you want to do him right.

Question: How did you think things went today – with your grand entrance on the red carpet? And how many girls were with you?

Hellmuth: I thought it went great. They hired a hundred models is what I heard. And, having the girls with the body paint is just really fun. I mean, c’mon, how often do you see girls with just body paint on?

Question: What do you think about when you see hundreds of fans, with cameras and lights following your every move?

Hellmuth: Part of it is adoration. Part of it is curiosity. And some people still don’t like me. So, there is surely a mixture of people that are out there. If you are too into the fans and adoration and the world thinking you are the greatest, then you do not perform well. So, being in character as Caesar is just fun. When I shot a television commercial and dressed up in this, I got so into character, I really thought I was Caesar. They have me lying there, with girls all over me and rose petals and food all over the table. Caesar is just such a unique individual. Here we are talking about him over 2,000 years later.

Continue reading "Phil Hellmuth, carried by centurions, comes to World Series of Poker" »

With the 40th Annual World Series of Poker starting, WSOP officials have begun their nomination process for the 2009 Poker Hall of Fame class.

The public, for the first time ever, has the opportunity to nominate inductees. Log on to http://www.worldseriesofpoker.com/pokerhalloffame/halloffamevoting.asp and nominate away.

Each submission will allow for a nominee name as well as up to 250 words supporting that nominee’s worthiness.

During the Main Event of the WSOP, Harrah’s will announce the Top Ten list of nominees by the public. These ten names become the players among consideration for induction in 2009.

In August, the Hall of Fame committee will then spend the month reviewing the public’s nominations and determine if any others should be added (such as non-poker players who have contributed greatly to the game, any glaring omissions, etc.) and determine the final list.

In September, a finalist ballot will be sent to the current Hall of Famers (16 living) who will each rank the nominees in order of preference – yet only ranking those they deem worthy of admission in 2009. Each Hall of Famer will also have the ability to add a write-in candidate, whom won’t be eligible for admission in 2009, but will automatically be added to the consideration list for 2010.

In addition, a select group of media members (not to exceed the number of HOF voting members) will also be sent a ballot for ranking the finalists. All votes will be cast in private, with each HOF and media member entitled to keep their vote secret but not obligated to.

After receiving back all ballots, the HOF committee reviews the selections and helps finalize any tiebreakers or errors.

Any finalist receiving 75% or more of the votes will be inducted during the enshrinement ceremony at the Final Table of Main Event in November.

The main criteria for the Poker Hall of Fame are as follows:
A player must have played poker against acknowledged top competition
Played for high stakes
Played consistently well, gaining the respect of peers
Stood the test of time
Or, for non-players, contributed to the overall growth and success of the game of poker, with indelible positive and lasting results.

Maybe we should have a local hall of fame. Nominees?

He's been on fire for more than a year, and now Jason Mercier is a World Series of Poker bracelet winner.

Mercier, a 22-year-old professional poker player who attended Florida Atlantic University for one year, won the $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha tournament Wednesday night at the World Series of Poker. There were 809 entrants.

Mercier collected $237,462 for first place. He graduated from Sheridan Hills High in Hollywood and he and his parents still live in South Florida. I wrote about him back in October.

Mercier has enjoyed an astounding 14-month run. He cashed for the first time ever in a major poker tournament in April 2008. Since then, he has won five tournaments -- including two European Poker Tour championships and a WSOP gold bracelet. He already has accumulated $3,069,194 in career earnings, at age 22.

“Winning always feels good,” Mercier stated in a post-tournament interview. “Especially after last year (2008 WSOP). I played in 22 events. I went deep in just one of them. I finished 13th and that made me sick. I cashed three times and all three times I busted out with the worst (starting) hand, in marginal spots. I was really upset with how I played last year. Now, it feels great to win a gold bracelet, especially so early in the Series.”

“Every time I enter a poker tournament, I think I can win it,” Mercier said. Of course, you have to win some key pots.”

Mercier’s online poker name is “treysfull21.”

Two card rooms on opposite ends of the South Florida map are taking opposite approaches to giving away seats at the World Series of Poker main event.

The Palm Beach Kennel Club conducts tournaments that involve just the commitment of an entry fee; Gulfstream Park Casino & Racing will reward three seats from a pool of its 50 most loyal players.

The first of the World Series of Poker’s 57 events begins May 27. The main event is July 3. So card rooms across the country hook up with the WSOP to offer seats in the tournament, although anyone can buy their way in to the main event for $10,000.

The Palm Beach Kennel Club is having tournaments at 1 p.m. Saturdays. For every 66 players who pay the $200 entry fee, the card room awards a seat and $1,000 spending money. So far, it has enough interest to conduct a tournament every Saturday in April and this month.

“What poker player doesn’t dream about going to the World Series?” poker room manager Noah Carbone said.

The card room also has a $30 satellite tournament at 6:30 p.m. Thursdays. For every 10 players who sign up, one gets a spot in the Saturday tournament for the seat.

Meanwhile, Gulfstream is in its third round of keeping a tournament points leader board and offering a prize at the end. The first promotion was in December, when the casino gave away a Mercedes-Benz; the second ended in April with a Rolex watch.

Players accumulate points for finishing well in the casino’s daily 6:30 p.m. multi-table tournaments, or in one-table tournaments, which take place whenever there’s enough interest.

The top 50 top play off for the three World Series seats. Also, first place on the leaderboard gets an automatic $2,500, second $1,500, third $1,000 and fourth and fifth $500.

“This format has increased our tournament play here, as well as increased our player loyalty,” Gulfstream poker room manager Scott Poole said.

The list of players winning points is at 550 — up 200 from the end of the Rolex tournament.
Gulfstream’s battle for the WSOP seats is June 7.

Gulfstream has a $150 tournament on Saturday, a $60 on Sunday and Monday, an $80 on Tuesdays and Thursdays and a $100 on Wednesday and Friday. The top 10 finishers get points. Sit-n-goes are $120 and $60, and the top three get points.

Registration for the 2009 World Series of Poker is now open.

Players can pre-register online at www.worldseriesofpoker.com.

The 40th edition of the WSOP will run from May 26 through July 15, 2009, and will include 57 bracelet tournaments, the WSOP said in a news release.

Buy-ins for open events will range from $1,000 to $50,000. The buy-in for the Main Event – the No-Limit Hold’em World Championship – remains at $10,000. The November Nine, the final nine participants of the Main Event, return Nov. 7-10 to declare a champion.

If you sign up, send me an email, so I can track you down when you get a bracelet.

Gambling site Bodog.com says:

Leading the way at the November final table with 26.2 million in chips is the amatuer poker player from Illinois, Dennis Phillips, and Bodog is giving him 3 to 1 odds that he can take it down. Less than 2 million in chips behind Phillips is Muscovite Ivan Demidov (24.4 million), who is also sitting at 3 to 1 odds as he's just a pot or two out of the chip lead.

Next up is Canadian poker player Scott Montgomery and his 19.7 million chip stack. Due to his recent final table appearance at the WPT LA Poker Classic and the fact that he is one of the most experienced players at the final table, which unfortunately isn't saying much, his odds are currently running at 4 to 1. Montgomery is followed by Danish poker player Peter Eastgate, who will start with 18.3 million in chips and odds of 11 to 2 that he can overtake the top three spots to win.

The next two WSOP final tablists have almost identical chip stacks but different experience levels. Ylon Schwartz only has a 5,000 chip lead over Darus Suharto but the odds for the two are 8 to 1 and 17 to 2, respectively -- comment by Nick here: You know, those odds aren't that far apart Bodog, get over yourselves! -- mainly because Schwartz is a known veteran of the Brooklyn poker scene while Suharto is an unknown player with very limited live poker success, up until now.

Toward the bottom of the posted odds is the most experienced player at the final table, David "Chino" Rheem. Unfortunately, despite his live tournament success, his short chip stack of 10.2 million leaves him with a lot of work to do and a 19 to 2 chance of getting that work done. Below him is Craig Marquis at 10 to 1. The shortest stack at the table is Kelly Kim with 2.6 million and is thus the long shot to win the title at 25 to 1.

I followed locals in the World Series of Poker this month, and got to get more details on three of them.

I enjoyed hearing their 'regrets,' because we all have them.

Lots more poker this week, and into August. May all of your cards be live.