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goonjim
30 Jun 12 17:16
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Date Joined: 07 May 11
| Topic/replies: 246 | Blogger: goonjim's blog
Who's your tip? Still some confusion as to the 48 players in the final lineup.
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Report Bruce Willis June 30, 2012 6:12 PM BST
Sam trickett in this?
Report gnashersblackpool June 30, 2012 10:06 PM BST
supposed 2be.
market up on bf
Report gnashersblackpool June 30, 2012 10:06 PM BST
supposed 2be.
market up on bf
Report seal July 1, 2012 12:59 PM BST
why is no market up ?? - will one be surely now the field set -betting  intrest will be 10x main event
Report EastLower Gooner July 1, 2012 1:56 PM BST
Its been up for a fair while now. Roland De Wolfe added over night.
Report Helmuthian Folds July 1, 2012 2:53 PM BST
The form for you......

Event #55 – 1MM The Big One for One Drop – No-Limit Hold’em
Bobby Baldwin - Chief Design & Construction Officer, MGM Resorts Intl
Bobby Baldwin is a 62-year-old resident of Las Vegas, Nevada, and a longtime casino
industry executive. In 1978, he cemented his standing as a premier poker player by
winning the $10,000 WSOP World Championship (The Main Event). In all, Baldwin
has nearly $1 million in lifetime tournament winnings and is the owner of four WSOP
gold bracelets, a rare distinction among the world’s millions of poker players.
Baldwin, who served for a time as a consultant for the Golden Nugget Casino, was
named its president in 1984. He has also headed The Mirage and was named president
of the Bellagio in 1998. He served under Steve Wynn as Chief Financial Officer of
Mirage Resorts from 1999-2000. He now serves as president and CEO of City Center.
Biggest Win: 5/1978: $210,000 1978 WSOP Main Event Championship

Frederic Banjout - CEO, Eden Shoes
Frederic Banjout is 42-years-old and lives in France. He serves as the Chief Executive
Officer of French-based shoe retailer, Eden Shoes. He is making his WSOP debut
today.
Biggest Cash: No known notable cashes.

Bob Bright - CEO, Bright Trading, LLC
Bob Bright is 72 years old and resides in Las Vegas, Nevada. Bright began playing
cards in high school, and his passion served him well during his days serving in the
Army. It is said that he earned many times his monthly salary by playing cards during
that time. Additionally, Bright received perfect scores on his standardized math tests
(both in high school and for the Army). He now serves as CEO for Bright Trading,
LLC. Bright Trading, a Las-Vegas-based company, is recognized as one of the largest
professional proprietary stock trading firms in the United States.
Biggest Cash: 7/21/2006: $261,170 3rd place finish in 2006 WSOP $2000 Buy-in No-
Limit Hold’em event

Ilya Bulychev - Businessman
Ilya Bulychev is a 34-year-old businessman and poker player from Moscow, Russia. He
has earned three WSOP cashes, including a 15th place finish in the 2010 $50,000 buy-in
Poker Players Championship. So he is no stranger to high stakes poker tournaments.
Bulychev is one of two Russian-born players in the field.
Biggest Cash: 5/28/2010: $98,330 15 th place finish in 2010 WSOP Poker Players
Championship

Roland De Wolfe -- Professional Poker Player
Roland De Wolfe is a 33-year-old, London-based professional poker player. He has 17
WSOP cashes and earned a bracelet in 2009’s $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Low Split-8
or Better event.
Biggest Cash: 2006: WPT $25,000 No-Limit Hold’em Championship / Finished: 3 rd /
Earned: $1,025,205

Tom Dwan -- Professional Poker Player
Known as one of the toughest professional poker players in the world, Tom Dwan
currently resides in Las Vegas, Nevada. At only 25 years of age, Dwan has participated
in some of the highest buy-in tournaments and cash games in the world. Most
commonly known in the poker community by his online handle “DURRRR,” Dwan
attended Boston University before deciding to pursue poker professionally. Since then,
he has played numerous live poker tournaments and cash games, including the Million
Dollar Cash Game and the National Heads-Up Poker Championship. With tournament
earnings exceeding $2,000,000 Dwan has proven he is one to be reckoned with at the
poker table.
Biggest Cash: 2010, WSOP $1,500 No-Limit Hold’em Event /Finished: 2 nd / Earned:
$381,885

Jonathan Duhamel – Professional Poker Player
Jonathan Duhamel, 24, is a professional poker player from Montreal, Canada. In 2010,
Duhamel became the 41st Annual WSOP No-Limit Hold ‘Em Main Event Champion at
the age of 22. Although he is a poker player now, Duhamel originally went to college to
pursue a career in finance. Since his 2010 WSOP Main Event victory, Duhamel has
been busy traveling the worldwide tournament circuit, performing quite admirably and
continually serving as one of the game’s great ambassadors.
Biggest Win: 11/7/2010: $8,944,310 2010 WSOP Main Event Championship

David Einhorn - Hedge Fund Manager
David Einhorn is a 43-year-old hedge fund manager from Rye, New York. He is the
Founder and President of Greenlight Capital. Greenlight Capital is a "long-short valueoriented
hedge fund." Started in 1996 with $900,000, Greenlight’s annualized return
for investors is about 22 percent. When not running his successful business, Einhorn
has been known to play cards, and play them well. In the 2006 WSOP Main Event –
the largest poker tournament in history with 8,773 entrants -- Einhorn finished in 18th
place and went on to donate his $659,000 in winnings to the Michael J. Fox Foundation.
An active philanthropist, Einhorn has stated his intent to donate to the City Year
Foundation for this event. City Year is an education-focused non-profit that partners
with high-need public schools to provide full-time targeted student interventions.
Biggest Cash: 7/28/2006: $659,730 18 th place finish in 2006 WSOP Main Event

Antonio Esfandiari -- Professional Poker Player
Antonio Esfandiari is a 33-year-old professional poker player. Known to the poker
community as “The Magician,” the Las Vegas resident is a former magician turned
poker player. With nearly $5 million in lifetime earnings, including one WSOP gold
bracelet and two other titles, Esfandiari is one of the game’s most recognized and
entertaining personalities. In fact, if he fails to make this final table, you will hear him
commenting the event as part of ESPN’s live television coverage.
Biggest Win: 2/21/2004: $1,399,135 for winning LA Poker Classic

Phil Galfond – Professional Poker Player
Online poker phenom Phil Galfond has cashed six times at the WSOP and amassed
nearly $1 million in WSOP winnings. In 2008, Galfond won a $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha
tournament to capture a gold bracelet. The Potomac, Maryland, resident has two
additional Top 20 WSOP finishes.
Biggest Win: 6/14/2008: $817,781 for winning WSOP $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha

Bertrand “ElKy” Grospellier -- Professional Poker Player
Bertrand Grospellier, who won a gold bracelet at last year’s World Series of Poker, is
one of the biggest poker personalities in all of Europe and also one of the most feared
No-Limit Hold’em players in the game today. The 31-year-old hails from Paris, France,
and is better known as “ElKy.” He has lifetime poker earnings of more than $10
million, good for 16th on the all-time list. He has also captured the poker triple crown,
winning a WSOP, EPT and WPT event already.
Biggest Win: 1/5/2008: $2,000,000 for winning EPT Caribbean Adventure

Philipp Gruissem -- Professional Poker Player
At the young age of 25, Philipp Gruissem has had some terrific success in European
poker tournaments and hopes that continues in this event. The native of Brighton in
Germany hopes to follow fellow countryman Pius Heinz in bringing another giant
victory and title from the World Series of Poker back to his home country. With three
six-figure scores in the last year, including two first place finishes and two third-place
finishes in European tournaments, Philipp now has more than $2 million in lifetime
earnings in less than three years on the tournament circuit.
Biggest Win: 10/4/2011: $703,657 for winning the high roller event at EPT London

Giovanni “Malibu” Guarascio – Poker Player
Giovanni “Malibu” Guarascio is a 55-year-old professional poker player from Montreal, Canada.
Biggest Cash: No known notable cashes.
Phil Ivey -- Professional Poker Player
A well-known and established professional poker player, Phil Ivey currently resides in
Las Vegas, Nevada. At 35-years of age, Ivey is an eight-time WSOP gold bracelet
winner, good for fifth all-time. Known in the poker community as one of the best allaround
players in the world, Ivey is adept at both tournament and cash game poker.
Born in Riverside, California, Ivey’s family moved to New Jersey when he was a young
child. Ivey started to play poker with co-workers in New Jersey and has since
accumulated more than $16 million in lifetime tournament winnings. He is the youngest
player to attain eight WSOP gold bracelets, all of which were in events other than No-
Limit Hold’em. Ivey plays in the world’s highest stakes cash games and has a room
named after him at the Aria Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. This year, Ivey has made
five WSOP final tables to push his WSOP career earnings to $6,249,783.
Biggest Win: 1/27/2012: $2,058,948 in Aussie Millions High Roller Challenge

Eugene Katchalov -- Professional Poker Player
Born in Kiev, Ukraine, Eugene Katchalov is a 31-year-old professional poker player who has been
residing in Brooklyn, New York, since he moved there with his family at the age of 10. Katchalov
graduated from New York University with a degree in business and has been playing poker
professionally since 2003. He is a very successful tournament poker player, with lifetime career
earnings of more than $7 million. Katchalov is the winner of the largest payout (up to the start of the
2010-11 season) for a non-championship event in the World Poker Tour (WPT), earning $2,482,605
with a win of the 2007 Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic. He’s cashed at the World
Series of Poker 25 times, including a third-place finish in a 2010 $10,000 HORSE event for $248,831,
four more final table appearances and a Top 40 finish in the 2009 Main Event. In 2011 he took it to the
next level, earning a World Series winner’s bracelet when he took down a $1,500 Seven Card Stud
event for $122,909.
Biggest Win: 12/12/2007: $2,482,605 in No Limit Hold'em Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker
Classic

Cary Katz - CEO, College Loan Corporation
Currently residing in Las Vegas, Nevada, Cary Katz is the Chief Executive Officer of the seventhlargest
student loan company in the United States, the College Loan Corporation (CLC). In 1999, Katz
founded the CLC and has helped more than 800,000 students providing them with over $19 billion in
college loans. This 41-year-old is the acting chairman of a Stop Child Predators, nonprofit organization
founded to help protect children and hold their victimizers accountable. Katz has a Bachelor of Arts in
Business Administration from the University of Georgia and currently lives with his wife and six
children. Katz is also a successful poker player. He made his first appearance in the winner’s circle on
the tournament trail in 2004. Since then he has cashed 41 times, made 21 final tables, won two titles
and racked up $681,203 in career earnings.
Biggest Cash: 6/2/2012: $51,713 No-Limit Hold'em 42nd World Series of Poker

Jens Kyllönen -- Professional Poker Player
Jens Kyllönen is a 22-year-old professional poker player from Finland. Kyllönen's poker tournament
results and statistics include one first-place finish, two final table appearances, and six in-the-money
finishes for $1,393,300 in total poker tournament event earnings over the years. A well-established
online player who is known as a Pot Limit Omaha specialist, Kyllönen's resume includes a first-place
finish on the European Poker Tour, where he earned over $1,100,000 at the age of 19.
Biggest Win: 2/17/2009: $1,120,815 in No Limit Hold'em EPT Scandinavian Open,
Copenhagen

Guy Laliberté - Founder, Cirque de Soleil/OneDrop.org Canada Founder
Guy Laliberté is the 52-year-old founder and chief executive officer of Canada’s
famous Cirque du Soleil circus troupe. Originally a street performer, Laliberté currently
owns 95% of the company. According to Forbes Magazine, his net worth is $1.5 billion
(U.S.), making him the 654th richest man in the world. His most notable tournament
success came in the form of a fourth-place finish in a 2007 World Poker Tour event. He
became Canada’s first private explorer in space and the first to engage in a Poetic Social
Mission in space. He is also the founder of the One Drop Foundation, a philanthropic
foundation to fight poverty in the world by giving everyone access to water and of
course the beneficiary in this great event.
Biggest Cash: 4/21/2007: $696,220 at WPT - No Limit Hold'em Championship
Fifth Annual Five Star World Poker Classic, Las Vegas

Ben Lamb -- Professional Poker Player
Currently a resident of Las Vegas, Nevada, Ben Lamb is 27-year-old professional poker
player. Lamb attended Jenks High School in Tulsa, Oklahoma, before graduating in
2004. He went on to college at the Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. Before
turning to poker professionally, Lamb worked as a dealer at Tulsa’s Cherokee Casino.
His best year in poker came in 2011, when he was named the CardPlayer Player of the
Year and also the WSOP Player of the Year. Lamb was also a part of the WSOP
November Nine and finished in third place. He captured his first WSOP gold bracelet
in 2011 and has more than $6,000,000 in WSOP winnings already.
Biggest Cash: 07-Jul-2011: $4,021,138 in World Championship - No Limit Hold'em
42nd World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2011, Las Vegas

Tom Marchese -- Professional Poker Player
Tom Marchese is from Parsippany, New Jersey. While he is just 24 years old, the
professional poker player was given the impressive title of CardPlayer Player of the
Year in 2010. Marchese is primarily an online pro playing under the name
‘Kingsofcards’ but also has earned more than $3,800,000 in live tournaments.
Biggest Win: 5/23/2012: $1,308,405 in No Limit Hold'em - Super High Roller
WPT World Championship, Las Vegas

Jason Mercier -- Professional Poker Player
Jason Mercier is a 25-year-old professional poker player residing in Davie,
Florida. Mercier has accumulated numerous tournament wins, which include two
victories at the WSOP. Mercier is one of the few players coming into this event that has
more than one World Series of Poker bracelet to his name. Both of Mercier’s bracelets
are in Pot-Limit Omaha events. “J-Merc” has earned nearly $1 million in WSOP events
and has amassed more than $7,700,000 in worldwide earnings.
Biggest Win: 4/1/2008: $1,372,893 in No Limit Hold'em EPT San Remo

Michael Mizrachi -- Professional Poker Player
Michael Mizrachi is 31 years old and resides in Miami, Florida. “The Grinder” is the
proud owner of three WSOP bracelets, after having recently taken down the 2012
WSOP Poker Players’ Championship. Mizrachi also won the Poker Players’
Championship in 2010. The 31-year-old poker pro started playing in tournaments in
2004 and has accumulated more than $14 million in career earnings. He was named
Card Player Magazine’s Player of the Year in 2006, and has recorded two WPT titles.
Biggest Cash: 7/5/2010: $2,332,992 in the World Championship - No Limit Hold'em
41st World Series of Poker

John Morgan - CEO, Winmark Corporation
From Minneapolis, Minnesota, 71-year-old John L. Morgan serves as the chairman of
the board and chief executive officer of Winmark Corporation. In addition, he currently
serves as chairman and chief executive officer of Tomsten, Inc. Morgan doesn't often
travel for poker, but he frequently plays in Heartland Poker Tour events when they're
held in Shakopee, a city located near his home. He has one WSOP cash.
Biggest Cash: 10/10/2010: $26,888 in the Midwest Poker Classic, Columbus - $1,000
No Limit Hold'em Main Event

Daniel Negreanu -- Professional Poker Player
Daniel Negreanu is a well-known professional poker player who currently resides in
Las Vegas, Nevada. Nicknamed “KidPoker,” this 37-year-old has been a prominent face
of the poker industry and has appeared in various movies and television shows.
Originally from Toronto, Canada, Negreanu is currently ranked third on the all-time
career earnings list, with just over $16 million in worldwide earnings. Since 2006,
Negreanu, a Toronto Maple Leafs fanatic, has lived a vegan lifestyle. In his spare time,
Negreanu dedicates time to help numerous charities and to get in a game or two of golf.
An avid tweeter, Negreanu can be found greeting his many fans and playing in the
highest cash games and tournaments around the world.
Biggest Win: 12/14/2004: $1,770,218 in the WPT Championship, Five Diamond World
Poker Classic - $15,000 No Limit Hold'em

Paul Newey - Chairman, New Wave Ventures
Forty-three year old Paul Newey is one of Britain’s most successful and wealthy
entrepreneurs. He led Ocean Finance from its foundation in 1991 up to its sale in 2007
and stood down as chief executive officer in 2009. He currently serves as the cofounder
of New Wave Ventures, an investment company based in London.
Biggest Cash: No known cashes.

Chamath Palihapitiya - Venture Capitalist
Chamath Palihapitiya is a 35-year-old venture capitalist and poker player. He is the
former Vice President of Growth, Mobile and International at Facebook. Additionally,
he has held multiple high-ranking jobs with companies such as AOL and the Silicon
Valley venture capital firm, The Mayfield Fund. Palihapitiya has recently started his
own venture fund, Social+Capital Partnership. Chamath also owns a minority stake in
the NBA’s Golden State Warriors.
Biggest Cash: 2011, WSOP $10,000 World Championship No-Limit Hold’em Event /
Finished: 101 s t / Earned: $54,851

Bill Perkins - Owner, Small Ventures USA (Private Equity)
Bill Perkins is a 43-year-old businessman and amateur poker player. He runs Small
Ventures USA (SMV), a private equity and venture capital company in Texas, with a
wide portfolio of business interests and investments. He also has a passion for making
films, and acts as a producer on various titles made by his own company. Perkins has
produced a number of films under his production company, Lleju Productions and
Films, including After.Life, The Chameleon and Road Kill. Mr. Perkins received a
Bachelor of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Iowa,
where he also played for the Hawkeye’s football team. He is an active participant in the
Save the Children charitable organization.
Biggest Cash: 2012, $25,000 No-Limit Hold’em 8 Max High Roller in PokerStars
Caribbean Adventure / Finished: 15 th / Earned: $58,020

Paul Phua – Businessman (Asia)
Paul Phua is a 48-year-old businessman from Asia who currently resides in Malaysia.
Phua travels around the world and has competed in some of the highest buy-in
tournaments and cash games. Phua was a part of the Million Dollar Cash came in
Melbourne, Australia.
Biggest Cash: No Known Cashes

Vivek Rajkumar -- Professional Poker Player
Vivek Rajkumar, aka Psyduck, is a native of Seattle, Washington. The 26-year-old
father of five began playing poker after the “Moneymaker Boom.” Rajkumar has now
amassed more than $4 million in total tournament earnings and has cashed at the WSOP
11 times.
Biggest Win: 2008, Borgata Poker Open in Atlantic City / WPT No-Limit Hold'em /
Finished: 1 s t / Earned: $1,424,500

Brian Rast -- Professional Poker Player
Brian Rast is relatively unknown to casual poker fans, but players know him as one of
the top young high stakes cash game players. Rast has accumulated more than $2.8
million in worldwide tournament earnings. The 30-year-old poker pro found success
playing a limited tournament schedule in 2011 when he won two World Series of Poker
bracelets, including the $50,000 Poker Players Championship. Rast was born in
Denver, Colorado, where he was the valedictorian of his high school class.
Biggest Win: 2011, WSOP $50,000 Poker Player’s Championship / Finished: 1 s t /
Earned: $1,720,328

Tobias Reinkemeier -- Professional Poker Player
Tobias Reinkemeier was born in the North Sea town of Cuxhaven, Germany. The 24-
year-old took up the game of poker in January of 2006 and decided to invest $50 into an
online poker account in order to try his skills at the real money tables. He began by
building his skills through playing cash games and sit-and-go’s, and eventually moved
up to higher buy-in multi-table tournaments. In early 2007, Reinkemeier’s passion for
live-action play led him to the European Poker Tour stop in Dortmund, where he would
surprise many by taking first place in the €500 Hohensyburg Open, cashing for €30,500.
Since then, he has gone on to earn more than $3.7 million in career earnings in
tournaments and is now regarded by many as Germany’s number one tournament
player.
Biggest Cash: 2012 EPT Grand Final at the Monte Carlo in the No-Limit Hold’em 8
Max Super High Roller / Finished: 2 nd / Earned: $1,404,750

Andrew Robl -- Professional Poker Player
Andrew Robl is a professional poker player who currently resides in Las Vegas,
Nevada. At 25 years of age, Robl has accumulated more than $2.4 million in worldwide
earnings. He attended Michigan State University. Today, Robl can be seen playing in
some of the highest buy-in tournaments around the world.
Biggest Cash: 2012 $100,000 No-Limit Super High Roller WPT World
Championships / Finished: 2 nd / Earned: $822,375

Phil Ruffin – Owner, Treasure Island Resort, Las Vegas
Consistently occupying a spot on the Forbes 400 list of the United States richest people,
Phil Ruffin is currently making himself very well known in Las Vegas. As current
owner of Treasure Island Resort, Ruffin has built up a very large empire since dropping
out of college. His main agenda is to attract mid-level customers to the resort. By
turning $20 million into $1 billon, the 76-year-old made this possible by slight tweaks
he made to Treasure Island. Ruffin has an estimated net worth of $2.4 billion.
Biggest Cash: No Known Cashes

Rick Salomon – Film Producer
Rick Salomon is a 44-year-old film producer from Los Angeles, California. He has
produced films such as “Who’s Your Caddy” (2007) and appeared in “Alpha Dog”
(2006) and “My Sister’s Keeper” (2009). Additionally, Salomon has been known to
date a starlet or two including Paris Hilton and Pamela Anderson.
Biggest Win: 2006 Bellagio Cup II, $1,000 No-Limit Hold’em Event / Finished: 1 s t /
Earned: $125,715

Nick Schulman -- Professional Poker Player
Nick Schulman is a 27-year-old professional poker player from Manhattan, New York.
Schulman’s WSOP earnings exceed $1 million, and his worldwide earnings are more
than $5.1 million. He won a gold bracelet in 2009’s $10,000 No-Limit 2-7 Draw
Lowball Championship. In 2010, Schulman appeared on the MTV series, “World of
Jenks”. This documentary-style show followed Schulman as he travelled the world in
search of his next big score.
Biggest Win: 2005 WPT $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em World Poker Finals at Foxwoods /
Finished: 1 s t / Earned: $2,167,500

Noah Schwartz -- Professional Poker Player
Noah Schwartz is a 28-year-old professional poker player who hails from Miami,
Florida. With more than $2,500,000 in worldwide earnings, Schwartz is currently #44
on the 2012 All Time Money List, according to the Hendon Mob. Nicknamed
“McLovin,” Schwartz can be found playing in various high buy-in tournaments around
the globe.
Biggest Cash: 2010 WPT $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em Championship / Finished: 3 rd /
Earned: $344,968

Erik Seidel -- Professional Poker Player
Erik Seidel is an eight-time WSOP gold bracelet champion, placing him in a tie for fifth
all-time with Phil Ivey. Seidel’s WSOP earnings exceed $4.5 million and his worldwide
earnings are more than $16.9 million. His heads-up battle and eventual second-place
finish to Johnny Chan in the 1988 WSOP World Championship was profiled in the
1998 film Rounders, starring Matt Damon and Edward Norton. Seidel is 52 years old
and resides in Las Vegas, Nevada. He was elected into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2010.
Biggest Cash: 2011, $250,000 Super High Roller No-Limit Hold’em Aussie Millions
Poker / Finished: 1 s t / Earned: $2,472,555

Mike Sexton -- Professional Poker Player
Mike Sexton is a 64-year-old professional poker player from Las Vegas, Nevada.
Sexton is most recognized for his position as commentator and analyst for the World
Poker Tour. He lays claim to a single WSOP gold bracelet (1989, $1,500 Limit Seven-
Card Stud Hi-Low) and also took down the WSOP Tournament of Champions title (a
non-bracelet event) in 2006. In 2009 Sexton was the elected as the 38th member to the
Poker Hall of Fame. He has more than $4.2 million in worldwide earnings and is the
ambassador of PartyPoker.
Biggest Cash: 2006, Tournament of Champions No-Limit Hold’em Event / Finished:
1 s t / Earned: $1,000,000

Dan Shak – Hedge Fund Manager
At the age of 53, Dan Shak has experienced both the business world and the poker
world. Shak is the founder of New York-based SHK Asset Management. As a hedge
fund manager from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, who specializes in gold, Shak spends a
lot of his time on the poker scene. Shak has made more than $3.7 million in worldwide
earnings. Shak is recognized for his philanthropic endeavors, including agreeing to
donate 100 percent of his winnings from the 2010 Ante Up For Africa tournament,
another charity tournament that previously was held at the WSOP.
Biggest Win: 2010 Aussie Millions Poker Championship / Finished: 1 s t / Earned:
$1,107,553

Talal Shakerchi – European Hedge Fund Manager
From Surrey, England, Talal Shakerchi is a notable European hedge fund manager.
Although he has played in World Series of Poker events in the past and garnered more
than $700,000 in career earnings, this One Drop event will be Shakerchi’s biggest
tournament buy-in by a wide margin. The 48-year-old is a director of the London hedge
fund Meditor Capital Management.
Biggest Win: 2012, Monte Carlo EPT Grand Final – 6 Max Turbo High Roller Event /
Finished: 1 s t / Earned: $294,417

Mikhail Smirnov -- Businessman
At 39, Mikhail Smirnov is a Russian businessman who enjoys indulging in poker
games. As a part time poker player, has earned more than $850,000 in poker winnings
since he began playing in tournaments.
Biggest Cash: 2012, $100,000 No-Limit Hold’em 2012 Aussie Millions Poker
Championship / Finished: 2 nd / Earned: $634,156

Justin Smith -- Professional Poker Player
Justin “Boosted J” Smith began playing online poker and eventually built a bankroll
that would allow him to venture into the stratosphere of the highest limits offered in
online poker. The 24-year-old professional poker player now resides in Los Angeles. He
has more than $2.1 million in poker earnings.
Biggest Cash: 2010, WPT $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em Championship / Finished: 2 nd /
Earned: $594,755

Brandon Steven – Businessman/Car Dealership Owner
Brandon Steven is a 38-year-old businessman and Subaru dealership owner from
Wichita, Kansas. His poker résumé includes $690,000 in career WSOP earnings. In
2010, he was the November Nine bubble boy, finishing in 10th place for $635,011.
Biggest Cash: 2010 WSOP Main Event – No-Limit Hold’em / Finished: 10 th / Earned:
$635,011

Sam Trickett -- Professional Poker Player
Sam Trickett is a 25-year-old professional poker player from East Retford, England.
Trickett began playing poker in 2005 after a knee injury ended his career with the
professional football club Hartlepool United. Trickett has amassed $6,359,096 in
worldwide earnings. He has $1,068,931 in WSOP earnings.
Biggest Win: 01/27/2011, 2011 Aussie Millions Poker Championship No-Limit Hold’em
/ Finished: 1 s t / Earned: $1,508,258

Haralobos Voulgaris – Professional Sports Handicapper
Born in Winnipeg, Canada, Haralabos Voulgaris is 37-year-old professional gambler
and poker player who has accumulated more than $3 million in poker earnings.
Voulgaris attended the University of Manitoba, where he received a degree in
philosophy. He is known as one of the most successful professional sports bettors,
particularly in NBA basketball. Voulgaris currently resides in Los Angeles, California.
Biggest Cash: 2007, 37th Borgata Poker Open/WPT Event Season 6 Event #12 - WPT
No-Limit Hold'em Championship / Finished: 3rd / Earned: $434,560

Richard Yong -- Businessman
Richard Yong is a 54-year-old businessman from Asia who currently resides in Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia. He has many businesses worldwide, his main ones being data
mining and IT-related companies. Richard has participated in the highest buy-in cash
games and tournaments around the world. Richard was a part of the Million Dollar Cash
came in Melbourne, Australia.
Biggest Cash: 4/20/12: $463,454, 4 th Place in Super High Roller at 2012 APT Manila
Report Smith1 July 1, 2012 3:07 PM BST
Should be streamed here at some point: http://www.wsop.com/2012/live-video/default.aspx

Also live on ESPN Tuesday night.
Report EastLower Gooner July 1, 2012 4:05 PM BST
Just another tournament for the Grinder imo.
Report Ovalman. July 1, 2012 4:51 PM BST
At least credit your C/P HF Excited

Gus Hansen's on fire atm and worth a punt imo.


Four tournaments and one epic satellite took place on Day 35 of the 2012 World Series of Poker. The third day of Event #50: $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em saw the final 48 players try to play down to a winner, but fall a bit short. The field in the Event #51: $1,000 Ladies No-Limit Hold'em Championship narrowed to the final nine. In Day 2 of Event #52: $2,500 10-Game Mix Six-Handed, 167 players returned and played down to the final .19. Event 53: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em got under way with a huge starting field. At the same time, the $25,000 Mega Satellite for the $1 million One Drop event took place, guaranteeing the final seat to this historic event.

$25,000 One Drop Mega-Satellite

The biggest satellite of the series drew some of the biggest names in poker vying for a million dollar seat at Sunday’s $1 Million One Drop event. In all, 96 players plunked down $25,300 each, creating a prize pool of over $2.4 million. There was much discussion leading up to the satellite with respect to what would happen if someone who already had one of the coveted seats were to win the satellite, and what the second place finisher would earn. Those questions were answered when the Great Dane, Gus Hansen, won and Shaun Deeb came in second.

Hansen is guaranteed one of the last seats in the One Drop tournament and Deeb has the first alternate seat. If he does not get a seat in Sunday’s tournament, Deeb will get the $1 million in cash. Jason Somerville finished in third place, earning $400,000 for the day.

The list of registrants for this truly mega satellite was stacked with famous names and the and the bustout list was full of notable pros including Phil Ivey, Brian Rast, Viktor Blom, Matt Glantz, JP Kelly, Brian Hastings, Eugene Katchalov, Erick Lindgren, Chris Moorman, Billy Baxter, David Benyamine, Daniel Alaei, John Hennigan, Yevgeniy Timoshenko, Andy Frankenberger, Jason Mercier, Carlos Mortensen, and Jon Turner.

While Hansen was winning his seat at the Rio, none other than the Poker Brat himself, Phil Hellmuth, had just picked up the other remaining seat to the One Drop, the MGM Resorts International VIP seat. Check out the final list of entrants into Event #55.

You do not want to miss one minute of this momentous event, so make sure to follow our live coverage throughout the day to keep up with all the action.

Event #50: $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em

On Saturday, 48 players returned for what was scheduled to be the final day of play. But after more than 13 hours of play, there were still three players left vying for the gold bracelet. Leading the final three is Dan Smith with 6,620,000, followed by Kyle Julius with 4,435,000, each looking for their first WSOP win, and Panayote "Pete" Vilandos with 3,955,000, seeking his third gold bracelet. They will return on Sunday for an unscheduled Day 4 to crown a winner.

Going into Day 3, Julius was the chip leader with 876,000 in chips and a number of notables were still in the running. Throughout the day a number of players were eliminated including Galen Hall (40th - $20,324), Event #28 runner-up Brendon Rubie (36th - $24,041), Randy Lew (32nd - $24,041) and Alexander Kravchenko (31st - $24,041). Later in the day, they were joined by Cary Katz (29th - $24,041), Eric Cloutier (28th - $24,041), Andrew Lichtenberger (23rd - $28,793), Jeremy Ausmus (21st - $28,793), Thiago “xTHEDECANOx” Nishijima (18th - $35,003) and Jason Wheeler (17th - $35,003).

Joseph Cheong fell in 15th place. After Daniel Perper opened to 42,000 from early position, action folded around to Cheong in the small blind and he moved all-in for about 440,000 total. Julius in the big blind then announced that he was all-in as well. Perper tank-folded and the two hands were revealed. Cheong had the {A-Clubs}{K-Clubs} and was up against Julius’ {10-Hearts}{10-Diamonds}. Cheong went ahead on the {9-Diamonds}{A-Diamonds}{7-Hearts} flop, but the board ran out {6-Spades} {8-Clubs} giving Julius a runner-runner straight to send Cheong to collect his $43,095 payout. Konstantin Puchkov, was knocked out next and in the process tied the WSOP record for most cashes in one series with 10.

The final table bubble boy was Erik Aude. Aude had about 1.3 million chips to the 1.6 million of Dan Smith. He check-called Smith’s bet on the {4-Hearts}{3-Spades}{A-Spades} flop, then checked the {K-Hearts} turn. Smith bet again, but this time Aude check-raised and Smith called. Aude moved all-in on the {9-Clubs} river and Smith insta-called. Aude turned over {K-Spades}{K-Clubs} but his set of kings was no match for Smith’s set of aces with {A-Diamonds}{A-Hearts} and the field was reduced to the final nine. Smith was in the lead with almost 3 million in chips, with the next closest being Kyle Julius with 2.4 million.

Amir Lehavot was the first casualty of the final table, eliminated when his all-in move with top pair and second nut-flush draw was beat by Julius’ two pair on the turn and the river bricked. A short-stacked Tommy Vedes was the next to hit the rail, knocked out by Thomas Conway in eighth place. Matt Gianetti moved all-in with {A-Hearts}{K-Hearts} and was slightly behind Smith’s pocket tens. Gianetti was further behind, but not without outs, when the flop came {8-Clubs}{10-Clubs}{Q-Spades}, but the board ran out {K-Diamonds} {6-Diamonds} and Gianetti’s run in this event ended with a seventh place finish.

Thomas Conway went out in sixth place ($148,198), followed by Derek Gregory. Gregory was poised for a double up, calling Smith’s all in after the flop came {10-Hearts}{8-Hearts}{5-Spades}. Gregory had top pair with {9-Diamonds}{10-Diamonds} and Smith had a gunshot and two overs with {J-Hearts}{Q-Spades}. But the board completed with the {K-Clubs}{A-Hearts} and Gregory was out in fifth for $197,691.

With Kevin Schultz’s elimination in fourth place ($267,792), there were just a few hands left in the level before the final three would bag and tag their chips for the night.

The final table will resume 1400 PDT (2200 BST) in the Purple Section of the Amazon Room and play down until a winner is crowned.


Read more: http://www.pokernews.com/news/2012/07/2012-world-series-of-poker-day-35-gus-...
Report EastLower Gooner July 1, 2012 5:37 PM BST
the story of the MGM seat Hellmuth 'won' is hilarious.

invite only...got 8 handed and they decided to let Hellmuth take his chance with the other 7 players getting share sizes depending on their remaining chips.
Report Helmuthian Folds July 1, 2012 7:24 PM BST
Ovalman,

Maybe I wrote it all myself? LaughWinkBlush
Report Ovalman. July 1, 2012 7:30 PM BST
In which case I humbly apologise Blush

Very sorry and very well written, I assumed it was a C/P.

I also keeked up in my C/P which was from pokernews, I gave yesterdays news. Hansen won the seat and Deeb came 2nd but GTD himself $1 million. Hansen is definitely worth backing atm as he's had a few final tables in the WSOP but no bracelet.

Again HF, superb write up BlushBlush
Report lawslaw July 1, 2012 8:00 PM BST
All depends on the table draw I guess. Looking at the bio's above there could a definite incentive to get to work early if you get a nice seat on a nice table.

Would fancy Roland or Mercier if either found themselves in that situation
Report Helmuthian Folds July 1, 2012 8:15 PM BST
Ovalman,

thanks for the unmerited apology but it was a C/P.

Shows I have some kudos that you actually believed I wrote all that!

It was the media press release that I was sent as I am on the media release list for WSOP so I don't actually know who wrote it!

BlushBlushBlushBlushBlushBlushBlushBlushBlush
Report goonjim July 1, 2012 8:52 PM BST
Table draws:

Table 407

Seat    Player
1    Dan Shak
2    Mikhail Smirnov
3    John Morgan
4    Bobby Baldwin
5    Phil Galfond
6    Roland De Wolfe
7    Eugene Katchalov
8    Tom Dwan
Table 401

Seat    Player
1    William Perkins
2    Frederique Banjout
3    Andrew Robl
4    Jens Kyllonen
5    Justin Smith
6    Brian Rast
7    Sam Trickett
8    Jonathan Duhamel
Table 409

Seat    Player
1    Seng Chen Yong
2    Jason Mercier
3    Talal Shakerchi
4    Noah Schwartz
5    Gus Hansen
6    Paul Newey
7    David Einhorn
8    Bertrand "ElkY" Grosspellier
Table 411

Seat    Player
1    Wei Seng Phua
2    Michael Mizrachi
3    Mike Sexton
4    Bob Bright
5    Phil Hellmuth
6    Daniel Negreanu
7    Rich Salomon
8    Chamath Palihapitiya
Table 381

Seat    Player
1    Haralabos Voulgaris
2    Ilya Bulychev
3    Philipp Gruissem
4    Cary Katz
5    Giovanni Guarascio
6    Tobias Reinkemeier
7    Phil Ruffin
8    Guy Laliberte
Table 391

Seat    Player
1    Vivek Rajkumar
2    Tom Marchese
3    Antonio Esfandiari
4    Nick Schulman
5    Ben Lamb
6    Brandon Steven
7    Phil Ivey
8    Erik Seidel
Report lawslaw July 1, 2012 9:04 PM BST
Thanks for that post goonjim.

WOW it's like the 3rd round draw of the F.A cup...I  am all excited now! ExcitedExcitedExcited

My first impression is potentially I love table 407, I think Roland will love it and Dwan will hate it and there will be loads of action.
Sam Trickett won't be too disappointed, especially with the likes Robl on it, hope he doesn't give the other players too much respect because he could make a real dent on there.

Table 409..Mercier....Gus...Elky.....could be a classic.
Table 411 looks really nitty, I would be suprised if much happens early there.
Table 391...it will be interesting to see who gets busy first. Could be some serious early action there.

Still fancy Roland after looking at that draw...and Mercier for that matter too. Tricketts gotta a pretty sweet table if he gets an early grip.
Report Bruce Willis July 2, 2012 2:15 AM BST
Phil Helmuth with the early chip lead, Sam Trickett 2nd
Report Helmuthian Folds July 2, 2012 10:33 AM BST
Good news have backed Trickett at 28!
Report gnashersblackpool July 2, 2012 1:39 PM BST
Brian Rast             10,710,000    
Phil Hellmuth             8,395,000
Frederic Banjout         7,070,000   
Antonio Esfandiari             6,880,000   
Gus Hansen             6,800,000   
Sam Trickett             6,700,000   
Guy Laliberté             6,550,000    
Ben Lamb             5,770,000   
Mike Sexton             5,740,000
Tom Dwan             4,810,000    
Brandon Steven             4,770,00
Mikhail Smirnov             4,680,00
Bobby Baldwin             4,225,000   
Jason Mercier              4,210,000   
David Einhorn             3,795,000    
Phil Ruffin             3,750,000   
Tom Marchese             3,740,000   
Philipp Gruissem         3,600,000   
Richard Yong             3,430,000   
Rick Salomon             3,285,000    
Paul Newey             3,225,000   
Dan Shak             3,190,000    
Noah Schwartz             3,120,000   
Roland De Wolfe             2,960,000    
Phil Ivey             2,840,000    
Cary Katz             2,785,000
    

Talal Shakerchi             2,760,000    
Haralabos Voulgaris         2,250,,000
John Morgan             2,000,000    
Ilya Bulychev             1,880,000
Vivek Rajkumar             1,270,000    
Tobias Reinkemeier             1,220,000
Bill Perkins             885,000    
Chamath Palihapitiya        635,000   
dan  negreanea                   470,000
phil  galfond                    445,000
Report Bruce Willis July 2, 2012 2:39 PM BST
This hand was interesting:


''Catching up with Eugene Katchalov on the break to grab a summary of the hand, he said Mikhail Smirnov did indeed fold quad eights to John Morgan.

Tom Dwan opened and received a call from Smirnov and Morgan before the Js 8c 7s fell.
Dwan checked and Smirnov bet. Morgan called and Dwan folded.

The turn was the 8s and Smirnov bet 200,000. Overhearing a conversation from Smirnov, he said Morgan called within five seconds and looked extremely excited about the hand.

The river completed the board with the Ks and Smirnov bet 700,000.
Morgan raised all in for 3.4 million total and Smirnov tank-folded the 8d 8h face up for all to see.''


Could you fold quads there, in a 1 mill tournament quite early on?
Report lawslaw July 2, 2012 3:11 PM BST
I can't see you can fold quads here. It shouldn't matter what stakes your playing, you shouldn't change your decision making process. I mean if he folds quad 8's at all other stakes in this spot fair enough. If he is just doing it because of the buy in then he shouldn't play.

Snap call, if he has the straight flush then gg but there are  hands he has crushed here who would be re popping all in such as JJ 77. Besides if I was holding Ts9s I think a re raise on the flop is more likely.
Report Bruce Willis July 2, 2012 3:13 PM BST
Agree^ re raise flop

I bet he had JJ or KK, maybe even 77
Report GrandTilt July 2, 2012 3:47 PM BST
Poker markets make no money for Betfair. ME only ever gets a maximum of £10k traded on it which means at best Betfair is making 5% commission on half the winning bets = £250 (excluding trading).  Hence why they don't care about these markets.

I fancy Mercier / Sexton or Esfandiari in this one - all available at 14's on Betfair.
Report singlecask July 2, 2012 4:04 PM BST
Shocking fold.More like he has him on flush or smaller fh hence his move. The call has to be the plus ev move. So jacks full and a lucky escape
Report shudacuda July 2, 2012 4:09 PM BST
Anybody ever folded quads before?

Has to call,if other guy shows str flush then its just a cooler,but he can't fold.
Report gnashersblackpool July 2, 2012 4:29 PM BST
poker markets make no money because its hard towatch live.
when poke rmillion was on live, 6 figures were traded each year.

who wants to back someone to win the main event,there will b 6000runners so almost certain winner aint evenin the market yet.

they should of put up a will they cash market in the main event,and a total runners market last year.

iknow they wont make a lot on these sort of markets but whatdoes it cost for betfair to run a market, can't cost much as no1 has to watch it do they.
Report GrandTilt July 2, 2012 4:40 PM BST
Agree gnasher...having an event live certainly helps.
The main issue is liquidity.

It costs nothing to set up a market but unless its seeded its next to useless.
As you can see from the current market it is hard to lay anyone for decent money as there is no depth.

No liquidity also means stupid odds such as Esfandiari is 1.01 at the moment!
Report Ovalman. July 2, 2012 4:52 PM BST
Surely they should have a "Any other unquoted" market which would be an odds on market and this alone would generate a load of cash.

You got me HF Laugh

Have you seen any of Vegas apart from the Poker tournies?
Report Bruce Willis July 2, 2012 5:28 PM BST
Grand Tilt will you stick around to give us all the inside info of Betfair/Markets/Tips and Tricks ?
Grin
Report GrandTilt July 2, 2012 5:35 PM BST
Sure thing Bruce...so long as it doesn't conflict with my post termination restrictions and the data protection act

Whoops
Report Inspired July 3, 2012 12:01 PM BST
I find it difficult to understand that apart from Betfair I am unable to get odds anywhere now the final table has been reached. I went on PP as I thought these bet on anything therefore surely the biggest poker tournament ever would get their compilers minds working. Does anyone know if odds are available anywhere?.
Report lawslaw July 3, 2012 12:24 PM BST
It is debatable if it is the biggest game ever. Many of these players do not even have as much as 5% of themselves. It is just a show pony really.
Report Bruce Willis July 3, 2012 12:28 PM BST
Final table

Top Chip Counts
1     Antonio Esfandiari        39,925,000
2     Sam Trickett        37,000,000
3     Guy Laliberté        21,700,000
4     Brian Rast        11,350,000
5     Phil Hellmuth        10,925,000
6     David Einhorn        8,375,000
7     Richard Yong        7,475,000
8     Bobby Baldwin        7,150,000

Read more: http://www.pokernews.com/live-reporting/2012-world-series-of-poker/event-55-...
Report Bruce Willis July 3, 2012 12:30 PM BST
Grand tilt fancied Antonio for this, HF and myself said Sam Trickett ExcitedLaugh
Report gnashersblackpool July 3, 2012 1:13 PM BST
book looks ok so far, 6 greens 2 reds,downside one of the  reds  is antionio, other being bb.

laid antionio at 34s[oops]
Report GrandTilt July 3, 2012 2:09 PM BST
I had Sexton, Esfandiari and Mercier.
Traded Sexton as I thought he would finish at final table but not win for small profit.

Just Esfandiari left at 14's for me.

Does anyone think that they will do a deal when they get down to final 4/5?
Report Bruce Willis July 3, 2012 2:17 PM BST
Hopefully not, for entertainment purposes only
Report lawslaw July 3, 2012 2:18 PM BST
Are deals allowed?
Report GrandTilt July 3, 2012 2:25 PM BST
Probably not allowed officially ...but with such large amounts of money at stake and such a difference between 1/2/3rd it will definitely be discussed amongst the players.

1st = 18.3M
2nd = 10.1m
3rd = 4.3m
Report Bruce Willis July 3, 2012 2:55 PM BST
Guy or Rast to win IMO

I wonder if Guy were to win, would he donate the whole lot to the charity
Report Smith1 July 3, 2012 3:51 PM BST
I would say so Bruce. Einhorn definitely is.
Report gnashersblackpool July 3, 2012 4:30 PM BST
i'd b shocked if guy didnt donate any prize he wins.

no deals either  probably while guy still in runnnig.

as most of the pros have shares with each other anyway, and further deals hopefully will be pointless.
Report GrandTilt July 3, 2012 4:49 PM BST
Good point gnasher making deals when you have backers could get awkward!
Report Bruce Willis July 3, 2012 5:20 PM BST
Laying the favourite CoolExcitedLaughCrazy

When does this start UK time? 6/7pm ??
Report Bruce Willis July 3, 2012 5:20 PM BST
favourite's*
Report Bruce Willis July 3, 2012 11:22 PM BST
Awful coverage from ESPN, was much better with the guys who were doing it the first few days
Report shudacuda July 4, 2012 10:17 AM BST
Unlucky Sam but 10 million aint shabby.
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