2011 WSOP thread

[HalfSugar]

Ship Event 2 to Jake Cody then, England's finest export.

I really hope Scott Clements gets at least one bracelet this year. He might be the best over 30 in the world (well, he's 30 in like 8 weeks).

[Golden Holden]

I'm 30.

[Felting]

I'm 30.....something

[jimmer]

Wow. It's that time of year again!

It will be interesting to see what the entry numbers are like after all the internet shit which is going on in the US at the mo.

Opinions?

[lwestatbus]

Wow. It's that time of year again!

It will be interesting to see what the entry numbers are like after all the internet shit which is going on in the US at the mo.

Opinions?

6,865 entrants in the ME. I was very surprised as I expected the exclusion of US players from the online satellites to put a real damper on registrations. I wonder if there is any analysis available as to how people finance their entries.

[golddog]

They've been showing the ME live on ESPN this weekend. They've had Lon or some other guy I didn't recognize paired up with a poker player (Olivier Busquet and Phil Hellmuth are the two I saw in the booth).

They show the hole cards on hands where there is a flop, and then only when the player's action is completed. I found it surprisingly interesting to see the kinds of hands that are played and get the analysis from the professional of what they might have and why they're making the kind of play they are. Apparently, the booth doesn't get the hole cards until we do, so I like the bit of having the pro theorize and seeing how their minds think about what the players might have.

Not sure if they're doing something to sequester the players. I'm 99% certain I saw guys checking their phones, so I don't think so. Not sure I like that part; easy enough for your buddy to text you that you just got bluffed off or were crushed and made a good fold or whatever. Not just you and your opponents at the table any longer.

Ben Lamb was really looking good for POY when I went to bed last night. Apparently needed to finish 137th or so; there were ~168 left and he had one of the top stacks.

[HalfSugar]

I think Ben Lamb will continue to ride this WSOP all the way to at least the final 27.

Watch out for JP Kelly. I'm not sure how much TV time he has had in the US but he's quite well stacked after Day 5 and one of our best UK pro players. He could definitely ship this if he avoids some horrible cooler or something.

[golddog]

Spoiler alert, if anyone's not seen the before-dinner-break episode when they're playing down to nine....

















Just caught the last few minutes of the before-dinner episode. 12 left, Lamb's in second or third.

Bryan Devonshire was the only other name that jumped out at me. I think he was 11th.

Enjoying getting the professional analysis on the broadcast, but I finally realized why I like this so much more; it's not a shove-fest.

When I turned it on, Lamb was making a 4MM river bet into a 3.1MM pot. His opponent tanked for over 10 minutes. It was interesting to hear Antonio Esfandari's analysis of what Lamb might have, what his opponent might have, the next level up, et cetera. But also that they showed some actual poker being played.

Not sure what this kind of telecast is going to do for the ratings; I think the causal person won't be interested, but the couple of episodes I've seen, I've found it renewing my interest in multi-level thinking and analysis phases of the game, and spurring me to want to improve.

[HalfSugar]

They are still going to show edited versions as usual so having this live coverage is just a nice bonus I think.

Now that the N9 are set, it's a solid field albeit without any particularly entertaining personalities. I'm rooting for Benba but after that I guess I'll go with the home grown boys Holden or O'Dea. I think O'Dea will defo make top 3, he seems like a very good player.

I have to say that since the invention of the 'November Nine' which I initially hated, I quite like it now due to the additional drama of getting down to the nine. The only thing I think it hurts are players who are on a rush. I don't know that Jamie Gold would have won in 2006 even with that monstrous chip stack if they had had a four month break. Of course the players also have the big advantage (now more than ever with the live coverage and some hole cards) of seeing how their oppo have played during the main event so far.

One thing I think the N9 does is ensure that the cream rises to the top. I appreciate that Darvin Moon rather bucks that trend but he was stacked going into the final nine and that helped him immeasurably.