Watch Joe Cada on CNN's American Morning
Created By: Matthew Showell Posted in: WSOP Blog
Joe Cada's been putting in work with the mainstream media appearances. Most recently he showed up on CNN's American Morning.
It's a big step up from what we've seen from WSOP Main Event champions before and whatever you may think of Joe Cada's victory it's good to see him doing so much since.
Letterman, CNBC, WWE Raw and now the most trusted name in news: CNN.
Check out the clip below and let us know what you think of Cada in the comments below.
It's only been a week since Joe Cada became the youngest player ever to win the WSOP Main Event and already he's doing more than some have done in an entire year of being champ.
Cada made a brief appearance at the announcer's table on WWE Raw last night and he's rumored to be showing up on David Letterman tonight.
Cada's a clean cut kid and it can't hurt to see someone like that promoting the game on a big-time TV show like Letterman.
The episode airs at 11:35 p.m. on CBS so check it out to see Cada in action.
Jeffrey Pollack In-Depth Video Interview
Created By: Matthew Showell Posted in: WSOP BlogJust 72 hours after the conclusion of this year's WSOP Main Event final table WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack announced his resignation.
It came as a bit of a surprise but by all accounts there are no nefarious secrets behind this situation.
While Pollack's resignation is probably more interesting to people in the media and the industry, fans of the WSOP should recognize that Pollack has played a big part in the improvements we've seen at the Series over the last few years.
The November Nine concept and huge increases in the player fields and prize pools are two of the most visible results of Pollack's tenure as WSOP Commish.
Pollack had a vlog on RawVegas.tv so it's only fitting that he sat down with them to talk about it all.
We've got the three-part video interview embedded right here for you to watch so check it out.
For parts 2 and 3 make sure you're on the post page!
Joe Cada's win at the 2009 WSOP Main Event has had time to sink in and we're ready to bring you the heads-up installment of our November Nine photo blog.
Taking photos is my favorite part of the job and that goes double for the Main Event. This year our hats are off to the WSOP staff for making it so easy to get great pictures of all the action.
We were all over that stage and we have the photos to prove it. Here's a visual account of the heads-up match with a few words for context. But don't worry; you won't have to do much reading.
Even without the four-month break, this year's Main Event final table would have been one of the most talked about in history.
The reason behind that is obvious: Phil Ivey.
In the last two years Phil Ivey has been elevated from regular poker player to this mythical creature whose exploits don't even seem real.
When he made the final table it was guaranteed to be huge. But with the ESPN hype machine working 24/7 during the four-month break, this final table was the most anticipated ever.
Those extra months allowed Ivey and all the November Niners to do interviews and remind people to tune in and watch the WSOP final table.
All the lead up means more viewers. The numbers aren't in yet but it has to be the most watched WSOP final table in history and as far as I'm concerned the more people watching poker the better.
Even without Phil Ivey there were some great story lines at the table. You had the disgruntled Jeff Shulman claiming he would throw the bracelet away should he win. You had the logger from Maryland who ran hotter than the sun in Darvin Moon. Then you had Joe Cada, who could eclipse Peter Eastgate as the youngest Main Event champion ever.
And that's just the short list. The rest of the players all had stories of their own and they could all play poker, so it wasn't surprising that they gave us a great final table.
Some WSOP ME Final Table Highlights:
Biggest Suck-Outs at the 2009 WSOP ME Final Table
Created By: Matthew Showell Posted in: WSOP Blog
Skill and luck play parts in any poker tournament victory. It's just that sometimes one seems a lot more important than the other.
That was the case at the final table of the 2009 WSOP Main Event as both Darvin Moon and Joe Cada were bailed out repeatedly by the generosity of Lady Luck.
We're not here to make judgment calls on how these two played but one thing is for sure, a few big bad beats stand out in the minds of those that watched the playdown yesterday.
And so, we bring you the four biggest suckouts that helped pave the way to the heads-up match for Darvin Moon and Joe Cada. These weren't the only ones at the final table, but they were the most memorable.
As you're (hopefully) aware the final table of the 2009 WSOP Main Event went from nine players to two yesterday in a long-winded 17-hour session.
We were there for every second of it, camera in hand, and we managed to get some good shots of the action.
Instead of making you sort through them all to find the best ones we're going to put them all in one place. Luckily for you that place is right here.
Welcome to the first installment of the 2009 WSOP Main Event final table photo blog.Phil Ivey Busts WSOP Main Event Final Table
Created By: Matthew Showell Posted in: WSOP Blog
The poker world just had a knife plunged into its heart and that knife came in the form of a bad beat laid on Phil Ivey at the final table of the 2009 WSOP Main Event.
Ivey was the fan favorite, the best player not only at this table but at any table anywhere where poker is played.
We wanted him to win the Main Event and, chances are if you're reading this, you did too.
It wasn't to be however. He played well and despite losing a few key pots he put himself in a great spot to make a run at the title.
In the end he went out like so many of us have, holding the best hand and watching helplessly as the dealer laid his demise down on the felt.
A-K for Ivey against Darvin Moon's A-Q. A queen on the flop and it was all over.
Ivey gets seventh place and $1.4 million and change but the poker world gets nothing but a pervading sense of disappointment.
Ivey, our hats are off to you. You're still the man. Even if we now know for sure that you're mortal.
There are plenty of poker pros in the seats at the 2009 WSOP Main Event but the only real celebrity we've seen is Ja Rule, and he's here to support Phil Ivey.
Other players might have gangloads of supporters cheering every time they're in a pot but Ivey has Ja Rule.
We're big fans of the lifestyle Ja Rule portrays in his videos. Jet skis, amazingly beautiful women, popping bottles of expensive drink, all good things.
We think Ivey's down with that stuff too so it's no wonder these two hit it off. Anyway, one thing's for sure, if Ivey wins and Ja Rule's still around it's going to be a sick afterparty.
Anyway, onto some predictions and opinions about the November Nine ... bear in mind that I haven't watched all of the available ESPN footage, so I may be missing some info about players' tendencies and capabilities.
First, I don't think Phil Ivey has nearly as good of a shot as most people seem to think (since 90% of people seem to be sure he'll win it seems).
Yes, Ivey is at least one of the best, and probably the best player in the entire world. He's clearly the best player at the final table. But with blinds soon going to 150/300k (40k) and the average stack at nearly 22 million, Phil only has 9.8 million.
He's not in panic mode or desperately shortstacked, but he doesn't have as much room to maneuver as he'd like to.
With one World Series (baseball) drawing to a close and the final table of another (poker) set to kick off Friday, we thought we'd bring you a not-so-useful cross-genre analogy just for shits and giggles.
Welcome to the first ever World Series of Poker November Nine baseball team.
Players: The nine dudes at the final table, silly.
Manager: Me
Team Name: The Niners
Although this blog may not have any value or pertinent relevance, at the very least let it be an exercise in thinking outside of the (batter's) box. B'doom ching!
So as GM of this unique squad it is my duty to delegate positional defense as well as arrange the most effective offensive line up. The assignment is as challenging as it is pointless. I look forward to it.
So without further ado, I present to you The Niners.
In the past when we've done a feature interview with a high-stakes player we run the entire transcript here in the blog. Because this one is Phil Ivey we did you one better and videotaped the entire interview for you to watch.
This is 13 minutes of pure and uncut Ivey and it's worth watching. Ivey is one bad dude and anything he says is worth listening to. This is our very own Martin Derbyshire kicking it with Ivey and talking about a ton of different stuff.
Ivey opens up and has a frank discussion which is great to see. There are some epic quotes in there so check out the video below. Click through here for the feature news story.
If you're on the main blog page click through to the post page to see the embedded video.
Darvin Moon is a man of few words. If he was writing this article it's likely that's where it would end.
He absolutely bulldozed the playdown to the final table back in July, building an enormous chip lead he'll carry into the final table.
58,930,000 represents about 30 per cent of the chips in play and they're all sitting on the patch of felt in front of the logger from Maryland.
Considering Eric Buchman is second with just 34.8 million, Moon has a distinct advantage in the chip department.
Despite his commanding lead few people see Darvin Moon winning this tournament. Moon himself, funnily enough, can be counted among the skeptics.
The E:60 Episode featuring Phil Ivey aired on ESPN and we've got it right here for you to watch.
The media attention is really ramping up with the November Nine final table just a few days away and this is a great addition to the array of Ivey-oriented content on offer.
And goddam is Ivey a baller. ESPN gets access that is unheard of in the poker media. On the jet, in the suite, at the high-stakes pit games. Check this video out. You won't be disappointed.
21 years old and already a successful online pro, Joe Cada has a chance at becoming the youngest Main Event winner this weekend in Las Vegas.
He's got 13,215,000, good for fifth in chips, and with blinds of 120k/240k when the November Nine return he'll have a bit of room to maneuver.
Cada has stacked over half a million dollars in tournament earnings but describes himself as a cash game player.
His biggest MTT result was almost $150,000 courtesy of taking down the $750k guarantee on Full Tilt.
One of the most well known of the 2009 November Nine, Jeff Shulman has one distinct advantage over the other eight players: This is his second time at the final table of a WSOP Main Event.
This year Shulman enters the finale fourth in chips but back in the year 2000 he held a commanding lead over the rest of the table, which included one Chris "Jesus" Ferguson.
One bad beat set the stage for Shulman's elimination in seventh and paved the way for Jesus to become a world champion.
Now, just nine years later, Shulman has another chance at winning the biggest tournament in poker.
Another classic WSOP Photoshop. Darvin Moon and Creedence, a match made in heaven.
The 2009 WSOP Main Event final table is just days away and PokerListings.com will be in Vegas to bring you all the action live.
Check out our Live 2009 WSOP Coverage starting November 7th to follow it all.
The players at the final table of the 2009 Main Event have a serious problem: Millions of dollars and nothing to blow it on.
Sure, they'll be in Las Vegas and they could burn it up in a haze of pit games and luxury suites, but they'll want something to remember their extravagance with.
We're going to suggest that they do what we do every time we come into a large sum of money, spend it all in once place!
You've probably been told repeatedly to do exactly the opposite and NOT spend it all in one place but that shit doesn't play in this day and age.
Here's our one-stop shopping list to help the November Nine get rid of those pesky millions.
November Nine Profile: Steven Begleiter
Created By: PokerListings.com Posted in: WSOP Blog
Entering the 2009 WSOP November Nine final table third in chips and guaranteed $1.26 million, Steven Begleiter has been forced to take poker a little more seriously than he has in the past.
The Chappaqua, N.Y. native enjoys poker recreationally, mainly on the East Coast, and won his seat to the 2009 WSOP Main Event through an amateur league he plays in with his friends.
Their home games run in unison with the school year, September to June, and a portion of each tournament they play is put towards one $10,000 entry to the World Series Main Event.
His buddies can't be too disappointed that Begleiter is representing them in Vegas, since they all have a piece of his action.
Things have changed for Kevin Schaffel since he made the WSOP 2009 Main Event final table. After a tough start to his pro career almost two years ago he's managed to turn things around in a big way over the last four months.
At the beginning of 2008 Schaffel pulled the plug on his family direct mailing and printing business, turning to poker to pay the bills.
A profitable cash game player in the years leading up to going pro Schaffel was nonetheless challenged by the daily grind of playing for a living. He posted small cashes on the EPT and the WPT before playing the 2009 Main Event.
Schaffel already had some Main Event experience, having cashed twice before with a 42nd place finish all the way back in 2004 being his best result. This year he broke through and now finds himself numbered among the nine players with a shot at this year's world championship.The Main Event Final Table Drinking Game
Created By: Matthew Showell Posted in: WSOP Blog
If you're anything like us you're going to be enjoying a few adult beverages as you watch this year's ESPN broadcast of the WSOP Main Event final table.
To help you make the drinking part a bit more entertaining we've developed a drinking game based around televised poker.
The game will work with any televised poker but for best results use it for final tables, since they show all full hands.
The rules are simple and, if followed to the letter, will guarantee a drunkening to remember (or not remember).
The 2009 WSOP Main Event final table is less than a week away and before we do the deed we wanted to get you in the mood with a fresh series of profiles. The first choice was obvious: Phil Ivey.
Unlike the vast majority of the poker world Phil Ivey didn't have to make the November Nine to get a spot in the limelight. The limelight follows Ivey wherever he goes.
Entering the final table seventh in chips with 9.765 million he's got his work cut out for him.
Ivey is a mythical figure that walks among us. Even before this year's World Series of Poker, he was regarded by most as the best all-around player in the game.
He crushes online. He crushes live. He treats tournaments, cash games, prop bets and high stakes pit games as his personal ATM.
Ivey 78% Favorite; Online Polls Not Accurate
Created By: Matthew Showell Posted in: WSOP Blog
78% of people who filled out an online poll on www.wsop.com believe Phil Ivey will win the 2009 WSOP Main Event.
This confirms to us that people are generally dumb and that online polls are in no way accurate.
Ivey is the greatest, no question, but he's still fallible and it's not like he's won every final table he's ever been at.
Lest we forget, he made seven WPT final tables before winning his eighth. There are only six players at WPT final tables.
The funny thing is, part of me can't argue with backing Ivey in something as big as the Main Event. This is the biggest opportunity in Phil Ivey's life and he has a way of pulling it out when he needs to.
Anyway, the rest of the November Nine can't be too happy seeing how low they're rated by the public (or at least that part of the public that votes in online polls about poker).
Here's how the rest stack up.
- Phil Ivey 78.05%
- Darvin Moon 6.57%
- Jeff Shulman 5.62%
- Eric Buchman 2.34%
- Joe Cada 2.18%
- James Akenhead 2.1%
- Antoine Saout 1.11 %
- Steven Begleiter 1.1%
- Kevin Schaffel 0.75%
Main Event Snapshot: Balmigere Makes World-Class Laydown
Created By: Daniel Skolovy Posted in: WSOP Blog
With the latest two Main Event episodes airing last night, we're now down to the final two tables.
This week we saw Ivey looking ridiculously human mucking a flush with no action on the river (late night at Bobby's Room anyone?) and Nick Maimone looking Moneymakeresque, getting in bad and hitting every time.
We were also forced to suffer through more of Norman Chad's stupid jokes and awful poker commentary.
Side note: If I have to listen to Norman Chad tell one more person to "bet to see where he's at" I'm going to kill a kitten.
But I digress. This week's snapshot comes not from this week's broadcast but from last week's. It was a hand too good to pass up and we really didn't see any hands played to the river on the latest broadcasts.
Without further ado.
Watch Kevin Schaffel on ESPN Inside Deal
Created By: Matthew Showell Posted in: WSOP Blog
ESPN's Inside Deal is running through the November Nine crew, well, the ones wearing PokerStars patches. This week they have Kevin Schaffel and we've got it embedded right here for you to watch.
Like we've said before, Inside Deal is doing a good job of legitimizing the poker news show format. They have a real set, real hosts and they cover pretty much everything of note, at least topically.
What's not so great are the intros. I know they're just supposed to be fun, quick little gags but for the most part they come off pretty labored.
In today's Laura Lane has her hands tied behind her back so that's something at least.
Watch the video below and tell us what you think in the comment section at the bottom.
Bloggers
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- The Poker Reporter Blog
Poker news, gossip, parties, donkstrikery and functioning illiteracy with the PL.com crew!
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- Matt Stout's Allinat420 Blog
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- Liz Lieu's Poker Diva Blog
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- Jason Mercier Poker Blog
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