2008 WSOP Blog

Monday, June 30, 2008

2008 WSOP: Day 31 Recap

Day 31 at the 2008 WSOP was one for the ages. Although there were five events on the docket, everyone had their eyes planted firmly on the final table of the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E.

With names like Erick Lindgren, Scotty Nguyen and Barry Greenstein all gunning for what has arguably become poker's most prestigious event, it was difficult for poker fans to look elsewhere.

The day started off with another highly prestigious event (especially to Europeans). Event 50, $10,000 World Championship Pot-Limit Hold'em, started at 12 p.m. and was chock-full of extremely high-level poker talent. Patrik Antonius, Doyle Brunson, Robert Mizrachi and Tom Dwan were in attendance, to name a few.

In the end it was none other than Omaha master Josh Arieh who had managed to grab the chip lead with approximately $350,000 chips. Tune in tomorrow at 2 p.m. to see who makes the final table.

Brazil arrives in the poker world.

At 2 p.m. the final table for Event 48, $2,000 No-Limit Hold'em, kicked off with "CrazyMarco" Marco Johnson leading a pack of nine players in the quest for a bracelet. Although the final table was overshadowed by the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E., there were some sick hands that took place in Event 48.

Perhaps the worst was when Alan Cutler shoved with A-Q and Brazilian poker pro Alexandre Gomes called with 7 6. The flop came A Q J to basically give Cutler the pot ... but wait. The turn came 6 to give Gomes a shot at the miracle one-outer. As luck would have it, the 6 fell on the river, garnering Gomes the pot and eliminating Cutler.

Gomes would later crack Marco Johnson's AA with A-T to continue his sick run. Gomes eventually won Event 48 and became the first Brazilian to win a bracelet.

Also starting at 2 p.m. was Day 2 of Event 49, $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em. Although we here at PL.com don't care for venturing into the Brasilia Room, we did so to see if Greg Mueller or J.C. Tran could secure a spot at the final table.

Looking for bracelet numero uno.

In the end Mueller didn't make the final table, but J.C. Tran did, in grand fashion: he'll have $980,000 to work with there. The chip leader, however, will be Danish pro Rasmus Nielsen with a solid $2.6 million.

At 3:45 it was time for the event that everyone had been waiting for - the final table of Event 45, $50,000 H.O.R.S.E.

Only one player of the final eight would be the first to get his name engraved on the Chip Reese Memorial Trophy and make poker history.

Patrick Bueno, Huck Seed and Barry Greenstein were the first to fall in the epic poker contest. Lyle Berman and Matt Glantz busted after the dinner break, but it was then the real fun began.

Three-way action between Erick Lindgren, Michael DeMichelle and Scotty Nguyen lasted for hours with massive fluctuations in the chip stacks. DeMichelle held the chip lead several times but by the later portion of the night they were all almost equal.

The Prince of Poker is back, baby!

Finally Nguyen laid off the beers and started playing some power poker. He built up a massive stack and at nearly 5 a.m. managed to eliminate Lindgren. Going into heads-up play Nguyen held a 6-1 chip lead and made no missteps, finishing the event with a bang.

Nguyen got all-in with A-9 versus DeMichelle's A-3 and made it stack. Nguyen won Event 45 and became the first player to get his name on the Chip Reese Memorial Trophy, and with the $2 million for first place he'll be able afford a lifetime of Michelob Light. Congratulations to the Prince of Poker.

It was probably the most H.O.R.S.E.-themed day in the history of the WSOP, as the first $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. event started at 5 p.m.

Phil Hellmuth leading a mixed event? What is the world coming to?

The baby H.O.R.S.E. (which counted as Event 51) brought out all the usual suspects including Vanessa Rousso, Shannon Elizabeth and recent two-time bracelet winner Ryan Hughes. Many pros showed up who'd busted from the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. in previous days, including Daniel Negreanu, Tom Schneider and Chris Ferguson.

In all there were a total of 815 players who came out to try their luck in the equine-titled event. Phil Hellmuth, who is not known for his skill at mixed games, inexplicably ended the day as the chip leader with $43,000, and Joe Hachem and Victor Ramdin were also among the chip leaders.

Join us tomorrow for more poker action than you can believe as we try to shake off our $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. hangover.