Steve Glidden of Milan shows off the $400 in gift cards he received as champion of the Veterans Outreach Program’s no-limit hold’em tournament last weekend.

‘My legs are getting worse,’ says VOP champ Steve Glidden; strong local amateur player Barry Price is runner-up

Just moments after Saturday’s fundraising hold’em tournament for the Veterans Outreach Program, I knew we had witnessed the perfect outcome. The champion, a disabled veteran, would be putting his $400 gift card top prize to excellent use.

“I will use this toward building a ramp to my deck. My legs are getting worse,” said Steve Glidden, 42, of Milan. He’s not confined to a wheelchair yet, but his doctors say the ramp will become a necessity at some point as his mobility continues to diminish.

Glidden has been suffering increasing pain in both legs and loss of balance since 2007 when he was diagnosed with neuropathy. He made his way Saturday around the tournament area at Moline’s American Legion Post 246 using a cane.

Although he clearly was experiencing discomfort, he didn’t let the pain deter him from winning the tournament in exciting fashion. The $400 gift card he’ll use at Menard’s was just a bonus.

“I didn’t care if I won or lost,” he said. “I wanted to play today because the money raised will help local veterans.”

After four hours of tournament action, the smaller-than-hoped-for field of 16 players had been whittled down to Glidden and Barry Price of Coal Valley. Price is an accomplished local amateur player with a respected track record in area card rooms.

With 150,000 chips in play, the heads-up competitors exchanged a few pots back and forth until the key hand came up with Price holding a slim chip lead.

Price was dealt K-J offsuit and, sensing this was a good opportunity to wrap things up, he moved all-in. Glidden made the relatively easy call, however, with an even better hand — K-Q suited. A queen came on the flop, putting Glidden well ahead in the hand. Price did have a straight draw, but missed on the turn and river. Glidden now held almost all the chips.

With a crippled stack, Price had no choice but to put the rest of his chips into the pot on the next hand holding J-6 offsuit. Glidden hit a pair of fours on the river to seal the victory.

The remaining final table finishers were: 3rd — Sherry Miller of Colona; 4th — Bob Stineman of Davenport; 5th — Chuck Langman of Rock Island; 6th — Austin Hodges of Donahue, Iowa; 7th — Amanda Swenson of Milan; 8th — Bryan Baum of Rock Island.

The final-table dynamic was interesting. For instance, Miller is Price’s sister (Barry knocked her out); Stineman won last year’s United Way tournament in Bettendorf, good for a trip to Las Vegas and a seat at a World Poker Tour Poker Academy; Hodges won the spring 2009 U.S. Army qualifying tournament at Arsenal Island and finished eighth in world-wide Army competition; and Swenson was a first-time player who was thrilled with her showing and “just happy I wasn’t the first one knocked out.”

The state-funded Veterans Outreach Program provides a variety of job placement services for military veterans. When those funds started drying up, Paul Herrera and James Stout of the VOP decided to conduct a poker tournament and other fundraisers to boost the agency’s meager $40,000 budget. Only in operation since this spring, the agency already has assisted hundreds of veterans.

On a personal note as tournament director, I think everyone had a great time despite the low turnout. Many thanks to Paul and James at the VOP for giving me and my tournament team a chance to help our local veterans. A special thank-you goes out to all of those who volunteered and trained to deal the event, and to Jeff McMahon and Cathy Harris at the Arsenal for providing a ton of support to stage the event. To those who played the tournament and to the sponsors who helped make it a modest financial success — we are deeply grateful.

VOP hold’em champ Steve Glidden, front right, is joined by final-table volunteer tournament dealer Ronna Strang, and standing left to right, Paul Herrera, Russ Scott and James Stout.

Steve Glidden of Milan finished on top at Saturday’s fundraising hold’em tournament conducted by the Veterans Outreach Program in Moline. In addition to a $400 gift card, he received a LuckyDog Poker gold vial card protector.

At the final table of the VOP hold’em tournament are Bob Stineman (white shirt), Amanda Swenson, dealer Ronna Strang of the LuckyDog Poker tournament team, Sherry Miller, and eventual champion Steve Glidden. Among the volunteer helpers watching, standing at right, is Peggy VanZandt, member of the LuckyDog tournament team.

The rest of the VOP final table: From left, Bryan Baum, Chuck Langman, Austin Hodges and Barry Price. Chatting in the background are Tom Roemer, past winner of a U.S. Army tournament on Arsenal Island, and Jody Newkirk, a LuckyDog tournament team member.

Volunteer dealer Curtis Lange keeps the action moving during Saturday’s hold’em tournament for the Veterans Outreach Program in Moline.

The no-limit Texas hold’em event, to be held at American Legion Post 246, 1623 15th St. in Moline, is open to all players age 18 and older. Money raised will be used by the VOP for its job-placement services and other assistance it provides to local U.S. military vets and their families.

Action begins at 1 p.m., but players will be called to their seats at 12:50 p.m. The champion will receive a $400 gift card and all final-table competitors will win a prize.

Buy-in is $40, with one optional $20 rebuy. Registration opens at noon for walk-ins but seating is limited to the first 140 players. Don’t get shut out!

Tournament director is yours truly. It’s a gig my tournament team gladly accepted because of the chance to help our local veterans.

Players will appreciate that this is a deepstack event, with each competitor receiving 5,000 in chips and starting blinds of 25-50. That’s 100 big blinds to start — and you get another 5,000 chips for your rebuy, if you need them! Betting levels will be 20 minutes long and we’ll be trying to finish between 6:30-7:30.

You might also want to read my current LuckyDog Poker column offering strategy tips for playing a rebuy tournament with a tall starting stack. Just click here.

We’re putting out a special call for volunteer dealers. If we hit our 140-player target, we’ll need about 20 volunteers to do the dealing so the players can just concentrate on playing. We’ll hold a training session for all volunteers on how to deal tournament poker the evening before at Post 246 from 6-8 p.m. Please shoot me an e-mail at russ@luckydogpoker.com if you can help deal the tournament.

To pre-register or to volunteer as a non-playing dealer, contact Paul Herrera at 309-797-7950, at vopmoline@yahoo.com, or at the VOP office, 163 4th Ave., Moline.

WE HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!

After nearly 18 hours of play, the 2010 World Series of Poker “November Nine” was determined early Sunday morning. These nine players will return to the Rio in early November to battle it out for the world championship, a first-place prize of nearly $9 million, and the most coveted bracelet in the game. From left, with chip counts in parenthesis, are Jason Senti (7,625,000), Joseph Cheong (23,525,000), John Dolan (46,250,000), Jonathan Duhamel (65,975,000), Michael Mizrachi (14,450,000), Matthew Jarvis (16,700,000), John Racener (19,050,000), Filippo Candio (16,400,000), and Soi Nguyen (9,650,000). (WSOP photo/Rob Gracie)

CANADIAN PRO ON TOP; MICHAEL MIZRACHI IN 7TH PLACE

A grueling day and night of poker left nine lucky players with smiles on their faces and a chance to become the 2010 world champion.

Six U.S. players made the “November Nine” about 6 a.m. Sunday PDT, but the chip leader was Jonathan Duhamel, a 22-year-old poker pro from Canada. Five other Canadians won gold bracelets during the 57 events of the 41st running of this year’s World Series.

The biggest name among U.S. players is Michael ‘The Grinder” Mizrachi, who is in 7th chip position and relatively short-stacked. But he has survived on less than average chips for two or three days and can’t be counted out. He won the huge $50,000 WSOP Players Championship to kick off things nearly two months ago.

The field late Saturday night was reduced to 10, but it took more than six hours to knock out that one, last player and send everyone home. The unlucky “bubble boy” was Brandon Steven of Wichita, Kan.

One player who will be watching Mizrachi closely at November’s final table is Frank Kassela, who was the prohibitive favorite to win the 2010 Player of the Year award when the main event started two weeks ago. Now, incredibly, he could be tied for that title by Mizrachi if “The Grinder” comes from behind and wins the bracelet.

It would be a spectacular finish to the event for Mizrachi and the vocal fans who cheered him on.

For tons of information about the final day of play, profiles of the “November Nine”, and a review of the record-breaking 2010 WSOP, click here for media director Nolan Dalla’s full report,

Official Report

No-Limit Hold’em World Championship

Buy-In: $10,000

Number of Entries: 7,319

Number of Players Starting Day Eight: 27

Total Players Remaining: 9

Total Net Prize Pool: $68,798,600

Number of Places Paid: 747

First Place Prize: $8,944,138

July 5th to November 9th, 2010

DAY EIGHT

2010 November Nine is Set!

Down to Nine: All Remaining Players Guaranteed at Least $811,823

Jonathan Duhamel Holds Chip Lead Going into Long Recess

Will Duhamel Become the First Canadian WSOP Main Event Champion?

110-Day Recess Begins – Final Table Begins November 6th

Out of 7,319 Total Starters – Only Nine Dreams Remain Alive

Canada, Italy, and the United States Represented Among Final Nine

Note: For the tournament portal page for the 2010 Main Event, click HERE.

OVERVIEW

Two weeks ago, 7,319 poker players took their seats in the 2010 World Series of Poker Main Event. Among the many hopefuls were 18 former world champions, nearly 150 gold bracelet winners, in addition to professional and amateur poker players from 92 different nations and territories — all united by one common dream.

That dream — winning the 2010 World Series of Poker Main Event championship — can and will come true for only one. Indeed, there can be only one world champion.

After 78 grueling hours of poker played over eight days, nine players remain. This year’s November Nine are:

SEAT 1: Jason Sentl
Hometown: St. Louis Park, MN (USA)
Age: 25
Profession: Poker Pro
Note: This is Sentl’s first time to ever cash in a WSOP event. He picked the right tournament and the right year to achieve a poker breakout.
Chip Count: 7,625,000

SEAT 2: Joseph Cheong
Hometown: La Mirada, CA (USA)
Age: 24
Profession: Poker Pro
Note: Cheong won a WSOP Circuit gold ring and earned a degree in psychology from UC-San Diego. When Cheong won his victory three months ago, he promised himself he would play in the Main Event. Here he is, competing on poker’s grandest stage.
Chip Count: 23,525,000

SEAT 3: John Dolan
Hometown: Bonita Springs, FL (USA)
Age: 24
Profession: Poker Pro
Note: Dolan has six WSOP cashes, including three at this year’s series. He has been one of the more consistent performers on this tournament, hanging around the leader board much of the way.
Chip Count: 46,250,000

SEAT 4: Jonathan Duhamel
Hometown: Boucherville, Quebec (Canada)
Age: 22
Profession: Poker Pro
Note: This is Duhamel’s third time to cash at this year’s WSOP. This has been a big year for Canada, with five gold bracelet winners. Duhamel hopes to become the sixth.
Chip Count: 65,975,000

SEAT 5: Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi
Hometown: Miami, FL (USA)
Age: 29
Profession: Poker Pro
Note: “The Grinder” is among the most successful tournament performers since the poker boom began. He won his first WSOP gold bracelet and $1,559,046 in this year’s Poker Players Championship.
Chip Count: 14,450,000

SEAT 6: Matthew Jarvis
Hometown: Surrey, BC (Canada)
Age: 25
Profession: Poker Pro/Student
Note: Jarvis is primarily an online player. This marks his first time to cash in a WSOP tournament. Jarvis would become the first Canadian world champion should he win the Main Event.
Chip Count: 16,700,000

SEAT 7: John Racener
Hometown: Port Richey, FL (USA)
Age: 24
Profession: Poker Pro
Note: Racener is one of the stars of the national WSOP Circuit, with more than $500,000 in earnings, including the 2007 Main Event championship victory at Harrah’s Atlantic City.
Chip Count: 19,050,000

SEAT 8: Filippo Candio
Hometown: Cagliari, Sardinia (Italy)
Age: 26
Profession: Poker Pro
Note: Candio is the first Italian player ever to make it to the Main Event final table. He has a number of cashes at major tournaments held in Europe.
Chip Count: 16,400,000

SEAT 9: Cuong “Soi” Nguyen
Hometown: Santa Ana, CA (USA)
Age: 37
Profession: Sales (Medical Supplies)
Note: Nguyen is the senior player at this final table, at the advanced age of 36. He is also the only amateur sitting among the final nine. Nguyen has been near the chip lead during the past three days of competition. He cashed in the 2008 Main Event (614th place).
Chip Count: 9,650,000

To see a full list of all players who cashed in this year’s Main Event, click HERE.

The championship final table, also known as the November Nine, will be played starting on November 6th, 2010. 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 in prize money, the coveted WSOP gold bracelet, and designation as the official 2010 world poker champion.

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

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

Stay tuned. The best is yet to come.

AND ON THE EIGHTH DAY….

The 2010 WSOP Main Event continued with the play and conclusion of Day Eight. The day played all the way down from 27 initial survivors to the final nine players, which has become popularly known as the “November Nine.” Hence, there are nine players remaining in the Main Event.

The current chip leader is Jonathan Duhamel, from Boucherville, Quebec (Canada).

No Canadian player has ever won the WSOP Main Event.

This year, five Canadians won WSOP gold bracelets.

There is only one former gold bracelet winner still alive in the Main Event – Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi.

The oldest player still remaining is 37.

The youngest player still remaining is 22.

Of the surviving players, eight of the nine are age 29 or younger.

There are six Americans remaining in the Main Event.

There are three non-American (international) players remaining in the Main Event.

There are three different nations with players still alive in the Main Event. The nations are Canada, Italy, and the United States.

There are no women remaining in the Main Event. A female has not appeared at the championship final table since 1995.

There are no former world champions remaining. Johnny Chan (Las Vegas, NV) was this year’s top finisher, finishing in 156th place. The last former winner to make it to a final table was Dan Harrington, back in 2004.

HOW THEY BUSTED: ELIMINATIONS (27 DOWN TO 9)

27th place – Johnny Lodden (Jorpeland, Norway) was eliminated a few hands into play when he lost a critical race holding against Matt Affleck’s . The turn was a real heartbreaker for Lodden as the ten fell, making a higher pair for Affleck. The final board showed which meant the pair of tens scooped the pot over the pair of eights. Lodden, a top online pro who has enjoyed success in major tournaments held in Europe, accepted $317,161 in his best WSOP finish.

26th place – Matthew Bucaric (Knoxville, TN), a 25-year-old poker pro, graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Tennessee. He described his playing style as someone who is “willing to put it one the line at any time.” Unfortunately, Bucaric put his tournament life on the line at the wrong time when he was all-in holding against Filippo Candio’s after the flop came . Both players flopped big draws, with Bucaric clearly in the lead holding the middle pair. The turn was a killer for Bucaric as the fell, completing a flush for Candio. Bucaric still had outs drawing to a higher flush, but the bricked on the river which sealed the fate of the Tennessean. Bucaric could take some satisfaction in collecting $317,161 for his deep run in the Main Event.

25th place – Mads Wissing (Copenhagen, Denmark) is a 28-year-old online poker pro who has just recently converted to playing in live tournaments. He had never cashed in a WSOP event before. Wissing went out on a frustrating hand where he flopped top pair, but lost to a crippling turn card. William Thorson was dealt versus Wissing’s . Thorson made an aggressive move by check-raising all-in with bottom pair after the flop came . Wissing was holding top pair (tens), with a weak kicker. Wissing made the correct call. The on the turn ripped Wissing, giving two pair to Thorson. A black on the river meant the two pair held up. Wissing could take some pride in earning $317,161 in his first WSOP cash.

24th place – Ronnie Bardah (Stoneham, MA) is a 27-year-old poker pro from Brockton, MA. He has been a winning poker player for seven straight years, enjoying success in both tournaments and cash games. This marked his biggest cash ever. Bardah took his final dive when he was dealt which was steamrolled by Filippo Candio’s . The pocket rockets held up as the blank board ran out . Bardah pocketed more than $300,000 in his first-ever WSOP in-the-money finish.

23rd place – Robert Pisano (Las Vegas, NV) enjoyed a strong run in the Main Event. He was one the winning side of one of the tournament’s most exciting hands when he destroyed Johnny Chan’s giant stack, two days earlier (holding pocket Aces versus Chan’s pocket Kings on Day Six). Pisano’s momentum finally expired when he was short stacked and was dealt . The flop provided Pisano several extra possibilities as the appeared. But his opponent Pascal LeFrancois held , giving the Canadian top pair. The final two cards were the and , which meant LeFrancois had a pair of Queens (and deuces), besting Pisano’s Jacks up.

22nd place – William Thorson (Varberg, Sweden) a 27-year-old poker pro was eliminated when he made a final stand holding . The all-in move came at a bad time, since John Dolan was sitting on a monster . The board cards brought no help to Thorson who watched helplessly as the board ran , giving Dolan’s kings the pot. Thorson became the highest-finishing Scandinavian player this year and ended up with $317,161 for a fine effort.

21st place – Redmond Lee (London, UK) is a 26-year-old poker pro. He was the last British player remaining in the Main Event until busting out on a dominated hand. Lee was dealt the underdog and shoved all in hoping to steal a round of antes and blinds. He was called instantly by Michiel Sijpkens, holding . The board ran out , which meant the higher pair (tens) won the pot. Lee earned $317,161.

20th place — Patrick Eskandar (Gulfport, MS) is a 28-year-old poker pro who made his final stand with against Soi Nguyen’s . The flop was ugly for Eskandar, coming . The and on the turn and river gave Nguyen two pair and the large pot. Meanwhile, Eskanfar had to settle for the $317,161 payout for his two weeks of poker playing. He won his way into the Main Event via a $500 buy-in satellite tournament played at the Rio. Eskandar certainly enjoyed a huge return on his initial investment.

19th place – Michiel Sijpkens (Rotterdam, Netherlands) is a 21-year-old student. He could have become the youngest Main Event winner in history (besting Cada’s record by about two weeks) with a victory. But instead, the Dutchman had to settle for the two-table bubble spot. Sijpkens went bust with against John Racener’s . The flop essentially killed Sijpkens shot of doubling up, as the came. That was followed by the and , giving Racener the pot. Sijpkens enjoyed an incredible first WSOP by finishing 19th, which paid $317,161.

18th place – Scott Clements (Mt. Vernon, WA) is a 29-year-old poker pro. He is also a two-time gold bracelet winner, with victories in Pot-Limit Omaha (2007) and Omaha High-Low Split (2006). Clements made his deepest Main Event run ever, but was the first player to bust when play went down to two tables. Clements was low on chips and moved all in with . He picked the wrong hand to make his final stand, since Matthew Jarvis made a quick call with . The board came , which gave both players top pair. But Clements lost the kicker battle. Clements, one of the game’s best performers over the last five years added $396,967 in prize money to his WSOP winnings. Clements now has 18 cashes and more then $1.5 million in career WSOP earnings.

17th place – David Baker (Katy, TX) is a 38-year-old poker pro. He has enjoyed a breakthrough WSOP this year, capped by a 17th-place finish in the Main Event. Baker finally went out with when he missed a flush draw. He moved all in after the flop came . Jonathan Duhamel called and tabled . Two blanks fell on the turn and river and the and gave Duhamel the pot. Baker ended up with $396,967 in prize money.

16th place – Benjamin Statz (Brooklyn, NY) is a 32-year-old stock trader. His final hand took place when he was dealt . Statz had the advantage when he got a call by Matthew Jarvis, with . But the flop destroyed Statz’s hopes of making a double up. The hit the felt, which was all but a knockout blow to Statz. The meant Statz was drawing dead, and the on the river was a final fitting nail in the coffin of Statz’s dream. He earned a well-deserved $396,967.

15th place – Matt Affleck (Mill Creek, WA) is a 23-year-old poker pro. Prior to playing for a living, he was a student at the University of Washington. Affleck went out on a brutal beat. He was dealt against Jonathan Duhamel’s . After the flop came , the pot was up to 10 million. The fell on the turn, giving Duhamel an outside straight draw to go along with his pair. Affleck still held the best hand with pocket aces and made a grueling call for most of his chips after the turn card was shown. With a 25 million pot hanging in the balance, one of the tournament’s most extraordinary hands was completed when the rained down on the river, wiping out Affleck’s dreams of a championship. He received a nice consolation prize amounting to more than half-a-million dollars.

14th place – Hasan Habib (Downey, CA) is a 48-year-old professional poker player. He was the oldest player among the final 27 and brought the most experience of any player to the last three tables. In fact, Habib was the only player among the late survivors with any Main Event final table experience. Habib finished fourth in the 2000 championship, won by Chris “Jesus” Ferguson. Habib struggled with a low stack for about seven hours on Day Eight before finally busting out on what turned out to be a tough beat. Habib was dealt on his final hand. He was a big underdog to John Racener’s . The flop of gave Habib some hope and slight edge, with a pair of nines. The on the turn gave Racener some extra outs, and when the river brought the , that made Racener two pair with the better kicker (aces and tens). Habib collected $500,165. He won his gold bracelet in Seven-Card Stud High-Low Split (2004).

13th place – Duy Le (San Jose, CA) is a 27-year-old poker pro. He went out in a battle of the blinds that escalated to the point of elimination. John Dolan tried to pick up a round of blinds and antes when he moved all in with . Le called instantly and tabled the better hand, . The flop was not kind to Le, who watched helplessly as the gave Dolan a pair of Kings. The and on the turn and river sealed his fate, which was the unlucky position of 13th place. Le collected $500,165 in his biggest WSOP cash ever.

12th place – Adam Levy (Los Angeles, CA) is a 28-year old poker pro. He ran deep in the 2008 Main Event, finishing in 48th place. Levy ran into a roaring freight train on what became his final hand of the tournament when he was dealt and looked at the horrifying sight of seeing an opponent (Jonathan Duhamel) call and table . The board gave Levy little hope as the cards ran out . Levy’s pair of Kings were not good enough to take the pot, which resulted in him walking the poker plank off the final two tables in 12th place. Levy accepted a whale of payday, ending up with $635,011.

11th place – Pascal LeFrancois (Rosemere, Quebec-Canada) is a 24-year-old poker pro. He won a gold bracelet earlier this year in a $1,500 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em event. LeFrancois’ bid to become the first Canadian world champion in WSOP history was wrecked on a tough final hand. LeFrancois was dealt and moved all in with top pair after the flop came . But he was called and easily covered by Joseph Cheong, holding the . When the fell on the turn followed by the , LeFrancois waved “au revoir.” The Quebec champ enjoyed a huge WSOP this year, adding $635,011 in winnings from this tournament to an overall profit amounting to more than $1 million.

10th place – Brandon Steven (Wichita, KS) is a 35-year-old owner and operator of an automobile dealership. He was one of only two amateurs among the final ten. Aside from poker, Steven had done a lot of charity work. He was cited for his work raising money for leukemia research. Steven ended up as the unfortunate N9 “bubble” player in this tournament. He lost a late race holding which was cracked by Matthew Jarvis’ . The final board showed , which meant Jarvis’s pocket pair (queens) held up. Steven lost his last 8 million in the hand and the chance for immortality. The consolation prize was $635,011.
The final hand of the night was dealt at 5:45 am. Day Eight lasted 17 hours and 45 minutes.

The elimination of Brandon Steven left nine surviving players. The group is the official 2010 November Nine.

DAY EIGHT – WHAT HAPPENED

Play initially went much faster than expected. Many observers predicted a very long day and night, lasting perhaps 14-16 hours. This was due to the rapid pace of play during the previous days and relatively low blinds and antes in proportion to the stack sizes later in the tournament. But the final ten was reached by midnight – 12 hours after play began. Then, playing the last play of the ten-handed table took another five hours.

Only one player has crossed the 50-million chip mark. The first player to do so was Jonathan Duhamel, who went on a monster rush during the later stages of Day Eight. He ended up with 65,974,000 in his stack and the chip lead.

Here is how the chip leaders from each day (of this year’s Main Event) have fared:

1-A: Corwin Cole, from Las Vegas, NV – Did Not Cash
1-B: James Danielson, from LaPlata, MD – Did Not Cash
1-C: Mathieu Sauriol, from Laval, Quebec (Canada) – CASHED in 532nd place
1-D: Steve Billirakis, from Bourbonnais, IL – CASHED, in 257th place
2-A: Boulos Estafanous, from Darien, IL – CASHED in 733rd place
2-B: David Assouline from Hampstead, Quebec (Canada) – CASHED, in 44th place
3: James Carroll, from Henderson, NV – CASHED, in 96th place
4: Tony Dunst, Las Vegas, NV – CASHED, in 50th place
5: Evan Lamprea, Woodstock, Ontario (Canada) – CASHED, in 46th place
6: Theo Jorgensen, Copenhagen, Denmark – CASHED, in 30th place
7: Joseph Cheong, La Mirada, CA – SILL ALIVE, in 3rd place
8: Jonathan Duhamel, Boucherville, Quebec (Canada) — STILL ALIVE, in 1st place

Play was nine-handed. This format remained in effect until play reached the final 10 players. Then play temporarily combined to a 10-handed table. After one player was eliminated, the “November Nine” was set.

Day Eight played six levels. Each level is two hours long. Play began at noon and ended at 5:45 am.

The average stack size is currently 24,936,000 in chips.

When players return for the final table, blinds will be 250,000-500,000 with 50,000 ante. There is 1:14:46 (hours/minutes/seconds) remaining in Level 36.

With this day now complete, there are nine total players still alive in the Main Event.

Payouts increase at various intervals. Every player still alive in the tournament is currently guaranteed at least $811,823 in prize money. The next jump comes when 8th place is reached, which will pay $1,045,738 in the next increment.

2010 GOLD BRACELET WINNERS (HOW THEY FARED)

There were 56 WSOP gold bracelet winners this year coming into the Main Event. Here are the players who either cashed, or who remain alive going into Day Eight, along with their current status:

Michael Mizrachi — STILL ALIVE, currently in 7th place
Pascal LeFrancois – Cashed – 11th place
Tomer Berda – Cashed – 134th place
Matt Keikoan – Cashed – 196th place
Praz Bansi – Cashed – 240th place
Jason DeWitt – Cashed – 274th place
Simon Watt – Cashed – 397th place
Carter Phillips – Cashed – 483rd place
Eric Buchman – Cashed – 554th place
Frank Kassela — Cashed – 674th place
Gavin Smith — Cashed – 730th place

NATIONS AT THE WSOP

The following nations (3) still have players alive in the Main Event:

United States – 7 players
Canada – 2 players
Italy — 1 player

For only the second time ever, there are no residents of Las Vegas, NV at the Main Event final table. The 2008 Main Event also had no Las Vegas locals.

There were 92 nations and territories represented among all players who entered this year’s WSOP Main Event. (The entire 2010 WSOP attracted participants from 117 different locales).

This year’s Main Event was comprised of 67.9 percent Americans. In other words, 32.1 percent of all participants were from other nations and territories.

ODDS AND ENDS

This was the 51st and final day of the bulk of the 2010 WSOP.

WSOP Tournament Director Jack Effel estimates the total number of hands dealt out in this tournament from start to finish is about 600,000.

This was the second-largest live poker tournament in history. Only the 2006 WSOP Main Event, with 8,773 players was larger.

The total prize pool for this year’s Main Event totals $68,798,600. However, this figure is not final. Since interest is added to payouts for players who will constitute the November Nine, the final figure will actually be slightly higher.

Based on the birthdates of all 7,319 players, the average age of all participants in the Main Event this year was 37 years and 4 months.

Only one of the four Mizrachi Brothers (Michael Mizrachi) remains alive in the Main Event. All four brothers cashed — a WSOP first. But three brothers have now been eliminated, as Eric Mizrachi, Daniel Mizrachi, and Robert Mizrachi went out in 718th, 345th, and 116th places, respectively.

Michael Mizrachi is enjoying a stellar WSOP. No matter what happens from this point forward, Mizrachi’s victory in the Poker Players Championship in addition to his deep run in the Main Event stands as one of the top storylines and most impressive accomplishments of any player at this year’s World Series.

This is the 57th and final event on the 2010 WSOP schedule which is played in Las Vegas. Five more gold bracelet events will take place in London, England, at the Empire Casino, to be held September 14 through 28th as part of the Fourth Annual World Series of Poker Europe.

This marks the sixth consecutive year the WSOP has been held at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino. Prior to 2005, the WSOP was held at Binion’s Horseshoe in downtown Las Vegas. As a testament to the expansion of the WSOP since Harrah’s Entertainment assumed ownership and control of the world most prestigious poker event, more than three quarters of the $1.2 billion in prize money has been awarded to winners within the Rio – three times the amount awarded during the entire 35-year period at the Horseshoe.

This is the 885th gold bracelet event in World Series of Poker history. Note: This figure includes every official WSOP event played, including tournaments during the early years when there were no actual gold bracelets awarded. It also includes the 11 gold bracelets awarded to date at WSOP Europe.

In the 41-year history of the WSOP, the total combined amount of prize money that has been awarded amounts to $1,228,375,121.

The total number of entrants in the WSOP Main Event (all years combined) is 50,756.

The WSOP title sponsor the last two years has been Jack Link’s Beef Jerky. As part of a fun promotion, Jack Links gives away large quantities of their product to Main Event players who make big hands. This year’s key hand is four jacks. 63 players have made the hand thus far.

COMING NEXT: THE NOVEMBER NINE

The Main Event takes a 110-day break between Day Eight and the start of the final table. This marks the third year of a so-called “delayed” final table. While the decision to suspend Main Event play was initially controversial in poker circles, most poker players and fans now realize the advantages of a recess.

The final table will begin on Saturday, November 6th. After playing down to the final two, there will be an off day, followed by heads-up play (the final two) on Monday, November 8th.

For the third consecutive year, the final table will be played inside the Penn and Teller Theatre at the Rio Las Vegas. Seating is free an open to the public. However, as excitement builds there may not be enough seats to accommodate all fans. All poker fans who want to come and see the November Nine are encouraged to enjoy the excitement of the WSOP.

ESPN’s coverage of this year’s WSOP is scheduled to begin July 20th. Main Event coverage is scheduled to begin airing on August 10th. Original episodes will air weekly, leading up to the conclusion of the Main Event, which will be broadcast on November 9th. Most new episodes begin at 8:00 pm EST. Two new shows will be aired each week. Each new episode is one-hour long. This year, ESPN is showing 32 original episodes of WSOP coverage.

WOMEN IN THE MAIN EVENT

Special Note: The WSOP recognizes that player characteristics such as gender, race, etc. do not typically warrant special mention. However, since many members of the media wish to know details about female participation and status, the staff is providing this information for media use.

Breeze Zuckerman (Moorpark, CA) was the top female finisher this year – cashing in 121st place.

The unofficial total number of females who participated in this year’s Main Event was 216. There is no official record since entrants are not designated by their gender. However, it has been customary to count every player at the start of Day One and take an unofficial head-count of female players. This figure represents about 3 percent of the field.

Here are the highest-female finishers (by year) in the WSOP Main Event (Note: Only players who finished in-the-money were recorded):

No female cashed in the Main Event between the years 1970-1985.

1986 – Wendeen Eolis (25th)
1987 – None
1988 – None
1989 – None
1990 – None
1991 – None
1992 – None
1993 – Marsha Waggoner (19th)
1994 – Barbara Samuelson (10th)
1995 – Barbara Enright (5th)
1996 – Lucy Rokach (26th)
1997 – Marsha Waggoner (12th)
1998 – Susie Isaacs (10th)
1999 – None
2000 – Annie Duke (10th)
2001 – None
2002 – None
2003 – Annie Duke (47th)
2004 – Rose Richie (98th)
2005 – Tiffany Williamson (15th)
2006 – Sabyl Cohen-Landrum (56th)
2007 – Maria Ho (38th)
2008 – Tiffany Michelle (17th)
2009 – Leo Margets, a.k.a. Leonor Margets (27th)
2010 – Breeze Zuckerman (121st)

MAIN EVENT SUMMARY (NOTABLE PLAYERS)

Here is a final summary of this year’s performances of all former WSOP Main Event Champions:

1975/1976: Doyle Brunson – Eliminated Day 2-B
1978: Bobby “the Owl” Baldwin – Eliminated Day 2-A
1983: Tom McEvoy – Eliminated Day 2-A
1986: Berry Johnston – Eliminated Day 2-A
1987/1988: Johnny Chan – CASHED – 156th PLACE
1989: Phil Hellmuth – Eliminated Day 1-C
1993: Jim Bechtel – Eliminated Day 3
1995: Dan Harrington – Eliminated Day 4
1996: Huck Seed – Eliminated Day 1-C
1998: Scotty Nguyen – CASHED — 209th PLACE
2000: Chris “Jesus” Ferguson – Eliminated Day 2-B
2001: Carlos Mortensen – Eliminated Day 2-A
2002: Robert Varkonyi – Eliminated Day 4
2003: Chris Moneymaker – Eliminated Day 3
2004: Greg “Fossilman” Raymer – Eliminated Day 1-A
2005: Joe Hachem – Eliminated Day 1-D
2006: Jamie Gold – Eliminated Day 1-B
2007: Jerry Yang – Eliminated Day 1-C
2009: Joe Cada – Eliminated Day 3

Hence, only two of 19 former champions cashed in the Main Event. The top finisher of the group was Johnny Chan.

Here is a final summary of performances by last year’s November Nine:

Joe Cada – Eliminated Day 3
Darvin Moon – Eliminated Day 2-B
Antoine Saout – Eliminated Day 2-B
Eric Buchman – CASHED — 554th PLACE
Jeff Shulman – Eliminated Day 2-B
Steven Begleiter – Eliminated on Day 1-C
Phil Ivey – Eliminated Day 2-B
Kevin Schaffel – Eliminated Day 1-B
James Akenhead – Eliminated Day 2-A

Hence, only one of nine former final table participants from 2009 cashed in the Main Event. The top finisher of the group was Eric Buchman.

Here is a summary of former WSOP Players of the Year:

Daniel Negreanu – Eliminated Day 3
Allen Cunningham – CASHED – 581st PLACE
Jeff Madsen – Eliminated Day 1-C
Tom Schneider – Eliminated Day 2-B
Erick Lindgren – Eliminated Day 1-B
Jeffrey Lisandro – Eliminated Day 1-D

Hence, only one of six former Players of the Year cashed in the Main Event. The top finisher of the group was Allen Cunningham.

WSOP MAIN EVENT ALL-TIME RECORDS

Most Lifetime Final Table Appearances:

Doyle Brunson (5)
1976 1st
1977 1st
1980 2nd
1982 4th
1983 3rd

Jesse Alto (5)
1988 9th
1985 6th
1978 5th
1986 4th
1984 3rd

Johnny Moss (5)
1974 1st
1971 1st
1985 7th
1979 5th
1980 4th

Dan Harrington (4)
1995 1st
1987 6th
2004 4th
2003 3rd

T.J. Cloutier (4)
1988 5th
1998 3rd
1985 2nd
2000 2nd

Stu Ungar (4)
1997 1st
1980 1st
1981 1st
1990 9th

Note 1: Johnny Moss’ victory in 1970 is not included amongst final table records, since the winner that year was determined by a vote.

Note 2: Crandall Addington actually holds the record with nine Main Event final table appearances. However, most of these did not include a prize-money payout (field sizes were considerably smaller during the 1970s when most of Addington’s appearances occurred).

Note 3: Final table appearances were counted only if the player also received a payout.

Note 4: WSOP Main Event final tables were played six-handed during a 16-year span. However, the top nine finishers during those years are included in final table records.
Most Main Event Wins (Career):

3 – Johnny Moss (*first win was by vote)
3 – Stu Ungar
2 – Doyle Brunson
2 – Johnny Chan

Most Main Event Cashes (Career):

10 – Berry Johnston *
8 – Humberto Brenes — CASHED THIS YEAR (Now
7 – Bobby Baldwin
7 – Doyle Brunson
7 – Jay Heimowitz
7 – Phil Hellmuth
7 – Mike Sexton
6 – John Bonetti
6 – Johnny Moss
6 – Jason Lester
6 – Steve Lott
5 – 14 players tied with 5 cashes each

* MORE ON BERRY JOHNSTON:
Berry Johnston’s cashes in the Main Event include:
113th in 2007
16th in 1996
21st in 1995
17th in 1992
5th in 1990
29th in 1989
32nd in 1987
1st in 1986
3rd in 1985
3rd in 1982

Most Main Event Final Tables (Career):

5 – Doyle Brunson
5 – Jesse Alto
4 – Johnny Chan
4 – T.J. Cloutier
4 – Dan Harrington
4 – Berry Johnston
4 – Johnny Moss
4 – Stu Ungar
3 – 6 players tied with 3 final tables each

Youngest Winner

Joe Cada (2009) — 21 years, 11 months, 22 days

Oldest Winner

Johnny Moss (1974) – 66 years, 11 months, 24 days

Oldest Participant

97 years — Jack Ury (2010)

Most Consecutive Years Played

37 – Howard “Tahoe” Andrew (1974 to present)

Most Main Events Played (Career)

38 – Doyle Brunson (did not play 1999 through 2001)

Most Consecutive Years to Cash (Main Event)

4 – Theodore Park (2005 – 2008)
4 – Bo Sehlstedt (2004 – 2007)
4 – Robert Turner (1991 – 1994)

2010 WSOP STATISTICS (INCLUDING MAIN EVENT)

All-time prize money figures crossed the $1,000,000,000 threshold during last year’s Main Event. With this year’s money added, the WSOP has paid out $1,041,265,271 during its 41-year history. Incredibly, more than $800,000,000 has been paid out just in the last six years alone, since Harrah’s Entertainment assumed control of the tournament. Here is the historical prize pool information for the World Series of Poker.

2010 — $187,109,850
2009 — $174,011,894
2008 — $180,774,427
2007 — $159,796,918
2006 — $159,599,815
1970-2005 — $354,000,000

Tournament attendance is up significantly from last year when there were 60,875 entries (then, a record). This year, there were 72,966 total entries — an increase of 20 percent. Hence, this is the biggest WSOP of all time, measured by total participation.

Prize money increased from 2008, when the total money awarded was a record $180,774,427. This year, the total amount of prize money awarded was $187,109,850 – an increase of 3.5 percent.

This year, there were 57 gold bracelet events – which is the same number as last year.

Through the conclusion of Event #56, the nationalities of gold bracelet winners have been:

United States (38)
Great Britain (5)
Canada (5)
Hungary (2)
New Zealand (1)
France (1)
Russia (1)
Norway (1)
Holland (1)
Israel (1)

Through the conclusion of Event #56, the national origin (birthplace) of winners has been:

United States (31)
Great Britain (5)
Canada (5)
Vietnam (2)
China (2)
Hungary (2)
New Zealand (1)
France (1)
Lebanon (1)
Russia (1)
Mexico (1)
Bangladesh (1)
Norway (1)
Holland (1)
Israel (1)

Through the conclusion of Event #56, the breakdown of professional poker players to semi-pros and amateurs who won gold bracelets is as follows:

Professional Players (39): Michael Chow, Michael Mizrachi, Praz Bansi, Josh Tieman, Peter Gelencser, James Dempsey, Men “the Master” Nguyen, Matt Matros, Yan R. Chen, Steve Gee, Carter Phillips, Jason DeWitt; Eric Buchman, David Baker, Richard Ashby, Dutch Boyd, Sammy Farha, David Warga, Will Haydon, Matt Keikoan, Mike Ellis, Luis Velador, Ayaz Mahmood, Phil Ivey, Luigi Kwaysser, Scott Montgomery, Steven Kelly, Steve Jelinek, Dean Hamrick, Ian Gordon, Gavin Smith, Jesse Rockowitz, Chris Bell, Shawn Busse, Sigurd Eskeland, Chance Kornuth, Ryan Welch, Brendan Taylor, Daniel Alaei

Semi-Pros (8): Frank Kassela, Tex Barch, Miguel Proulx, Jeffrey Papola, Frank Kassela, Mike Linn, Dan Kelly, Tomer Berda

Amateurs (9): Duc Pham, Aadam Daya, Pascal LeFrancois, Simon Watt, Vanessa Hellebuyck, Jeff Tebben, Konstantin Puchkov, Harold Angle, Marcel Vonk

Through the conclusion of Event #56, here is the list of repeat WSOP gold bracelet winners:

Praz Bansi
Men “the Master” Nguyen
Russ “Dutch” Boyd
Sammy Farha
David Warga (* his first WSOP win was in a non-open event)
Matt Keikoan
Luis Velador
Phil Ivey
Frank Kassela (two wins this year)
Daniel Alaei

Through the conclusion of 2010 World Series of Poker — Event #56:

Youngest Winner – Steven Kelly (21), Dan Kelly (21)
Oldest Winner – Harold Angle (78)
Female Winners (open events) – None
Multiple-Event Winners (this year) – Frank Kassela with two wins

The 10 remaining players in the 2010 World Series of Poker’s main event still were battling at 4 a.m. Vegas time today (Sunday), trying to get down to the “November Nine”.

Reports from the tournament floor at the Rio indicated the players were tired and sleepy, having been at it since midday Saturday, but all were trying not to make a mistake and end up busting out on the bubble with millions of dollars at stake.

Jonathan Duhamel of Canada was in the chip lead as daylight approached, with John Dolan of the U.S. not far behind. Everyone else was short-stacked compared to those two, but they were playing so as to make the biggest final table in the game of poker.

Remarkably still alive was Michael Mizrachi (5th place), winner of this year’s WSOP Players Championship. He is by far the biggest name still in the tournament, with a loud (but also tired) crowd cheering him on. Mizrachi had been short-stacked with 15 players remaining last night, but managed to hang on to make the brink of the Final 9.

Once someone busts out 10th, the event will be put on hold until November when ESPN will telecast the action in near-real time.

Here are the chip counts as of 4 a.m. PDT:

1. Jonathan Duhamel 51,000,000
2. John Dolan 45,500,000
3. Joseph Cheong 27,350,000
4. John Racener 25,200,000
5. Michael Mizrachi 17,000,000
6. Soi Nguyen 15,000,000
7. Filippo Candio 12,600,000
8. Matthew Jarvis 11,575,000
9. Jason Senti 10,575,000
10.Brandon Steven 7,700,000

1. Jonathan Duhamel 29,400,000 — Boucherville, QC, Canada
2. Matthew Jarvis 29,000,000 — Surrey, BC, Canada
3. John Racener 21,700,000 — Port Richey, Fla.
4. Filippo Candio 21,000,000 — Cagliari, Italy
5. Matt Affleck 19,200,000 — Mill Creek, Wash.
6. Pascal LeFrancois 17,900,000 — Rosemere, QC, Canada
7. John Dolan 17,800,000 — Bonita Springs, Fla.
8. Jason Senti 14,500,000 — St. Louis Park, Minn.
9. Soi Nguyen 12,150,000 — Santa Ana, Calif.
10. Joseph Cheong 11,600,000 — La Mirada, Calif.
11. Brandon Steven 5,000,000 — Wichita, Kan.
12. Adam Levy 5,000,000 — Los Angeles, Cal.
13. Duy Le 4,500,000 — San Jose, Cal.
14. Michael Mizrachi 3,840,000 — Miami, Fla.
15. Hasan Habib 2,300,000 — Downey, Cal.

EARLIER STORY:

And then there were 27!

In one of the most unpredictable session imaginable, the field of the 2010 World Series main event was whittled down to 27 players late Friday, setting the stage for today’s showdown to reach the “November Nine.”

The chip leader going into today’s Day 8 action was Joseph Cheong of California, but at this stage in the game, nothing is written in stone. Pros can get busted and amateurs can surge in a heartbeat.

Sometime late tonight, the final nine will bag their chips one last time and begin the wait until November when they’ll return to the Rio to see who will claim the nearly $9 million top prize and the most coveted prize bracelet in all of poker.

For a look at the overnight leaderboard and a full report on Day 7 by WSOP media director Nolan Dalla, click here.

Official Report

Event #57

Day 7

No-Limit Hold’em World Championship

Buy-In: $10,000

Number of Entries: 7,319

Number of Players Starting Day Seven: 78

Total Players Remaining: 27

Total Net Prize Pool: $68,798,600

Number of Places Paid: 747

First Place Prize: $8,944,138

July 5th to November 9th, 2010

THE SEVENTH DAY

2010 World Series of Poker Main Event Championship Continues

Down to 27: All Remaining Players Guaranteed at Least $317,161

Joseph Cheong Holds Chip Lead at End of Day Seven

51 Players Hit the Rail

78 Players Begin Day Seven – Only 27 Survive

Survivors Return on Saturday, July 17th for Day Eight

Out of 7,319 Total Starters – Only 27 Dreams Remain Alive

Canada, Denmark, Great Britain, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the United States Represented in Final 27

Canadians Hold Three of Top Seven Spots in Current Standings

Note: For the tournament portal page for this event, including the day’s chip counts, click HERE.

OVERVIEW

Day Seven of the World Series of Poker Main Event was the equivalent of plunging a handful of ruby-red, vine-ripe tomatoes into a high-speed blender. What went in ultimately was not what came out. In fact, the end result was utterly unrecognizable. The carnage resembled a crime scene — the perfect description if you were to ask 51 poker players now bandaging their broken dreams of winning the 2010 world championship, who failed to survive the day.

Just about everything on this day flip-flopped. Down became up. Up became down. Day turned to night. Chip leaders busted out. Players with virtually no chips when play started catapulted into the top 10. Indeed, this was the most unpredictable of all days, illustrated by the fact that all previous end-of-day chip leaders have now been eliminated (except the current chip leader).

Day Seven was the seventh full session of competition for players who remain alive in this year’s Main Event. The day started out with 78 players. After nearly five levels of play lasting nearly 12 hours, only 27 players survived. The surviving 27 players return on Saturday to continue play on Day Eight, which will be the last playing session until the final table commences in November.

The end of Day Seven chip leader is Joseph Cheong, from La Mirada, CA. He is a 24-year-old Korean-born poker pro. Last year, Cheong graduated with a degree in psychology from the University of California at San Diego.

Cheong won a WSOP Circuit gold ring at Harrah’s Rincon, held earlier this year. His victory paid $17,541 in prize money, plus his first WSOP Circuit gold ring. At the time, Cheong stated he intended to play in the WSOP and would hopefully win his first gold bracelet. Right now, he appears on schedule to accomplish his lofty goal. Cheong is one of only two players at this stage of the tournament who have more than 20 million in chips.

Ranked in second place is Cuong “Soi” Nguyen, from Santa Ana, CA. He is a 27-year-old Vietnamese-born part-time poker player. He is on Cheong’s heels in chips. Nguyen is also at least 5 million ahead of the nearest challenger. Right now, the Main Event is a two-player race. But 25 more hopefuls remain very much in contention.

Among those who did not fare as well on Day Seven were former gold bracelet winner Theo Jorgensen (Copenhagen, Denmark), who was the chip leader at the start of the day. Jorgensen endured a brutal final hour during which he slid from 12 million in chips to oblivion.

Another player who suffered an unwelcome fate was Evan Lamprea (Woodstock, Ontario) who was the chip leader at the end of Day Five. He ran out of momentum and ended up as the 46th-place finisher.

Other notables who were eliminated on this day included — Jacobo Fernandez (Bronx, NY), David Benyamine (Henderson, NV), Eric Baldwin (Las Vegas, NV), and Jean-Robert Bellande (Las Vegas, NV).

All players are now guaranteed $317,161 in prize money. Top prize is the 2010 world championship, the gold bracelet, and $8,944,138.

The next stage of play is expected to trim the 27 remaining competitors down to just nine survivors, who will constitute the official final table of this year’s Main Event, otherwise known as the “November Nine.”

The end of day results also prolong the drama surrounding this year’s Player of the Year race. The winner will be either Frank Kassela (Las Vegas, NV) as the sole champion, or Kassela sharing the title with Michael “the Grinder” Mizrachi (Miramar, FL). Since Mizrachi remains alive in the Main Event, he stays in contention for the win. Kassela busted out on Day Four and is now guaranteed no worse than a tie for first-place in the point race. The only way Mizrachi can catch Kassela (for a tie) is if he wins the Main Event.

THE BASICS

There are 27 players remaining.

The current chip leader is Joseph Cheong, from La Mirada, CA. He is 24 years old. Cheong has never cashed in the WSOP Main Event before.

There are four former gold bracelet winners still alive in the Main Event. They are – Michael “the Grinder” Mizrachi, Hasan Habib, Scott Clements, and Pascal LeFrancois.

The average age of players remaining is 28 years and four months.

The oldest player still remaining is Hasan Habib (Downey, CA) – at 48-years-old.

The youngest player still remaining is Michiel Sijpkens (Rotterdam, Netherlands) – at 21 years, 3 months.

Of the surviving players, 21 of 27 are age 29 or younger.

There are 18 Americans remaining in the Main Event.

There are nine non-American (international) players remaining in the Main Event.

There are eight different nations with players still alive in the Main Event. They are Canada, Denmark, Great Britain, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the United States.

Three Canadians are among the top seven-ranked players – Pascal LeFrancois, Matthew Jarvis, and Jonathan Duhamel.

There are no women remaining in the Main Event. The last survivor was Breeze Zuckerman (Moorpark, CA), who finished in 121st place.

There are no former world champions remaining. Johnny Chan (Las Vegas, NV) was this year’s top finisher, finishing in 156th place.

THE LEADERBOARD

The end of day chip leader is Joseph Cheong, from La Mirada, CA. He is a 24-year-old professional poker player who was born in Seoul, South Korea. Cheong graduated from UC-San Diego last year, where he earned a degree in psychology. Cheong’s first major tournament victory took place three months ago at the WSOP Circuit event held at Harrah’s Rincon, near San Diego.

In Cheong’s tournament win at Rincon, he knocked out six of his final eight opponents. He was presented with his first WSOP Circuit gold ring, the coveted award presented to all champions of WSOP Circuit tournaments held around the country. He had previously cashed at a few tournaments held in Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

Ranked in second place is Cuong “Soi” Nguyen, from Santa Ana, CA. He is a 27-year-old Vietnamese-born part-time poker player. He is close on Cheong’s heels in chips. Nguyen is also at least 5 million ahead of the nearest third-place challenger.

The chip leader from the previous day was Theo Jorgensen, from Copenhagen, Denmark. He was eliminated in 30th place, good for $255,242 – but no November Nine appearance and no second gold bracelet.

Two players have crossed the 20-million chip mark. The first player to do so was Joseph Cheong, just prior to the dinner break.

The first player to cross the 10-million chip threshold was John Racener, from Port Richey, FL. He won a $4 million pot about three hours into play on Day Seven and temporarily rocketed up into the chip lead, with more than $10 million at the time.

Only three players (one-ninth of field) have in excess of 15,000,000 in chips.

Only nine players (one-third of field) have in excess of 10,000,000 in chips.

There are six players who have less than 3,000,000 in chips.

Here is how the chip leaders from each day (of this year’s Main Event) have fared, thus far:

1-A: Corwin Cole, from Las Vegas, NV – Did Not Cash
1-B: James Danielson, from LaPlata, MD – Did Not Cash
1-C: Mathieu Sauriol, from Laval, Quebec (Canada) – CASHED in 532nd place
1-D: Steve Billirakis, from Bourbonnais, IL – CASHED, in 257th place
2-A: Boulos Estafanous, from Darien, IL – CASHED in 733rd place
2-B: David Assouline from Hampstead, Quebec (Canada) – CASHED, in 44th place
3: James Carroll, from Henderson, NV – CASHED, in 96th place
4: Tony Dunst, Las Vegas, NV – CASHED, in 50th place
5: Evan Lamprea, Woodstock, Ontario (Canada) – CASHED, in 46th place
6: Theo Jorgensen, Copenhagen, Denmark – CASHED, in 30th place
7: Joseph Cheong, La Mirada, CA – Currently in 1st place

Note that all end of day chip leaders have now been eliminated from the tournament (except the current chip leader).

THE 27 PLAYERS

Joseph Cheong 24,490,000 LA MIRADA CA US
Soi Nguyen 23,100,000 SANTA ANA CA US
Pascal LeFrancois 15,780,000 ROSEMERE QC CA
Jason Senti 13,550,000 ST. LOUIS PARK MN US
Matthew Jarvis 13,300,000 SURREY BC CA
Matt Affleck 12,515,000 MILL CREEK WA US
Jonathan Duhamel 10,520,000 BOUCHERVILLE QC CA
John Racener 10,470,000 PORT RICHEY FL US
Filippo Candio 10,020,000 CAGLIARI IT
Benjamin Statz 9,885,000 MADISON WI US
Robert Pisano 8,060,000 LAS VEGAS NV US
Michiel Sijpkens 7,765,000 ROTTERDAM NL
Duy Le 7,255,000 SAN JOSE CA US
Scott Clements 7,250,000 MOUNT VERNON WA US
David Baker 6,825,000 KATY TX US
Michael Mizrachi 6,300,000 MIAMI FL US
Brandon Steven 6,045,000 WICHITA KS US
Adam Levy 4,745,000 LOS ANGLES CA US
William Thorson 3,680,000 VARBERG SE
Redmond Lee 3,315,000 LONDON GB
Mads Wissing 3,070,000 COPENHAGEN DK
Ronnie Bardah 2,525,000 STONEHAM MA US
Matthew Bucaric 2,270,000 KNOXVILLE TN US
John Dolan 2,175,000 BONITA SPRINGS FL US
Patrick Eskandar 1,655,000 LADERA RANCH CA US
Johnny Lodden 1,560,000 JORPELAND NO
Hasan Habib 1,510,000 DOWNEY CA US

2010 GOLD BRACELET WINNERS (STATUS)

There were 56 WSOP gold bracelet winners this year coming into the Main Event. Here are the players who either cashed, or who remain alive going into Day Eight, along with their current status:

Michael Mizrachi — STILL ALIVE, currently in 16th place
Pascal LeFrancois — STILL ALIVE, currently in 3rd place
Tomer Berda – Cashed – 134th place
Matt Keikoan – Cashed – 196th place
Praz Bansi – Cashed – 240th place
Jason DeWitt – Cashed – 274th place
Simon Watt – Cashed – 397th place
Carter Phillips – Cashed – 483rd place
Eric Buchman – Cashed – 554th place
Frank Kassela — Cashed – 674th place
Gavin Smith — Cashed – 730th place

OTHER NOTABLE ELIMINATIONS

Dag Palovic (Bratislava, Slovakia) cashed in the Main Event for the second consecutive year. In fact his 37th-place finish in this year’s championship combined with a 120th-place finish last year means he has outlasted more players in the Main Event over the past two years than any other player.

Evan Lamprea, from Woodstock, Ontario (Canada) was the chip leader at the end of Day Five. He finally ran out of momentum and ended up as the 46th-place finisher in what was only his second time in-the-money at the WSOP. He collected a very respectable $168,556.

Jacobo Fernandez, from Bronx, NY has 14 cashes within the last three years at the WSOP. He earned his fourth six-digit career cash with a 49th place finish.

David Benyamine, originally from France and now residing in Henderson, NV, was eliminated in 58th place. He is one of the few poker pros who excels in both cash games and tournaments. Benyamine often plays in the highest cash games in the world. His WSOP winnings now total more than $1 million.

Eric Baldwin, originally from Wisconsin and now living in Las Vegas, NV, was eliminated in 59th place. Baldwin won a No-Limit Hold’em gold bracelet last year. His payout amounted to $138,285.

There are quite a few notable players of Middle Eastern origin who participate in the WSOP. However, relatively few Middle Eastern countries are represented among the 92 nations and territories which sent players to the Main Event. A notable exception was Meenakski Subramaniam, who presently resides in Muscat, Oman. Subramaniam works as a tax consultant and plays poker part-time. This marked his first time to cash in a WSOP event. Subramaniam was the 67th-place finisher and received $114,205 in prize money.

Jean-Robert Bellande, one of poker’s most demonstrative personalities and watchable characters, enjoyed his best Main Event performance ever — with a 78th-place finish. Bellande, known for his appearance on the reality television show “Survivor” a few years ago, has more than $1 million in overall career poker tournament winnings. He collected $94,942 in prize money.

AN INTERVIEW WITH JOSEPH CHEONG (CHIP LEADER)

Joseph Cheong (La Mirada, CA) is a 24-year-old professional poker player who was born in Seoul, South Korea. Cheong graduated from UC-San Diego last year, where he earned a degree in psychology. Cheong’s first major tournament victory took place three months ago at the WSOP Circuit event held at Harrah’s Rincon, near San Diego. This is the first time he has played in the Main Event. Cheong currently has 24,490,000 in chips and appears headed for an exciting Day Eight and perhaps a busy November.

Question: What have you been doing the last three months since you won the WSOP Circuit event at Harrah’s Rincon?
Cheong: I’ve mostly been playing online. I moved out here in May and got an apartment. I’ve been here at the World Series of Poker playing every single day since then.

Question: Aside from the Main Event, how did this year’s WSOP go for you?
Cheong: I think I played between 18 and 20 events this year. I’ve cashed two times. I got 24th place in the $1,500 buy-in Six-Max, and 29th place in the $5,000 buy-in Six-Max.

Question: Were you disappointed with your results coming in?
Cheong: I was disappointed about my finish in the $5K. I was the chip leader for most of Day Two and just spewed it all off. That was grinding down on me for a while. It only tilts me when I make a mistake.

Question: Did you consider skipping the Main Event, or what made you decide to go ahead and play?
Cheong: To be perfectly honest, I was risking about a third of my bankroll here this summer. If nothing worked out, I was going to go back to school, and then just play poker on the side as a hobby. Luckily, it seems to have worked out so I guess I do not need to go back and can continue playing poker.

Question: You have a college degree in psychology. Does that help you at the table?
Cheong: It does not help at all. It seems like it would. But in psychology, we learn about mental disorders and things like that which has nothing to do with poker players.

Question: Are you sure about that?
Cheong: (Laughing) Well, maybe it does apply. But in general, I really do not think about psychology at all when I am playing. It’s more about math.

Question: Do you enjoy playing in this event, or is it more like work?
Cheong: It would be like work, except there is so much money on the line where now it’s fun. That makes it so much more enjoyable.

Question: Can you start thinking now about maybe making the November Nine, or beyond?
Cheong: I really do not think about that at all. Hopefully, I will play well tomorrow and still be in it for the final nine. If it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen. It’s a little more relaxing now, being guaranteed ($317,161).

Question: Let’s say a genie pops out of a bottle right now and offers you fifth place in the Main Event. You win $2,332,960, plus you make the November Nine. But you do not win, and you may never get back there again. Would you take the deal?
Cheong: (Pause) Hmmm. It’s a close decision. $2.3 million is a lot of money at this stage. I’m not guaranteed anywhere close to fifth place yet. Let’s call it a push.

AN INTERVIEW WITH SCOTT CLEMENTS (14th IN CHIPS)

Scott Clements (Mt. Vernon, WA) is a two-time WSOP gold bracelet winner. He is making his deepest run ever in the Main Event. Clements currently has 7,250,000 in chips, which is right in the middle of the pack.

Question: You had an up and down day. What are your thoughts about how you did overall?
Clements: Things started out great. On the first hand, I doubled up. I came in kinda short, played some rough hands yesterday. Dropped down to 2 million, and then doubled up to 4 million when I hit a nice ace with A-K vs. Kings, and got it up to 11 million. Then, I dropped back to 7 million and have been hanging around there ever since.

Question: What are your plans for tomorrow? Are you thinking big picture? Hour by hour?
Clements: I’m going to wait to see what the table is like and see who I’m playing and make a decision. Once I see how they are playing, I’ll address it from there.

Question: Do you feel like this is your time coming, or feel more that you’ve just been playing your best poker and have made it happen yourself?
Clements: I feel like I’m going to do my best to make the final nine. I feel like I’ve been playing really well this tournament. I made the worst call of the tournament a little earlier ago, but I’m not going to do that again, just hoping I get good cards.

Question: If you were offered ninth-place money right now, would you take it?
Clements: No chance.

THE TOURNAMENT

All players began this tournament with 30,000 in chips. The average stack size when play began on this day was about 2,815,000 in chips.

Play was nine-handed. This format is expected to remain in effect until play reaches the final 10 players, which then combines temporarily to a 10-handed table. After one player is eliminated, the “November Nine” will be set and the tournament will take a three-month hiatus.

Day Seven played 4 1/4 levels. Each level is two hours long. Play began at noon and ended at 11:20 pm.

The average stack size is currently 8,132,222 in chips.

When players return for Day Eight, blinds will be $60,000-$120,000 with a $15,000 ante. There is 1:33 (hours/minutes) remaining in Level 30.

Day Seven began with 78 players. There were 27 survivors. This means 35 percent of starters survived the session.

With this day now complete, there are 27 total players still alive in the Main Event.

Players who survived Day Seven will return to continue their quest for the 2010 world poker championship on Saturday, July 17th, at 12 noon. Play will continue until only nine players remain.

Payouts increase at various intervals. Every player still alive in the tournament is currently guaranteed at least $317,161 in prize money. The next jump comes when 18th place is reached, which will pay $396,967 in the next increment.

THE NATIONS

The following nations (8) still have players alive in the Main Event:

United States – 18 players
Canada – 3 players
Denmark – 1 player
Italy — 1 player
Sweden – 1 player
Great Britain – 1 player
Netherlands – 1 player
Norway – 1 player

There are five players still alive in the Main Event who reside in the Los Angeles area, the most of any metro region.

There were 92 nations and territories represented among all players who entered this year’s WSOP Main Event. (The entire 2010 WSOP attracted participants from 117 different locales).

This year’s Main Event was comprised of 67.9 percent Americans. In other words, 32.1 percent of all participants were from other nations and territories.

ODDS AND ENDS

Based on the birthdates of all 7,319 players, the average age of all participants in the Main Event is 37 years and 4 months.

Only one of the four Mizrachi Brothers (Michael Mizrachi) remains alive in the Main Event. All four brothers cashed — a WSOP first. But three brothers have now been eliminated, as Eric Mizrachi Daniel Mizrachi, and Robert Mizrachi went out in 718th, 345th, and 116th places, respectively.

Michael Mizrachi is enjoying a stellar WSOP. No matter what happens from this point forward, Mizrachi’s victory in the Poker Players Championship in addition to his deep run in the Main Event will prevail as one of the top storylines and most impressive accomplishments of any player at this year’s World Series.

Another set of brothers cashed this year as well. Matt Keikoan and Todd Keikoan both made it into the money. Two-time gold bracelet winner Matt Keikoan took 196th. His brother, Todd Keikoan finished in 421st place.

This is the 57th and final event on the 2010 WSOP schedule which is played in Las Vegas. Five more gold bracelet events will take place in London, England, at the Empire Casino, to be held September 14 through 28th as part of the Fourth Annual World Series of Poker Europe.

This marks the sixth consecutive year the WSOP has been held at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino. Prior to 2005, the WSOP was held at Binion’s Horseshoe in downtown Las Vegas. As a testament to the expansion of the WSOP since Harrah’s Entertainment assumed ownership and control of the world most prestigious poker event, more than three quarters of the $1.2 billion in prize money has been awarded to winners within the Rio – three times the amount awarded during the entire 35-year period at the Horseshoe.

This is the 885th gold bracelet event in World Series of Poker history. Note: This figure includes every official WSOP event played, including tournaments during the early years when there were no actual gold bracelets awarded. It also includes the 11 gold bracelets awarded to date at WSOP Europe.

In the 41-year history of the WSOP, the total combined amount of prize money that has been awarded amounts to $1,228,375,121.

The total number of entrants in the WSOP Main Event (all years combined) is 50,756.

The WSOP title sponsor the last two years has been Jack Link’s Beef Jerky. As part of a fun promotion, Jack Links gives away large quantities of their product to Main Event players who make big hands. This year’s key hand is four jacks. 61 players have made the hand thus far.

WOMEN IN THE MAIN EVENT

Special Note: The WSOP recognizes that player characteristics such as gender, race, etc. do not typically warrant special mention. However, since many members of the media wish to know details about female participation and status, the staff is providing this information for media use.

All women have been eliminated. Breeze Zuckerman was the top female finisher — in 121st place.

The unofficial total number of females who participated in this year’s Main Event was 216. There is no official record since entrants are not designated by their gender. However, it has been customary to count every player at the start of Day One and take an unofficial head-count of female players. This figure represents about 3 percent of the field.

Here are the highest-female finishers (by year) in the WSOP Main Event (Note: Only players who finished in-the-money were recorded):

No female cashed in the Main Event between the years 1970-1985.

1986 – Wendeen Eolis (25th)
1987 – None
1988 – None
1989 – None
1990 – None
1991 – None
1992 – None
1993 – Marsha Waggoner (19th)
1994 – Barbara Samuelson (10th)
1995 – Barbara Enright (5th)
1996 – Lucy Rokach (26th)
1997 – Marsha Waggoner (12th)
1998 – Susie Isaacs (10th)
1999 – None
2000 – Annie Duke (10th)
2001 – None
2002 – None
2003 – Annie Duke (47th)
2004 – Rose Richie (98th)
2005 – Tiffany Williamson (15th)
2006 – Sabyl Cohen-Landrum (56th)
2007 – Maria Ho (38th)
2008 – Tiffany Michelle (17th)
2009 – Leo Margets, a.k.a. Leonor Margets (27th)
2010 – Breeze Zuckerman (121st)

MAIN EVENT SUMMARY (NOTABLE PLAYERS)

Here is a final summary of this year’s performances of all former WSOP Main Event Champions:

1975/1976: Doyle Brunson – Eliminated Day 2-B
1978: Bobby “the Owl” Baldwin – Eliminated Day 2-A
1983: Tom McEvoy – Eliminated Day 2-A
1986: Berry Johnston – Eliminated Day 2-A
1987/1988: Johnny Chan – CASHED – 156th PLACE
1989: Phil Hellmuth – Eliminated Day 1-C
1993: Jim Bechtel – Eliminated Day 3
1995: Dan Harrington – Eliminated Day 4
1996: Huck Seed – Eliminated Day 1-C
1998: Scotty Nguyen – CASHED — 209th PLACE
2000: Chris “Jesus” Ferguson – Eliminated Day 2-B
2001: Carlos Mortensen – Eliminated Day 2-A
2002: Robert Varkonyi – Eliminated Day 4
2003: Chris Moneymaker – Eliminated Day 3
2004: Greg “Fossilman” Raymer – Eliminated Day 1-A
2005: Joe Hachem – Eliminated Day 1-D
2006: Jamie Gold – Eliminated Day 1-B
2007: Jerry Yang – Eliminated Day 1-C
2009: Joe Cada – Eliminated Day 3

Hence, only two of 19 former champions cashed in the Main Event. The top finisher of the group was Johnny Chan.

Here is a final summary of performances by last year’s November Nine:

Joe Cada – Eliminated Day 3
Darvin Moon – Eliminated Day 2-B
Antoine Saout – Eliminated Day 2-B
Eric Buchman – CASHED — 554th PLACE
Jeff Shulman – Eliminated Day 2-B
Steven Begleiter – Eliminated on Day 1-C
Phil Ivey – Eliminated Day 2-B
Kevin Schaffel – Eliminated Day 1-B
James Akenhead – Eliminated Day 2-A

Hence, only one of nine former final table participants from 2009 cashed in the Main Event. The top finisher of the group was Eric Buchman.

Here is a summary of former WSOP Players of the Year:

Daniel Negreanu – Eliminated Day 3
Allen Cunningham – CASHED – 581st PLACE
Jeff Madsen – Eliminated Day 1-C
Tom Schneider – Eliminated Day 2-B
Erick Lindgren – Eliminated Day 1-B
Jeffrey Lisandro – Eliminated Day 1-D

Hence, only one of six former Players of the Year cashed in the Main Event. The top finisher of the group was Allen Cunningham.

WSOP MAIN EVENT ALL-TIME RECORDS

MOST LIFETIME FINAL TABLE APPEARANCES

Doyle Brunson (5)
1976 1st
1977 1st
1980 2nd
1982 4th
1983 3rd

Jesse Alto (5)
1988 9th
1985 6th
1978 5th
1986 4th
1984 3rd

Johnny Moss (5)
1974 1st
1971 1st
1985 7th
1979 5th
1980 4th

Dan Harrington (4)
1995 1st
1987 6th
2004 4th
2003 3rd

T.J. Cloutier (4)
1988 5th
1998 3rd
1985 2nd
2000 2nd

Stu Ungar (4)
1997 1st
1980 1st
1981 1st
1990 9th

Note 1: Johnny Moss’ victory in 1970 is not included amongst final table records, since the winner that year was determined by a vote.

Note 2: Crandall Addington actually holds the record with nine Main Event final table appearances. However, most of these did not include a prize-money payout (field sizes were considerably smaller during the 1970s when most of Addington’s appearances occurred).

Note 3: Final table appearances were counted only if the player also received a payout.

Note 4: WSOP Main Event final tables were played six-handed during a 16-year span. However, the top nine finishers during those years are included in final table records.

Most Main Event Wins (Career):

3 – Johnny Moss (*first win was by vote)
3 – Stu Ungar
2 – Doyle Brunson
2 – Johnny Chan

Most Main Event Cashes (Career):

10 – Berry Johnston *
8 – Humberto Brenes — CASHED THIS YEAR (Now
7 – Bobby Baldwin
7 – Doyle Brunson
7 – Jay Heimowitz
7 – Phil Hellmuth
7 – Mike Sexton
6 – John Bonetti
6 – Johnny Moss
6 – Jason Lester
6 – Steve Lott
5 – 14 players tied with 5 cashes each

* MORE ON BERRY JOHNSTON:
Berry Johnston’s cashes in the Main Event include:
113th in 2007
16th in 1996
21st in 1995
17th in 1992
5th in 1990
29th in 1989
32nd in 1987
1st in 1986
3rd in 1985
3rd in 1982

Most Main Event Final Tables (Career):

5 – Doyle Brunson
5 – Jesse Alto
4 – Johnny Chan
4 – T.J. Cloutier
4 – Dan Harrington
4 – Berry Johnston
4 – Johnny Moss
4 – Stu Ungar
3 – 6 players tied with 3 final tables each

Youngest Winner

Joe Cada (2009) — 21 years, 11 months, 22 days

Oldest Winner

Johnny Moss (1974) – 66 years, 11 months, 24 days

Oldest Participant

97 years — Jack Ury (2010)

Most Consecutive Years Played

37 – Howard “Tahoe” Andrew (1974 to present)

Most Main Events Played (Career)

38 – Doyle Brunson (did not play 1999 through 2001)

Most Consecutive Years to Cash (Main Event)

4 – Theodore Park (2005 – 2008)
4 – Bo Sehlstedt (2004 – 2007)
4 – Robert Turner (1991 – 1994)

2010 WSOP STATISTICS (INCLUDING MAIN EVENT)

Tournament attendance is up significantly from last year when there were 60,875 entries (then, a record). This year, there were 72,966 total entries — an increase of 20 percent. Hence, this is the biggest WSOP of all time, measured by total participation.

Prize money increased from 2008, when the total money awarded was a record $180,774,427. This year, the total amount of prize money awarded was $187,109,850 – an increase of 3.5 percent.

This year, there were 57 gold bracelet events – which is the same number as last year.

Through the conclusion of Event #56, the nationalities of gold bracelet winners have been:

United States (38)
Great Britain (5)
Canada (5)
Hungary (2)
New Zealand (1)
France (1)
Russia (1)
Norway (1)
Holland (1)
Israel (1)

Through the conclusion of Event #56, the national origin (birthplace) of winners has been:

United States (31)
Great Britain (5)
Canada (5)
Vietnam (2)
China (2)
Hungary (2)
New Zealand (1)
France (1)
Lebanon (1)
Russia (1)
Mexico (1)
Bangladesh (1)
Norway (1)
Holland (1)
Israel (1)

Through the conclusion of Event #56, the breakdown of professional poker players to semi-pros and amateurs who won gold bracelets is as follows:

Professional Players (39): Michael Chow, Michael Mizrachi, Praz Bansi, Josh Tieman, Peter Gelencser, James Dempsey, Men “the Master” Nguyen, Matt Matros, Yan R. Chen, Steve Gee, Carter Phillips, Jason DeWitt; Eric Buchman, David Baker, Richard Ashby, Dutch Boyd, Sammy Farha, David Warga, Will Haydon, Matt Keikoan, Mike Ellis, Luis Velador, Ayaz Mahmood, Phil Ivey, Luigi Kwaysser, Scott Montgomery, Steven Kelly, Steve Jelinek, Dean Hamrick, Ian Gordon, Gavin Smith, Jesse Rockowitz, Chris Bell, Shawn Busse, Sigurd Eskeland, Chance Kornuth, Ryan Welch, Brendan Taylor, Daniel Alaei

Semi-Pros (8): Frank Kassela, Tex Barch, Miguel Proulx, Jeffrey Papola, Frank Kassela, Mike Linn, Dan Kelly, Tomer Berda

Amateurs (9): Duc Pham, Aadam Daya, Pascal LeFrancois, Simon Watt, Vanessa Hellebuyck, Jeff Tebben, Konstantin Puchkov, Harold Angle, Marcel Vonk

Through the conclusion of Event #56, here is the list of repeat WSOP gold bracelet winners:

Praz Bansi
Men “the Master” Nguyen
Russ “Dutch” Boyd
Sammy Farha
David Warga (* his first WSOP win was in a non-open event)
Matt Keikoan
Luis Velador
Phil Ivey
Frank Kassela (two wins this year)
Daniel Alaei

Through the conclusion of 2010 World Series of Poker — Event #56:

Youngest Winner – Steven Kelly (21), Dan Kelly (21)
Oldest Winner – Harold Angle (78)
Female Winners (open events) – None
Multiple-Event Winners (this year) – Frank Kassela

The Main Event of the World Series played down to 78 competitors on Thursday night, setting the stage for today’s Day 7.

The biggest story now, since Johnny Chan busted yesterday, is that Michael Mizrachi has climbed into second place. Mizrachi won the Players Championship to kick off this 41st version of the WSOP, and is now in position to possible close the Series with a victory.

Not only that, but Mizrachi is the only player in the field who can catch Frank Kassela in points for the title 2010 WSOP player of the year. To tie Kassela, though, he has to win the bracelet!

Play is scheduled to continue tonight until the field is whittled to 27. Then, sometime Saturday night, the “November Nine” will be determined.

Here are the Top 10 remaining players and their chip counts:

1. Theo Jorgensen 9,300,000
2. Michael Mizrachi 7,535,000
3. John Racener 7,200,000
4. Jonathan Driscoll 6,570,000
5. William Thorson 6,525,000
6. Matthew Jarvis 6,125,000
7. Edward Ochana 5,950,000
8. Alexander Kostritsyn 5,715,000
9. Cuong Nguyen 5,650,000
10.Joseph Cheong 5,555,000

Johnny Chan is out! The biggest star left in the field started Day 6 in 9th place but he lost a ton of chips with K-K vs. A-A, then just minutes before the day’s first break, he lost his remaining half-million chips with J-J vs. (you guessed it) A-A. And just like that, the former two-time main event champ was gone in 159th place! Somewhere inside the Rio, a program director for ESPN no doubt was headed for the bar to drown his misery. Meanwhile, Breeze Zuckerman had climbed to 83rd with 154 left.

As Day 6 of the World Series main event prepares to fire up today with 205 players remaining, most eyes are on two-time WSOP world champ Johnny Chan, who is looking solid in 9th place, and the last woman standing, Breeze Zuckerman, who played her first-ever poker tournament a mere 11 months ago.

Chan finished Day 5 on Wednesday with 2.5 million chips. He trails tournament leader Evan Lamprea of Ontario, Canada, by about a million chips and easily is the biggest name player left in the event.

There’s still a long way to go, but if Chan can win the tournament it would be his third world title (he won back-to-back in ‘87-’88) and his 11th overall gold bracelet, tying him for first place with Phil Hellmuth.

Zuckerman, who was born and raised in Israel and now lives in California, sits in 131st place with 738,000 chips. She is the last woman standing out of an estimated 216 females who played in the main event. The total field was 7,310 players; play continues through Saturday night when the “November Nine” final table will be determined.

Zuckerman’s previous biggest tournament was a $300 buy-in ladies event at the Legends of Poker where she lasted nine hours. This is her first WSOP event of any kind, and her success left her stunned.

“I am so overwhelmed right now, that it has not sunk in,” she told WSOP media director Nolan Dalla. “I don’t believe what’s going on. It’s going to take months for me to get what is going on here.”

To read the rest of Dalla’s interview with Zuckerman and get full details on the tourney’s status, click here.

Official Report

Event #57

Day 5

WSOP No-Limit Hold’em World Championship

Buy-In: $10,000

Number of Entries: 7,319

Number of Players Starting Day Five: 574

Total Players Remaining: 205

Total Net Prize Pool: $68,798,600

Number of Places Paid: 747

First Place Prize: $8,944,138

July 5th to November 9th, 2010

DAY 5 HEADLINES

Day Five Ends

Down to 205: All Remaining Players Guaranteed at Least $48,847

2010 World Series of Poker Main Event Championship Continues

Canadian Evan Lamprea Holds Slim Chip Lead at End of Day Five

Poker Legend Johnny Chan Still on Leaderboard — Ranked Ninth

1998 Champ Scotty Nguyen Hits the Rail

The Cashing Mizrachis: A WSOP First – Four Brothers Cash in Main Event

574 Players Begin Day Three – Only 205 Survive

Wednesday’s Survivors Return on Thursday, July 15th for Day Six

Out of 7,319 Total Starters – 205 Dreams Remain Alive (2.8 Percent)

Canada, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Russia, and United States Represented in Top Twenty

Note: For the tournament portal page for this event, including the day’s chip counts, click HERE.

DAILY DIARY

The 2010 World Series of Poker Main Event continued on Wednesday with the play and conclusion of Day Five. This session included the first continuous full day of players who are now free-rolling the remainder of the tournament. All surviving players at this point are guaranteed a generous payout totaling at least $48,847. Many players will earn far greater rewards.

Day Five began with 574 players. After four levels of play lasting eight hours, only 205 players survived. The surviving players will return Thursday for Day Six.

The end of Day Five chip leader is Evan Lamprea, from Woodstock, Ontario (Canada). He currently has 3,564,000 in chips, which is a slight advantage over the player ranked in second place. Lamprea is certainly in new territory at the WSOP. He has one lone in-the-money finish on his tournament resume, which was a 164th-place showing in the final gold bracelet event played before this year’s Main Event ($2,500 No-Limit Hold’em). His guaranteed payout in this tournament already represents nearly ten times what was collected in his first-ever cash.

The runner up is Michael Skender, from Rodabain, Germany. He currently has 3,527,000 in chips, which is only a round of blinds and antes behind the chip leader. Rounding out the top five are Joseph Cheong, from La Mirada, CA; Duy Le, from San Francisco, CA; and Theo Jorgenson, from Copenhagen, Denmark.

Johnny Chan also remains very much in contention. The 1987/1988 world champion and ten-time gold bracelet winner is currently ranked ninth in chips. Chan had the chip lead for about a 30-minute stretch during Day Three. That was the first time in 22 years Chan held the chip lead at any point during the Main Event.

Among those who did not fare as well on Day Four was 1998 world champion Scotty Nguyen. He was eliminated late in the day and exited in 209th place. Other notable names who played Day Five, but will not return for Day Six include — Vanessa Selbst, Jason Mercier, Sammy Farha, Brandon Cantu, Dwyte Pilgrim, Hoyt Corkins, Vitaly Lunkin, John Kabbaj, Jason DeWitt, Padraig Parkinson, Doug “Rico” Carli, and Steve Billirakis.

Play is expected to trim the 205 remaining competitors down to less than 100 survivors when the next session begins. The Main Event continues through July 17th when the final table players will ultimately be determined, otherwise known as the “November Nine.”

THE BASICS

There are 205 players remaining.

The current chip leader is Evan Lamprea, from Canada.

There is one woman remaining. Her name is Breeze Zuckerman.

There is one former world champion remaining. His name is Johnny Chan.

There 117 Americans remaining in the Main Event.

There are 88 non-American (international) players remaining in the Main Event.

There are 26 different nations with players still alive in the Main Event.

The youngest player still in the tournament is 21-years-old.

The oldest player still in the tournament is 69-years-old.

The average age of remaining players is 32-years-old.

THE PLAYERS

Former world champions who participated on Day Five included:

1987/1988: Johnny Chan
1998: Scotty Nguyen

Back-to-back (1987/1988) world champion Johnny Chan has been ranked among the top 30 players since the middle of Day Three. He held the chip lead for a brief time eight levels ago, but continues to stay within striking distance of the leader. Chan remains the most feared, and certainly most closely-watched of any player remaining in the tournament at this point.

Scotty Nguyen was eliminated late in the day. He went bust with about 30 minutes remaining to be played on Day Five. Nguyen was short stacked late with about 300,000 in chips and made his final stand holding . Unfortunately, he ran into opponent Mads Wissing, holding . The final board showed , which meant the pair of kings won the pot. This year, Nguyen cashed in both the $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. championship (19th) as well as the Main Event (209th). He currently owns five gold bracelets.

Only one former champion remains alive. This year’s performances of all former WSOP Main Event Champions:

1975/1976: Doyle Brunson – Eliminated Day 2-B
1978: Bobby “the Owl” Baldwin – Eliminated Day 2-A
1983: Tom McEvoy – Eliminated Day 2-A
1986: Berry Johnston – Eliminated Day 2-A
1987/1988: Johnny Chan – STILL ALIVE (ranks 9th of 205 players)
1989: Phil Hellmuth – Eliminated Day 1-C
1993: Jim Bechtel – Eliminated Day 3
1995: Dan Harrington – Eliminated Day 4
1996: Huck Seed – Eliminated Day 1-C
1998: Scotty Nguyen – CASHED, in 209th place
2000: Chris “Jesus” Ferguson – Eliminated Day 2-B
2001: Carlos Mortensen – Eliminated Day 2-A
2002: Robert Varkonyi – Eliminated Day 4
2003: Chris Moneymaker – Eliminated Day 3
2004: Greg “Fossilman” Raymer – Eliminated Day 1-A
2005: Joe Hachem – Eliminated Day 1-D
2006: Jamie Gold – Eliminated Day 1-B
2007: Jerry Yang – Eliminated Day 1-C
2009: Joe Cada – Eliminated Day 3

Current Status of Last Year’s November Nine:

Joe Cada – Eliminated Day 3
Darvin Moon – Eliminated Day 2-B
Antoine Saout – Eliminated Day 2-B
Eric Buchman – CASHED, in 554th place
Jeff Shulman – Eliminated Day 2-B
Steven Begleiter – Eliminated on Day 1-C
Phil Ivey – Eliminated Day 2-B
Kevin Schaffel – Eliminated Day 1-B
James Akenhead – Eliminated Day 2-A

None of last year’s November Nine remains alive in the Main Event. All former finalists have been eliminated. Only one player cashed — Eric Buchman. None of the 2008 November Nine remain alive, as well.

Status of former WSOP “Players of the Year”:

Daniel Negreanu – Eliminated Day 3
Allen Cunningham – CASHED – 581st PLACE
Jeff Madsen – Eliminated Day 1-C
Tom Schneider – Eliminated Day 2-B
Erick Lindgren – Eliminated Day 1-B
Jeffrey Lisandro – Eliminated Day 1-D

No former Players of the Year remain alive. Only one player cashed — Allen Cunningham.

This year’s Player of the Year winner will be among those who cashed in the Main Event. This is because the only two remaining candidates in the race (Frank Kassela and Michael Mizrachi) both made it to the money. Mizrachi remains in contention. Kassela busted out on Day Four and is now guaranteed no worse than a tie for first in the points race. The only way Mizrachi can catch Kassela (for a tie) is if he wins the Main Event.

Status of Non-Poker Celebrities:

Ray Romano – Eliminated Day 1-A
Rene Angelil – Eliminated Day 3
Orel Hershiser – Eliminated Day 2-B
Shanna Moakler – Eliminated Day 1-C
J-Kwon, a.k.a. Jay Kwon – Eliminated Day 1-C
Scott Ian – Eliminated Day 1-C
Anthony Rapp – Eliminated Day 1-C
Shane Warne – Eliminated Day 2-A
Emmitt Smith – Eliminated Day 1-D
Jason Alexander – Eliminated Day 2-B
Bruce Buffer –CASHED IN 478TH PLACE
Sara Underwood – Eliminated Day 2-A
Shannon Elizabeth – Eliminated Day 2-B
Sully Erna – Eliminated Day 3
Hank Azaria – Eliminated Day 4

Bruce Buffer, famous for being the voice of the Ultimate Fight Championships, made a strong run in this year’s Main Event. In fact, he outlasted virtually every non-poker playing celebrity in the field. Buffer finally busted out holding pocket aces, which were cracked by an opponent’s four-eights. Buffer could take some satisfaction in achieving his first Main Event cash ever, finishing in 478th place.

The highest Main Event finish (and cash) by a part-time poker playing celebrity was accomplished by actor and comedian Gabe Kaplan, who finished 13th in the 1991 championship. Kaplan has played in many Main Events since 1978. The highest Main Event finish by an amateur poker player and celebrity was actor Telly Savalas (best known as “Kojak”), who finished 21st in the 1992 championship.

2010 GOLD BRACELET WINNERS (STATUS)

There were 56 WSOP gold bracelet winners this year, coming into the Main Event. Here are the players who either cashed, or were still alive at the start of Day Five, along with their current status:

Michael Mizrachi — STILL ALIVE, currently in 30th place
Gavin Smith — Cashed – 730th place
Carter Phillips – Cashed – 483rd place
Tomer Berda — STILL ALIVE, currently in 174th place
Matt Keikoan — STILL ALIVE, currently in 195th place
Praz Bansi – Cashed – 240th place
Frank Kassela — Cashed – 674th place
Simon Watt – Cashed – 397th place
Jason DeWitt – Cashed, 274th place
Eric Buchman – Cashed, 554th place

OTHER NOTABLE ELIMINATIONS

Vanessa Selbst, from Brooklyn, NY was eliminated in 476th place. She won a gold bracelet in 2008 (Pot-Limit Omaha).

Jason Mercier, from Davie, FL was eliminated in 463rd place. He won a gold bracelet in 2009 (Pot-Limit Omaha). Mercier finished fourth in last year’s WSOP Europe Main Event championship.

Sammy Farha, from Houston, TX was eliminated in 452nd place. He owns three gold bracelets, including a Omaha High-Low Split victory this year. This marked Farha’s third time to cash in the Main Event. He was the runner up to winner Chris Moneymaker in 2003.

Brandon Cantu, from Las Vegas, NV was eliminated in 444th place. He owns two gold bracelets. Cantu also finished 20th in the 2008 Main Event.

WSOP Circuit three-time event winner Dwyte Pilgrim was eliminated on this day. He nursed a low-to-average stack during the past three days. Pilgrim finally busted out in 414th place.

Simon Watt, famous for being New Zealand’s first gold bracelet winner in history, ended up with three cashes this year. He ended his 2010 WSOP with a 397th-place finish in the Main Event.

Hoyt Corkins, a.k.a. “The Alabama Cowboy” rode off into the sunset as the 318th-place finisher. Corkins holds two gold bracelets. This was his fourth time to cash in the Main Event. In fact, Corkins has cashed in 2006, 2008 and 2010.

Vitaly Lunkin, from Moscow, Russia is a two-time gold bracelet winner. He put up a serious challenge in the Player of the Year race last year, and is one of Russia’s top tournament players. Lunkin outlasted all but the top five percent of the field. He ended up losing a race with pocket tens against ace-king and was officially listed as the 308th-place finisher.

John Kabbaj, from Watford, UK won his first gold bracelet last year. Kabbaj managed to come in-the-money in the Main Event, finishing in 281st place. Kabbaj also cashed in last year’s WSOP Europe championship.

Jason DeWitt, from Chicago, IL won his first gold bracelet earlier this year in the No-Limit Hold’em Shootout. DeWitt cashed in 274th place.

Padraig Parkinson, from Dublin, Ireland final tabled the 1999 Main Event, coming in third. In fact, Irish players took two of the top three spots that year, since fellow Dubliner Noel Furlong was the winner. Parkinson made his best Main Event run since that time as he ended up as the 267th place finisher.

Doug “Rico” Carli, one of the WSOP Circuit’s top performers over the past three years cashed in this year’s championship. The poker pro from Alliance, OH finished in 259th place.

Steve Billirakis, who was the youngest WSOP gold bracelet winner in history at the time of his 2007 victory (21 years, plus 10 days), made a valiant run in this tournament, but ended up busting out in 257th place. This was his second time to cash in the Main Event. Billirakis took 199th place in the 2008 championship.

AN INTERVIEW WITH BREEZE ZUCKERMAN

Breeze Zuckerman is the last remaining female remaining in this year’s Main Event. She is one of the most interesting players in the tournament, for reasons which have nothing at all to do with poker. Zuckerman was born and raised in Israel. She earned a degree in sociology and then graduated from law school. Zuckerman wrote for a major newspaper in Israel for many years. She immigrated to the United States 14 years ago. She also plans to return to college again soon (at Cal-Lutheran) to pursue a Masters Degree in psychology. Indeed, Zuckerman has an insatiable thirst for knowledge, as she continues to pursue educational opportunities for no other reason that to gain greater understanding about the world we live in and the people who inhabit it.

Incredibly, Zuckerman started playing poker less than a year ago. She entered her first poker tournament last August. This was the first time she has played in a WSOP-related event of any kind. Zuckerman gained the trust and friendship of a few close friends who decided to put her in this year’s Main Event. After nine long days and nights, Zuckerman remains very much alive with 738,000 in chips. This currently ranks 131st out of 205 players entering Day Six. Bigger news still is that Zuckerman is the final female player remaining in the tournament. Out of an estimated 216 females who entered this year’s championship, she remains the last hope of half the world’s population.

Zuckerman, who currently resides in Moorpark, CA was interviewed following her successful run on Day Five.

Question: You have quite an extensive background. Tell us about how your experience as an avid reader, journalist, law school graduate, and life coach helps you as a poker player.
Zuckerman: Working with people and understanding people means getting a read on them. It’s basically the same thing in journalism, in law, in life coaching, as well as sitting at the table. It’s basically the same skills.

Question: What does being a life coach mean?
Zuckerman: For many years, my friends would always come to me for advice. At some point, I said to myself, I have seen so many people go through so many crisis’s, that I decided to do this (to make a living).’ So, I plan to go to Cal-Lutheran and get my Masters Degree in psychology.

Question: How did you get into poker?
Zuckerman: August of last year was my first tournament. Ever. (As for poker) I did not event know what it was. If people used to talk about poker, I thought about a dark room with lots of smoke, and people drinking and cursing. I really had no idea what poker is until about a year ago. After that, I used to get with some of my friends and play cards in Simi Valley. I started to like it. That’s when I played in my first tournament, which was the ladies event at the Bicycle Casino (Los Angeles). It was the Legends of Poker. The buy-in was $300. Until this event last week, that was the highest buy-in tournament I had ever played. I was very lucky in that ladies tournament. I sat there for nine hours.

Question: Tell us what you learned from that first tournament experience.
Zuckerman: I was sitting next to Barbara Enright. I did not even know who she was. After I got home, I did a Google search on her, and said ‘Oh my God.’ Since then, she became a close friend and kind of my mentor.

Question: Tell us about how you came to play in the Main Event.
Zuckerman: It was my dream, but I never thought it would happen….I talked to my friends and I told them, I know I can do this. This is my structure. This will be my best game.

Question: What is your position on ladies poker tournaments?
Zuckerman: I love playing in ladies events.

Question: If you have a playing style, what is it?
Zuckerman: I think I play solid. Mostly, I play pretty tight. But I know when I need to change. I know how to become aggressive when I need to.

Question: What is your reaction to being told you are the last woman playing in the Main Event?
Zuckerman: I am so overwhelmed right now, that it has not sunk in. I don’t believe what’s going on. It’s going to take months for me to get what is going on here.

Question: Tell us about your WSOP dream. It is to win the Main Event?
Zuckerman: My dream was just to make it to Day Three. I never thought beyond that. So, to make it to the final table, I cannot even fathom it. I cannot think beyond that. I think one level at a time, one break at a time. That’s what I’ve been doing for five days now.

THE TOURNAMENT

All players began this tournament with 30,000 in chips. The average stack size when play began on this day was about 382,000 in chips.

Play was nine-handed. This format is expected to remain in effect until play reaches the final ten players, which then combines temporarily to a ten-handed table. After one player is eliminated, the “November Nine” will be set and the tournament will take a three-month hiatus.

Day Five played four full levels. Each level is two hours long. Play began at noon and ended at 11:05 pm. There is one hour remaining in Level 21.

The average stack size is currently 1,071,000 in chips.

The lowest-denomination chip at the start of Day Six will be 1,000.

When players return for Day Five, blinds will be 8,000-16,000 with a 2,000 ante.

Day Five began with 574 players. There were 205 survivors. This means about 36 percent of Day Five starters survived the session.

With this day now complete, there are 205 total players still alive in the Main Event.

Players who survived Day Five will return to continue their quest for the 2010 world poker championship on Thursday, July 15th, at 12 noon.

Payouts increase at various intervals. Every player still alive in the tournament is currently guaranteed at least $48,847 in prize money. The next jump comes between 171st and 172nd place, which will pay $57,102.

THE LEADERBOARD

This end of day chip leader is Evan Lamprea, from Woodstock, Ontario (Canada). He is 21-years-old. This is the first year Lamprea has been eligible to play at the WSOP. He has one lone cash on his resume, which took place ten days ago when he busted out in 164th place. That event was the $2,500 No-Limit Hold’em tournament (Event #56) which preceded the Main Event.

The chip leader from the previous day was Tony Dunst, from Las Vegas, NV. He suffered a tough Day Five. The good news was that he survived and will continue playing on Day Six. The bad news is that he currently ranks in 182nd place.

Ranking second in chips from this day is Michael Skender, from Rodabain, Germany. This is the highest ranking German player in history in a Main Event (measured by end of day standings). No German player has ever been the chip leader at the end of a playing day.

The first player to reach the 2-million chip mark was Phil Galfond, from Gaithersburg, MD – which took place about one hour into play on Day Five.

The first place to reach the 3-million chip mark was Theo Jorgensen, from Copenhagen, Denmark – which took place about six hours into play. Since then, four players have surpassed the 3-million chip mark.

Only five players have in excess of 3,000,000 in chips.

Only nine players have in excess of 2,500,000 in chips.

Only 20 players have in excess of 2,000,000 in chips.

There are 19 players (about ten percent of the field) who have 300,000 in chips, or less.

Here is how the chip leaders from each day (of this year’s Main Event) have fared, thus far:

1-A: Corwin Cole, from Las Vegas, NV – Did Not Cash
1-B: James Danielson, from LaPlata, MD – Did Not Cash
1-C: Mathieu Sauriol, from Laval, Quebec (Canada) – CASHED, in 532nd place
1-D: Steve Billirakis, from Bourbonnais, IL – CASHED, in 257th place
2-A: Boulos Estafanous, from Darien, IL – CASHED in 733rd place
2-B: David Assouline from Hampstead, Quebec (Canada) – STILL ALIVE, in 115th place
3: James Carroll, from Henderson, NV – STILL ALIVE, in 22nd place
4: Tony Dunst, Las Vegas, NV — STILL ALIVE, in 182nd place
5: Evan Lamprea, Woodstock, Ontario (Canada) – STILL ALIVE, in 1st place

THE NATIONS

The following nations (26) still have players alive in the Main Event:

United States – 117 players
Canada – 18 players
Russia – 8 players
France – 7 players
Brazil – 5 players
Germany – 5 players
Great Britain – 5 players
Italy – 5 players
Netherlands – 5 players
Denmark – 4 players
Sweden – 4 players
Israel – 3 players
Norway – 3 players
Spain – 3 players
Finland – 2 players
Argentina – 1 player
Australia – 1 player
Austria – 1 player
Belgium – 1 player
Ireland – 1 player
Lithuania – 1 player
Mexico – 1 player
Oman – 1 player
Portugal – 1 player
Serbia – 1 player
Slovakia – 1 player

There are 92 nations and territories represented among all players who entered this year’s WSOP Main Event. (The entire 2010 WSOP attracted participants from 117 different locales).

This year’s Main Event is comprised of 67.9 percent Americans. In other words, 32.1 percent of all participants are from other nations and territories.

The top-ten nations by participation in the Main Event are:

United States – 4,973 players
Canada – 482
Great Britain – 292
France – 176
Germany – 176
Australia – 110
Sweden – 99
Russia – 89
Italy – 81
Netherlands – 78

The remaining nations and the amount of players who participated from them include:

Brazil — 56
Ireland — 55
Spain — 53
Denmark — 52
Canada — 42
Norway — 41
Finland — 39
Switzerland — 37
Hungary — 30
England — 29
Argentina — 27
Mexico — 27
Portugal — 26
Austria — 25
Belgium — 23
Israel — 19
Japan — 18
Romania — 11
Poland — 10
Venezuela — 10
Lithuania — 9
South Africa — 9
Czech Republic — 8
Lebanon — 8
Guatemala — 7
New Zealand — 6
Slovakia — 6
Ukraine — 6
Belarus — 5
China — 5
Costa Rica — 5
Cyprus — 5
Greece — 5
Hong Kong — 5
Kazakhstan — 5
Latvia — 5
Singapore — 5
Slovenia — 5
Chile — 4
U.A.E. — 3
Bolivia — 3
Estonia — 3
Croatia — 3
Turkey — 3
Uruguay — 3
Bahrain — 2
Belize — 2
Colombia — 2
Gibraltar — 2
Guadeloupe — 2
Iceland — 2
South Korea — 2
Peru — 2
Philippines — 2
Serbia — 2
Angola — 1
Azerbaijan — 1
Bosnia — 1
Benin — 1
Bermuda — 1
Bahamas — 1
Botswana — 1
Dominican Republic — 1
Gabon — 1
Guam — 1
Honduras — 1
Haiti — 1
India — 1
Cayman Islands — 1
Liechtenstein — 1
Monaco — 1
Macedonia — 1
Mongolia — 1
Northern Mariana Islands — 1
Malta — 1
Oman — 1
Panama — 1
French Polynesia — 1
Paraguay — 1
Qatar — 1
Senegal — 1
Turks and Caicos Islands — 1
Taiwan — 1

ODDS AND ENDS

Based on the birthdates of all 7,319 players, the average age of all participants in the Main Event is 37 years and 4 months.

The average age of players remaining after Day Five is 32. Ages range from 21 up to 69.

Two of the four Mizrachi Brothers remain alive in the Main Event. All four brothers cashed — a WSOP first. But two have now been eliminated, as Eric Mizrachi and Daniel Mizrachi went out in 718th and 345th place, respectively. Michael “the Grinder” Mizrachi and Robert Mizrachi, both former gold bracelet winners are still alive in the Main Event.

Another set of brothers cashed this year as well. Matt Keikoan and Todd Keikoan both made it into the money. Two-time gold bracelet winner Matt Keikoan remains alive in the Main Event. His brother, Todd Keikoan finished in 421st place.

This is the 57th and final event on the 2010 WSOP schedule which is played in Las Vegas. Five more gold bracelet events will take place in London, England at the Empire Casino, to be held in September 14 through 28th as part of the Fourth Annual World Series of Poker Europe.

This marks the sixth consecutive year the WSOP has been held at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino. Prior to 2005, the WSOP was held at Binion’s Horseshoe in downtown Las Vegas. As a testament to the expansion of the WSOP since Harrah’s Entertainment assumed ownership and control of the world most prestigious poker event, more than three quarters of the $1.2 billion in prize money has been awarded to winners within the Rio – three times the amount awarded during the entire 35-year period at the Horseshoe.

This is the 885th gold bracelet event in World Series of Poker history. Note: This figure includes every official WSOP event played, including tournaments during the early years when there were no actual gold bracelets awarded. It also includes the 11 gold bracelets awarded to date at WSOP Europe.

In the 41-year history of the WSOP, the total combined amount of prize money that has been awarded amounts to $1,228,375,121.

The total number of entrants in the WSOP Main Event (all years combined) is 50,756.

The WSOP title sponsor the last two years has been Jack Link’s Beef Jerky. As part of a fun promotion, Jack Links gives away large quantities of their product to Main Event players who make big hands. This year’s key hand is four jacks. 57 players have made the hand thus.

WOMEN IN THE MAIN EVENT

Special Note: The WSOP recognizes that player characteristics such as gender, race, etc. do not typically warrant special mention. However, since many members of the media wish to know details about female participation and status, the staff is providing this information for media use.

There is only one remaining in the Main Event – Breeze Zuckerman (see interview in this report).

The unofficial total number of females who participated in this year’s Main Event was 216. There is no official record since entrants are not designated by their gender. However, it has been customary to count every player at the start of Day One and take an unofficial head-count of female players. This figure represents about 3 percent of the field.

Here are the highest-female finishers (by year) in the WSOP Main Event (Note: Only players who finished in-the-money were recorded):

No female cashed in the Main Event between the years 1970-1985.

1986 – Wendeen Eolis (25th)
1987 – None
1988 – None
1989 – None
1990 – None
1991 – None
1992 – None
1993 – Marsha Waggoner (19th)
1994 – Barbara Samuelson (10th)
1995 – Barbara Enright (5th)
1996 – Lucy Rokach (26th)
1997 – Marsha Waggoner (12th)
1998 – Susie Isaacs (10th)
1999 – None
2000 – Annie Duke (10th)
2001 – None
2002 – None
2003 – Annie Duke (47th)
2004 – Rose Richie (98th)
2005 – Tiffany Williamson (15th)
2006 – Sabyl Cohen-Landrum (56th)
2007 – Maria Ho (38th)
2008 – Tiffany Michelle (17th)
2009 – Leo Margets, a.k.a. Leonor Margets (27th)
2010 – Breeze Zuckerman (finish pending)

WSOP MAIN EVENT ALL-TIME RECORDS

Although there is no official record for most consecutive days of playing in WSOP events without busting out, such a record would indeed belong to Tomer Berda from Israel. Berda won Event #56, which was played over four days. Since he won that event, he began a streak of four days without a bust. Berda entered the Main Event (the next tournament listed on the schedule) and remains alive at the End of Day Five. This means Berda has now played nine consecutive days at the WSOP without a single bust. This is a WSOP first.

Most Main Event Wins (Career):

3 – Johnny Moss (*first win was by vote)
3 – Stu Ungar
2 – Doyle Brunson
2 – Johnny Chan

Most Main Event Cashes (Career):

10 – Berry Johnston
8 – Humberto Brenes — CASHED THIS YEAR (Now
7 – Bobby Baldwin
7 – Doyle Brunson
7 – Jay Heimowitz
7 – Phil Hellmuth
7 – Mike Sexton
6 – John Bonetti
6 – Johnny Moss
6 – Jason Lester
6 – Steve Lott
5 – 14 players tied with 5 cashes each

Most Main Event Final Tables (Career):

5 – Doyle Brunson
5 – Jesse Alto
4 – Johnny Chan
4 – T.J. Cloutier
4 – Dan Harrington
4 – Berry Johnston
4 – Johnny Moss
4 – Stu Ungar
3 – 6 players tied with 3 final tables each

Youngest Winner

Joe Cada (2009) — 21 years, 11 months, 22 days

Oldest Winner

Johnny Moss (1974) – 66 years, 11 months, 24 days

Oldest Participant

97 years — Jack Ury (2010)

Most Consecutive Years Played

37 – Howard “Tahoe” Andrew (1974 to present)

Most Main Events Played (Career)

38 – Doyle Brunson (did not play 1999 through 2001)

Most Consecutive Years to Cash (Main Event)

4 – Theodore Park (2005 – 2008)
4 – Bo Sehlstedt (2004 – 2007)
4 – Robert Turner (1991 – 1994)

2010 WSOP STATISTICS (INCLUDING MAIN EVENT)

Tournament attendance is up significantly from last year when there were 60,875 entries (then, a record). This year, there were 72,966 total entries — an increase of 20 percent. Hence, this is the biggest WSOP of all time, measured by total participation.

Prize money increased from 2008, when the total money awarded was a record $180,774,427. This year, the total amount of prize money awarded was $187,109,850 – an increase of 3.5 percent.

This year, there were 57 gold bracelet events – which is the same number as last year.

Through the conclusion of Event #56, the nationalities of gold bracelet winners have been:

United States (38)
Great Britain (5)
Canada (5)
Hungary (2)
New Zealand (1)
France (1)
Russia (1)
Norway (1)
Holland (1)
Israel (1)

Through the conclusion of Event #56, the national origin (birthplace) of winners has been:

United States (31)
Great Britain (5)
Canada (5)
Vietnam (2)
China (2)
Hungary (2)
New Zealand (1)
France (1)
Lebanon (1)
Russia (1)
Mexico (1)
Bangladesh (1)
Norway (1)
Holland (1)
Israel (1)

Through the conclusion of Event #56, the breakdown of professional poker players to semi-pros and amateurs who won gold bracelets is as follows:

Professional Players (39): Michael Chow, Michael Mizrachi, Praz Bansi, Josh Tieman, Peter Gelencser, James Dempsey, Men “the Master” Nguyen, Matt Matros, Yan R. Chen, Steve Gee, Carter Phillips, Jason DeWitt; Eric Buchman, David Baker, Richard Ashby, Dutch Boyd, Sammy Farha, David Warga, Will Haydon, Matt Keikoan, Mike Ellis, Luis Velador, Ayaz Mahmood, Phil Ivey, Luigi Kwaysser, Scott Montgomery, Steven Kelly, Steve Jelinek, Dean Hamrick, Ian Gordon, Gavin Smith, Jesse Rockowitz, Chris Bell, Shawn Busse, Sigurd Eskeland, Chance Kornuth, Ryan Welch, Brendan Taylor, Daniel Alaei

Semi-Pros (8): Frank Kassela, Tex Barch, Miguel Proulx, Jeffrey Papola, Frank Kassela, Mike Linn, Dan Kelly, Tomer Berda

Amateurs (9): Duc Pham, Aadam Daya, Pascal LeFrancois, Simon Watt, Vanessa Hellebuyck, Jeff Tebben, Konstantin Puchkov, Harold Angle, Marcel Vonk

Through the conclusion of Event #56, here is the list of repeat WSOP gold bracelet winners:

Praz Bansi
Men “the Master” Nguyen
Russ “Dutch” Boyd
Sammy Farha
David Warga (* his first WSOP win was in a non-open event)
Matt Keikoan
Luis Velador
Phil Ivey
Frank Kassela (two wins this year)
Daniel Alaei

Through the conclusion of 2010 World Series of Poker — Event #56:

Youngest Winner – Steven Kelly (21), Dan Kelly (21)
Oldest Winner – Harold Angle (78)
Female Winners (open events) – None
Multiple-Event Winners (this year) – Frank Kassela

Dunst has a stack of 1,546,000, but there are 22 players with a million or more chips including two-time main event champ Johnny Chan, who finished the day in 13th place.

Others in the million-chip club include Matt Affleck, Phil Galfond, Adam Levy, Theo Jorgensen and Team PokerStars Pro JP Kelly. Other players whose name you probably know still in the hunt include Jesper Hougaard, Hasan Habib, Scott Clements, Scotty Nguyen, Alexander Kostritsyn, and Shannon Shorr.

Among those cashing last night but knocked out include two of the game’s bigger stars — Allen Cunningham and Patrik Antonious. Also cashing but eliminated was Frank Kassela, who was the only multiple bracelet winner (2 victories) this year and now apparently is a lock to win WSOP player of the year honors.

Play resumes at noon Vegas time for Day 5, with the final November Nine to be determined sometime Saturday night.

Although a player from Henderson, Nev., led the field after Day 3 on Monday, the biggest headline goes to Johnny Chan, two-time world champ and holder of 10 gold bracelets in all. Chan finished Day 3 in 9th place.

Two other former world champs didn’t fare as well on Monday. Joe Cada, last year’s winner, busted out as did Chris Moneymaker, whose victory in 2003 sparked the poker boom.

It’s still a little too early to get on the Chan bandwagon, similar to what many poker fans did last year when another of the game’s legends, Phil Ivey, made a deep run and wound up 7th at the final table. If Chan is still among the leaders after Wednesday’s action, then talk of a record third championship is appropriate.

For lots of details on Day 3 action, including an interview with Chan, click here for WSOP media director Nolan Dalla’s wrapup.

Official Report

Event #57

Day 3

No-Limit Hold’em World Championship

Buy-In: $10,000

Number of Entries: 7,319

Number of Players Starting Day Three: 2,557

Total Players Remaining: 1,204

Total Net Prize Pool: $68,798,600

Number of Places Paid: 747

First Place Prize: $8,944,138

July 5th to November 9th, 2010

DAY’S HEADLINES

Day Three Complete

2010 World Series of Poker Main Event Championship Continues

James Carroll (Henderson, NV) is the Chip Leader at End of Day Three

Poker Great Johnny Chan Still on Leaderboard

Defending Champion Joe Cada Hits the Rail

2,557 Players Begin Day Three – Only 1,204 Survive

Monday’s Survivors Return on Tuesday, July 13th for Day Four

Out of 7,319 Total Starters – 1,204 Dreams Remain Alive (16.5 Percent)

Israel, Italy, Norway, Sweden, and United States Represented in Top Ten

Note: For the tournament portal page for this event, including the day’s chip counts, click HERE.

DAILY DIARY

The 2010 World Series of Poker Main Event continued on Monday with the play and conclusion of Day Three. This session included the first full day of combined flights of players who survived past the initial multi-day rounds of competition.

Day Three began with 2,557 players. After four levels of play lasting eight hours, only 1,204 players survived. This marked the first day that all surviving players competed together at the Rio. The remaining players will return Tuesday for Day Four

The end of Day Three chip leader is James Carroll from Henderson, NV. He has 803,000 in chips, which leads all players at this point in the championship. Carroll cashed two times at this year’s WSOP – including a final table appearance in the $5,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em event which paid $103,594. Carroll also final tabled this year’s WSOP Circuit Main Event championship, which was played at Caesars Palace Las Vegas in April.

Also of note were the fine performances of Imari Love, from Chicago, IL who finished the day with 741,500 in chips. Gerasimos Deres, from Helsingborg, Sweden is a close third, with 733,700 in his stack. Filippo Candio (Cagliari, Italy) and Max Casal (Burbank, CA) round out the top five.

So far, it appears the one big name that may have a major impact on the tournament is none other than 1987/1988 world champion Johnny Chan. The ten-time gold bracelet winner is currently ranked ninth in chips. An interesting side note was that Chan had the chip lead for about a 30-minute stretch during the day. This was the first time in 22 years that Chan had the chip lead at any point during the Main Event.

Among those who did not fare as well on Day Three was Joe Cada. The 2009 world champion was eliminated with about 1,800 players remaining. But he could take no solace in a top-25 percent finish. Cada went out holding ace-queen of spaces, which was cracked by pocket tens. Cada lost the race and walked out of the 2010 WSOP without any cashes this year. The WSOP congratulates Cada on a glorious win and a memorable reign as the world champion and wishes him well in the years to come.

The Main Event continues through July 17th when the final table players will ultimately be determined, otherwise known as the “November Nine.”

THE PLAYERS

Former world champions who participated on Day Three included:

1987/1988: Johnny Chan
1993: Jim Bechtel
1995: Dan Harrington
1998: Scotty Nguyen
2002: Robert Varkonyi
2003: Chris Moneymaker
2009: Joe Cada

Jim Bechtel, who won the world championship in 1993, was the first former champ to be eliminated. The rancher from Arizona lost his final hand holding pocket jacks, which were flattened by pocket aces. The quiet champion went out with about 2,400 players remaining in the tournament.

The biggest news of the day among those who busted out was the elimination of Joe Cada. The 2009 world champion went bust with about 1,800 players remaining in the tournament. Cada could take no solace in his top-25 percent finish – which missed the money. Cada went out holding the ace-queen of spaces, which was cracked by an opponent’s pocket tens. Cada lost the race and walked out of the 2010 WSOP without any cashes this year. The WSOP congratulates Cada on a glorious win last November and a memorable reign as the world champion and wishes him well in the years to come.

Chris Moneymaker changed poker, arguably more than any player in history. The 2003 world champion appeared headed to his best Main Event run since his victory. But things did not go well for the Tennessean (now living in North Carolina) on this day. Moneymaker was crippled with ace-king which ran into pocket kings, and then went out a short time later.

Dan Harrington continues to plod along. He tangled a few times and ended the day with a slightly below average stack. This is precisely what one might expect from “Action Dan,” known for his steady, low-risk approach to tournament poker. Harrington, who won the 1995 world championship, has four WSOP Main Event final table appearances.

Scotty Nguyen was at the feature table but did not put on much of a show. On the positive side, Nguyen did manage to survive and will continue playing on Day Four. The negative is that Nguyen returns in the bottom ten percent of the field and will need to make a major move on Day Four to make the money.

Robert Varkonyi continues to make strides towards recapturing some of his past glory. The 2002 world champion survived the day and comes back sitting in the middle of the pack with an average stack size. Many eyes are now starting to focus on Varkonyi, who now ranks above every former champion except Johnny Chan.

The aptly-named “Orient Express” continues to roll along. Back-to-back 1987 and 1988 world champion Johnny Chan flirted with the chip lead most of the day. At about 3:00 pm, Chan held the chip lead for about a half hour, at the point when 2,000 players still remained alive. Chan gambled a bit over the next few levels and see-sawed around the leaderboard. He ended the day ranked ninth on the leaderboard, currently at 636,000 in chips.

Notable non-pros who played on Day Three included:

Jack Ury (senior record holder)
Gabe Kaplan (actor/comedian/announcer)
Hank Azaria (actor/producer)
Sully Erna (musician)

Jack Ury, from Terre Haute, IN had a desperately low stack to begin play and was eliminated on this day. Nevertheless, Ury can take great pride in outlasting nearly 70 percent of the field, including many players who are young enough to be his great, great grandchildren. Ury holds the record as the oldest player ever to compete in a WSOP event. Everyone at the WSOP looks forward to seeing Mr. Ury back again next year.

Gabe Kaplan has been coming to the WSOP since the late 1970s, when he was one of television’s most popular stars on “Welcome Back Kotter.” Over the years, Kaplan became quite a dedicated tournament player, earning nearly $500,000 at the WSOP in nine career cashes. Kaplan played well, but not well enough to cash this year. The WSOP welcomes Kaplan back every year and thanks him for his unwavering commitment to the game.

Sully Erna, musician and vocalist for Godsmack, has played at the WSOP in recent years. He enjoyed another year with some bragging rights – outlasting three-quarters of the field. Erna went out late in the day.

Hank Azaria, known for his character voices on “The Simpsons,” in addition to notable acting roles in several television shows and movies, remains very much alive in the Main Event. He is in the middle of the pack with 151,100 in chips.

Poker Hall of Fame members who played on Day 2-B included:

Barbara Enright
Dewey Tomko
Johnny Chan

2007 Poker Hall of Fame inductee Barbara Enright was eliminated in the middle of Day Three. Enright, a three-time gold bracelet winner remains on only female in history to make it to the Main Event final table, which she accomplished in 1995 – finishing fifth.

2008 Poker Hall of Fame inductee Dewey Tomko played and survived. The Florida semi-pro finished as the runner up in the Main Event twice. Tomko does not play many tournaments nowadays, but is proving he can still compete with the world’s best. Tonko returns on Day Four with 89,300 in chips.

Raymond Rahme, who finished third in the 2007 Main Event, was the first South African to make it to the final table. Rahme appears headed that direction again this year. The white-haired poker millionaire ended the day ranked in 152nd place.

The only former WSOP Europe Main Event champion still alive is two-time gold bracelet winner Barry Shulman, from Las Vegas, NV. The owner of Card Player continues to impress with this No-Limit Hold’em game, and now stands in 276th place, which if the top 25 percent of the field. Shulman now has 257,400 in chips. His son Jeff Shulman made it to the final table last year, finishing fifth.

The ESPN Main Stage hosts the feature table. The star of Day Three was Scotty Nguyen, who basked the spotlight of another high profile session. Good news was that Nguyen survived. Bad news was the Nguyen did not have a good day. “Oh babys” were few and far between on Day Three.

Four former champs remain alive. Current Status of Former WSOP Main Event Champions:

1975/1976: Doyle Brunson – Eliminated Day 2-B
1978: Bobby “the Owl” Baldwin – Eliminated Day 2-A
1983: Tom McEvoy – Eliminated Day 2-A
1986: Berry Johnston – Eliminated Day 2-A
1987/1988: Johnny Chan – STILL ALIVE (ranks 9th of 1,204 players)
1989: Phil Hellmuth – Eliminated Day 1-C
1993: Jim Bechtel – Eliminated Day 3
1995: Dan Harrington – STILL ALIVE (ranks 585th out of 1,204 players)
1996: Huck Seed – Eliminated Day 1-C
1998: Scotty Nguyen – STILL ALIVE (ranks 1,118th out of 1,204 players)
2000: Chris “Jesus” Ferguson – Eliminated Day 2-B
2001: Carlos Mortensen – Eliminated Day 2-A
2002: Robert Varkonyi – STILL ALIVE (ranks 555th out of 1,204 players)
2003: Chris Moneymaker – Eliminated Day 3
2004: Greg “Fossilman” Raymer – Eliminated Day 1-A
2005: Joe Hachem – Eliminated Day 1-D
2006: Jamie Gold – Eliminated Day 1-B
2007: Jerry Yang – Eliminated Day 1-C
2009: Joe Cada – Eliminated Day 3

Current Status of Last Year’s November Nine:

Joe Cada – Eliminated Day 3
Darvin Moon – Eliminated Day 2-B
Antoine Saout – Eliminated Day 2-B
Eric Buchman – STILL ALIVE (ranks 306th ourt of 1,204 players)
Jeff Shulman – Eliminated Day 2-B
Steven Begleiter – Eliminated on Day 1-C
Phil Ivey – Eliminated Day 2-B
Kevin Schaffel – Eliminated Day 1-B
James Akenhead – Eliminated Day 2-A

Only one of last year’s November Nine remain alive in the Main Event. Joe Cada was one of two players who started the day. But Cada made an unwanted exit. This means Eric Buchman is in the only 2009 finalist still playing in the Main Event. All other former finalists were eliminated.

Current Status of former WSOP “Players of the Year”:

Daniel Negreanu – Eliminated Day 3
Allen Cunningham – STILL ALIVE (ranks 888th out of 1,204 players)
Jeff Madsen – Eliminated Day 1-C
Tom Schneider – Eliminated Day 2-B
Erick Lindgren – Eliminated Day 1-B
Jeffrey Lisandro – Eliminated Day 1-D

Daniel Negreanu was never able to get much traction and was eliminated before the dinner break. Negreanu lost two tough hands early in the day and struggled to run his small stack back up to respectability. But in the end, Negreanu was not able to make much of an impact and ended up exiting where there were about 1,500 players remaining in the tournament.

Allen Cunningham nursed a short stack much of the day on the third session. But Cunningham is a master of survival and will be interesting to watch on Day Four, and perhaps beyond.

Current Status of Non-Poker Celebrities:

Ray Romano – Eliminated Day 1-A
Rene Angelil – Eliminated Day 3
Orel Hershiser – Eliminated Day 2-B
Shanna Moakler – Eliminated Day 1-C
J-Kwon, a.k.a. Jay Kwon – Eliminated Day 1-C
Scott Ian – Eliminated Day 1-C
Anthony Rapp – Eliminated Day 1-C
Shane Warne – Eliminated Day 2-A
Emmitt Smith – Eliminated Day 1-D
Jason Alexander – Eliminated Day 2-B
Bruce Buffer – STILL ALIVE (ranks 353rd out of 1,204 players)
Gabe Kaplan – Eliminated Day 3
Sara Underwood – Eliminated Day 2-A
Shannon Elizabeth – Eliminated Day 2-B
Sully Erna – Eliminated Day 3
Hank Azaria – STILL ALIVE (ranks 587th out of 1,204 players)

Historical Footnote: The highest Main Event finish (and cash) by a celebrity was actor and comedian Gabe Kaplan, who finished 13th in the 1991 championship. The highest Main Event finish for a (non-poker) celebrity was actor Telly Savalas, who finished 21st in the 1992 championship.

2010 GOLD BRACELET WINNERS (STATUS)

There were 56 WSOP gold bracelet winners this year, coming into the Main Event. Here are the players who were still alive at the start of Day Three and their current status:

Michael Mizrachi — STILL ALIVE, but low on chips
Tex Brach — Eliminated
Gavin Smith — STILL ALIVE, but low on chips
Carter Phillips — STILL ALIVE, and among chip leaders
Tomer Berda — STILL ALIVE, and above average chips
Matt Keikoan — STILL ALIVE, and among chip leaders
Praz Bansi — STILL ALIVE, and above average chips
Frank Kassela — STILL ALIVE, and above average chips
Simon Watt — STILL ALIVE, and above average chips
Jason DeWitt — STILL ALIVE, and above average chips
Chris Bell – Eliminated
Eric Buchman – STILL ALIVE, and above average chips

AN INTERVIEW WITH JOHNNY CHAN (AMONG CHIP LEADERS)

Johnny Chan is a living poker legend. 1987 world champion. 1988 world champion. 1989 Main Event runner up. Winner of ten WSOP gold bracelets. Immortalized in the poker movie, “Rounders.” And now, the “Orient Express” is steamrolling towards what could be his best Main Event showing in years. Come November, it remains to be seen if we’ll be hearing, “Taking a seat at the final table — Here’s……..Johnny.” Chan was interviewed during the Day Three dinner break.

Question: How did things go today?
Chan: Today started off really, really good. But then, I had ace-king. The flop came K-7-6. I had the ace-king, but the other guy had pocket sevens and hit three sevens. So, I lost 150,000 on the hand and that took me down a little more than 400,000. So, I’m in pretty good shape.

Question: You were the chip leader for a time.
Chan: That’s good. I haven’t been ranked number one in this tournament in like 20 years. So, it feels good to be number one again, even though that did not last.

Question: Do you still enjoy the game?
Chan: I love the game.

Question: Why do you still like it? You’ve been doing this for 30 years. You’ve done and seen just about everything this game can offer.
Chan: Well, it takes care of my bills. It means that I can support my family. Let me put it this way: The game sends four of my kids through college. And aside from that, I just like the competition. I like to win.

Question: Everyone recognizes you as a great player. But there is a new breed of poker player which is dominating the game right now. And most of them are in their early 20s. What do you think about that?
Chan: When I was 22-years-old I played crazy. I played really wild. I used to make gutshot straight check-raises. I used to bluff with nothing. I see what some of these players are doing. I understand that. I’ve been there and done that. So, it’s nothing new to me.

Question: What do you predict is going to happen over the next few days?
Chan: The next couple of days? Well, I’m sure I am around – that’s number one. Number two is to say lucky. Just don’t run into a cold deck. If I stay away from the cold decks, I am going to be okay.

Question: Hypothetically, if you were somehow to be offered ninth place in this tournament right now, would you take it? Imagine being guaranteed a seat in the November Nine, plus $881,823 for ninth place. Is it is deal?
Chan: (Laughing) Wow…….you know, I really enjoy winning more than anything. I’m going to have to pass on the deal. Let’s play it out and see what happens.

AN INTERVIEW WITH J.J. LIU (CURRENTLY SHORT-STACKED)

J.J. Liu (a.k.a. Joanne Liu) may not be a household name. But she has won more than $2.2 million in live poker tournaments. Liu is a mother of three who lives in Las Vegas. She has enjoyed an impressive run at this year’s WSOP, with three cashes and two final table appearances. She came in third in the $1,500 Pot-Limit Hold’em event and took seventh-place a week later in the $2,500 buy-in Six-Handed Limit Hold’em event. Liu remains alive in the Main Event, but is clinging to faint hopes as she enters Day Four as one of the shortest stacks. Liu was interviewed briefly at the conclusion of Day Three.

Question: How did things go today?
Liu: Not so well. I started out with a lot of chips – around 200,000. But it was a very frustrating day for me. I ran card dead most of the day. But I have hope. I am still alive. Never give up, that’s what I say.

Question: You enjoyed a good WSOP this year. What did you do differently this year than in year’s past?
Liu: This year, I prepared myself better to play at the World Series of Poker. I wanted to do good. It is very important to prepare yourself mentally. A few months ago, when I decided I wanted to play some WSOP events, I tried to prepare myself and block out all the time so I could really focus. Focusing is very important. This is such a great opportunity. There is no where else other than the World Series of Poker when you have to give everything and be as ready as you can.

Question: You had a bit of a surprise today. In fact, during the middle of the tournament, you received a huge bouquet of flowers. Tell us about that.
Liu: It was a big surprise. It was a friend who sent them to me. It was meant to cheer me up and it really did. I know a lot of people care about me and love me, so that was nice to have that happen. I was really happy when I saw the flowers.

Question: Every poker player dreams of what it’s like to win the WSOP Main Event. What happens in your version of the dream?
Liu: To win the WSOP Main Event is absolutely a dream come true. It’s my goal. It’s like having a dream come true. It’s everybody’s dream who loves to play poker.

Question: Okay, J.J. Let’s pretend a genie comes to you right now. You are short stacked. But the genie offers you the chance to cash in the Main Event. Right now, the genie offers you 747th place. Would you take the deal?
Liu: No. I want to take my chances. I will stay here and play. I don’t want 700th place. I want to play to win.

THE TOURNAMENT

All players began the tournament with 30,000 in chips. The average stack size when play began was about 87,000.

Play was nine-handed. This is expected to remain in effect until play reaches the final ten players, and then one player is eliminated – thus making the “November Nine.”

Day Three played four full levels. Each level is two hours long. Play ended at 11:00 pm. There were three levels of play, followed by a 90-minute dinner break. Players then returned for the nightcap to play one full level, and then the day ended.

The average stack size is currently about 182,000 in chips.

When players return for Day Four, blinds will be 1,200-2,400 with a 300 ante. There is one hour remaining in Level 13.

Day Three began with 2,557 players. There were 1,204 survivors. This means about 47 percent of Day Three starters survived round three.

With this day now complete, there are 1,204 total players are still alive in the Main Event.

Play is expected to reach the money on Day Four. This promises to be one of the most exciting days of the tournament, as 747 players will be guaranteed a payout, while those who do not make the cut, will be forced to return home with memories and dreams, not to mention a lot of “what ifs,” but no cash.

Players who survived Day Three will return to continue their quest for the 2010 world poker championship on Tuesday, July 13th, at 12 noon.

THE LEADERBOARD

The chip lead changed at least nine times on this day. This typically happens with lots of movement on Day Three, when a triple-digit stack size can either be reduced to dust, or may in fact double or triple up to half-a-million or more. Among the players who held the chip lead at one point during the day were – Andrew Brown, Nicholas Rainey, Alexander Kostritsyn, Kevin Gates, Paul Kristofferson Ricardo Fasanaro, Jeffrey Ross, Chris Tipper, and James Carroll.

This end of day chip leader is James Carroll, from Henderson, NV. He has 803,000 in chips, which leads all players at this point in the championship. Carroll cashed two times at this year’s WSOP – including a final table appearance in the $5,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em event which paid $103,594. Carroll also final tabled this year’s WSOP Circuit Main Event championship, which was played at Caesars Palace Las Vegas in April.

This chip leader from the previous day was David Assouline, from Hampstead, Quebec (Canada). He fell to 187th place, but still remains in the top 20 percent of the field.

Ranking second in chips from this day is Imari Love, from Chicago, IL who finished the day with 741,500 in chips. Gerasimos Deres, from Helsingborg, Sweden is a close third, with 733,700 in his stack. Flippo Candio (Cagliari, Italy) and Max Casal (Burbank, CA) round out the top five.

No player has yet crossed the million-chip mark.

Only one of 1,204 players still alive in excess of 800,000 in chips.

Only four of 1,204 players still alive have in excess of 700,000 in chips.

Only ten of 1,204 players atill alive have in excess of 600,000 in chips.

Only 27 of 1,204 players still alive have in excess of 500,000 in chips.

Here is how the chip leaders from each day (of this year’s Main Event) have fared, thus far:

1-A: Corwin Cole, from Las Vegas, NV – STILL ALIVE, in 376th place
1-B: James Danielson, from LaPlata, MD – STILL ALIVE, in 311th place
1-C: Mathieu Sauriol, from Laval, Quebec (Canada) – STILL ALIVE, in 274th place
1-D: Steve Billirakis, from Bourbonnais, IL – STILL ALIVE, in 184th place
2-A: Boulos Estafanous, from Darien, IL – STILL ALIVE — in 41st place
2-B: David Assouline from Hampstead, Quebec (Canada) – STILL ALIVE, in 187th place
3: James Carroll, from Henderson, NV – STILL ALIVE, in 1st place

THE NATIONS

There are 92 nations and territories represented among all players who entered this year’s WSOP Main Event. (The entire 2010 WSOP attracted participants from 117 different locales).

This year’s Main Event is comprised of 67.9 percent Americans. In other words, 32.1 percent of all participants are from other nations and territories.

The top-ten nations by participation in the Main Event are:

United States – 4,973 players
Canada – 482
Great Britain – 292
France – 176
Germany – 176
Australia – 110
Sweden – 99
Russia – 89
Italy – 81
Netherlands – 78

The remaining participant nations include:

Brazil — 56
Ireland — 55
Spain — 53
Denmark — 52
Canada — 42
Norway — 41
Finland — 39
Switzerland — 37
Hungary — 30
England — 29
Argentina — 27
Mexico — 27
Portugal — 26
Austria — 25
Belgium — 23
Israel — 19
Japan — 18
Romania — 11
Poland — 10
Venezuela — 10
Lithuania — 9
South Africa — 9
Czech Republic — 8
Lebanon — 8
Guatemala — 7
New Zealand — 6
Slovakia — 6
Ukraine — 6
Belarus — 5
China — 5
Costa Rica — 5
Cyprus — 5
Greece — 5
Hong Kong — 5
Kazakhstan — 5
Latvia — 5
Singapore — 5
Slovenia — 5
Chile — 4
U.A.E. — 3
Bolivia — 3
Estonia — 3
Croatia — 3
Turkey — 3
Uruguay — 3
Bahrain — 2
Belize — 2
Colombia — 2
Gibraltar — 2
Guadeloupe — 2
Iceland — 2
South Korea — 2
Peru — 2
Philippines — 2
Serbia — 2
Angola — 1
Azerbaijan — 1
Bosnia — 1
Benin — 1
Bermuda — 1
Bahamas — 1
Botswana — 1
Dominican Republic — 1
Gabon — 1
Guam — 1
Honduras — 1
Haiti — 1
India — 1
Cayman Islands — 1
Liechtenstein — 1
Monaco — 1
Macedonia — 1
Mongolia — 1
Northern Mariana Islands — 1
Malta — 1
Oman — 1
Panama — 1
French Polynesia — 1
Paraguay — 1
Qatar — 1
Senegal — 1
Turks and Caicos Islands — 1
Taiwan — 1

THE DAYS

Players are currently 457 spots from the money.

In 2009, at the conclusion of Day Three, the eventual champion Joe Cada was ranked in 100th place, which was in the top ten percent.

In 2009, at the conclusion of Day Three, only one of the top-ten ranked players made it to the final table (James Akenhead was ranked 6th).

In 2008, Peter Eastgate was ranked in 386th place, which was in the middle of the pack.

In 2008, none of the top-ten ranked players at the conclusion of Day 3 made it to the final table.

In 2007, at the conclusion of Day 3, the eventual champion Jerry Yang was ranked in 46th place.

In 2007, at the conclusion of Day 3, five of the nine players who made it to the final table were ranked in top 20 (Alex Kravchenko, Hevad Khan, Tuan Lam, Lee Watkinson, and Raymond Rahme).

In 2006, at the conclusion of Day 3, the eventual champion Jamie Gold was ranked in 35th place.

In 2006, none of the top ten ranked players at the conclusion of Day 3 made it to the final table.

Based on WSOP figures during the mega-era (2006 to present when the Main Event went to a 10+ day format), the previous results of Day 3 chip leaders ended up as follows:

2009 – Bertrand Grospellier (London, UK) finished in 122nd place
2008 – Brain Schaedlich (Cleveland, OH) finished in 456th place
2007 – Dag Martin Mikkelsen (Stavanger, Norway) finished in 42nd place
2005 – Jon Lane (Oshkosh, WI) finished in 200th place

ODDS AND ENDS

Based on the birthdates of all 7,319 players, the average age of all participants in the Main Event is 37 years and 4 months.

Jim Boyd, from Martinsburg, WV has been around the game of poker for more than 30 years. In fact, he started coming to the WSOP during the 1970s. If anyone should know the rules of the game and proper etiquette, it is big barrel-chested good-old-boy “Jimmy” Boyd. Thing is, sometimes even the savvy veterans get caught up in the excitement of playing the WSOP and make a mistake. At one point during Day Three, Boyd pawed some chips from the pot, apparently making change for himself when he called a bet. This is not allowed. Dealers are always required to make change, rather than the player. When Boyd was called out for his actions, a floorman came over and instructed Boyd not to make his own change. Boyd threw his hands up in the air and tried to explain, saying, “I was just……just……” Realizing how ridiculous this all sounded, Boyd swallowed his pride and snapped, “They busted me. I should have known better, and they busted me.”

The Mizrachi Brothers are rapidly becoming to poker what the Kennedy’s were once to politics, or the Mannings are to pro football. Michael “the Grinder” Mizrachi won his first gold bracelet early this year when he triumphed in the Poker Players Championship. He joined his brother Robert Mizrachi as a bracelet holder. Meanwhile, Eric Mizrachi and Daniel Mizrachi are also making strides in the Main Event. In fact, all four Mizrachi brothers were still alive in this tournament at the start of Day Three. Although no official records exist on corroborating brothers either entering or surviving deep in the tournament, this is most certainly a WSOP first. When Day Three ended, all four Mizrachi Brothers were still alive in the tournament. In fact, none of the four were short-stacked. This is emerging as one of the biggest stories of the Main Event.

Another set of brothers who remain alive are Matt Keikoan and Todd Keikoan. Matt won his second gold bracelet earlier this year.

Vulture Cams? That’s the new term used to describe ESPN’s wandering television cameras, which wander around the tournament room, anticipating the next dramatic moment or bust-out hand. The term was first used by Doyle Brunson, no less – a perpetual target of the “vultures.” Indeed, when the cameras start swirling around a table, one often sees a big name pro all-in and holding his/her breath to remain alive.

The WSOP attracts everyone, even our good friends from other poker tours. This year, the Main Event attracted: Steve Lipscomb (founder of the WPT), Matt Savage (WPT Tournament Director), Mike Sexton (WPT announcer), Vince Van Patton (WPT announcer), Sarne Lightman (President of LAPT), John Duthie (President of EPT), Todd Anderson (President of Heartland Poker Tour), and Thomas Kremser (EPT Tournament Director).

This is the 57th and final event on the 2010 WSOP schedule which is played in Las Vegas. Five more gold bracelet events will take place in London, England at the Empire Casino, to be held in September 14 through 28th as part of the Fourth Annual World Series of Poker Europe.

This marks the sixth consecutive year the WSOP has been held at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino. Prior to 2005, the WSOP was held at Binion’s Horseshoe in downtown Las Vegas. As a testament to the expansion of the WSOP since Harrah’s Entertainment assumed ownership and control of the world most prestigious poker event, more than three quarters of the $1.2 billion in prize money has been awarded to winners within the Rio – three times the amount awarded during the entire 35-year period at the Horseshoe.

This is the 885th gold bracelet event in World Series of Poker history. Note: This figure includes every official WSOP event played, including tournaments during the early years when there were no actual gold bracelets awarded. It also includes the 11 gold bracelets awarded to date at WSOP Europe.

In the 41-year history of the WSOP, the total combined amount of prize money that has been awarded amounts to $1,228,375,121.

The total number of entrants in the WSOP Main Event (all years combined) is 50,756.

The WSOP title sponsor the last two years has been Jack Link’s Beef Jerky. As part of a fun promotion, Jack Links gives away large quantities of their product to Main Event players who make big hands. This year’s key hand is four jacks. 48 players made the hand during the first seven sessions.

WOMEN IN THE MAIN EVENT

Special Note: The WSOP recognizes that player characteristics such as gender, race, etc. do not typically warrant special mention. However, since many members of the media wish to know details about female participation and status, the staff is providing this information for media use.

There are estimated to be 14 females remaining in the Main Event. Note: This is an estimate based on a late day head count of those still remaining in the tournament, and may not be reliable.

The unofficial total number of females who participated in this year’s Main Event was 216. There is no official record since entrants are not designated by their gender. However, it has been customary to count every player at the start of Day One and take an unofficial head-count of female players. This figure represents about 3 percent of the field.

Here are the highest-female finishers (by year) in the WSOP Main Event (Note: Only players who finished in-the-money were recorded):

No female cashed in the Main Event between the years 1970-1985.

1986 – Wendeen Eolis (25th)
1987 – None
1988 – None
1989 – None
1990 – None
1991 – None
1992 – None
1993 – Marsha Waggoner (19th)
1994 – Barbara Samuelson (10th)
1995 – Barbara Enright (5th)
1996 – Lucy Rokach (26th)
1997 – Marsha Waggoner (12th)
1998 – Susie Isaacs (10th)
1999 – None
2000 – Annie Duke (10th)
2001 – None
2002 – None
2003 – Annie Duke (47th)
2004 – Rose Richie (98th)
2005 – Tiffany Williamson (15th)
2006 – Sabyl Cohen-Landrum (56th)
2007 – Maria Ho (38th)
2008 – Tiffany Michelle (17th)
2009 – Leo Margets, a.k.a. Leonor Margets (27th)

WSOP MAIN EVENT ALL-TIME RECORDS

Most Main Event Wins (Career):

3 – Johnny Moss (*first win was by vote)
3 – Stu Ungar
2 – Doyle Brunson
2 – Johnny Chan

Most Main Event Cashes (Career):

10 – Berry Johnston
7 – Bobby Baldwin
7 – Humberto Brenes
7 – Doyle Brunson
7 – Jay Heimowitz
7 – Phil Hellmuth
7 – Mike Sexton
6 – John Bonetti
6 – Johnny Moss
6 – Jason Lester
6 – Steve Lott
5 – 14 players tied with 5 cashes each

Most Main Event Final Tables (Career):

5 – Doyle Brunson
5 – Jesse Alto
4 – Johnny Chan
4 – T.J. Cloutier
4 – Dan Harrington
4 – Berry Johnston
4 – Johnny Moss
4 – Stu Ungar
3 – 6 players tied with 3 final tables each

Youngest Winner

Joe Cada (2009) — 21 years, 11 months, 22 days

Oldest Winner

Johnny Moss (1974) – 66 years, 11 months, 24 days

Oldest Participant

97 years — Jack Ury (2010)

Most Consecutive Years Played:

37 – Howard “Tahoe” Andrew (1974 to present)

Most Main Events Played (Career)

38 – Doyle Brunson (did not play 1999 through 2001)

Most Consecutive Years to Cash (Main Event)

4 – Theodore Park (2005 – 2008)
4 – Bo Sehlstedt (2004 – 2007)
4 – Robert Turner (1991 – 1994)

2010 WSOP STATISTICS (INCLUDING MAIN EVENT)

Tournament attendance is up significantly from last year when there were 60,875 entries (then, a record). This year, there were 72,966 total entries — an increase of 20 percent. Hence, this is the biggest WSOP of all time, measured by total participation.

Prize money increased from 2008, when the total money awarded was a record $180,774,427. This year, the total amount of prize money awarded was $187,109,850 – an increase of 3.5 percent.

This year, there were 57 gold bracelet events – which is the same number as last year.

Through the conclusion of Event #56, the nationalities of gold bracelet winners have been:

United States (38)
Great Britain (5)
Canada (5)
Hungary (2)
New Zealand (1)
France (1)
Russia (1)
Norway (1)
Holland (1)
Israel (1)

Through the conclusion of Event #56, the national origin (birthplace) of winners has been:

United States (31)
Great Britain (5)
Canada (5)
Vietnam (2)
China (2)
Hungary (2)
New Zealand (1)
France (1)
Lebanon (1)
Russia (1)
Mexico (1)
Bangladesh (1)
Norway (1)
Holland (1)
Israel (1)

Through the conclusion of Event #56, the breakdown of professional poker players to semi-pros and amateurs who won gold bracelets is as follows:

Professional Players (39): Michael Chow, Michael Mizrachi, Praz Bansi, Josh Tieman, Peter Gelencser, James Dempsey, Men “the Master” Nguyen, Matt Matros, Yan R. Chen, Steve Gee, Carter Phillips, Jason DeWitt; Eric Buchman, David Baker, Richard Ashby, Dutch Boyd, Sammy Farha, David Warga, Will Haydon, Matt Keikoan, Mike Ellis, Luis Velador, Ayaz Mahmood, Phil Ivey, Luigi Kwaysser, Scott Montgomery, Steven Kelly, Steve Jelinek, Dean Hamrick, Ian Gordon, Gavin Smith, Jesse Rockowitz, Chris Bell, Shawn Busse, Sigurd Eskeland, Chance Kornuth, Ryan Welch, Brendan Taylor, Daniel Alaei

Semi-Pros (8): Frank Kassela, Tex Barch, Miguel Proulx, Jeffrey Papola, Frank Kassela, Mike Linn, Dan Kelly, Tomer Berda

Amateurs (9): Duc Pham, Aadam Daya, Pascal LeFrancois, Simon Watt, Vanessa Hellebuyck, Jeff Tebben, Konstantin Puchkov, Harold Angle, Marcel Vonk

Through the conclusion of Event #56, here is the list of repeat WSOP gold bracelet winners:

Praz Bansi
Men “the Master” Nguyen
Russ “Dutch” Boyd
Sammy Farha
David Warga (* his first WSOP win was in a non-open event)
Matt Keikoan
Luis Velador
Phil Ivey
Frank Kassela (two wins this year)
Daniel Alaei

Through the conclusion of 2010 World Series of Poker — Event #56:

Youngest Winner – Steven Kelly (21), Dan Kelly (21)
Oldest Winner – Harold Angle (78)
Female Winners (open events) – None
Multiple-Event Winners (this year) – Frank Kassela

Day 3 on Monday will mark the first time the tournament field will be in action at the same time, following four “Day 1’s” and two “Day 2’s” with split fields. Roughly two-thirds of the total starting field of 7,319 — the second-largest ever in a live poker tournament — still have a chance at the championship.

Only the top 747 will make the money, with the minimum payout being $19,263, or just about double the $10K buy-in. The money bubble won’t be reached until at least Tuesday. This year’s prize pool is about $68M, with the champ receiving about $9M.

Eliminations will continue daily through Saturday night, when the final table — this year’s “November Nine” — is determined. The tournament then will be suspended until November when the action resumes and the coveted bracelet is awarded.

Seven past main event champs remain alive this year heading into Day 3: Johnny Chan (1987 & 1988), Jim Bechtel (1993), Dan Harrington (1995), Scotty Nguyen (1998), Robert Varkonyi (2002), Chris Moneymaker (2003), and Joe Cada (2009). Chan was among the chip leaders. The only other final tablist from last year still alive besides Cada was Eric Buchman.

Click here for a full status report on the main event by WSOP media director Nolan Dalla.

JULY 11, 2010 - 10:01:27 AM PST
DAY 3 STARTS MONDAY WITH 2,557 PLAYERS WHO HAVE HOPES AND DREAMS ALIVE

Official Report