World Series of Poker time
July 2nd 2008 08:27
Thursday morning thousands of wanna-be millionaires will sit down around some green felt in hopes of winning the main event at the World Series of Poker.
It’s a event that has grown from just a handful of players playing on one day when it started years back to close to 10,000 players sitting down for an event that begins Thursday and ends in four months…literally.
This season, to help keep interest and suspense in the main event of poker, the first few rounds will be played in the next two weeks, but once the final table is set the event goes on hiatus until November.
That’s right, a four month break before we find out who the winner is.
The idea is partially based on coverage. As poker has grown, so has ESPN’s coverage, but ESPN covers a wide variety of events, and has several days of coverage on the main event. By the time they shoot edit and show footage of even the first day of the main event, the tournament is usually over, and the final table set. Thanks to the internet, news reports and other sources, the winner is well known before ESPN ever gets to show the final table.
Now ESPN will plan its coverage to lead right up to the final table, and by the time it happens in November, ESPN plans to shoot, edit and air the footage just a few hours after it ends, so there will be at least some suspense as to who wins.
Director of the WSOP Jack Pollack said the intent is to also build poker as a mainstream sport, and to do that they need to excite fans. He hopes this does that.
It’s a good idea, but it does have drawbacks. For starters, there is the unlikely, yet possibility that a final entrant dies in that four month span. Next, if one of the entrants is a foreigner, getting a second visa and trip back to the US can be an issue. Plus players would then have time to form alliances (collusion) which could go unnoticed at this point. Ad finally, it does kind of make the final a bit more interesting. Say for example two pros (Da Harrington and Chris Ferguson, for example) make the final table along side seven amateurs. Sure, the pros are better players, but the amateurs have a distinct advantage. How so? Harrington has written a couple of books, and there’s tons of poker footage on both Harrington and Ferguson. Four months these amateurs can study these pros and know almost every tick they may have.
Meanwhile, there’s nothing to study (except new ESPN footage and any hands you previously played against them) on the amateurs.
To say the least, it makes things more interesting. We’ll try to keep you updated on some of the interesting happenings at the main event. One thing of note is that if things keep going like they have so far at this year’s WSOP then it’s likely a pro wins as they have already won 23 of the 30 events. That means nothing in the big event, but it doesn’t mean that maybe the pros have finally gotten used to the flood of amateurs and they are again proving why they are indeed pro.
As for players to watch. I like John Phan who has already cashed four times in this years WSOP, including two bracelets. I also like Kenny Tran, who has yet to be a big name, but I think is finally starting to play some great poker. He has cashed twice and earned his first bracelet in this year’s heads up event. He should hold his own against a big field.
And finally I like Howard Lederer. He’s one that has been kind of off his game the last couple of year due to the growing field. But I think the man who can stare down anyone will find his groove again.
It’s a event that has grown from just a handful of players playing on one day when it started years back to close to 10,000 players sitting down for an event that begins Thursday and ends in four months…literally.
This season, to help keep interest and suspense in the main event of poker, the first few rounds will be played in the next two weeks, but once the final table is set the event goes on hiatus until November.
That’s right, a four month break before we find out who the winner is.
The idea is partially based on coverage. As poker has grown, so has ESPN’s coverage, but ESPN covers a wide variety of events, and has several days of coverage on the main event. By the time they shoot edit and show footage of even the first day of the main event, the tournament is usually over, and the final table set. Thanks to the internet, news reports and other sources, the winner is well known before ESPN ever gets to show the final table.
Now ESPN will plan its coverage to lead right up to the final table, and by the time it happens in November, ESPN plans to shoot, edit and air the footage just a few hours after it ends, so there will be at least some suspense as to who wins.
Phil Hellmuth has wo more bracelets and has cashed in more World Series of Poker events than anyone
Director of the WSOP Jack Pollack said the intent is to also build poker as a mainstream sport, and to do that they need to excite fans. He hopes this does that.
It’s a good idea, but it does have drawbacks. For starters, there is the unlikely, yet possibility that a final entrant dies in that four month span. Next, if one of the entrants is a foreigner, getting a second visa and trip back to the US can be an issue. Plus players would then have time to form alliances (collusion) which could go unnoticed at this point. Ad finally, it does kind of make the final a bit more interesting. Say for example two pros (Da Harrington and Chris Ferguson, for example) make the final table along side seven amateurs. Sure, the pros are better players, but the amateurs have a distinct advantage. How so? Harrington has written a couple of books, and there’s tons of poker footage on both Harrington and Ferguson. Four months these amateurs can study these pros and know almost every tick they may have.
Meanwhile, there’s nothing to study (except new ESPN footage and any hands you previously played against them) on the amateurs.
To say the least, it makes things more interesting. We’ll try to keep you updated on some of the interesting happenings at the main event. One thing of note is that if things keep going like they have so far at this year’s WSOP then it’s likely a pro wins as they have already won 23 of the 30 events. That means nothing in the big event, but it doesn’t mean that maybe the pros have finally gotten used to the flood of amateurs and they are again proving why they are indeed pro.
As for players to watch. I like John Phan who has already cashed four times in this years WSOP, including two bracelets. I also like Kenny Tran, who has yet to be a big name, but I think is finally starting to play some great poker. He has cashed twice and earned his first bracelet in this year’s heads up event. He should hold his own against a big field.
And finally I like Howard Lederer. He’s one that has been kind of off his game the last couple of year due to the growing field. But I think the man who can stare down anyone will find his groove again.
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