| Recession? What Recession? |
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| From the Editor - From the Editor | |||
| Written by John Wenzel | |||
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Talk about champing at the bit! Despite all the talk of recession, the poker economy seems to be alive and well, if the World Series of Poker is any indication. The first $1500 no-limit hold’em event is always among the biggest of the Series, but this year it was an absolute monster. It was as if poker players from all over the world had waited an entire year to play, and then just could not bear it any longer and, waving fistfuls of dollars, rushed the Rio’s Amazon Room in a massive tidal wave of humanity. Many WPT and EPT events drew smaller numbers during the past year, so some folks had expected WSOP attendance to drop a bit in 2008 due to economic woes, the UIGEA, etc. But the first $1500 event destroyed that theory in a big way: It attracted 3929 starry-eyed hopefuls, making it the largest non-Main Event field in the 39-year history of the WSOP. Only the 2005, 2006 and 2007 Main Events drew more. The prize pool topped $5.3 million, with 378 players paid. The same event last year drew 2998 – about 1000 fewer players! In fact, almost every event showed an increase this year. Hey, who needs to buy gas when you’re in the poker room all day! The event went four days (instead of the scheduled three) and took 53.5 hours, making it the fourth longest in WSOP history. Final-table play began at 7:30 p.m. and didn’t finish until 5 a.m., when Grant Hinkle of Kansas City defeated Londoner James Akenhead when his 10-4 of diamonds hooked up with a flop of 10-10-4 to destroy James’ A-K and take the title (and $831,462). It was Hinkle’s first cash ever. Another WSOP tale both players will be telling for the rest of their lives. Speaking of gut-wrenching, beyond-belief hands, how about this one from Event 7, $2000 no-limit hold’em. What follows is one bad beat story that is actually worth listening to. With two dozen players left (out of a field of 1592), young Vegas pro Theo Tran was heads-up against Canadian Scott Montgomery. Tran, who finished fourth, had pocket aces, Montgomery pocket fives. In a flash, the impossible happened: Montgomery didn’t just flop an aces-cracking set – he flopped quad fives! The flop had come 5-5-4, with two spades. But wait, it gets better: The turn was the deuce of spades, and the three of spades hit the river, giving Tran a steel wheel – a five-high straight flush with his ace of spades (5-4-3-2-A). Incredibly, Montgomery did not go broke with his quads. Tran made a modest value bet on the river, and Montgomery just called, despite having four-of-a-kind. You have to admire that. His thoughtful play while holding a hand-trembling monster kept him from busting, and he clawed his way to 17th place and $18,833 before succumbing. Just another hand on a typical day at one of the 274 tables during one of 55 events at the World Series of Poker. John “Johnny Quads” Wenzel Editor-in-Chief
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| Last Updated on Sunday, 17 May 2009 17:42 |
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