2009 40th Annual World Series of Poker
World Championship NL Texas Hold'em (Event 57)
Date:
Friday, July 03, 2009 to Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Buy-In:
$10,000
Prize Pool:
$61,043,600
Entrants:
6,494
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 23:04:50
Meet Your November Nine
What a day of poker! If you asked anyone in the media when we got here this morning if we thought the tournament would be down to its final nine players -- the November Nine -- before 11pm, we would have laughed and challenged you to put your whole bankroll on it. Yet here we are, just shy of 11pm, with the final nine players bagging and tagging for the night.
But that's getting slightly ahead of the action. We started today at noon with 27 players. Leo Margets, the sole woman in the field, was the first elimination just twenty minutes into the day. That seemed to set the tone for play, as players got their chips into the middle with glee. Before we finished the first level of play, three more players were eliminated, including the good-for-television Antonio Esfandiari.
All through the day, players continued to be eliminated at a rapid pace. We thought there would be mini-bubbles at 19 left, 16 left, and 13 left. In fact there were no such bubbles.
The big stacks did their jobs today, as Darvin Moon, Steven Begleiter and Billy Kopp all applied relentless pressure on the short stacks. It was unfortunate for Kopp that he ran a small flush into a bigger flush and went busto in 12th place, a classic elimination that is sure to haunt Kopp for a long time.
Of course there's one other player whom everyone was watching today. Some consider him to be the greatest player in the world; all were hoping he'd make the final table. Phil Ivey started off trending dangerously downwards, but he seemed to recognize what many other players did not -- the stacks were still relatively deep and the levels were still two-hours long. No need to panic. Ivey didn't panic, and as a result he secured a spot in the November Nine.
When Jordan Smith said "Good night, Moon" and exited in tenth place, the November Nine were determined. Here they are!
Darvin Moon - 58,930,000
James Akenhead - 6,800,000
Phil Ivey - 9,765,000
Kevin Schaffel - 12,390,000
Steven Begleiter - 29,885,000
Eric Buchman - 34,800,000
Joe Cada - 13,215,000
Antoine Saout - 9,500,000
Jeff Shulman - 19,580,000 Moon will be the chip leader for the next four months. Many will argue that this is the most talented Main Event final table to have been assembled in years. They'll have almost four months to argue back and forth over which player they think has the best shot. The final table festivities will take place from November 7 - 10. It has been our great pleasure to be your source of live updates during the 2009 WSOP. We hope you'll join us throughout the rest of the year as we cover major poker tournaments around the globe. Please stop back in November for what is sure to be an exciting conclusion to the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event. Good night!
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:59:41
Jordan Smith Eliminated in 10th Place ($896,730)
Eric Buchman opened for 650,000, Darvin Moon flat-called from the button and Jordan Smith reraised to 2.6 million from the small blind. Buchman folded and Moon called.
The flop was 
. Smith checked, Moon bet 4,000,000, Smith moved all in and Moon called.
Smith 
Moon 
The turn was the 
, Smith picking up an inside straight draw to a wheel. The river, though, was the 
and Moon took down the pot with his set of eights, eliminating Smith and setting the 2009 "November Nine."
Moon has an estimated 59,770,000 chips. We'll post the remainder of the final table chip counts as soon as they're verified.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:46:02
No Flops Here
The last two hands were raise-and-take-it with Joe Cada and James Akenhead each winning a set of blinds.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:42:46
Where's the Cocktails?!
Master of Ceremonies Robbie Thompson just got on the mic and asked for a cocktail server to come to the final table area. All we can say to that is -- good luck. The railbirds are jammed so deep around the entrances to the final table area that we doubt a cocktail server can even get in.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:41:11
No Action Again for Smith
Jordan Smith came in raising again on the very next hand, making it 650,000 to go. Again, no action for Smith and he picked up the blinds and antes.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:39:51
Start Well and (Try to) End Well
Looking back at the stacks with which the 27 players started today, nine of our final ten players were situated in the top 12 when cards first went into the air about ten-and-a-half hours ago.
Indeed, the only players who were able to overcome having a lower than average stack -- 7.215 million -- to start the day to make the final ten were Joseph Cada who was in 12th to start today, and Jordan Smith who was in 19th.
Of the top ten from the start of Day 8, Billy Kopp (who began today in 2nd place), Jamie Robbins (9th), and Ben Lamb (10th) did not make it to the final ten.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:39:25
Booooo!
Jordan Smith raised to 650,000 and got no action. He showed 
.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:38:37
Cada Folds to the Four-Bet
Steven Begleiter made it 650,000 to go, Joe Cada reraised to 1.7 million, Begleiter four-bet to 5.5 million and Cada folded.
Cada= 12,960,000
Begleiter= 28,195,000
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:35:52
Akenhead's Sevens Hold
Jordan Smith opened for 650,000 and James Akenhead made the call.
The flop was 
and both players checked. The turn came the 
and Smith checked to Akenhead, who checked behind. The river was the 
. Check-check again.
Akenhead showed 
and they were good. He's up to 6.4 million.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:28:20
Everyone Runs from Shulman's Flop Bet
Eric Buchman opened for 650,000, and got three callers in Jeff Shulman, Jordan Smith, and Phil Ivey.
The flop came down 
. The action was checked to Shulman, who bet 1.5 million. Folds all around and Shulman took it down.
Shulman is up to 20,510,000.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:27:22
What We're Looking At
Mike Matusow made an appearance in the feature table area as the players were setting up their chip stacks. He singled out Jeff Shulman and Phil Ivey for handshakes and heart-felt words of congratulations. Of course, there's still one more elimination to go.
The mood while players were setting up in their new seats was beyond festive. Railbirds are crammed into the feature table set tighter than a Tokyo subway. They're in the feature table seating area, the standing room around the feature table, and the box above the feature table area. There are also small clumps outside the feature table area -- at the two entrances, and by the secondary feature table area where some railbirds are watching the action on a flat-panel television.
The media are in on the action too. Media row at the feature table area has seats for five or six people, with two small rows of chairs behind that. All the seats in all three rows are taken, with other members of the media standing or sitting wherever they can find space.
When cards got back in the air, the crowd descended into respectful and hushed murmurs.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:24:58
Cada Over the Moon
Joe Cada opened for 600,000 and Darvin Moon called from the button.
The flop came down 
and both players checked. The turn was the 
. Check-check again. The river fell the 
. Check-check a third time.
Cada showed 
, Moon showed 
and Cada won the pot.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:22:26
Shuffle Up and Deal!
With 41:55 remaining on the clock in Level 33, cards are back in the air.
The button will start in Seat 1 with Darvin Moon.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:20:19
Introductions Underway...
Tournament Director Robbie Thompson is presently introducing our ten remaining players to the crowd. Thus far, James Akenhead (with a large, rowdy crowd of supporters, including Karl Mahrenholz), Phil Ivey ("Ivey, Ivey Ivey!") and Steven Begleiter ("Begs! Begs! Begs!) and Joe Cada ("YOU ARE A ROCKSTAR! SOUL CRUSHER!") have received the strongest ovations.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:10:46
One Table of Ten
This is a big re-draw folks. After the tenth-place finisher is eliminated, the November Nine will maintain these seating assignments at the final table four months from now. Here's the lineup:
Darvin Moon (44,300,000)
Jordan Smith (15,430,000)
James Akenhead (5,100,000)
Phil Ivey (10,210,000)
Kevin Schaffel (13,080,000)
Steven Begleiter (26,495,000)
Eric Buchman (36,780,000)
Joe Cada (13,400,000)
Antoine Saout (10,200,000) Seat 10:Jeff Shulman (17,900,000)
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:01:26
Collapse to 10!
With the elimination of Jamie Robbins in 11th place, the tournament is on a pause. The players at the secondary feature table are racking up their chips to bring them all to the main feature table. We'll have the new seat assignments in a few minutes.
With one more elimination, the November Nine will be set!
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:00:37
Jamie Robbins Eliminated in 11th Place ($896,730)
Jamie Robbins moved all in for 2.35 million and Phil Ivey made the call.
Robbins 
Ivey
The flop didn't help Robbins, coming down 
. The turn was the 
, the river was the 
and the crowd full of Ivey fans roared as their man took down the hand and sent Jamie Robbins to the rail in 11th place.
Ivey is up to 9.61 million.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 21:56:20
Billy Kopp Eliminated in 12th Place ($896,730)
Wow. That's a succinct description of what just happened on the secondary feature table. Billy Kopp opened for 600,000 preflop from early position and was called by the small blind, Darvin Moon. So far, so good.
On a flop of 
, Moon had first action and checked. He then called when Kopp bet 750,000. Again, nothing out of the ordinary yet.
It was on the turn 
where everything went haywire. Moon checked again and drew a bet of 2.0 million from Kopp. Moon then check-raised to 6.0 million. Improbably, Kopp moved all in for about 20.0 million total. Even more improbably, Moon called!
Kopp: 
Moon: 
Kopp looked like he wanted to cry when he saw Moon's hand. He knew that he was drawing dead and that Moon had him covered. Kopp had more than 80 big blinds to start the hand; with the 
river he had none. He didn't even wait for the river to come out, barreling out of the secondary feature table area as fast as he could.
Moon is once again the chip leader with a whopping 45.0 million chips.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 21:47:18
More for Buchman
The table folded to Eric Buchman in the cutoff who raised to 650,000, and only Jordan Smith called him from the big blind.
The flop came 
, and both players checked. The turn was the . Smith bet 1 million, and Buchman called.
The river was the 
. This time Smith checked, Buchman bet 1 million, and Smith thought for about a minute then folded.
Buchman increases his chip lead, moving up to 35 million. Smith is at 15 million.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 21:45:34
Schaffel Can't Stand Up to Kopp
Billy Kopp opened the pot to 600,000 fromt he small blind. Kevin Schaffel was in the big blind and called the raise.
The two players eyed each other over on a flop of 
. Kopp had first action and made it 800,000 to go. Schaffel called. On the turn Kopp fired again, for 1.75 million total. That bet was enough to fold Schaffel.
Kopp's count is now approximately 20.2 million. Schaffel has roughly half that, with 10.8 million.
Wed, 15 Jul 2009 21:43:12
Begs' Bet Wins
Steve Begleiter raised to 600,000 and got two callers in James Akenhead and Phil Ivey.
The 
flop was checked around. The turn came the and Begleiter's 1.8 million bet took it down.
