With the WSOP fast approaching, and with it my hopes of being amongst the throngs chasing dreams. I thought it would be good to take a look back over the last 40 years.  I’m a pretty big trivia fan, none of my family wants to play me in Trivial Pursuit or Scene It, so here are some interesting tidbits you may not know about the World Series of Poker.

    The first WSOP was played in 1970 and it was an invitational where Benny Binion invited the six of the most well known players to play.  It was a timed event, not a freeze out, and the winner was voted on.  Johnny Moss was voted that years champion.

     To the winner go the spoils; well a bracelet, huge amount of money, and in the case of the Main Event instant fame. The highly coveted bracelets were first awarded in 1976. Many people have won multiple bracelets, Phil Ivey won two in last years WSOP.  The top five bracelet winners are Phil Hellmuth (11), Doyle Brunson (10), Johnny Chan (10), Eric Seidel (8), and Johnny Moss (5).

     Four players have won the Main Event multiple times.  Johnny Moss (1971, 1974, voted champion in 1970), Doyle Brunson (1976, 1977), Stu Ungar (1980,1981, and 1997), and Johnny Chan (1987, 1988).  Ungar is the only player to win the Main Event three times, although Chan came close when he came in second to Phil Hellmuth in 1989.

     Even though people seem to love to hate him, Phil Hellmuth holds several records for the WSOP.  He has the most bracelets (11), the most cashes (75), and the most final tables (41).  He also ranks 9th on the all-time money list at the WSOP.  He has won each of his 11 bracelet in Hold ‘Em (No Limit, Limit, and Pot Limit) events with the latest being in the 2007 $1500 No Limit Hold ‘Em.

A few quick tid-bits:

9-9 is the hand that has won the most Main Events (Brian “Sailor” Roberts 1975, Hellmuth 1989, Joe Cada 2009)

Youngest player to win Main Event Joe Cada 2009 (21)

Oldest player to win Main Event Johnny Moss 1974 (67)

Oldest player to win WSOP Bracelet Paul “Cigar” McKinney 2005 (80)

And finally the first player to win a WSOP bracelet starting from a single chip???  If all goes well that would be yours truly, Frank Willburn.

Remember to always play it like you’ve got the nuts.

We’ve read Tony G’s worries in the open letter to Hellmuth where he tries his best to make him feel a little better about himself.

Now it’s on video as well. (Once Phil leaves the room, you can fast forward to 8:40. Then he comes back.)

Click here to view the embedded video.

Who Will Take Down the 2010 WSOP Tournament of Champions?

Five entrants have already locked up their seats.  The winners of the three previous TOC events have automatic bids.   Those are Annie Duke, Mike Matusow, and Mike Sexton.  Something that I personally suggested looks to have been implemented with both the WSOP Vegas and WSOP Europe champions  getting an automatic bid.  Therefore, Joe Cada and Barry Shulman, come on down.  Two spots will be “sponsors exemptions” and details will be forthcoming.  Apparently these two seats will be open for the general public to play their way into the event.  (Or that is what the WSOP’s site hinted at anyway.)

20 of the players will be voted in by the fans.  Any living WSOP bracelet winner is eligible to be voted into the TOC.  The top 20 vote getters will be extended invites to play. If any turn down the invite, then the next highest vote getter claims their spot.  (Hint: Voting for Russ Hamilton is probably a waste of time, although he is eligible.)

I have cast my votes and they are as follows.

Phil Hellmuth
Johnny Chan
Doyle Brunson
Erik Seidel
Phil Ivey
Billy Baxter
Layne Flack
Jay Heimowitz
T.J. Cloutier
Men Nguyen
Barbara Enright
Chris Ferguson
Annette Obrestad
Jamie Gold
Jeff Lisandro
Chris Moneymaker

Note that my list primarily follows the list of 27 that I called for in my prior blog about the All-Star event.  Since they stuck to “bracelet winners only”, I couldn’t vote for Jeffrey Pollack.  Annie, Joe, and Jeff were already in so I didn’t have to use votes there.  I wound up with four free votes so I went back over the names again.

Dan Harrington I have always had a lot of respect for regarding his NL game.  He also put together one of the greatest back to back final table runs in WSOP Main Event history.  Scotty Nguyen has five bracelets, including both the Main Event and the $50,000 HORSE event.  He is the ONLY pro to hold that distinction, baby.  I selected Greg Raymer because I do like his game overall and he has proven that he can play more than just Holdem.  I’ve also played with Greg and do find him a interesting character to talk to.  My last vote went to someone that I really should have probably included on my other list and that is Allen Cunningham.  Five WSOP bracelets and a Main Event final table run are definitely worthy of being in  a TOC.

For those of you wondering why Daniel Negreanu is not on my list, I personally don’t feel he is one of the top 20 bracelet winners of all-time.  If it were 25 or 30, then maybe he would be on my list.  If this were WPT or an overall Poker TOC, then ya, Daniel would be in the top 20.  But, this is a WSOP top 20.

Don’t like my picks or think you can do better?  Go to the WSOP’s website and make your own picks.  You can also see the top vote getters so far.

Poker playing journeyman plumber

More recently I have tried to satellite my way in via online tourneys, and that also has gone nowhere.  On this one fateful day a story I had read years before floated back into my mind.  I decided that I wanted to try and trade a single red poker chip for a seat in one of the many $1000 events at this years WSOP.  So far I have made two swaps. My first was to trade the chip for a pair of toilet seat sunglasses.  Later the same day I was able to get another exchange.  This time I traded my lovely glasses for a red 1970 Dodge Charger R/T die cast model.  That is where I currently stand.

I’m just a simple Texas guy who has a dream.  I am a 2004 graduate of Texas A&M University in College Station, Git ‘Em Ags.  For the last 4 years I have been a Journeyman plumber in the Texas Panhandle.  I do not consider myself to be an excellent poker player, but I do think I can hold my own in many situations.  This blog will be about poker, my take on the happenings in the poker world, and my progress in the adventure I have come to call Chip for a Chair.

Frank Willburn

There’s a very well written and pretty damn hilarious blog out there. It’s about a young guy who lives at home with his parents and plays the nosebleed stakes in online poker while hiding from his parents that he’s even playing for real money.

You can read the so called Isildur1 Blog at isildur1blog.blogspot.com.

It would have been a real treat if it had been genuine. Unfortunately the Isildur1 Blog is a fake.

The real Blom may not be Isildur1 after all

The proof

If nothing else, two things prove that this blog is fake:

• The affiliate banners. The true Isildur1 would never sink as low for a few dollars.
• The claim that “we had surstromming for breakfast”. No one eats the disgusting Swedish specialty “sour herring” for breakfast, not even the aficionados.

Fake but brilliant

So, clearly this is a fake Isildur1 blog. However, the idea is freaking brilliant.

It’s bound to receive large amounts of traffic and backlinks and definitely generate one or two dollars for its owner.

The picture of buddy Henrik in the garden is brilliant too. Lots of snow in Scandinavia clearly.

#1: Andy Bloch

Best player to not hold a bracelet. Photo courtesy of Full Tilt Poker.

Every since I first met Andy in 2006, I have been pulling for him. Bloch has two runner-up finishes, with the most famous being his runner-up finish to Chip Reese in the 2006 $50k HORSE event.  Richard Brodie and I ran into him the day after the loss and I was amazed at how well he seemed to take that crushing loss.  After seeing the footage, I was doubly impressed.  I think this is the year he avoids a bevy of bad beats heads-up and takes one down.  It would be fitting if he could take down the $50,000 Player’s Championship and have his name etched on the same trophy that he helped to make famous.

#2.  Matt Stout

Can Stout ride his hot streak to WSOP gold? Photo courtesy of Pokerlistings.com

Stout has been on a nice run over the last five months.  Three straight WPT cashes as well as a 3rd place finish at the World Poker Finals.  Also, he made the WSOP-C Main Event final table in Tunica for the 2nd year in a row.  Stout finished 13th in the $3k NL Holdem Event in 2008 (Won by John Pham and covered by yours truly.)  He has yet to make a WSOP final table, but with his run lately, don’t be surprised if he takes down a NL bracelet.

#3.Tom Dwan

Will Dwan be able to motivate himself to compete for a bracelet? Photo courtesy of Full Tilt Poker

Dwan is a player that if he were to really focus on tournaments, I think he would do well, but it is always about the big cash games with him.  And you really cannot blame him as who wants to spend 3 days playing a tournament for the same amount of money you could win in one session of $300 – $600 PLO.

With that said, a lot of a player’s popularity comes from what they have done in tournaments.  Dwan is a rare exception.  If not for the internet and shows such as High Stakes Poker, Dwan would almost be the modern day Chip Reese.  Reese was a fantastic player, but unless you were REALLY into poker or played high stakes, you never even heard of him until he started playing more tournaments in 2006.

If Dwan focuses, I think he could take down his first bracelet.

#4. Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi

Will the Grinder replace that watch with a bracelet?

Two-time WPT champion Michael Mizrachi is one of the more consistent players on the tour.  2009 was a down year for Mizrachi, and he still managed to win over $300,000 in tournaments.  He went 0 for the 2009, which was a far cry from a five cash with 2 final tables performance of 2008.  With over $7 Million in tournament winnings, he has the experience and track record to break through in 2010.  Mizrachi will not be 0 for 2010.

#5.  Bill Gazes

He keeps coming close. Now he needs the cigar. Photo courtesy of Full Tilt Poker.

It is amazing that Bill Gazes is still without a bracelet.  It isn’t due to lack of getting to the final table.  He has finished in 7th, 6th twice, 5th, 4th, 3rd, and 2nd in his seven final tables.  He hasn’t had a final table in a couple of years, but that doesn’t mean he won’t get there again.  Gazes was another 0 for 2009 player at the WSOP.  Don’t expect the same performance again.

There are other well deserving players out there that have a shot at the gold in 2009, but I think these five are some of the ones to watch for when Ivey or Seidel isn’t creeping up on Hellmuth’s bracelet record.

The Final Six - Photo Courtesy of Bay101live.com

Seat 1 – Hassan Habib – 455,000
Seat 2 – Phil Hellmuth – 1,433,000
Seat 3 – Andy Seth – 2,164,000
Seat 4 – Matt Keikoan – 371,000
Seat 5 – McLean Karr – 111,200
Seat 6 – Daniel O’Brien, 1,129,000

Personally, I am rooting for Phil.  I don’t think he is the best Holdem player on the planet.  Far from it.  He is however a great personality for poker on TV.  Whether you like or hate him, you have an opinion about him.

I know that Phil has to desperately want this title.  For a long time now, he has been ridiculed for his overall play and for being a “one trick pony.”  While a WPT win will not change everyone’s perspective about him, it should earn him a bit of respect.  Personally, I think the final table should get him some respect, but society loves a winner.

So Phil, whether it’s PEMM, LTPB, or SDNU (Shut Daniel Negreanu Up) that’s fueling your run, keep it up!  We want to see Phil Hellmuth – WPT Champion on Saturday morning.

Beautiful Beaches

Here is a blog I wrote after the 2009 Aruba Poker Classic:

Yummm Aruba Aribe mmmmmm….it’s been almost 2 weeks since I’ve been back from Aruba and I’m already counting down the days until next year’s trip. Aruba is the best tournament of the year and this year was no different, except that I was there working rather than playing and partying like I did last year. Though I did make sure to find time to hit the beach, down some cocktails, and lose some money at blackjack and drunken 3am $1/2. UB did not slack on any of the parties this year throwing an amazing opening party in which almost everyone at some point either by choice, force, or bribes from Phil Hellmuth wound up in the pool. I was thrown in wearing a white floral dress and no bra : ( by Bryan Devonshire and Matt Graham – thanks again guys! Phil threw his annual private party at his suite with plenty of Dom Perignon and Debos (a watermelon drink inspired by UB pro Gary Debernardi) to go around. There was also a special performance by The Dan Band and a rap battle between The Poker Rapper and Jeff Madsen. It was more of a rematch since Poker Rapper crushed Madsen in a freestyle battle at the opening party. There was the Icon booze cruise UB hosted which was basically a sausage fest of online players swapping poker stories, downing sugary drinks, and dancing very very badly. You could tell by the awkward movement they called dancing that they actually spend little time on their feet and too much time at the computer. Then there was the closing party which wrapped up with The Dan Band and even more people in the pool, though this time they were joined by some furniture that was tossed in by an unnameable drunken poofta. Then of course there was the contest between the Binger Bros over who could throw the most people into the pool, Nick got me : (

Party in the Pool

Most of my time was spent at the Radisson but if you go make sure to try some of Aruba’s amazing restaurants. A few good choices to try are Madame Jeanettes and Pinchos bar and grill which rests at the end of a pier right above the water.  Wherever you go order the grouper, it is the best fish on the island! As for drinks there’s the obvious Aruba Aribe, an amazing fruity type long island that will knock you on your ass! Yumm!

Sexy Painted Goddesses

I was all set to leave Aruba on Monday but lucky for me Copa Air overbooked my flight and I volunteered my ticket to score a $300 future flight credit, 3 nights free at the Renaissance hotel in downtown Aruba and $55/day in food vouchers which I spent at the awesome swim up bar our hotel had. In those 3 days I won some money at blackjack, snorkeled, swam, drank, and got bit by an iguana. Overall my trip was a ten and I can’t wait to go back again next year!

Warm Clear Water and Shark-Free!!

-Sadly I learned today there is no ‘next year’. Aruba will not be the same without the pool parties, rap battles, Hellmuths party, Debos, late night BJ, water fights, live music, bar hopping, free booze, and of course the cash games and tournaments.

UB will be announcing details for future plans on thier blog within the upcoming months but for now has said they plan to add to their online tournament schedule including developing a monthly $500k Guaranteed Tournament with an eye on building it into a million-dollar event and running UBOC two times a year. They also want to create more pro-related competitions possibly similar to the one they recently had offering a skydiving trip with Sebok to first place.  Personally I don’t see any reason to play on UB now; I don’t care much about skydiving with Seebs and I always get sucked into playing/losing at pai-gow and roulette. I do care about laying on the beach in my UB bikini and sarong, sweating out a hangover, working on my tan, and drinking an Aruba Aribe.