Fast makes slow look slower



Today was another three event day at the WSOP. It was day one of the no limit shootout. It was also the final table for both the stud hi/lo and the limit shootout.

The no limit shootout was a great event to watch as seventy-eight tables each played down to a single winner. Level two had thirteen tables of six players that played down to a thirteen person field that will start tomorrow. Marco Traniello (Jennifer's husband) won his first table and came in second at level two. This makes the fifth money finish for Marco in this year's WSOP, including an earlier final table finish. Pretty phenomenal performance for Marco so far. Phil Gordon is proving he's just not another pretty face as he will take the field of thirteen when play resumes. It was like the WPT Championship all over again when Kiril Gerasimov and Alan Goehring went heads up in level two with the same result; Alan makes the final thirteen. The "other" Russian (and former pro tennis player), Yevgeny Kafelnikov, also just missed out making the remaining, losing his heads up battle at level two. Others making the thirsty thirteen include Brett "Gank" Jungblut, Erick Lindgren, and Young Phan.

While there were some prolonged battles in the shootout, the format and no limit elements made for mostly fast play. And maybe that's what made the final table events, both limit, seem like they were traveling in a parallel universe where time stood still. The stud hi/lo event moved relatively quickly considering it was a limit split game, until it got heads up. Steve Hohn and Mike Wattel engaged in a brutal four+ hours heads up struggle, where Hohn eventually prevailed. And the final table for the limit hold'em shootout stalled for hours with nearly all its participants, as the stack size and starting blinds thwarted anything else. Mark Seif basically pushed from the get go, whittling away with low blinds in the early going and making larger strides with the rising blinds, to snag his bracelet a little after 4:00 am.

And I guess maybe another element was nagging on me today; the financial precariousness of it all. It is easy to lose sight of the risks of poker, as day after day awards bracelets and 7+ figure prize pools. But the undercurrent of financial risk is ever present, spoken about in hushed whispers, dark humor, and sometimes, despair.

Daniel Negreanu's heads-up matches are the current fodder for whispered concern. Even the pros are questioning the wisdom of continuing to play at these levels. Many have made the comparison to Gus Hansen taking on the big games against Greenstein, Brunson, Reese, and Giang during last year's series over at the Nugget; a move that many speculate put Hanson in a precarious financial condition. And I have heard a story that during the big Andy Beal games, one of the "pro" backers told the designated heads-up player they would "kill themselves" if the player couldn't pull out a victory, as their financial stake bordered the limit of their very livelihood. Apparently participating at levels above your bankroll capacity is not a blunder reserved for amateurs.

And it is not just the cash game woes that trickle through the undercurrent. When a well known pro won his bracelet this week, many speculated how much of the prize pool he could put claims on, considering the backer's cut and potential (likely) make-up. And of course there was the usual speculation relating to his purported craps leak. I continue to be amazed at the number of talented players that lose their hard-earned poker bankroll at the sports book and the craps tables.

And even without the leaks, the streaky high variance world of tournament poker presents even the most skilled and saintly player with challenges. While we celebrated Erik Seidel's 7th WSOP bracelet, this unbelievably consistent performer reminded us of the droughts he survived along the way. For every world class player that scores an additional bracelet, there is liable to be a "one hit wonder" chasing their "next" bracelet long after the last dollar of their prize is reinvested in buy-ins.

Man what a bummer I am tonight. Hopefully morning will yield a peppier me.