*Note: Final table play begins on Thursday, 2 October at 1 pm on the main
stage inside the Empire Casino in London.*
* *
*The Final Table:*
* *
*Seat 1: Robin Keston*
*Hometown: London, England*
*Chip Count: 849,000*
Robin Keston is a 44-year-old retiree from London, England. This marks his
second occasion to make it to a WSOP final table. Last year, he made the
Pot-Limit Omaha finale in Las Vegas, finishing ninth. In fact, this his
ninth time to cash at the World Series. He first in-the-money finish came
all the way back in 1999. Keston admits that his favorite poker game is
Pot-Limit Omaha. To prove it, his youngest of three children is named
"Holly May Omaha." It remains to be seen if he wins today, whether or not
Keston will name his next child – "hold'em."
*Seat 2: Daniel Negreanu*
*Hometown: Las Vegas, NV (USA)*
*Chip Count: 1,002,000*
Negreanu currently holds four WSOP gold bracelets, more than any other
player at today's final table. He is 34-years-old and was born in
Canada. Negreanu
moved to Las Vegas about ten years ago and has become one of the world's
most popular poker players – through his strategy books, videos, seminars,
and numerous television appearances. "Kid Poker" won his fourth WSOP title
earlier this year in Las Vegas, where he triumphed in the $2,000 Limit
Hold'em event. Negreanu admits he is addicted to three things – poker,
golf, and......winning.
*Seat 3: Chris Elliott*
*Hometown: Alloa, England*
*Chip Count: 281,000*
33-year-old Chris Elliott might as well be called 'the Comeback Kid." When
this tournament still had 179 players remaining, Elliott was ranked 176th in
chips. Look at him now. This marks Elliott's live poker debut, after
making many final tables in online play. Elliott says he is a professional
gambler. Prior to living live on the edge, Elliott worked a driver. Today,
we shall see if Elliott races towards the checkered flag, with his first
major tournament victory, or wipes out.
*Seat 4: Bengt Sonnert*
*Hometown: Linkoping, Sweden*
*Chip Count: 385,000*
Bengt Sonnert is a 27-year-old professional poker player. This is his first
time to make it to a WSOP final table, although he has a number of
impressive finishes in other tournaments – including fourth place at the
2005 Monte Carlo Millions, and eighth place at the Five-Diamond World Poker
Classic a few years ago at the Bellagio Casino in Las Vegas. Sonnert faces
a major challenge today as the player currently ranked eighth in the chip
count.
*Seat 5: John Juanda*
*Hometown: Las Vegas, NV (USA)*
*Chip Count: 1,349,000*
John Juanda is a 37-year-old professional poker player, from Las Vegas, NV.
He currently owns three WSOP gold bracelets -- his last victory coming back
in 2003. Clearly, Juanda is way overdue for another coveted piece of poker
jewelry. Juanda was born in Indonesia. He was a teenager when he arrived
in the United States and received his MBA from the University of
Seattle. However,
the business Juanda knows best -- is poker. He won the Aussie Millions
$100,000 buy-in poker challenge, the World Poker Open Main Event, and has
accrued over $7 million in career lifetime earnings. And now, he is well on
his way to adding to his emerging status as a living poker legend. Juanda
is the chip leader coming into today's final table.
*Seat 6: Ivan Demidov*
*Hometown: Moscow, Russia*
*Chip Count: 1,006,000*
Ivan Demidov has set a poker record that will never be broken. With this
achievement, Demidov becomes the first player in history ever to make it to
a final table of the WSOP Main Event and the WSOP Europe Main Event. Even
more impressive, he did it in the same year. Demidov is a 27-year-old
former student turned professional poker player. Regardless of what happens
today, Demidov has already won over a million dollars at this year's
WSOP. Five
weeks from now, Demidov will take a seat in the biggest game of his life,
the 2008 world championship played in Las Vegas. We wish him success --
both here, and there.
*Seat 7: Toni Hiltunen*
*Hometown: Lahti, Finland*
*Chip Count: 386,000*
Toni Hiltunen is a 31-year-old poker pro from Finland. Should he win today,
Hiltunen would become the first Finnish WSOP gold bracelet winner ever in
history. Hiltunen is the proud father of a three-year-old daughter. He is
very concerned about international affairs and the state of the world, as he
has previously worked as a United Nations-sanctioned peacekeeper. Hiltunen
has also served as a volunteer firefighter. Hiltunen is certainly one of
the hottest players at today's final table. But he needs to turn up the
heat a bit on his opponents, as the player currently ranked seventh in the
chip count.
*Seat 8: Scott Fischman*
*Hometown: Las Vegas, NV (USA)*
*Chip Count: 732,000*
Two-time WSOP gold bracelet winner Scott Fischman is from Las Vegas, NV. He
grew up in New Jersey and used to work as a poker dealer before becoming a
poker professional. Fischman exploded on the scene at the 2004 WSOP when he
won both of his gold bracelets – one in HORSE and the other in No-Limit
Hold'em. Fischman has also written a highly-acclaimed poker on poker
strategy called, "Online Ace: A World Series of Poker Champion's Guide to
Mastering Internet Poker." Fischman has certainly played masterfully during
this tournament, as he arrives sixth in the chip count.
*Seat 9: Stanislav Alekhin*
*Hometown: Moscow, Russia*
*Chip Count: 1,278,000*
Stanislav Alekhin is one of two Russian players at today's final table –
which marks the first time in WSOP history this has happened. At the age of
23, he is the youngest player in today's finale. One might keep in mind
that last year here at WSOP-Europe, the youngest player at the final table
achieved victory. Prior to making poker his vocation, Alekhin was a
student. Currently, he is right behind John Juanda for the chip lead. Should
Alekhin win, this would be his first major tournament victory.
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