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Jesse May in
Las Vegas |
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Morning of the big one
9:30 am, it’s the morning of
the big one, and the record has been shattered. 657 runners so far, leaving no
doubt that over 700 will kick off the largest poker tournament in the history
of the world. The tournament area and satellite room are mostly empty, as
anybody who wants to kick off by playing a satellite must either be very crazy,
or still trying to get in. Day One will begin with five levels, five levels of
two hours each with 15 minute breaks in between and a one hour dinner break
after level number three, so 1am will be the earliest that we break for the
night. Mark Seif is playing in a one table downstairs, ten souls who will take
a last shot at a win before ponying up the $10,000 themselves. Brad Daugherty
is restlessly pacing between the poker room and the sportsbook. The seating
draw is scheduled to kick off at noon, so players will theoretically know their
seats an hour before the tournament starts, but the logistics of starting a 700
runner tournament are so nightmarish so that Matt Savage must be waking up with
six aspirin if he has any nerves at all.
Last night was time to relax,
if you’re already in. Mad Marty Wilson was holding court in the tournament
area, the Wolverhampton storyteller of unparalleled famed. It seems that when
Marty arrived into town three weeks ago, he walked into the satellite room
clutching his twenty-five dollar bankroll just as a supersatellite was about to
begin. Mad Marty leaned over a table to ask David Colclough if he could spare
$200, and as Dave reached over to comply, the $225 was snatched out of
Marty’s hand as the last player seated. Several hours later Mad Marty had
won the satellite and a $10,000 seat for the World Series of Poker. If he wins
it should be the greatest parlay in the history of the game. The best news,
Marty said, was that he never had to resort to his tried and true method of
gathering acorns from a Las Vegas park, and selling them in the poker room as
genuine souvenirs from Sherwood Forest.
Players in the know think the
favorite is clear. If Layne Flack makes it to Day 2, they say, he’ll be
near impossible to stop. Never has a player been so feared in no limit
Hold’em since the days of Stuey Ungar. There’s lots and lots of good
players, and many great ones. But Layne is playing a different game on a
different level. He can’t be imitated and can’t be figured out. Yes,
if Flack makes it past Day 1, his skill will make him a favorite. But as
I’ve argued along and will shout till I’m hoarse, I don’t care
who’s the best. I want to know who’s the freshest.
And
they’re off! Matt Savage should find a hefty bonus in his paycheck for
starting the WSOP right on the button at 1pm. Many players had not even been
seated. The official count will be in later today, but unofficially I’ve
seen the number 810. That’s mindboggling. An $8,000,000 tournament prize
pool for the most prestigious title in poker. Good luck to everyone.
Monday, 3pm. 1st Break
Monday, 3pm. 1st Break. If
you’re out already, you’ll need to reconsider your strategy. The
first two hours of play, with blinds of only $25 and $50 are not the times to
make the pots too big. Learn about your table first, and direct how they learn
about you. That can make you a lot more money later on.
As the players
come spilling from tournament areas upstairs and downstairs, the tension
hasn’t started. Everybody is just happy to still be here. The Luma Kid
already laid down pocket aces before the flop, he says it was the biggest
laydown of his life. I say, I guess I’d be sitting on the rail. Irishman
Aidan Bennet, who’s lost two stone this year while living in Vegas, looks
to be in fine form. He’s talking to another Irishman, Mike Magee,
who’s telling anybody who wants to here and a few people who don’t
about the call he made when Marcel Luske bet out on the river after betting all
the way into a 5-6-7-7-A board that flopped two clubs. Magee called Luske with
the K-Q of clubs, and it was good. Marcel is just smiling, saying, keep calling
me with king high, please. Magee has always been one tough guy to bluff on the
river .
The big news so far is that ESPN is choosing one table every day
as the TV table, with fourteen cameras and all in lights. It’s a fearsome
lineup for Day 1. Doyle Brunson, George Hardy, defending world champion Robert
Varkonyi, and Yosh Nakano, among others. Irishman Padraig Parkinson is in the
middle of them all, having the time of his life and proudly wearing his crisply
ironed BETDAQ dress shirt. BETDAQ will be betting outright markets in running
for the duration of the tournament, with unmatched bets cancelled at the start
of play each day and the markets turned in running. At the conclusion of each
day’s play, markets will be fully funded with a tight slate of offers.
ESPN is producing 7 shows about this tournament, a different one for
each day of play and at least two for the final. When there were still four
minutes left on the clock, the producer turned all the table spotlights out and
brought a ladder out next to the table. Robert Varkonyi politely asked if they
could turn the lights back on until the round was over, as none of the players
could see. “Sorry,” said the producer, “but we have to change
the lights. This is television.” “Deal me out!” yelled Padraig
Parkinson, laughing. “I ain’t getting cheated in the
dark!”
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