WSOP 2009. Info, Chip Counts, & & stuff. Feed your wild side.

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Official Report  

Event #41

No-Limit Hold’em Shootout

Buy-In:  $5,000

Number of Entries:  280

Total Net Prize Pool:  $1,316,000

Number of Places Paid:  30

First Place Prize:  $348,755

June 21-23, 2009

 

 

Tournament Highlights:

 

Event Headlines –

 

1.  Peter Traply Wins First WSOP Gold Bracelet

 

2.  Traply Becomes the First Hungarian Player in History to Win a WSOP Gold Bracelet

 

3.  Young Guns:  No-Limit Hold’em Shootout Draws Youngest Final Table Ever – Players’ Ages Range from 21 to 24
 

 

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A Hungarian, fluent in Hungarian. 

The Winner --

 

·        The 2009 World Series of Poker $5,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em Shootout champion is Peter Traply, from Budapest, Hungary.

 

·        Traply is a 22-year-old professional poker player. 

 

·        Traply earned his college degree in communications.  He decided to play poker for a time before deciding on what career he wishes to pursue.

 

·        Traply is fluent in Hungarian.   He speaks English well.

 

·        Prior to this victory, Traply’s biggest successes took place in Europe.  He made it to the final table of the European Poker Tour championship at Monte Carlo earlier this year.  He finished in eighth place.

 

·        Traply’s eighth-place showing at EPT Monte Carlo was a disappointment.  He vowed to improve his game and perform better at the next opportunity.  That objective was accomplished here, some three months after the frustration in Monte Carlo.

 

·        Traply collected $348,755 for first place.  He was also awarded his first WSOP gold bracelet.

 

·        According to official records, Traply now has 1 wins, 1 final table appearance, and 2 in-the-money finishes at the WSOP.

 

·        Traply’s other cash was in the 2008 WSOP Main Event (188th place).

 

·        Traply endured a tough WSOP prior to his victory.  He played in every No-Limit Hold’em event (except the $40,000 buy-in championship).  Tarply did not cash a single time at this year’s World Series, prior to this victory.

 

·        Traply becomes the first Hungarian WSOP champion in history.  The best previous finish by a Hungarian player was Richard Toth, who finished second in 2006.

 
 

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Winner Quotes (Peter Traply) –

 

·        On the Hungarian poker scene:  “In Hungary, the poker is growing very fast.  There is a poker boom right now.  And, I think it will be bigger after I won my bracelet.”

 

·        More on Hungarian poker:  “There are a lot of good online players in Hungary.”   

 

·        On the numbers of Hungarians who come to play in the WSOP:  “This year, there are about 30 or so players who have come to play in the World Series.  Many of them are my friends and they were cheering for me.”

 

·        On winning his first WSOP gold bracelet:  “It’s amazing.  I am really, really happy.  This is one of my poker dreams and it came true.”

 

·        On failing to cash several times before winning big:  “I played every single No-Limit Hold’em event (except the $40K).  I didn’t manage one single cash.  I ran really bad.  But, I guess I can’t complain now.”

 

·        On being the first Hungarian to win at the WSOP and his expectations back home.  “I think I will be a national hero, or something.”
 

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The Final Table --

 

·        The final table contained no former WSOP gold bracelet winners.  This was the 13th of 41 finales held this year with no former winners -- which guaranteed a first-time champion.

 

·        This was the youngest final table composition in the 40-year history of the WSOP.  The player ages were – 21, 21, 22, 23, and 24. 
 

·        There were players from four different nations represented at the final table – including Hungary, Germany, Russia, and the United States.

 

·        Interestingly, the birthplaces of the five finalists were even more diverse – with natives of Hong Kong, Hungary, Lebanon, Russia, and the United States.

 

·        The runner up was Andrew Lichtenberger, from East Northport, NY.  In addition to playing professionally, he produces videos for a poker training website called “Leggopoker.com.”  Lichtenberger’s most notable finish was a 13th-place showing in the World Poker Tour championship two months ago. 

 

·        The third-place finisher was Max Lykov, from Moscow, Russia.  His poker nickname is “Decay.”  This was his first time to cash at the WSOP. 

 

·        The fourth-place finisher was Danny Wong, from Las Vegas, NV.  This was his third time to make it to a WSOP final table.

 

·        The fifth-place finisher was Nasr El Nasr, from Berlin, Germany.  He busted out early with pocket aces, on a critical hand which completely altered the course of events at the final table.  El Nasr previously finished high in two EPT events – held at Prague and Dortmund.  This was his first WSOP in-the-money finish.

 

 

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In-the-Money Finishers --

 

·        Former WSOP gold bracelet finishers who cashed in this event included – David “Dragon” Pham, Phil Ivey, Jennifer Harman, Davidi Kitai, and Ryan Hughes.

 

·        The defending champion was Philip Tom, from Las Vegas, NV.  He entered this tournament but did not cash.
 

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Odds and Ends -- 

 

·        A “Shootout” means the objective is to win all the chips at a table in order to advance to the next round.  On Day One, the tournament began with 280 players competing in what amounted to a nine- and ten-handed Sit n' Go (tables varied due to the odd number of players).  One player from each table (the winner) progressed to play in the second round.  On Day Two, those 30 winners were divided into six tables, each playing a five-handed Sit n' Go.  The six winners from the second round progressed to Day Three to take seats at the final table -- which was played five-handed.  Essentially, the winner of the tournament was required to win three consecutive Sit n' Go rounds.

 

·        Players who won the first round were guaranteed prize money.  Players who won the first and second round won the top five spots and made it to the final table.  The player who won three rounds won the gold bracelet.

 

·        Shootouts emphasize short-handed poker skills.  This generally requires competitors to play cards out of the standard range of starting-hand requirements.  It also makes post-flop skill paramount to victory.  In a sense, each round is a “final table” for all the competitors since the objective is to accumulate chips and eliminate opponents.

 

·        This is the 28th of 41 tournaments completed thus far at this year’s WSOP, with more than a $1 million prize pool.

 

·        Given the international composition of the final table, there were large crowds of supporters of players from various nations.  Constant chanting and cheering was reminiscent of a European soccer match, rather than a poker game.

 

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Shootout Leaders (WSOP History) --

 

·        No player has dominated No-Limit Hold’em Shootout events in the manner other games such as Hold’em, Omaha, and Stud have produced specialists.  However, as the WSOP continues to offer this variant, Shootout leaders will certainly emerge in the years to come.

 

·        Shootout tournaments made their debut at the 2002 WSOP.  Since then, most years have included two Shootouts on the schedule – Limit and No-Limit.  In 2008, there were three Shootouts on the schedule, as is the case this year.  So far, there have been 15 Shootouts events played at the WSOP from 2002-present.
 

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The Event --

 

·        The $5,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em Shootout attracted 280 entries.  The total prize pool amounted to $1,316,000.  The top 30 finishers collected prize money.

 

·        The tournament was played over three consecutive days.

 

·        The final table lasted about five hours.

 

·        The final hand of the night came when Traply was dealt A-K versus Lichtenberger’s A-J.  Both players flopped and ace.  But Traply’s king-kicker proved to be the difference and scooped the final pot of the tournament.

 

·        Traply was cheered to victory by about a dozen Hungarian supporters, chanting songs and slogans in their native language.  Some of the Hungarians were poker players and others were visiting Las Vegas and heard about a Hungarian at the final table and decided to come and watch the finale.  When Traply won, he was draped by a Hungarian flag with the national colors, red, green and white.

 

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WSOP Statistics –

 

·        Through the conclusion of Event #41, the 2009 WSOP has attracted 40,195 entries.  $81,916,582 in total prize money has been awarded to winners.

 

·        Through Event #41 – the nationalities of WSOP gold bracelet winners reads as follows:

 

United States – 27

United Kingdom – 2

Canada – 2

Russian Federation – 1

Finland – 1

Australia – 1

Sweden – 1

Mexico – 1

Italy – 1

Holland – 1

Hungary – 1

 

Note:  Last year 19 of the 59 gold bracelet events were won by non-Americans (32 percent).  In, 2007, the number was 15 of 55 (29 percent).  In 2006, the number was 5 of 45 (11 percent).

 

·        Event #41 winner Peter Traply is to be classified as a professional player.  Accordingly, the “Pro-Am” gold bracelet scoreboard (excluding Event #1 – Casino Employees) currently reads:

 

            Professionals --            28 wins(Thang Luu, Steven Sung, Jason Mercier, Phil Ivey-1, Rami Boukai, Anthony Harb, Ville Wahlbeck, Keven Stammen, Brock Parker-1, Jeffrey Lisandro- 1, Daniel Alaei, Brock Parker-2, John-Paul Kelly, Jeff Carris, Nick Schulman, Phil Ivey-2, Pete Vilandos, Tomas Alenius, Roland de Wolfe, J.C. Tran, James Van Alstyne, Angel, Guillen, Greg Mueller, Eric Baldwin, Jordan Smith, Jeffrey Lisandro-2, Marc Naalden, Matt Graham, Peter Traply)              Amateurs --      6 wins(Freddie Ellis, Ken Aldridge, Travis Johnson, Zac Fellows, Michael Eise, Richard Austin)              Semi-Pros --     5 wins(Vitaly Lunkin, Brian Lemke, Lisa Hamilton, Leo Wolpert, Ray Foley)  ·        Eleven of the 41 winners this year (26 percent) were previous gold bracelet winners.  There have been three double winners in 2009 -- Brock Parker, Phil Ivey, and Jeffrey Lisandro.

 

·        Through the conclusion of Event 40 , the WSOP “Player of the Year” standings reads as follows (with point totals):

 

255 – Ville Wahlbeck

255 – Jeffrey Lisandro

242 – Phil Ivey

220 – Brock Parker

220 – James Van Alstyne

195 – Roland de Wolfe

185 – Vitaly Lunkin

180 – Angel Guillen

175 – Pete “the Greek” Vilandos

165 – Daniel Alaei

165 – Daniel Negreanu

[gatso]

the english in these reports is doing my head in

·        There were players from four different nations represented at the final table – including Hungary, Germany, Russia, and the United States.

4 things including a, b, c and d. wtf?

and this strange expression has been bugging me since the start of the series

This was his first time to cash at the WSOP.  

 
This was his third time to make it to a WSOP final table.

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   2009 World Series of Poker         
   Final Results         
   Event #   42      
   Buy In   $2,500      
   Date   Mixed Event      
   Game   22/06/2009      
   Number of Entries   412      
   Net Prize Pool   $947,600      
   First Place Prize   $241,654       
   Players to Cash   40      

   Final Results         
            
   Name   Prize   City   State/Country
1   Ankenman, Jerrod   $241,654   Avon   CT
2   Altbregin, Sergey   $149,341   St Petersburg   Russia
3   Klodnicki, Christopher   $97,896   Voohrees   NJ
4   Tims, Jeffery   $67,848   Houston   TX
5   Turner, Jon   $49,568   Henderson   NV
6   Crain, Eric   $38,074   Murphysboro   IL
7   Flack, Layne   $30,673   Las Vegas   NV
8   Alioto, Dario   $25,860   Palermo   Italy
9   Fricke, James   $18,099   Las Vegas   NV
10   Friedman, Adam   $18,099   Gahanna   OH
11   Radel, Andrew   $14,545   Forest Lake   MN
12   Dang, Trai   $14,545   Whittier   CA
13   Boukai, Rami   $11,484    Laguna Hills   CA
14   Rodman, Blair   $11,484   Las Vegas   NV
15   Thang, Luu   $8,983   Las Vegas   NV
16   Lehr, Charles   $8,983   Bossier City   LA
17   Lewis, George   $7,050   Toronto   ON, Canada
18   Smith, Mallory   $7,050   Aurora   CO
19   Rasmussen, Thayer   $7,050   St Petersburg   FL
20   Binger, Michael   $7,050   Las Vegas   NV
21   Voertmann, Jens   $7,050   Dortmund   Germany
22   Slezak, Bob   $7,050   Omaha   NE
23   Groysman, Zvi   $7,050   Thornhill   ON, Canada
24   Hernandez, Francisco   $7,050   Chandler    AZ
25   Sabic, Sebastien   $5,695   Ponts De Ce   France
26   Sarkeshik, Ali   $5,695   Northampton   United Kingdom
27   Lawrence, Spencer   $5,695   Wimbledon   United Kingdom
28   Rapp, Stefan   $5,695   Linz   Australia
29   Cassidy, Joseph   $5,695   Las Vegas    NV
30   Petrov, Vojislav   $5,695   Marseille   France
31   Black, Andrew   $5,695   Dublin   Ireland
32   Iacofano, Kevin   $5,695   Las Vegas    NV
33   Bronshtein, Yuval   $4,813   Charleston    SC
34   Bazin, Stephane   $4,813   Paris   France
35   Stoykov, Mihail   $4,813   Sofia   Bulgaria
36   Davis, Jared   $4,813   Philadelphia    PA
37   Paloci, Henry   $4,813   Sarasota    FL
38   Johnson, Marco   $4,813   Walnut Creek    CA
39   Dovzhenko, Alexander   $4,813   S Petersburg    Russia
40   Randolph, Mel   $4,813   Las Vegas    NV

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Tournament Highlights:

 

Event Headlines –

 

1.  Jerrod Ankenman Wins First WSOP Gold Bracelet

 

2.  After Two Previous Second-Place WSOP Finishes, Third Time is a Charm for Poker Pro and Strategist Ankenman

 

3.  Mixed Games Proves to be the Ultimate Test of All-Around Skill -- Featuring Eight Different Poker Games
 

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The Champion --

 

·        The 2009 World Series of Poker $2,500 buy-in Mixed Games champion is Jerrod Ankenman, from Avon , CT.

 

·        Ankenman is a 32-year-old poker pro and book author.  Prior to poker, he was a quantitative analyst.

 

·        Ankenman actually flunked out of college during his first year at UC-Davis. 

 

·        Ankenman is married.  He and his wife recently had their first child.

 

·        Ankenman once worked for Washington Mutual (Bank).  He started out as a database programmer.   

 

·        Ankenman started playing poker seriously when he was in his early 20s.  He started playing regularly in Los Angeles area cardrooms and gradually worked his way to the point he was a full-time professional.

 

·        Ankenman is the co-author of “The Mathematics of Poker,” along with two-time WSOP gold bracelet winner Bill Chen.  As the book shows, Ankenman is a dedicated researcher and analyst.  The book is not for the faint-hearted, as it explains poker situations in highly-detailed mathematical terms.

 

·        Prior to writing “The Mathematics of Poker,” Ankenman exchanged many complex ideas with his co-author Bill Chen.  The duo eventually put many of those ideas and theories into practice in live and online games, which provided the groundwork for their success as authors and poker players.

 

·        Ankenman finished as the runner up twice in previous WSOP events.  He took second place in the 2006 $3,000 buy-in Limit Hold’em event, as well as the 2008 $10,000 buy-in Limit Hold’em world championship.

 

·        Ankenman collected $241,654 for first place.  He was also awarded his first WSOP gold bracelet.

 

·        According to official records, Ankenman now has 1 win, 9 final table appearances, and 9 in-the-money finishes at the WSOP.  His career WSOP earnings now total $769,128.

 

·        Ankenman is a popular member of the social poker group known as BARGE, which comes to Las Vegas every August.  Other BARGE members include Greg “Fossilman” Raymer, Andy Bloch, Richard Brodie, Sabyl Cohen, Bill Chen, Rob Lauria, Gavin Smith, Alan Jaffray, J.P. Massar, Perry Friedman, Rafe Furst, Phil Gordon, and many others.  Several of the BARGE group were on hand to cheer and support Ankenman.

 

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There, just for gatso, this man is an apparently an all-arounder.


Winner Quotes (Jerrod Ankenman) –

 

·        On his collaboration with Bill Chen on The Mathematics of Poker:  “We wrote the book together. 

 

·        On his latest projects:  “Before the WSOP started, I was playing poker, doing some research, and even worked for an options-trading company for a time.”  Note:  The firm Ankenman is referring to is Susquehanna (SIG), one of the most respected privately-owned financial institutions in the world.   

 

·        On his two previous second-place finishes:  “Those second-place finishes were bittersweet.  It’s really nice to get the prize.....In the first one, I had Ian Johns all-in (but lost).  Then I lost like 30 hands in a row and finished second (laughing).  In the second one, I was down about 3-1 in chips to Rob Hollink and he made a hand at the end and won.” 

 

·        On playing heads-up versus Sergey Altbregin:  “I felt pretty confident.  I had played a lot of heads-up before....I am very confident in my ability to play heads-up, especially in flop games.  It was a combination of being confident and then getting a nice rush of cards that helped me to win.”

 

·        On his preference for certain games in the Mixed Game format:  ”I really wanted to get into the shorter-handed flop games.  I have played hundreds of hours and thousands of hands.  I did not want to get into coin-flip situations in the PLO or the other games, because I thought I had the advantage in Hold’em.”
 

·        On his thoughts about Mixed Games tournaments:  “I think this is a great tournament and great format.  You get to play all kinds of different games.  Most of the players are good at some games but are not that good at others....I really like the Mixed Games format because it really shows off your chops as a good all-around player, instead of just all these tournaments everywhere else where they playing nothing but Hold’em.”

 

·        On the WSOP and this tournament:  “The WSOP is the last bastion of these kinds of games.  Most of the other tournaments around Las Vegas and everywhere else it always is no-limit, no-limit, no-limit, no-limit – whatever.  It’s nice to be able to come here and play a wider variety of games.”

 

·        On seeing some of his friends win gold bracelets, and now finally getting one himself:  “Yeah, that is really nice.  I was happy for Bill Chen when he won.  That was the greatest WSOP ever (in 2006).  I am very happy to finally get one for myself.”

 

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The Final Table --

 

·        The final table included two former WSOP gold bracelet winners – Layne Flack (6 wins) and Dario Alioto (1 win).

 

·        There were players from three different nations represented at the final table – including Italy , Russia , and the United States .

 

·        The runner up was Sergey Altbregin, from St. Petersburg , Russia .  This was his first time to cash at the WSOP.

 

·        For the second consecutive event, a Russian player finished as the runner up.  Both times, American players began heads-up play with a sizable disadvantage, but were able to overcome the odds and win.

 

·        The third-place finisher was Christopher Klodnicki, from Voorhees , NJ .  This was his eighth time to cash, in just the past three years.  Klodnicki has accumulated more than $800,000 in WSOP winnings at the age of 24.

 

·        The fourth-place finisher was Jeff Tims, from Houston , TX .  He won a gold ring at the WSOP Circuit two years ago at Harrah’s New Orleans .  He now has more nearly $400,000 in tournament earnings. 

 

·        The fifth-place finisher was Jon Turner, from Winston-Salem , NC .  He is better known as “Pearl Jammer” online.  This was his second final table appearance this year, after finishing fifth in the Omaha High-Low Split event.

 

·        The sixth-place finisher was Eric Crain, from Murphysboro , IL .  He won a WSOP Circuit gold ring at the Tunica Grand in 2006.

 

·        The seventh-place finisher was Layne Flack, from Las Vegas , NV .  Flack is a six-time WSOP gold bracelet winner, who his last title last year.  His quest for win number seven fell way short in this event, as he was never a factor as the final table’s shortest stack.

 

·        The eighth-place finisher was Dario Alioto, from Palermo , Sicily ( Italy ).  He was also severely short-stacked from the start and was never able to generate any momentum.  Alioto won his gold bracelet playing Pot-Limit Omaha at WSOP-Europe in 2007.

 

·        The ninth-place finisher was James Fricke, from Las Vegas , NV .  This was his second final table appearance and fifth time to cash at the WSOP.