WSOP-E 2009, sponsored by Betfair

[tikay]

This will be a mini "Feed Your Wild Side" Thread for all the official bumf & gumf from the WSOP-E 2009, on the lines of the thread we did for Vegas WSOP this year.

Daily Chip Counts & Press Releases, Interviews, & pictures will go up daily. In addition, I'll be up there a lot, & will Post a bunch of my own pics.

[tikay]

 ABOUT WORLD SERIES OF POKER EUROPE
The World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE) was established in 2007 by Harrah’s Entertainment to
bring the excitement and entertainment of the World Series of Poker to destinations around the globe.
WSOPE is the first live tournament brand extension of the world’s longest-running, richest and most
prestigious gaming event.

Betfair, the world’s largest betting exchange, serves as the presenting sponsor of the event.
WSOPE in London complements the WSOP held annually in Las Vegas. During the first two years of
the WSOPE, a total of 1,740 entrants have competed for seven gold bracelets and been awarded
£9,997,500 in prize money.

The 3rd Annual WSOPE will be held from September 17th through October 1st at the luxurious Casino
at the Empire in Leicester Square in London, England, where four gold bracelets will be at stake.

The biggest names in poker have participated in WSOPE, including: Doyle Brunson, Johnny Chan,
Annie Duke, Phil Hellmuth, David “Devilfish” Ulliott, Daniel Negreanu, John Juanda, Gus Hansen, Eric
Seidel, Mike Matusow, Joe Hachem, Vanessa Rousso, Andy Bloch, David Benefield, Ivan Demidov,
Sorel Mizzi, Jennifer Tilly, Layne Flack, Andrew Black, Barry Greenstein, Tom Dwan, Chris Ferguson,
Scotty Nguyen, Max Pescatori, Chris Bjorin, Allen Cunningham, Phil Ivey, Howard Lederer, Patrik
Antonius, John Phan and Annette Obrestad.

Obrestad won the largest amount ever for a female in any sporting event, £1 million – or U.S.
$2,013,102 when she won the inaugural WSOPE Main Event in 2007.

John Juanda, the 2008 Main Event champion, won in an epic battle. The final table lasted a record-
21 hours. Juanda took home a cool £868,800 and the coveted WSOPE bracelet for his efforts.

The host country is still looking to win its first bracelet on its home soil, while six different nations have
captured a WSOPE bracelet: Denmark (2), Afghanistan, Germany, Italy, Norway and USA.

The list of WSOPE bracelet winners is as follows:

2007: Annette Obrestad (£10,000 Main Event No Limit Hold’em)

Thomas Bihl (£2,500 H.O.R.S.E.)

Dario Alioto (£5,000 Pot Limit Omaha)

2008: John Juanda (£10,000 Main Event No Limit Hold’em)

Theo Jorgensen (£5,000 Pot Limit Omaha)

Sherkhan Farnood (£2,500 H.O.R.S.E.)

Jesper Hougaard (£1500 No Limit

[tikay]

FACT SHEET – 2009 WORLD SERIES OF POKER EUROPE

WHEN: Sept 17, 2009 – Oct 1, 2009

WHERE: Casino at the Empire – London Clubs International, London,
England

NUMBER OF EVENTS: 4 bracelet events + 2 special events:

· Caesars Cup – Europe vs. Americas (NLH)

· Betfair Million-Dollar Freeroll (open to top 18 Betfair
qualifiers)

BUY IN AMOUNTS: Minimum buy-in: £1,000
Maximum buy-in: £10,000

· 30 tables in play for Events 1-3

· 23 tables in play for Main Event

TOTAL PRIZE MONEY

AWARDED IN 2008: £5,335,000

COMMISSIONER: Jeffrey Pollack

TOURNAMENT DIRECTOR: Jack Effel

U.S. TELECAST PARTNER: ESPN

WSOPE FIRST YEAR: 2007

OWNERSHIP: Harrah’s Entertainment

NUMBER OF PLAYER

ENTRANTS IN 2008: 1,047 (Total); 362 (Main Event)

DEFENDING MAIN EVENT

CHAMPION: John Juanda (£868,800)

[tikay]

The Casino at the Empire – Fact Sheet

ADDRESS: 5-6 Leicester Square
London WC2H 7NA

PHONE/FAX: T: +44 (0) 203 014 1000
F: +44 (0) 203 014 1035

DINING: 2 Restaurants, 1 Novelty Shop

· FuLuShou- Asian Fusion Cuisine open daily 6pm-3am

· Flame- Modern European Cuisine open daily 6pm-1am

· Mocha- Ice-Cream boutique open daily from 12pm

BARS/LOUNGES: 3 Bars/Lounges

· Vapor- Ultra bar and Lounge open 24 hours a day

· The Icon Bar and Terrace- Upscale intimate and
candlelit cocktail lounge. Open daily from 5pm.

· Shadow Bar- Hip and exciting bar located on the first
floor that captures the essence of Las Vegas nightlife.

Open Saturdays from 10:00pm.

HOTEL/LODGING: Various 3-5 star hotels within about a mile from The Casino

· Radisson Edwardian Hotels
4-5 star hotels located near The Casino. Rates starting from
£145. Call +353 1 706 0203 for reservations.

· Thistle Hotels
- 3-4 star hotels located near The Casino. Rates starting
at £150. Call +44-207-9257048 for reservations. Quote
“WSOP 18090.”

· Radisson Edwardian Hotels
- 3-4 star hotels located .6-1.2 miles from The Casino.
Rates from £135. Call +44-871-9429110 for rooms.
Quote “Word Series of Poker.”

· The Soho Hotel
- 5 Star hotel located .7 miles from The Casino. Rates
starting at £335. Call +44-20-75593000 for
reservations. Quote “World Series of Poker.”


DAILY TOURNAMENTS Cash games available 24/7. 5% rake capped at £10.
AND CASH GAMES: - M-F 2:30p £25+£3 NLH/Freezout tourneys-2500 starting chips
- M-F 6:30p £20 Turbo NLH 45 minute rebuy + add on
- Saturday/Sunday 2:30p £20 NLH 60 minute rebuy + add on
- Saturday 8:30p £70+£5 NLH Freezeout

[tikay]

SCHEDULE – 2009 WORLD SERIES OF POKER EUROPE
PRESENTED BY BETFAIR

Casino at the Empire - London Clubs International, London, England

September 17th – October 1st 2009

Date Day Start Event # Tournament Buy-In
9/17/2009 Thursday 12 noon Kickoff
Event Million-Dollar Freeroll Top 18 Online Qualifiers at
Betfair

9/18/2009 Friday 12
noon 1A No-Limit Hold’em Day 1A
(4 day event) £1,000 + £60

9/19/2009 Saturday 12
noon 1B No-Limit Hold’em Day 1B £1,000 + £60

9/20/2009 Sunday 2 PM 1 No Limit Hold’em Day 2 £1,000 + £60

9/21/2009 Monday 2 PM 1 No Limit Hold’em Day 3 Final
Table £1,000 + £60

9/21/2009 Monday 5 PM 2
Pot-Limit Hold’em/Pot-Limit
Omaha
(3 Day Event) Day 1
£2,500 + £150

9/22/2009 Tuesday 2 PM 2 PLH/PLO Day 2 £2,500 + £150
09/23/200

9 Wednesday 2 PM 2 PLH/PLO Day 3 (Final Table) £2,500 + £150
09/23/200

9 Wednesday 5 PM 3 Pot-Limit Omaha Double Chance
(3 day event) £5,000 + £250

9/24/2009 Thursday 2 PM 3 Pot-Limit Omaha (Day 2) £5,000 + £250
09/25/200

9 Friday 10 AM Invitational
Event

Caesars Cup – Europe vs. USA
(No-Limit Hold’em Special Event)
One-day invite-only event,
plus one Betfair online
qualifier

09/25/200
9 Friday 5 PM 3 Pot Limit Omaha Day 3/(Final
Table) £5,000 + £250
09/26/200

9 Saturday 12 PM 4
WSOPE Main Event
Championship No-Limit Hold’em
Day 1A £10,000 + £350
09/27/200

9 Sunday 12 PM 4
WSOPE Main Event
Championship No-Limit Hold’em
Day 1B
£10,000 + £350
09/28/200

9 Monday 5:30 PM 4 WSOPE Main Event Day 2 £10,000 + £350
09/29/200

9 Tuesday 12 PM 4 WSOPE Main Event Day 3 £10,000 + £350
09/30/200

9 Wednesday 12 PM 4 WSOPE Main Event Day 4 £10,000 + £350
10/01/200

9 Thursday 12 PM 4 WSOPE Main Event Day 5 £10,000 + £350

[GreekStein]

I hope you don't mind this but a brief report of day 1 can be found here...

http://blondepoker.com/forum/index.php?topic=44301.0

[tikay]

Ceasars Cup.

The inaugural Caesars Cup is a unique Ryder Cup-style poker tournament pitting teams of the best
players from both sides of the Atlantic against each other.

The Caesars Cup takes place on Friday, September 25 at 10:00 AM at the Casino at the Empire in
London’s famed Leicester Square as part of World Series of Poker Europe Presented by Betfair.

The Caesars Cup will feature the game No-Limit Hold’em with two teams of eight doing battle over a
series of Heads Up and two-man doubles matches, with single points awarded for each match. The
doubles formats will include alternate betting. The first team to 4 points will win.

Each team has eight players. They are:
AMERICAS EUROPEANS

*Daniel Negreanu *Annette Obrestad

Phil Ivey Peter Eastgate

Phil Hellmuth Dario Minieri

John Juanda Bertrand Grospellier

Doyle Brunson Patrik Antonius

Jennifer Harman Ilari Sahamies

Pro TBD Pro TBD

Qualifier TBD Qualifier TBD

* Team Captains

The Caesars Cup is a made-for-television special that will air on ESPN-branded channels around the
globe and syndicated in markets without ESPN affiliates as part of televised 2009 WSOPE coverage.

The first match will be Doubles: Alternate Bet where two players compete per side. One player per
side will play pre-flop and on the turn; the other player will play the flop and the river.

Once players are designated, their roles will not change. Two matches of this format will be played,
so that 4 of the 8 players on each team will be featured.

The next two matches will feature Doubles: Same Stack where two new players compete per side.
They share the same chip stack. They alternate playing two hands at a time so both have the button.

After the doubles matches conclude, the matches change to Heads-Up – if necessary. Team
captains will select which members of their teams play heads up and it will be an alternate selection
process, where if the European team names their player first for Match 1, the Americas team will
have to name their player first for Match 2. That format continues until one team has accumulated 4
total points. The strategy of when to use a player and whom they match up with will be critical in
determining which team will come out victorious.

Pride, bragging rights and claiming the inaugural Caesars Cup are all up for grabs at the event. It will
be included in this year’s World Series of Poker Europe Presented by Betfair taking place at the
Casino at the Empire in famed Leicester Square from September 17 to October 2.

The unique event will be played on September 25th, with the tournament being fought out on the feature table area of
the main casino floor to determine whether the Americas or Europeans are home to the best
tournament poker players.

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PAST RESULTS – WSOPE

2008
Event #1

£1,500 No Limit Hold’em

410 entries
Net Prize Pool: £615,000

Total Spots Paid Out: 45

Final Table players and payouts

1 Jesper Hougaard Copenhagen Denmark 144,218
2 Fuad Serhan Cobham UK 89,175
3 Yevgeniy Timoshenko Mukilteo, WA USA 55,350
4 Neil "Bad Beat" Channing London UK 44,588
5 John Dwyer Dundalk Ireland 36,285
6 Adam Junglen Stow, OH USA 28,598
7 Linda Lee Las Vegas, NV USA 22,448
8 Ian Woodley London UK 17,835
9 Daniel Nutt Byfleet UK 13,222

Event #2
£2,500 H.O.R.S.E.
110 entries

Net Prize Pool: £275,000

Total Spots Paid Out: 16

Final Table players and payouts

1 Sherkhan Farnood Kabul Afghanistan 76,999
2 Ivo Donev Lochau Austria 48,125
3 Howard Lederer Las Vegas, NV USA 30,250
4 Jeff Duvall London UK 22,000
5 Mark Gregorich Las Vegas, NV USA 17,188
6 Phil Ivey Las Vegas, NV USA 13,750
7 Jeffrey Lisandro Salerno Italy 11,000
8 Spencer Lawrence London UK 8,938

Event #3
£5,000 Pot Limit Omaha

165 entries
Net Prize Pool: £825,000

Total Spots Paid Out: 18

Final Table players and payouts

1 Theo Jorgensen Copenhagen Denmark 218,626
2 Sorel Mizzi Toronto, ON Canada 132,000
3 Eric Dalby London UK 84,562
4 Erik Friberg Stockholm Sweden 66,000
5 Max Pescatori Milan Italy 51,562
6 David Penly Woking UK 41,250
7 Chris Ferguson Pac. Palisades, CA USA 33,000
8 Jason Mercier Ft. Lauderdale, FL USA 26,812
9 Tomi Nyback Helsinki Finland 22,688

Event #4 – Main Event

£10,000 No Limit Hold’em

362 entries

Net Prize Pool: £3,620,000

Total Spots Paid Out: 36

Final Table players and payouts

1. John Juanda, £868,800, Las Vegas, NV
2. Stanislav Alekhin, £533,950, Moscow Russia
3. Ivan Demidov, £334,850, Moscow, Russia
4. Bengt Sonnert, £271,500, Linkoping, Sweden
5. Daniel Negreanu, £217,200, Las Vegas, NV
6. Scott Fischman, £171,950, Las Vegas, NV
7. Robin Keston, £135,750, London, UK
8. Toni Hiltunen, £108,600, Lahti, Finland
9. Christopher Elliott, £81,450, Alloa, UK



2007

Event # 1

£2,500 H.O.R.S.E.
105 entries
Net Prize Pool: £262,500

Total Spots Paid Out: 16

Final Table players and payouts

1. Thomas Bihl £70,875
2. Jennifer Harman-Traniello £40,688
3. Kirk Morrison £26,250
4. Chris "Jesus" Ferguson £21,700
5. Alexander Kravchenko £17,850
6. Yuval Bronshtein £14,438
7. Joe Beevers £11,812
8. Gary Jones £9,188

Event # 2

£5,000 Pot Limit Omaha

156 entries
Net Prize Pool: £779,400

Total Spots Paid Out: 18

Final Table players and payouts

1. Dario (Ryu) Alioto £234,390
2. Istvan Novak £137,280
3. Tony (Tony G) Guoga £94,380
4. Daniel Callaghan £65,520
5. Antoine Arnault £49,530
6. Sherkhan Farnood £38,220
7. Sampo Lopponen £30,420
8. Andrew Bloch £22,020
9. Joe Razaghi £16,380

Event #3 – Main Event

£10,000 No Limit Hold’em

362 entries

Net Prize Pool: £3,620,000

Total Spots Paid Out: 36

Final Table players and payouts

1. Annette Obrestad £1,000,000
2. John Tabatabai £570,150
3. Mathew McCullough £381,910
4. Oyvind Riisem £257,020
5. Johannes Korsar £191,860
6. Dominic Kay £152,040
7. Magnus Persson £114,030
8. Theo Jorgensen £85,070
9. James Keys £61,540

[tikay]

I hope you don't mind this but a brief report of day 1 can be found here...

http://blondepoker.com/forum/index.php?topic=44301.0

Lol - that's superb!

How did we miss each other?

I negotiated with Eddie Hearn to release your Media Rights, & we struck a deal.

[tikay]

Some photographs from today will follow shortly.

[GreekStein]

I hope you don't mind this but a brief report of day 1 can be found here...

http://blondepoker.com/forum/index.php?topic=44301.0

Lol - that's superb!

How did we miss each other?

I negotiated with Eddie Hearn to release your Media Rights, & we struck a deal.

I hope you sorted me some good moolah. It's what I need to perk up my day after not seeing you.

[TightEnd]

Report  courtesy of Betfair Poker, on the current £1000 tournament

Day 1a ended in the £1000 No Limit Hold'em tournament at the WSOPE with a familiar name leading the chip counts.  JP Kelly goes into Day 2 with an impressive 65,000 chips.  Hot on the youngster's heels are Richard Kellet and Ian Frazer but it was a day of carnage for some of the other big names.
 
Tournament director Jack Effel got the 2009 WSOPE underway in earnest, following Thursday's Million Dollar Game, and a plethora of star names were seated for this one.  Phil Hellmuth was quick to head for the exits.  The 'Poker Brat' managed to get all of his chips into the middle with an open-ended straight draw versus his opponent's pocket kings.  The straight didn't come and Hellmuth found himself on the rail after only one round of play.   
 
London locals Neil Channing, Willie Tann and Dave "Devilfish" Ulliott were also eliminated early on.  Channing fell victim to Richard Kellet.  Kellet was one of the chip leaders throughout the day and looks in good shape for Day 2 but it was JP Kelly that ended the day as the leader of the pack.  Kelly claimed WSOP glory earlier this year when he picked up a $1500 bracelet in Las Vegas and he must be one of the favourites to win European WSOP glory here in London.
 
Players continued to hit the exits at high speed throughout the day.  The 3000 starting chips given to each player saw many all ins, early on, on various occasions.  The 295 players that started the event were whittled down to just 40 before midnight where play was stopped for the day.
 
There are still many household names left in the mix, though.  Roland de Wolfe, Joe Grech and Eddie Hearn are clinging on in there as we look towards Day 1b for more frantic action.
 
The current top ten players and their chip counts look like this:
 
JP Kelly - 65000 
Richard Kellett - 65000 
Ian Frazer - 60000 
David Stucke - 40000 
Swee Chai - 40000 
Andy Kyprianou - 35500 
Andrew Seden - 30000 
Raymond Rahme - 24000 
Adam Matusiak - 22000 
Raul Paez - 20000 
 
Day 1b starts at noon UK time today.  We'll have all the important action and news here at Betfair Poker

[mondatoo]

Tikays update had JP on 95k

[action man]

lol at eddie hearn being a household name

[LeKnave]

the mofo kellsterrrrrr glglgl him and JP.