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World Series of Poker
It's been a great week watching most of these guys play their way into the final table of the World Series of Poker Main Event. For the first time ever, ESPN decided to provide Live coverage of the Main Event (30 minute delay).
It's a phenomenal idea because of how the last couple of years were sort of ruined by the tape delays. They would play the tournament in July, but Sportscenter would announce who won the Main Event months before they broadcast it on ESPN. You could imagine many poker fans getting mad because there wasn't any suspense at the final table since everyone knew who won.
In 2008, the WSOP made another change to the Main Event. The November Nine was introduced, but raised some questions. At first, this idea looked bad because everyone had to wait four months to crown a champion. The November Nine is now something every poker player dreams of making. There comes fame and many endorsements for the four months leading up to the final table.
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As a teenager, my favorite channel was ESPN and I would watch everything they showed. Billiards, Bowling, World's Strongest Man, Spelling Bee and the one event that caught my attention, the World Series of Poker.
In 2003, ESPN expanded their coverage of the WSOP by including every single day leading up to the final table. Chris Moneymaker won the Main Event in 2003 and started a new poker revolution. Moneymaker was just an ordinary guy who beat out many poker professionals to win a bracelet. The following year over 2,800 players entered the Main Event, which was about 1,700 more than the previous year. Amateurs from around the world figured they could beat poker pros for a bracelet of their own.
The more I watched these tournaments on ESPN, the more I wanted to participate. I learned how to play the Texas Hold'em by just watching the Main Event. Lon McEachern and Norman Chad (WSOP Broadcasters) would explain the rules of the game and show the ranks of hands from best to worst.
I signed up for Full Tilt Poker and began to practice. I would play for hours with play chips and even though I wasn't playing for real money, it didn't matter to me. I didn't want to lose and it was my goal to one day make it to the World Series of Poker Main Event.
It cost $10,000 to enter in the Main Event, which is something I don't have. Now that Full Tilt Poker and Pokerstars have been shut down to the U.S. players, it's getting harder to play poker unless I go to a casino.
As of right now, I'm going to focus on school and maybe one day i'll be able to participate in the Main Event.
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The Main Event always begins around my dad's birthday so I'll probably plan a trip to Vegas during the 2012 Main Event. If I can't participate in the tournament, I might as well go to Vegas to check it out. Possibly even meet some of my favorite poker players.
Top 10 Poker Players I'd Like To Meet
1) Doyle Brunson
2) Phil Ivey
3) Daniel Negreanu
4) Mike Matsow
5) Phil Hellmuth
6) Chris "Jesus" Ferguson
7) Scotty Nguyen
8) Erik Lindgren
9) Antonio Esfandiari
10) Phil Laak
1) Doyle Brunson
2) Phil Ivey
3) Daniel Negreanu
4) Mike Matsow
5) Phil Hellmuth
6) Chris "Jesus" Ferguson
7) Scotty Nguyen
8) Erik Lindgren
9) Antonio Esfandiari
10) Phil Laak
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