We are now one week into the WSOP and it’s safe to say that a few things are certain. It would appear that Phil Hellmuth is certainly way better at non-hold’em games than others. Attendance is also way higher than anticipated as well and the excitement of chasing for a gold bracelet is way higher than it has ever been. When you look at Thursday’s action which took place in Rio, you will see that a total of 9 players have come away with a bracelet for the live portion of the series and seven of them are first-time champions. You have Jeremy Ausmus and you also have Connor Drinan as well.
You would think that winning 15 WSOP bracelets and having five more than anyone else in history would certainly be enough to prove someone’s greatness but when you think about it, there are people who cannot admit that LeBron James is one of the biggest and greatest basketball players of all time. Why would Phil Hellmuth be different?
The Poker Brat
When you look at sites such as GGPoker.com, which hosts WSOP events, you will soon find that there are numerous live options when it comes to playing styles. The Poker Brat is known for using online sites to further his advantage but right now he isn’t doing too great. Many people believe that the only game he can truly crush would be no-limit hold’em. He is expected to take part in the next tournament but he needs to improve his skill set. After all, the competition is stiff and he needs to do what he can to try and come out on top. Hellmuth is now at his second, final table. Both of them have been in non-NLH games. He came in at event number two with $250,000 and he got a sixth-place finish at $95,000. He also placed 18th in the Dealer’s Choice and he came out with $4,400 in that game.
The Poker Series
The poker series isn’t taking place during the normal summer slot. Instead, it is taking place in the fall and many people are now wondering if the recreational players are going to be able to attend. With the change in the usual schedule, the attendance may change, meaning that the chances of the top players winning bigger pots increases overall. When you look at event number four, you will soon see that the No Limit Hold’em surpassed five million.
This was actually the biggest win overall for the WSOP and it has also given many people the chance to question if the tournament is even going to come close to hitting the 12,000 player mark. Attendance in a lot of the events is certainly right where you expect them to be. Moving the events around may make it even more difficult to hit the numbers that the event has drawn in in the past. Many hope that next year the WSOP will be going back to normal in terms of attendance and scheduling, meaning that it may reach the normal numbers and even higher.
Daniel Negreanu
One of the top highlights of the year so far would be Daniel Negreanu. He is putting up a host of YouTube blogs and the six-time bracelet winner is doing a fantastic job every single year of being able to show viewers what it is like to grind the schedule for a total of seven weeks. He’s amassing quite an audience too.
