The World Series of Poker was in full gear over the weekend and many tournaments have ended. Most notably, Scott Seiver won Event #21, a No-Limit Hold'em tournament with a USD 5,000 buy in. Seiver held off a tough field of competitors. 731 players entered the tournament, and Seiver walked away with USD 755,891 for his first place finish. He also won a WSOP bracelet. Dave Seidman finished in second place, also winning a nice chunk of money, USD 482,372.

Um 15 Uhr wurde es ernst beim USD 3.000-H.O.R.S.E.-Event. Da nicht wie geplant bereits am Vortag auf acht Spieler heruntergespielt wurde, die am offiziellen Final Table das Bracelet ausspielen, nahmen 16 Spieler an zwei Tischen Platz. Begonnen wurde mit Limit Hold’em (Blinds: 3.000/6.000) und dort erwischte es mit JJ Hazan (16.) auch gleich den ersten Shortstack. In der nächsten Disziplin, Omaha Hi-Lo, verabschiedeten sich dann David Levi auf Rang 15 und Mallory Smith als 14.

One of the storylines of the 2008 World Series of Poker thus far has been the monster fields in some events. Event #2 set a record as the largest non-Main Event poker tournament in history (3,929 players) and already six tournaments have attracted 1,000 players or more. But Event #18 (USD 5,000 No Limit 2-7 Draw Lowball w/ rebuys), on the other hand, was not one for the masses.

When the final 18 players in Event #16 (USD 2,000 Omaha Eight-or-better) returned to the Amazon Room on Tuesday afternoon to play down to a champion there were number of storylines in play. Scott Clements was looking to win a bracelet for the third year in a row. Jimmy Fricke, who turned 21 in April, was gunning for his first World Series of Poker bracelet and Ted Forrest was gunning for his sixth bracelet.

Duncan “Pumper” Bell finished off the final table in a mere 73 hands to collect a World Series of Poker gold bracelet and USD 666,777 in Event #13 (USD 2,500 No Limit Hold ‘em). The 32-year-old poker pro began the final table with the chip lead followed closely by his good friend from home, World Poker Tour title holder Shawn Buchanan, and West Virginia’s Steve Merrifield. The day got off to an action filled start when Merrifield busted Nicolas Levi on the second hand of play, his A-10 winning a race against Levi’s pocket sevens.

Eric Brooks entered the USD 10,000 seven-card stud world championship because he wanted to play the best players in the world at the World Series of Poker. He got his wish when he faced off with the likes of Phil Ivey and Daniel Negreanu as action played down to the final table late on day 2 of the tournament. The tough compeition continued at the final table, where he eventually rose to the top against David Oppenheim, Minh Ly, Erik Seidel, and third-place finisher, Alex Kostritsyn.

Quälend lange (bis nach 4 Uhr morgens Ortszeit) hatte sich dieses Turnier an Tag zwei hingezogen, bis der Final Table endlich feststand. Nichtsdestotrotz mussten die neun (von 1.390!) verbliebenen Spieler - sechs US-Amerikaner, zwei Kanadier und ein Engländer - bereits um 14 Uhr wieder auf der Matte stehen. Gegen Ende von Tag eins hatte sich mit Duncan Bell aus Vancouver (Kanada) ein überlegener Chipleader herauskristallisiert.

388 players entered Event 10: the USD 2,500 buy-in Omaha / Seven Card Stud Hi Low Split event at the 2008 World Series of Poker. Only 40 of those players would get paid. Among those cashing on day 2 was the only female member of the Poker Hall of Fame, Barbara Enright, who finished 26th earning USD 4,908. Barbara was also the last woman remaining in the event.

Rep Porter survived three intense days of six-handed No Limit Hold'em poker to win his first WSOP bracelet and USD 372,929. Porter outlasted more than 1,200 players in two days of loose action and then varied his style to be the last man standing at a much tighter final table. He beat Nathan Templeton heads up in four hands to earn the victory. The tournament began at a blistering pace, with all ins on nearly every hand and busts every few minutes.

Thang Luu der gestern als Chipleader an den Finaltisch des Events #6, des USD 1.500 Omaha Hi/Low Split-8 or Better-Turniers ging, gewann heute das Bracelet und USD 243.356. In der finalen Hand raiste Luu preflop und Spencer Lawrence callte. Der Flop kam mit 7 [key:card_diamonds] K [key:card_spades] 8 [key:card_diamonds] und Luu setzte nach dem Check von Lawrence, der raiste. Luu re-raiste und Lawrence ging All-In mit 6 [key:card_hearts] 5 [key:card_diamonds] 9 [key:card_diamonds] 5 [key:card_clubs]. Luu zeigte 4 [key:card_diamonds] K [key:card_diamonds] 3 [key:card_spades] 7 [key:card_hearts].

Michael Banducci ging als Chipleader an den Finaltisch und gewann beim Event #5, dem USD 1.000 No Limit Holdem Turnier mit Rebuys im Heads-up gegen Jeff Williams. Jeff Williams raiste auf 130,000 und Banducci reraiste auf 400,000. Williams ging mit A [key:card_clubs] 5 [key:card_diamonds] All-In und Banducci callte mit A [key:card_diamonds] J [key:card_clubs]. Das Board brachte J [key:card_hearts] 2 [key:card_diamonds] K [key:card_clubs] 10 [key:card_diamonds] 3 [key:card_clubs]. Michael Banducci holte sich damit den Sieg beim USD 1,000 No-Limit Hold'em mit Rebuys Event, ein Bracelet und USD 636,736.

Erick Lindgren has a long and lucrative 10-year history as a professional poker player, earning USD 1.5 million in WSOP and WSOP circuit events alone, but his final WSOP goal can now be checked off Lindgren’s to-do list – Win a gold WSOP Bracelet. Erick emerged triumphant yesterday from the 2008 World Series of Poker Event #4, USD 5,000 Mixed Hold’em, taking the bracelet and a 1st place cash of USD 374,505.