World Series of Poker Champions – 2000 to Present
The turn of the century would see the World Series of Poker grow larger and have bigger field than at any other point in its history. But in 2003, poker as we know it would change forever.
2000 – Chris “Jesus” Ferguson: For the first time ever, the Main Event topped 500 players as 512 people entered the Main Event to take their shot at the $1.5 Million top prize. The final ten players included some of the strongest NL players of the time. Annie Duke made probably the most spectacular run after making the final 10 players while being 9 months pregnant. Other names included Jeff Shulman, Tom Franklin, Mickey Appleman, Jim McManus, T.J. Cloutier, and Chris “Jesus” Ferguson.
Eventually, it was Ferguson and Cloutier that would win up heads-up for the title. Ferguson held a 10 to 1 chip lead, but Cloutier fought his way back to almost even. The final hand of the tournament saw Cloutier take A-Q against the A-9 of Ferguson. Ferguson lived up to his nickname by hitting a miracle 9 on the river to give Cloutier yet another runner-up finish at the Main Event.
2001 – Juan Carlos Mortenson: The WSOP grew to a new record of 613 players in 2001. The final table for this event was stacked as Phil Gordon, Mike Matusow, Phil Hellmuth, Dewey Tomko, and Juan Carlos Mortenson all made the final nine. Hellmuth would fall short of his 2nd Main Event title, busting out in 5th place. Eventually, Tomko and Mortenson would face off for the bracelet. The final hand saw Tomko pick up pocket aces against the K-Q of Mortenson. Unfortunately for Tomko, Mortenson would crack his aces and become the 2001 World Champion
2002 – Robert Varkonyi: Not since Hal Fowler was there a more unlikely World Champion than Robert Varkonyi. Varkonyi won his entry into the 2002 WSOP Main Event by a $1,000 satellite. The event drew 631 players and the top prize was $2 Million, which at the time was the largest live poker prize pool in history. Earlier in the event, Varkonyi knocked out former World Champion Phil Hellmuth with Q-10, which was revealed later to be Varkonyi’s favorite hand. Hellmuth made the statement that he would shave his head bald if Varkonyi won the Main Event. Gabe Kaplan got Hellmuth to commit to the bet and all eyes were on Varkonyi.
Varkonyi entered the final table with a massive chip lead that he never would relinquish. The final table was a table of relative unknowns at the time. Besides Minh Ly, who finished in 9th, the only other names from the table players might recognize now are Julian Gardner and Ralph Perry. Gardner would win up heads up with Varkonyi and the final hand saw Varkonyi take his favorite hand of Q-10 against the J-8 of Gardner. Varkonyi would win the largest grand prize in WSOP history and Phil Hellmuth had his head shaved. He then donated the hair to charity.
2003 – Chris Moneymaker: The 2003 WSOP Main Event drew 839 players, which was a new record. Many players received their entry via an online satellite. Chris Moneymaker was among those players. He entered the event via a $39 satellite. The final table was a collection of fantastic players. Among them were Sam Farha, Dan Harrington, Jason Lester, Amir Vahedi, David Grey, and David Singer. Phil Ivey busted from the event in 10th place after taking a huge bad beat from Moneymaker.
Moneymaker entered the table as the chip leader and when heads-up play between him and Sam Farha started, he remained the chip leader. After a well executed bluff, Moneymaker had Farha all-in after flopping two pair holding 5-4. Farha held J-10 and had top pair. Moneymaker would make a full house against Farha and become the 2003 World Champion. He would receive $2.5 Million and the championship bracelet.
Moneymaker’s story would go on to inspire a new generation of poker players. Players started to login worldwide to try and become the next Moneymaker. The resulting upswing in poker interest sparked what is called the “Poker Boom” and the WSOP has never been the same.
2004 – Greg Raymer: Attendance for the 2004 WSOP Main Event exploded to a record 2,576 players. Most of the entrants won their seat online via satellite from various different online poker sites. Among them was Greg Raymer, a patent attorney from CT. He would make the final table that included Al Krux, Dan Harrington, Josh Arieh and David Williams. Dan Harrington also made the 2003 WSOP final table. His back to back final table run through the two largest poker field in history to that point is considered one of the greatest achievements in the history of poker.
Due to the massive field, the top 5 players all became Millionaires. Heads-up play was between David Williams and Greg Raymer. The final hand of the Main Event saw Greg Raymer take his pocket 8’s against the A-4 of Williams. By the river, both players held a full house, but Raymer held the higher full house with eights full. Williams moved all-in and Raymer made the call to win the Main Event and $5 Million.
2005 – Joe Hachem: Attendance more than doubled for the 2005 World Series of Poker as 5,619 players came out to the Main Event to take their shot at the $7.5 Million top prize. Most of the field won their entry via online satellite. The final table would all become Millionaires. Mike “the Mouth” Matusow was the featured pro at the final table but a couple of bad beats ended his day in 9th place. Other names now known to the poker world but unfamiliar then were Steve Dannenmann, John “Tex” Barch, Aaron Kanter, and Andy Black.
Eventually, it was retired Chiropracter Joe Hachem that went heads-up with Steve Dannenman. The final hand saw Joe Hachem flop a straight with his 7-3 against the A-3 of Dannenman. Hachem was able to get Dannenmann to go all-in and the rest is history. Joe Hachem took the bracelet and the massive $7.5 Million first place prize.
2006 – Jamie Gold: As amazing as the numbers were for the 2005 WSOP, the 2006 WSOP topped it with 8,773 players coming out to play the event. For the first time ever, four separate Day 1’s were held to accommodate the number of entrants. The top ten finishers would all become Millionaires and the first place finisher would receive $12 Million.
Jamie Gold entered the final table with a massive chip lead and the only real competition at the table was professional Allen Cunningham. After Cunningham was eliminated in 4th, it was more of a question when Gold would when rather than if. The heads-up match occurred between Gold and Paul Wasicka and the final hand saw Gold’s Q-9 outdraw the pocket 10’s of Wasicka. Gold would take home the bracelet and the $12 Million top prize, instantly putting him into first place on the all-time money list for not only the WSOP but for poker in general.
2007 – Jerry Yang: The UIGEA had a huge impact on the number of entrants into the 2007 WSOP. 6,358 players entered the event, which still made it the 2nd largest live poker tournament in history. However, experts believe that without the UIGEA, the number would have been over 12,000. The Main Event Champion in 2008 would receive $8.25 Million. A flatter payout structure saw more players paid, but saw many of the top finishers paid less than their 2005 counterpart, and the 2005 Main Event drew several hundred fewer participants.
The final table had its share of characters, including Hevad Khan, whose antics during the 2007 WSOP sparked rule changes at the 2008 WSOP for behavior. Raymond Rahme was 62 entering the final table and looked to become the 2nd oldest WSOP Main Event winner in history. Alex Kravchenko was the first Russian to win a WSOP bracelet and looked to be the first Russian Main Event winner. Lee Watkinson was looking for his 2nd bracelet and first Main Event title.
Jerry Yang entered the final table as one of the short stacks but used aggressive play to put himself into contention and eventually the chip lead. He then wound up heads-up with Tuan Lam whom Norman Chad said was trying to “fold his way to a bracelet.” The final hand saw Lam go all in with A-Q against the pocket eights of Yang. Lam would flop a queen, but Yang would hit running cards for a straight to win the hand, the bracelet, and $8.25 Million.
2008 – Peter Eastgate: The WSOP Main Event would grow slightly in 2008 with 6,844 players participating in the event. For the first time in WSOP history, the Main Even final table was delayed until November 9th to give the event more exposure and to allow the players to market themselves for endorsements.
All eyes were on Dennis Phillips as he entered the final table as the chip leader. Ivan Demidov was the other player everyone was watching due to his 3rd place finish at the World Series of Poker Europe Main Event a month earlier. Demidov was the first person to make both the WSOP and WSOP-E Main Event final table. Peter Eastgate stood to become the youngest person to win the Main Event. Phil Hellmuth won the Main Event at age 24 and Eastgate was 22.
Dennis Phillips would lose most of his chips early on but would make a comeback and would eventually finish 3rd. Ivan Demidov would make heads-up play with Peter Eastgate. In a heads-up match that last several hours, the chip lead changed hands a few times, but eventually Eastgate would take the chip lead. The final hand saw Demidov turn two pair holding 2-4 at the same time that Eastgate turned a wheel holding A-5. Demidov did not fill up and Eastgate became the youngest World Series of Poker Main Event Champion at age 22. He also won $9.152 Million, which is the 2nd largest prize in live tournament history.
The 2009 WSOP Main Event is just around the corner, but we are still 7 months away from crowning the 2009 World Champion. Who will it be? At the WSOP, “Anyone Can Win.”