Depending on who is doing the telling, there are either 193 or 194 countries in the world. Regardless of which is right, one thing is for sure: 107 of those countries were represented in the 2007 World Championship of Online Poker. More than 17,000 unique players bought in over 23 events for a total of $24,218,600 in prize money. off the top of my head, I can't think of any championship that has those kinds of stats. It's pretty clear: when PokerStars throws a World Championship, it throws a World Championship.

There were many an impressive performance over the course of WCOOP's two and half weeks. PokerStars player wwwBTHEREcom made it into the money eight times over the course off 23 events and scored more cashes than any other player in the 2007 WCOOP. Because of the sheer number of players from the U.S., you'd expect that the United States won more bracelets than any other country. The U.S. players won nine of the bracelets. The next biggest number was four bracelets for players from Sweden.

Of course, we already know the biggest money winner was TheV0id from the U.K. Here are the top ten money winners across the entire series.

1. TheV0id (United Kingdom) $1,228,330.50
2. ka$ino (United States) $850,782.50
3. mig.com (United States) $586,387.83
4. LadyMaverick (United States) $467,020.50
5. AB_illusive (Denmark) $398,648.93
6. HelmetSky (Israel) $382,245.00
7. mpg1000 (United States) $307,295.00
8. chulwoo $292,932.50
9. taktloss47 (Germany) $261,093.82
10. nitbuster (United States) $234,587.75

The World Championship of Online Poker rather seeps into a person's daily routine after a while. When it's over, players, organizers, and, yes, bloggers, have a hard time figuring out what to do with themselves. It's almost hard to believe it's finished.

For now, we must put the WCOOP to bed for another year. After a $24 million year in 2007, it's nearly impossible to predict how big 2008 will be.

For a full look at this year's statistics and past years figures, check out PokerStars WCOOP statistics page.

For a look at all the final table reports, see any of the links below.

Event #1 Report

Event #2 Report

Event #3 Report

Event #4 Report

Event #5 Report

Event #6 Report

Event #7 Report

Event #8 Report

Event #9 Report

Event #10 Report

Event #11 Report

Event #12 Report

Event #13 Report

Event #14 Report

Event #15 Report

Event #16 Report

Event #17 Report

Event #18 Report

Event #19 Report

Event #20 Report

Event #21 Report

Event #22 Report

Event #23 Report

Winner Interviews

The PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker is a lot of things to a lot of people. It is appointment poker every year for the world's serious players. It is the third richest tournament series--live or online--in the entire world (only behind the World Series and WPT championship). It is the biggest online tournament series anywhere in the ethereal world of internet poker. Finally, the main event--unlike any online event of its kind--gave the winner the chance to be an instant poker millionaire.

And that's exactly what happened in the 2007 WCOOP main event.

Nearly 3,000 players signed up on Sunday to play in the $2,500 WCOOP main event. The prize pool nearly touched $7.5 million. The posted first prize was almost $1.4 million. On Monday morning, the players neared the final table and at that moment there was nothing bigger going on anywhere in the poker world.

When the final table bubble burst, nine players sat down to fight for the $3.7 million on the table. Among them was Team PokerStars' Vanessa "LadyMaverick" Rousso, and several other top players from the poker world.

Seat 1: LadyMaverick (2620233 in chips)
Seat 2: mpg1000 (18764293 in chips)
Seat 3: Fischer80 (4806266 in chips)
Seat 4: HelmetSky (4387588 in chips)
Seat 5: nitbuster (3574607 in chips)
Seat 6: ka$ino (8945334 in chips)
Seat 7: E-Daddie (4751160 in chips)
Seat 8: mao15 (3611592 in chips)
Seat 9: TheV0id (8498927 in chips)

The final nine started off at the 65000/130000/13000 level and, in the early going, mpg1000 was using the chip lead to his advantage, squeezing the shorter stacks out of pots and building his lead without seeing flops.

The first major confrontation saw TheV0id clash with E-Daddie. E-Daddie came in for a raise to 520,000 and The V0id raised him back to 1,170,000. E-Daddie came back for another raise and TheV0id--who had E-Daddie covered--pushed all-in. E-Daddie called with pocket queens to see TheV0id's tens. The ladies held up and E-Daddie got a key early double-up.

Shortly thereafter we saw the first elimination of the final table. Mpg1000 had come in for a raise to 350,000 and Fischer80 put the rest of his four million chips in the middle with pocket jacks. Ka$ino called and mpg1000 got out of the way. Ka$ino held KK and flopped his set on a TcQcKs board. Fisher80 needed a nine or ace, but missed and was out in ninth place, earning $59,960.

On the shortstack, Rousso was looking for a chance to double up. It came in the form of aces on the button. After coming in for a raise, she saw mpg1000 put her all-in. Rousso called in a shot to see mpg1000's pocket sevens. Rousso's aces flopped a set and pushed her over four million in chips.

After a few more hands, players took a break. After eighteen hours of play, a quick walk and a cup of coffe were likely what they needed. When they came back, they sat to to 80000/160000/16000 blinds.

A few hands into the new level of play, Ka$ino moved into the chip lead. After picking up a few smaller pots, he played a nearly three million chip pot with mpg1000 on an all-spade king-high flop. When mpg1000 bet into it, ka$ino put in a sizable raise and mpg1000 folded. For the first time at the final table, mpg1000 was without his top spot on the leaderboard.

Nitbuster soon began a trip up through the chip-stacks. After playing quietly for the first hour or so, he ramped up the aggression. After calling TheV0id's raise in the big blind, nitbuster check-raised TheV0id all-in on a 9h Kd Ah flop. TheV0oid thought for a good, long while before mucking his hand. The pot was worth nearly three million chips and nitbuster had worked his way up over the six million mark. Just a few hands later, he moved over the eight million mark after betting into Rousso on a 6c9hAd7d board and taking down the pot.

TheV0id, who had been the chip leader for a while before the final table, soon began working back up. The first order of business was raising from late position and then pushing all-in after mpg1000 re-raised out of the blinds. Mpg1000 eventually folded and TheV0id was up over seven million. He gave some of it back soon thereafter, though. After nitbuster limped into the pot and ka$ino did the same, TheV0id raised to 1.2 million. While TheV0id might have suspected there was a chance nitbuster was a limp re-raise, he likelyy didn't expect it out of ka$ino. And yet, that's what k$ino did, raising enough to get TheV0id all-in. The result? A fold, putting ka$ino above the 20 million chip mark.

The blinds moved up to 100000/200000/10000, and moved HelmetSky to get his stack in with AK pre-flop. He got action from E-Daddie's AJ. No jack came on board and HelmetSky doubled up.

While TheV0id might have given up some chips in the earlier hand, a few hands later, it came time to send an opponent packing. Mao15 was down to 2.7 million chips and open-pushed with pocket eights. TheV0id had pocket kings, pushed to isolate, and picked up the pot. Mao15 finished in eighth place, for $103,431.

Rousso had fallen back below two million chips and open-pushed with AQ. Nitbuster played his pocket kings and was looking good to bust the member of Team PokerStars. The flop came Q77 and opened up a couple more outs for Rousso. Her ace hit on the turn and she was back up to 3.7 million.

HelmetSky proved to be E-Daddie's downfall. A few minutes later, they got it all-in pre-flop with HelmetSky holding AK to E-Daddie's AQ. While E-Daddie turned a diamond draw, he missed on the river and finished in seventh place. He was awarded $163,931 for his efforts.

Nitbuster had already been the victim of the small suckout against Rousso. That one will probably never come to mind again, because the next one put him out in sixth place. He sat in the small blind with six million chips. When TheV0id came in for a raise to 550,000, nitbuster pushed back for 2.6 million. TheV0id thought for a bit before pushing all-in for nitbuster's entire stack. Nitbuster called with AsQs. TheV0id held...AhJc. Right in the door was the Js. Nitbuster had an open-ended draw by the turn, but missed on the river and headed for the virtual exit with a $232,345 prize.

That hand put TheV0id right back in contention for first place. He ended the hand with only 2 million fewer chips that ka$ino.

Seat 1: LadyMaverick (3959932 in chips)
Seat 2: mpg1000 (11424060 in chips)
Seat 4: HelmetSky (8066408 in chips)
Seat 6: ka$ino (19097300 in chips)
Seat 9: TheV0id (17412300 in chips)

After a short break, the blinds moved up to 125000/250000/25000, and Rousso found a quick double-up. In a battle of the blinds, TheV0id put Rousso all-in. She called in a flash with 99. TheV0id held Q7. Rousso turned a set and rivered a full house to move up to 6.2 million. That hand and one a couple orbits later against ka$ino dropped TheV0id down to around 10 million.

Ka$ino, meanwhile, could not be stopped. Over the course of the next twenty minutes, he worked his way up to 28 million in chips, largely without showing his hand. When he did finally turn over his cards, it was to show mpg1000 AK in a 17 million chip pot...pre-flop. MPG1000 held KQ with the queen of clubs. Three clubs were on board by the turn, but mpg1000 missed on the river and was out in fifth place, earning $307,295.

Just a few minutes later, HelmetSky lost a big race against TheV0id. It was QQ for HelmetSky and AK for TheV0id, all-in pre-flop. An ace fell on the turn and HelmetSky couldn't find a queen on the river. He went out in fourth place, a $382,235 payday.

Rousso was the next to go. Aftr calling a raise in the big blind, she flopped two pair with her 3c6c. She check-called the flop. A second spade came on the turn and both players checked. A third spade came on the river. This time, Rousso bet out and ka$ino put her all-in. Ka$ino held 9s2s for the flush. Rousso's third place finish earned her $463,940.

Going into heads-up play at 12:10pm ET, the blinds sat at 150000/300000/30000. Ka$ino held a nearly 3:1 chip lead.

Seat 6: ka$ino (44141724 in chips)
Seat 9: TheV0id (15818276 in chips)

Half an hour into heads up play, there had only been on major swing. TheV0id worked his way up to 27 million in chips after flopping a pair of aces and getting paid. After a short break, the players resumed at 200000/400000/40000.

Seat 6: ka$ino (34691724 in chips)
Seat 9: TheV0id (25268276 in chips)

A very odd hand arrived after the break in which the players poked and prodded at each other on a 5QQ flop. The turn was a deuce and TheV0id bet 1.8 million. Ka$ino called. The river was a ten and TheV0id bet a curious one million chips into a nearly seven million chip pot. TheV0id called with K2 to beat TheV0id's bluff. TheV0id responded with:

TheV0id: omg
TheV0id: wasnt supposed to bet that
TheV0id: so hard to see with all the millions

A few hands later, ka$ino had his biggest lead of the tournament, holding 46 million chips. Then came the big swing. After both checking the flop, the players were looking at a board of 7c 5c Kd 6d. Ka$isno check-raised and TheV0id pushed all in. Ka$ino called to see he was in bad shape. While he held 56 for two pair, TheV0id had K5. For at least a moment, TheV0id had the lead.

Seat 6: ka$ino (29123448 in chips)
Seat 9: TheV0id (30836552 in chips)

It would only take a few minutes for ka$ino to get it all back On the river, he bet into a 8d Js Qc Qd 6s board and TheV0id laid down his hand, giving up a 17 million chip pot. Still, the tables refused to stop turning, and a few hands later, it was all-in pre-flop with TheV0id holding pocket sevens to ka$ino's AQ. The pair held up and The V0id took over as chip leader.

Before long, the stacks had evened up. After a little more than an hour of heads-up play, the event had become a heads-up sit and go for a difference of nearly $700,000 in prize money. To the amazement of many people watching, there came not even a mention of a deal. With the big money still on the table, the next huge 18 million chip pot slid to TheV0id. Only then did ka$ino mention any sort of business.

ka$ino: want to do a 100k save
ka$ino: for second place?
ka$ino: blinds getting bigger
TheV0id: well not now when im in front
TheV0id: :)
ka$ino: ok

In front and marching, TheV0oid started hitting some flops and picking up some pairs. Before long, TheV0id was up to 45 million. The lead lasted another ten minutes when the first real ugly hand appeared. They got it all in on a Qs Td Kh flop. Ka$ino had flopped a set of kings to TheV0id's J9 for a straight. The board paired queens on the river, though, and ka$ino jumped back into the lead with his full house. It lasted until TheV0id flopped trip tens and picked up a 14 million chip pot to retake the lead.

A couple of hands later, the stacks were basically even and the idea of a save was re-visited. And so it was. After a brief discussion, the players decided to award $850,782.50 for second and $1,228,330.50 for first. When the players reached the two hour mark of heads up play, TheV0id held 37 million chips to ka$ino's 22 million. A few minutes after the break, TheV0id moved back up to 44 million after making two pair with queens and nines vs ka$ino's AJ on a AKQ9x board. That big lead lasted all of one hand. Ka$ino flopped a set of fours and got paid on the river to move back close to even.

The tournament has nearly been running for 22 hours. Even the toughest among the railbirds wondered how...no, if it would end. Like a flash of heat lightning on a hot night, the final hand came from nowhere and ended the tournament with a $1.2 million clap of thunder. With the blinds at 300000/600000/60000, TheV0id came in for a raise to 1.4 million. Ka$ino re-raised to 4.4 million. The V0id pushed all-in and got an instant call from ka$ino. TheV0id held KsQh to ka$ino's AcKd. The flop, 3cJhTs, was foreboding. The turn was a quick reprieve from what now seemed inevitable. The river was the thing...the nine of spades, giving the straight and the WCOOP championship to TheV0id.

After two and half weeks, 23 events, and nearly $25 million in prize money, the 2007 World Championship of Online Poker ended by awarding the first ever $1 million prize to the winner, TheV0id.

Congratulations to all the players who cashed in this year's WCOOP. Final table results for the main event are below.

2007 WCOOP Event #23 Final Table Results
Based on finishing order and $150,000 save for second place

1. TheV0id (United Kingdom) $1,228,330.50
2. ka$ino (United States) $850,782.50
3. LadyMaverick (United States) $463,940.50
4. HelmetSky (Israel) $382,245.00
5. mpg1000 (United States) $307,295.00
6. nitbuster (United States) $232,345.00
7. E-Daddie (United States) $163,391.00
8. mao15 (United States) $103,431.00
9. Fischer80 (Denmark) $59,960.00

Full 2007 WCOOP Main Event Results

The 2007 World Championship of Online Poker main event has just kicked off as the richest tournament in online poker history. Nearly 3,000 players are now set to battle for a nearly $7.5 million prize pool.



It's impossible to say what's going to happen over the next 15 hours or so. When the final table hits, players will be looking at a first prize of nearly $1.4 million. There stands a decent chance that we could see online poker's biggest tournament cash ever. An unchopped first prize will award the winner nearly $1.4 million.



As the event gets underway, players begin with 20,000 in chips and will be playing 30 minute levels. To watch, click on "Events" and "WCOOP" in your PokerStars lobby.

Good luck to everyone in the event. We'll see you on the other side.

Limit poker is a dysfunctional marriage of a game theorist and a math wonk. They live in a house that looks like any other house in the poker neighborhood and, on the outside, they seem like a happy couple. Inside, though, the debates rage harder than any daytime soap opera. The math half of the marriage insists there is a correct decision for every card on every street. The game theorist insists there are nuances that can override the math. It is an in-house debate that rages through every game of limit hold'em. In this marriage, there are progeny and it's those people who are limit hold'em winners.

Event #22 of the World Championship of Online Poker drew more than 600 players at $1,050 apiece, all of whom hope to be the perfect child in the imperfect marriage. Nine of those players got closer than the rest.



Seat 1: drbk2 (619733 in chips)
Seat 2: DEVIRUS (1129819 in chips)
Seat 3: emptyseat88 (441326 in chips)
Seat 4: plattsburgh (936478 in chips)
Seat 5: Hansa.no (224548 in chips)
Seat 6: jumper17 (684116 in chips)
Seat 7: BUTCH ACIDY (366173 in chips)
Seat 8: Sowerss (1525467 in chips)
Seat 9: der Falk (232340 in chips)

Der Falk, despite having the chip lead for a good while before the final table, was the first to go. He picked up AK versus BUTCH ACIDY's KK. Der Falk played the hand as hard as he could, but never caught up. He finished in ninth place for $8,008.

Hansa.no was the next to go. Having lost most of his stack to DEVIRUS in a hand that he didn't show down, Hansa.no played A7 for the rest of his chips against emptyseat88's KQ. A queen on the turn ended Hansa.no's day in eighth place. He was awarded $13,552 for his efforts.

BUTCH ACIDY fell on hard times a few hands later and, with only 100,000 chips left, ended up getting QT in against emptyseat88's K6 pre-flop. No queen or ten appeared and BUTCH ACIDY finished in seventh place, a $20,328 payday.

With six players remaining, the chip stacks sized up as follows:

Seat 1: drbk2 (424733 in chips)
Seat 2: DEVIRUS (1234819 in chips)
Seat 3: emptyseat88 (691887 in chips)
Seat 4: plattsburgh (868978 in chips)
Seat 6: jumper17 (1141616 in chips)
Seat 8: Sowerss (1797967 in chips)

There were more cruel rivers in this event than just about any other. The cruelest we'd seen in a while put DEVIRUS out. He flopped a set of deuces against plattsburgh's pair of sixes on a Qd2dJh flop. They capped the betting and got DEVIRUS all-in. The river? Indeed, a six. DEVIRUS finished in in sixth place for a $27.720 cash.

After a short break, emptyseat88 sat on the shortest stack and was ready to pick up some chips. He came in for a raise with Kc7c and called a re-raise from Sowerss. The flop came own 9sKsJh. With top pair, emptyseat88 was in decent shape. Problem was, Sowerss held A7 and an ace came on the turn. No king on the river and emptyseat88 finished in fifth place for $35,112.

Four-handed play lasted for a long while before drbk2 succumbed to the pressure of the bigger stacks and mounting blinds. His last gasp was getting TJ all-in on a 3sQs6h flop. He was up against Sowerss' 78. A seven on the river ended drbk2's morning, out in fourth place and earning $43,120.

Plattsburgh was the neext to find the door. After jumper17 flopped a set against him and took him for half a million chips, plattsburgh only had enough chips to play one more big hand. He decided to go with QsJs. He got it all in pre-flop against jumper17's 77. Plattburgh never improved and was out in third place for $56,056.

Going into heads up play, the remaining two foes had the following stacks:

Seat 6: jumper17 (3334103 in chips)
Seat 8: Sowerss (2825897 in chips)

With a $60,000 difference between first and second, the players thought it better to cut a deal with the following terms.

$108,967.05 -- jumper17
$102,184.95 -- Sowerss

They left $18,000 and the WCOOP bracelet on the table. That's where things got interesting.

After an impressive and hard-fought early battle, jumper17 (at the urging of his opponent) revealed what many people already knew. He is Markus Golser, a tough Austrian pro, known around the world as a fierce competitor.

While Golser had Sowerss on the ropes a couple of times, after a full hour of heads-up play, the stacks were still close to even. Neither player backed down, and for good reason.

Sowerss: i want the full bracelet
Sowerss: i'd almost give u 5k for it
jumper17: me too

After an hour and half, Sowerss had made an amazing comeback and taken a big lead, only to see Golser rebound and recapture his position on top. Then it was even again. Regardless of who came out on top, it was going to be a battle that neither player forgot.

It took a full hour and forty minutes for the heads-up battle to end. Over the course of several hands, Sowerss moved ahead. So many times before, the chip lead had melted back to even. This time, Sowerss held the lead. The final hand saw Golser flopping middle pair, but Sowerss turned a straight and sent Golser out in second place.

Congratualtions to all the players who cashed in Event #22 of the 2007 World Championship of Online Poker.

2007 WCOOP: Event #22 Final Table Results
Based on finishing order and two-way deal that left $18,000 for first place

1. Sowerss (United States) $120,184.95
2. jumper17 (Austria) $108,967.05
3. plattsburgh (United States) $56,056.00
4. drbk2 (United States) $43,120.00
5. emptyseat88 (United States $35,112.00
6. DEVIRUS (Canada) $27,720.00
7. BUTCH ACIDY (United States) $20,328.00
8. Hansa.no (Cyprus) $13,552.00
9. der Falk (Sweden) $8,008.00

The appeal of online poker--or at least part of it--is the ability to play in an event with a relatively small buy-in and have a chance at a major score.

Event #20 of the World Championship of Online Poker had nothing to do with that part of the game's appeal.

At $5,000, the buy-in to the HORSE event was the largest of the entire tournament series. It drew some of poker's top name from both the live and online world. One hundred seventy-seven players threw in five grand a piece for a chance at a $225,000 first prize.

Here's what the final table of the event looked like.



Seat 1: tj_trail (285838 in chips)
Seat 2: svesken (246331 in chips)
Seat 3: BUS02 (116856 in chips)
Seat 4: TwinkleStar (95043 in chips)
Seat 5: BOBALOB (268092 in chips)
Seat 6: hairos (382407 in chips)
Seat 7: ROXY24 (170189 in chips)
Seat 8: Cordelia (205244 in chips)

At the start of the final table, the game was Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo at the 10,000/20,000 limit. TwinkleStar had less than 100,000 in chips. With 8c4c/8d, he came in for a raise and then called a re-raise from BOBALOB who showed a queen up. On fourth and fifth street, TwinkleStar picked up nines and was looking good with two pair. He got a bet in on sixth street, but BOBALOB called and made queens up on the river. TwinkleStars was out in eighth place, cashing for $22,657.

BUS02 came into the final table with the second shortest stack and found the exit shortly thereafter. Reduced to only 43,000 chips, BUS02 got all his chips in with AdKh7c3s showing. We never got to find out what he had in the hole, as hairos pulled a straight flush and and BOBALOB had an 8-low. BUSO2 exited in seventh place for $31,860.

The players took a 30-minute break and came back to 12,000/24,000 limit hold'em, stacked up like this:

Seat 1: tj_trail (341638 in chips)
Seat 2: svesken (363231 in chips)
Seat 5: BOBALOB (430563 in chips)
Seat 6: hairos (443835 in chips)
Seat 7: ROXY24 (97889 in chips)
Seat 8: Cordelia (92844 in chips)

ROXY24 was looking for a double up and came in for a raise with J9. After calling a re-raise from tj_trail, ROXY24 saw the flop: Jc7dKs. Tj_trail bet out, ROXY24 raised, tj-trail re-raised and ROXY24 called. The turn was the 3d. This time tj_trail bet out and ROX24 called all in. Tj_trail held AdTd and had outs to any diamond, any queen, or any ace. The ace fell on the river and ROXY24 was out in sixth place and a $41,595 payday.

Cordelia was the next to go. Tj_trail rivered a flush on a 4s9cTh7c8c board to put Cordelia on life support. Cordelia was all-in in the big blind on the next hand and couldn't find a winner. For fifth place, Cordelia picked up $55,755.

Despite being the only person at the final table interested in a deal, tj_trail could not stop winning. Whether it was a rivered flush or a flopped full house, he won hand after hand and, before long, was up over 800,000 in chips.

The hold'em round simply belonged to tj_trail. After it was over, he held a firm lead.

Seat 1: tj_trail (859527 in chips)
Seat 2: svesken (303462 in chips)
Seat 5: BOBALOB (187407 in chips)
Seat 6: hairos (419604 in chips)

The beginning of the Omaha/8 round cut further into BOBALOB's stack. His frustration started to set in and he gave some clue as to his identity.

BOBALOB: this is sick 4th in both the biggest horse events of the year.

While he managed to double up and stick around for a while longer, he finally got his remaining chips in with KhKsJd6s. It was both a good and bad flop, KcQcTc. While tk_trail didn't hold clubs, he did have AAJx for the flopped straight. The board didn't pair and BOBALOB was out in fourth place for $71,685.

All the while, hairos was making a steady climb and, midway through the O8 round, had moved up to the chip lead. At the same time, tj_trail fell all the way back to third place after losing a 300,000 chip pot when svesken rivered two pair, nines and threes.

As the game turned to Razz, the chips stacks looked a lot different than they did an hour before.

Seat 1: tj_trail (409248 in chips)
Seat 2: svesken (588648 in chips)
Seat 6: hairos (772104 in chips)

Razz was unkind to tj_trail. Where he had the chip lead for a good long while, he had fallen back during the O8 round. The Razz round--and svesken--proved to be his undoing. Over the course of 20 minutes in Razz, his opponents beat him up. TJ_trail sat incredulous as his stack dwindled down to nearly nothing. The more he didn't believe his opponent had made their hand, the more they actually did. The final nail came After losing with a ten-low to svekson's six, Tj_trail finished in third place, earning $103,987.

Here's how the stacks looked going into heads-up play.

Seat 2: svesken (1056144 in chips)
Seat 6: hairos (713856 in chips)

Within a few minutes, hairos had drawn even with svesken and the players decided to chop up the money. They left $26,000 on the table and and took $176,921 a piece.

In the end, hairos picked svesken apart piece by piece over half an hour and finished him off to pick up the extra cash and the gold WCOOP bracelet.

2007 WCOOP: Event #21 Final Table Results
Results based on finishing order and two-way deal that left $26,000 for first place

1. hairos (Denmark) $202,921.00
2. svesken (Denmark) $176,921.00
3. tj_trail (United States) $103,987.50
4. BOBALOB (United States) $71,685.00
5. Cordelia (United States) $55,755.00
6. ROXY24 (Canada) $41,595.00
7. BUS02 (United States) $31,860.00
8. TwinkleStar (United States) $22,567.50

Imagine this scene.

It's been a bloody fight on an Old West street. The shoot out has been blazing for fourteen hours and all but two of the gun fighters lay dead in the dirt. The two remaining foes are trading bullets and staring at each other across a High Noon landscape. One fighter falls, gutshot, and bleeding in the dirt. He's still breathing, but could succumb to his injuries at any moment. Maybe even resigned to his fate, the bloodied man raises his head and down the barrel of the standing cowboy's gun.

Click.

It would seem too good to be true. The gun is jammed.

Now, the bleeding man has a choice. He can empty his gun into his defenseless opponent. Or, he can say, "Oh, I'll wait. Unjam your pistol and we'll resume when you're ready."

Yeah, that kind of thing didn't happen in the Old West, and, frankly, that kind of thing doesn't happen in poker very often. In a world where angle shooters are everywhere, catching a break in poker is rare. And yet, that's what happened in Event #20 of the 2007 World Championship of Online Poker, a $530 Triple Shootout.

However, we're getting ahead of ourselves.

Seven hundred and twenty nine people packed the triple shootout event. To make the final table, players would have to win two single tables in a row. These nine did just that.



Seat 1: adotlee
Seat 2: lyerly_
Seat 3: "Dumping"KGB
Seat 4: Cobra234
Seat 5: Nutedawg
Seat 6: Zock'n'Rock
Seat 7: THE__D__RY
Seat 8: AJunglen7
Seat 9: pannipha

With 3000 in chips and super-low blinds, there was less action at the beginning stages and more questions about the conspicuous absence of Cobra324. Apparently, he was taking a little nap and missed quite a few orbits before making it to the table. In the meantime, "Dumping"KGB jumped out to early lead after rivering a spade flush in a hand against Zock'n'Rock. Zock'n'Rock was not deterred however, and over the next half an hour managed to work his way up over 4,400 in chips.

The first huge confrontation of the third round came when lyerly_ and "Dumping"KGB were all-in pre-flop. At the 25/50 level, it would take a lot to get all the chips in the middle. No surprise then that both players had aces. Drama came up on the turn when a third spade appeared on the board. Lyerly_ held the ace of spades. No spade on the river saved "Dumping"KGB an ugly beat and play resumed.

It only took a few hands before the action monster raised its ugly head again, and this time, the ugliness prevailed. After raising and calling a re-raise from Cobra234, AJunglen7 saw a flop of Tc2c4s. When Cobra234 bet out, Ajunglen7 raised, and Cobra put him all-in. AJunglen7 couldn't have been happier to call. He'd flopped a set of fours, good enough to beat Cobra234's pair of kings. Cobra234 was out a few hands later in ninth place, cashing for $3,645.

Lyerly_ must have been a little misty about missing his freeroll a few hands earlier. Just a few hands after Cobra234 went out, Lyerly_ went head to head with adotlee. Both held AK, but lyerly_'s was suited in spades. They got it in pre-flop and saw two spades on the flop and one on the river to send adotlee out in in eighth place, a $6,561 payday.

The beginning hour of the third round had been void of big action until those hands happened. Suddenly, things were getting crazy. Witness Nutedawg raising to 241 and AJunglen7 putting him all in for another 1,000. AJunglen7 held KQ suited in spades to Nutedawg's AT. This time, all three spades fell on the flop and Nutedawg was out in seventh place. He earned $10,206.

Players took a thirty-minute break and came back to some tighter play. After ten more minutes of small action at the 50/100 level, the chip stacks looked like this:

Seat 2: lyerly_ (2508 in chips)
Seat 3: "Dumping"KGB (4542 in chips)
Seat 6: Zock'n'Rock (5300 in chips)
Seat 7: THE__D__RY (4585 in chips)
Seat 8: AJunglen7 (7560 in chips)
Seat 9: pannipha (2505 in chips)

Zock'n'Rock moved into the lead after playing AQ against AJunglen7's AK. While both players played the hand relatively carefully, the queen on the flop gave Zock'n'Rock the chip lead. It was a position he clearly relished. A few hands later, he called a 1350 bet from THE__D__RY on a Qc5d4c8sAs board with a pair of nines. THE__D__RY held KcJc for the busted flush draw. Zock'n'Rock's chip lead got even bigger and he held close to half the chips in play.

The final table had not yet seen a brutal suckout. THE__D__RY was the unfortunate victim of the first. Lucky enough to get pocket aces all-in against lyerly_'s AcQc, THE__D__RY likely threw up in his mouth a little when he saw the flop 9TJ with two clubs. The turn meant nothing, but the river was a king, filling in lyerly_'s straight and sending THE__D__RY out in sixth place with a $14,580 cash.

Pannipha had not been playing a lot of hands, but by this point also didn't have a ton of chips. When he came over the top of an AJunglen7 raise, he didn't have enough chips to force a fold. While Pannipha held AK, AJunglen7's Q4 turned a four and sent Pannipha out in fifth place. He picked up $20,047.

Here's what the chip stacks looked like after the hand:

Seat 2: lyerly_ (4953 in chips)
Seat 3: "Dumping"KGB (1897 in chips)
Seat 6: Zock'n'Rock (12190 in chips)
Seat 8: AJunglen7 (7960 in chips)

On the short-stack, "Dumping"KGB was looking for a chance to double up. When Zock'n'Rock came in for a raise, "Dumping"KGB pushed with AT. He was in bad shape. Zock'n'Rock held pocket queens. "Dumping"KGB didn't improve and finished in fourth place for $27,337.

Three-handed play was tough, but did not see an exit before the next break. Zock'n'Rock had moved his chip stack above the 15,000 mark. AJunglen7 was in second place with 6,400. Lylerly_ was not too far behind with 4,700. When the players returned from break, they faced 100/200 blinds.

Within a few hands after play resumed, the shorter stacks went to war. AJunglen7 raised from the button, lyerly_ re-raised from the small blind. After thinking for a bit, Ajunglen7 pushed and lyerly_, who had moved up to second place in chips, called with pocket tens. AJunglen7 called with A9, a hand rendered useless after a ten came on the flop. AJunglen7 was out in third place and cashed for $36,450.

Seat 2: lyerly_ (10693 in chips)
Seat 6: Zock'n'Rock (16307 in chips)

Zock'n'Rock quickly chipped up to 18,000 and kept the aggression on. Lylerly_, however, would not back down. He waited for his spot and then bet out on a Jh 9c 3d flop. Zock'n'Rock raised and lyerly_ moved all-in. Zock'n'Rock thought for a second before folding and moving lyerly_ up above 12,000 in chips. Just a few hands later, though, he gave all of it back after Zock'n'Rock flopped trip eights and rivered a full house.

The players then settled into a chip-passing rhythm that would've been hypnotic if not for the money on the line. Just when the rail started to get dreamy, the first huge confrontation hit. Zock'n'Rock held 66 to lyerly_'s pocket nines. Lyerly_'s hand held up, and for the first time, he held the chip lead. Now, it was his turn to turn up the aggression. After an entire game on the offensive, Zock'n'Rock was set back on his heels and suddenly had only 7,000 chips.

What might have turned into a quick bloodbath soon came to a standstill as lyerly_ lost his internet connection. This was the moment in which Zock'n'Rock had a choice. He could blind lyerly_ out or he could exhibit something far too rarely seen in poker: sportsmanship.

Only six hands went by before Zock'n'Rock asked tournament adminstrators to pause the event. As the rail waited, this appeared in the chat box.

StaffBryanS [Supervisor]: We have reached lyerly on the phone. He is dashing to a friend's house. Approximately 15-20 minutes, okay?

Zock'n'Rock: well alright, I hope I dont fall asleep by then. Gonna make some more coffee heh.

Twenty more minutes passed before lyerly_ re-appeared and said, "Thank you for the respect and consideration."

In a Western made by Disney, these two men would've stood up from the ghost town dust and headed to the saloon for a root beer. However, Disney doesn't cotton to poker and poker tournaments don't end with two people standing.

With lyerly_'s virtual gun un-jammed, the fight resumed, and it was short. Zock'n'Rock's dying gasp was an all-in bluff with 63. It ran directly into lyerly_'s pocket sevens and never caught up.

While Zock'n'Rock finished in second, his sportsmanship alone gained him respect, something a poker player simply can't buy. So, respect to Zock'n'Rock and congratulations to lyerly_ for winning Event #20 of the World Championship of Online Poker.

2007 WCOOP: Event #20 Final Table Results

1. lyerly_ (United States) $76,545.00
2. Zock'n'Rock (Germany) $51,030.00
3. AJunglen7 (United States) $36,450.00
4. "Dumping"KGB (United States) $27,337.50
5. pannipha (United Kingdom) $20,047.50
6. THE__D__RY (United States) $14,580.00
7. Nutedawg (United States) $10,206.00
8. adotlee (United States) $6,561.00
9. Cobra234 (Denmark) $3,645.00

No matter whether it's the World Championship of Online Poker, the World Series, or your local bar league's yearly championship series, when it starts getting toward the end, the pressure to put up a good score starts to mount. With only three days left in the 2005 PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker, the $530 Pot-Limit Omaha event drew all kinds of wild gamblers to compete for the $523,000 prize pool. More than 1,000 runners jumped into the Friday event. One hundred fifty-three of them got paid, bot only nine could say they made it to the final table. There, the gold WCOOP bracelet and some big money waited for first place.



Seat 1: buck21 (675653 in chips)
Seat 2: cpfactor (346548 in chips)
Seat 3: Gu Minda (254942 in chips)
Seat 4: tralaira (321000 in chips)
Seat 5: Taknapotin (610847 in chips)
Seat 6: muzzu (278486 in chips)
Seat 7: Egar1m (130656 in chips)
Seat 8: villepn (398332 in chips)
Seat 9: Niiiv (121536 in chips)

The first big hand of the final table saw a rough runner-runner beat for villepn. On a 5dJs2c flop, muzzu re-raised villepn all-in. Villepn had flopped a set of fives. Muzzu only held JdAhKh4d for a pair of jacks and a gutshot draw. A running king and jack, though, pushed the pot the muzzu. His reponse? "Uuups."

Villepn said nothing. Or, at least, we couldn't hear it. His neighbors? That may be a different story. Villepn was left with 128,000 in chips, while muzzu moved up into second place.

Gu Minda was the next to double up after flopping jacks full of sevens against Taknapotin and getting paid off. That hand cut Taknapotin down to less than 300,000 in chips. He wasn't around for much longer. He came in for a raise with 9cQc7dTc and called a re-raise from buck21. It was the kind of flop that was going to get Taknapotin all in: 7cQd8s. With two pair and the open-ended draw, Taknapotin got his money in to see buck21's As3s7sAd. When the board paired eights on the turn, buck21 moved ahead in the hand and Taknapotin missed his myraid of outs. He finished in ninth place for $6,014.

Niiiv didn't have a lot of chips at the start of the final table and wasn't able to climb out of the hole. Niiiv re-raised all-in with KdKc4hQd versus villepn's 8c8sAc9h. An eight fell on the flop, Niiiv never caught up, and ultimately finished in eighth place for $10,460.

It took a few more minutes for the action to heat back up, but when it did, it was hot. Gu Minda flopped quad aces and got paid off by buck21. Then villepn got all in with aces and flopped a full house versus cpfactor.

Aces worked for those players, but failed Egar1m. He got all-in pre-flop with them against buck21's 8d9c7hQs. Buck21 flopped two pair and rivered a boat to send Egar1m out in seventh place and a cash of $10,206.

Seconds later, cpfactor went on a run and doubled up twice, once against muzzu (in which his aces held up) and once against villepn (in which he cracked aces). After that, play slowed down for a while. Some measured action led up to a big confrontation between villepn and tralaira. Villepn held queens pre-flop to tralaira's kings. Villepn couldn't suck out and was reduced to getting his remaining chips in against two players. While, the rail never saw his hand, he coudn't beat Gu Minda's trip threes and exited in sixth place for $14,580.

Five handed, the stacks looked like this:

Seat 1: buck21 (1345638 in chips)
Seat 2: cpfactor (350432 in chips)
Seat 3: Gu Minda (901980 in chips)
Seat 4: tralaira (153000 in chips)
Seat 6: muzzu (386950 in chips)

Sitting third in chips, cpfactor came in for a raise and got action from Gu Minda. The flop came down Ks8d4d and both players checked. The turn was the Ts. Gu Minda bet out and cpfactor raised. Gu Minda put him all in and cpfactor called. Cpfactor held 8c7sTdQd to Gu Minda's JsKhTc9s. A king on the river solidified Gu Minda's winning hand and cpfactor was out in fifth place, cashing for $26,934.

Within the next few hands, tralaira was down below 100,000 in chips and got all-in on a 999 flop. Bad timing, for sure, as Gu Minda held the case nine and put tralaira out in fourth place, a $33,472 payday.

Buck21 took three-handed play as an opportunty to slowly build his stack and, before long, had more than two million chips. His stack grew even bigger when his pocket aces held up against muzzu's 7hTsJs7s. Muzzu finished in third for $41,840.

Heads-up, buck21 had a better than 2:1 chip lead and refused to talk about a deal, saying it was "only a 60k difference." Gu Minda accepted the denial and set about chipping into buck21's lead. He nearly did it in less than 15 minutes. Finally, buck21 said okay to a chop. It took a while to negotiate it, but the deal ended with $16,000 left on the table and the players getting the following payouts.

buck21 - $81,262
Gu Minda - $77,053

It took a while, but buck21 prevailed. He gradually worked Gu Minda down to a 1:4 deficit. All the money eventually went in after Gu Minda turned two pair. At the same time, buck21 had turned his Broadway straight. Gu Minda didn't boat up on the river and finished in second place.

Congratualtions to all the people who cased in Event #19. Final table results are below.

2007 WCOOP: Event #19 Final Table Results

1. buck21 (Canada) $97,262
2. Gu Minda (France) $77,053.00
3. muzzu (Finland) $41,840.00
4. tralaira (Spain) $33,472.00
5. cpfactor (United States) $26,934.50
6. villepn (Finland) $20,397.00
7. Egar1m (United States) $15,167.00
8. Niiiv (United States) $10,460.00
9. Taknapotin (United States) $6,014.50

There are certain things in your life that you shouldn't attempt without a solid working knowledge of how they work. While opinions vary on what these things are, I'd think the top ten would include driving a tractor, using a pressure cooker, and playing Seven Card Stud Eight or Better.

I've spent several years around some of the greatest poker thinkers in the world. I've traveled with somebody who has a World Series bracelet in the same event, and I've played the game in Vegas casinos. However, if someone asked me how to play, I'd only be able to say (as a friend once told me), "If you have a nine in your hand to start, fold."

Fortunately, there are people out there who love this game and are, by all accounts, quite good at it. Nearly 600 people signed up to play in Event #18 of the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker. Eleven hours later, eight of them still had a chance at the WCOOP bracelet.



Seat 1: theowl48 (193105 in chips)
Seat 2: BigLL (116329 in chips)
Seat 3: mysticaces (215596 in chips)
Seat 4: TheActionKid (179319 in chips)
Seat 5: pinfishtom (218792 in chips)
Seat 6: Sensor (81840 in chips)
Seat 7: motor1963 (489027 in chips)
Seat 8: crazyjanie (299992 in chips)

Sensor started the final table with the shortest stack, and by the time the limits moved up to 10,000/20,000, he was down to 50,000 in chips. It was time to pick a hand and go with it. Starting with 6c5c/5d, Sensor made his move. It was as if he knew he was on his way out when he said, "Big shout out to my grandmother who is watching me play this tonight, my mom, my girlfriend, and all of my friends . Thanks for the support." He came in for a raise and got action from motor1963, who was showing a 2. By sixth street, Sensor had committed himself to the hand and was all-in. While he finished with aces up, he never made a low. Motor1963, meanwhile, picked up trip threes to send Sensor to the rail in eighth place for a $5681 payday.

Motor1963, already flush with chips, continued his tear a few hands later when he rivered a straight and six-low to cut a big chunk out of TheActionKid's stack. The mood at the table then turned a little sour.

TheActionKid: nice river
motor1963: ty
TheActionKid: keep betting into the best player at the table

TheActionKid did his best to fight back and was able to work his stack back up to where he started at the final table. However, no matter his level of talent, he would be the next to go down. Over the course of the next half an hour, his opponents whittled his stack down to a mere 30,000 at the 15,000/30,000 limit. Dealt 3h5c/As, he got all his chips in against his foe, motor1963's 2sAh/2h. Four cards later, motor1963 had trip deuces, good enough to beat TheActionKid's pair of aces. TheActionKid placed seventh for $8,730.

After a 30 minute break, the limits moved up to 20,000/40,000 and hands that went to the river started to get expensive. Six-handed, the average stack was risking half his stack by playing a hand to the river. BigLL used this time to take over a commanding chip lead, building his stack above 800,000. However, this chip lead wouldn't last for long. After making a few unsuccessful attempts to knock out the short-stacks, BigLL ran into crazyjanie's rolled up sevens and handed the chip lead across the table.

Theowl48 was the first to succumb to the bigger stacks. With 115,000 left in his stack, he started with a pair of kings. He got his stack in against mysticaces and motor1963. Motor1963 had three jacks by fourth street and mystic aces was on a low draw. By the river, theowl48 had an eight low and the pair of kings he started with. Neither was good enough for half the pot and he was out in sixth place, cashing for $11,661.

While motor1963 had his share of victories at the final table, he couldn't hold up against the relentless action at the table. We never saw his full hand. He had 5dThQc9h showing and had all his chips in on fourth street. At the river, he couldn't beat a pair of threes. Motor1963 finished in fifth place for $14,950.

BigLL may have had a massive chip lead for a while, but crazyjanie had sights set on the man with the Bacardi player icon. When BigLL was dealt two aces down, the pot was sure to be big. It got even bigger when crazyjanie made trip sixes on fourth street. BigLL never caught up and the 400,000 chip pot slid to crazyjanie, moving the player over the million chip mark.

Pinfishtom may not have been the most active player at the final table, but he managed to make it all the way to fourth place and a $18,567 cash. Ultimately, a pair fours dealt down was his downfall. Mysticaces started with a pair of nines and ended with aces up, while pinfishtom never improved.

Mysticaces looked to be on his way to getting heads up with crazyjanie, but BigLL missed having the chip lead and set about getting it back. The first order of business was pulling an ace-high flush by fifth street and picking up a pot worth more than half a million chips.

By and by, the chips kept moving around the table, but not much was changing. Crazyjanie maintained the chip lead, while mysticaces and BigLL sat closely together. Eventually, the players decided to make a deal that left $9,000 and the WCOOP bracelet on the table.

BigLL: $39,367
mysticaces: $38,712
crazyjanie: $49,473

The deal got things moving. BigLL jumped into the game like a man on a mission to win it all or go to bed. When his pair of three ran out trips against craxyjanie's queens, BigLL started a march that had him rolling over the table. Within five minutes, he had more than a million chips and more than half the chips on the table. Five minutes later, he sent crazyjanie to the rail after crazyjanie missed a heart flush draw and ended with jack-high.

Heads-up, BigLL started with a big chip lead, but it evaporated quickly in a scene that looked a lot like a bar fight--punches being thrown with no particular aim, sometimes landing, sometimes not, but always hurting somebody or something. The chip lead moved back and forth faster than even instant hand histories could understand. Ultimately, BigLL started landing the big blows, took the chip lead, and eventually the bracelet after making trip deuces and a six low against mysticace's king-high.

Congratulations to all the players who cashed in Event #18.

2007 WCOOP Event #18 Final Table Results
Based on finishing order and a three-way deal that left $9,000 for first place

1. BigLL (United States) $48,367.00
2. mysticaces (United States) $38,712.00
3. crazyjanie (United States) $49,473.00
4. pinfishtom (United States) $18,567.90
5. motor1963 (Germany) $14,950.00
6. theowl48 (United States) $11,661.00
7. TheActionKid (United States) $8,730.80
8. Sensor (United States) $5,681.00

The curve beteeen learning poker and becoming a champion can be as long a a lifetime or as short as the time it took PokerStars player pes4fans to win a WCOOP bracelet. Though he asked repeatedly for a chop in Event #17, his opponents refused. Germany's Pes4fans responded by winning the whole thing. Here's what he had to say when it was all over.

Q. Tell me a little about yourself.

pes4fans: I'm 20 years old and live in Trier in the western part of Germany I love poker as much as I like soccer and I'm more a calm boy who is a little crazy too.

Q. Any particular meaning or story behind your screen name?

pes4fans: I had a website about Pro Evolution Soccer so I used that name a lot even if it is silly.

Q. How long have you been playing poker?

pes4fans: For a year.

Q. How did you learn to play?

pes4fans: I watched a celebrity poker show and learned the basics and then I started playing at PokerStars for play money.

Q. What was it like to make a final table at WCOOP and finish as well as you did?

pes4fans: It was an incredible experience, especially because I've only played poker for one year and it was my biggest buy-in tournament ever.

Q. What do you do when you're not playing poker?

pes4fans: I start going to university next month studying economics.

Q. Is this your biggest win to date or have you had others?

pes4fans: Yes by far. My next biggest was almost $10k.

Q. What is your best poker game?

pes4fans: NL Holdem 6 handed ;)

Q. Any goals for your poker play?

pes4fans: I want to go step-by-step to higher limits and make some money. And one day I want to play the WSOP, but first I have to improve my offline poker skills.

Q. If you have a basic poker philosophy, what is it?

pes4fans: Trust your instincts. That helped me a lot today and I had some real good reads and bluffs.

Q. Is poker a game that is played a lot in your family, or are you the only one who plays?

pes4fans: My family doesn't like poker at all but I'll teach them a lesson by telling them what I won.

Q. Is there a lot of live poker in your hometown? What’s it like there?

pes4fans: We have a casino here and I'll go there soon. Haven't been there yet so I can't tell you how it is.

Q. Is there anybody you look up to in the poker world? Heroes?

pes4fans: Daniel Negreneau, Humberto Brenes and Phil Ivey.

Q. Do you have any plans for the money you won in WCOOP?

pes4fans: I've got no idea, I'll save most of the money and maybe buy some stuff like a PS3.

For the full story of pes4fan's win, check out the 2007 WCOOP: Event #17 Final Table Report.

Six-max no-limit hold'em is all about action. Starting hand values change. Ace-rag starts to seem like a much better holding. Re-raises are a lot more common. Naked aggression is rewarded and punished in nearly every orbit.

So, after 14 hours of playing down from 2,872 players to six, one might have been able to assume the final table of the 2007 WCOOP Event #17, $320 Six-Max No-Limit Hold'em, would go fast.

In fact, no. It took three and half hours go from six players down to the champion. However, that's getting ahead of ourselves a little bit. Here's how the field looked when the final six sat down.



Seat 1: Pillars (1334972 in chips)
Seat 2: PeachyMer (3065033 in chips)
Seat 3: AcEGoDD (1226016 in chips)
Seat 4: jejune524 (441688 in chips)
Seat 5: pape85 (1720515 in chips)
Seat 6: pes4fans (830776 in chips)

Jejune524 came into the final table with the shortest stack and wasted no time getting it all-in. With a little more than 400,000 in chips at the 12,500/25,000/2,500 level, Jejune524 moved all-in under the gun with AT. If jejune524 was hoping to pick up the blinds, it was a bad time for it. AcEGoDD made good on his screen name and woke up with two aces. While jejune524 flopped a gutshot draw, it didn't come in and he was out in sixth place for $11,204.70.

After the first exit, the normally action-packed game got a lot tighter. Chips moved around the table, but big showdowns weren't the order of the day for a good, long while. After a short break, PeachyMer started to pull ahead with aggressive position play and moved above $3 million in chips. Eventually, aggression go the better of her and she gave about a million chips back to her opponents. Regardless, with $2.3 million chips, PeachyMer retained the chip lead.

Even at the 20,000/40,000/4,000 level, it was evident what an amazing structure the PokerStars staff had put together. Five handed, the average stack had an M of 20, allowing for serious, deep-stacked poker play. Despite the deep stacks, a pre-flop confrontation saw Pillars get nearly a million chips in pre-flop. When pes4fans came in for a raise to 120,000, Pillars re-raised to 400,000 with pocket eights. Pes4fans put all the chips in and Pillars called. Pes4fans held pocket aces and Pillars couldn't find an eight. Pillars exited in fifth place for $19,823.70.

AcEGoDD was the next to go. The levels had gone up to 25,000/50,000/2,5000. After an earlier confrontation with PeachyMer in which AcEGoDD was forced to fold to an all-in re-raise, AcEGoDD decided to get his remaining 669,000 in pre-flop, pushing under the gun with Ah4h. PeachyMer woke up in the big blind with QQ. AcEGoDD was out in fourth place and picked up $37,061.

Three-handed, the tables started to turn and PeachyMer fell down to 1.5 million in chips, while pape85 and pes4fans both moved above 3 million. However, after going runner-runner for a full house, PeachyMer doubled through pes4fans to move back up to 2.5 million. Within a few minutes, all three players had nearly even stacks.

When the limits moved up to 40,000/80,000/8,000, PeachyMer had fallen back below two million in chips, pes4fans was in second place, and pape85 held the chip lead with 3.6 million. It got worse for PeachyMer when pes4fans turned the nut straight with 34 and got a value bet in on the river. A few hands later, pes4fans flopped two pair against pape85 and picked up another million chips.

PeachyMer, however, would not go away. She got AT all-in pre-flop against pes4fans' JJ. Pes4fans flopped a set, but a Q and K came as well to give PeachyMer the straight and the double-up.

And that's the way it would go for some while. PeachyMer would fall back, double up, fall back and double up. After pape85 doubled her up, he had less than 2 million chips and got them all-in pre-flop with KJ. He ran into pes4fan's QQ and was out in third place for $62,918.

Pes4fans had the chip lead by 2:1 going into heads-up play, but PeachyMer (saying, "girls don't do deals") had no interest in a chop, despite the nearly $70,000 difference between first and second place. By the 8am ET 15 minute break, pes4fans (who was playing from Germany) had worked his way up to a 3:1 chip lead.

Both players seemed to know exactly what they were doing heads up. It was a battle that didn't last forever, but very well could've had it not been for a chilly board. On a flop of 33Q, PeachyMer bet and pes4fans called. The turn was an ace. Again, PeachyMer bet and pes4fans called. The river was a six. This time PeachyMer put the rest of her chips in and pes4fans again called. PeachyMer held AQ to pes4fans' 53.

Conrgatulations to pes4fans and all the players who cashed in Event #17.

2007 WCOOP: Event #17 Final Table Results

1. pes4fans (Germany) $167,553.36
2. PeachyMer (United States)$98.946.12
3. pape85 (Finland) $62,918.70
4. AcEGoDD (United States) $37,061.70
5. Pillars (United States) $19,823.70
6. jejune524 (United States) $11,204.70

Omaha, by nature, is a gambler's game. Make it pot-limit and it becomes like walking on a tightrope. Make it hi-lo and you might as well have greased your feet and told the ring master to do away with the net.

And that's what makes it so much fun.

More than 1,500 people put up $320 a piece to play in Event #16, Pot-Limit Omaha/8. It was an event sure to be a wild ride. Picking who would end at the final table was impossible. We simply had to wait about 12 hours and see who survived the tightrope walk.



Seat 1: VicVega9 (425024 in chips)
Seat 2: tiger76 (1108988 in chips)
Seat 3: GotGame76 (457804 in chips)
Seat 4: phyllis (660454 in chips)
Seat 5: mikiantimd (192693 in chips)
Seat 6: PokerSavage1 (632000 in chips)
Seat 7: mrmanorman (204044 in chips)
Seat 8: INKO05 (640274 in chips)
Seat 9: Jackarama (286719 in chips)

Phyllis, a longtime and familiar PokerStars player, came into the final table with one of the top three chip stacks and seemed to be on a mission to play as many pots as possible. Involved in a couple of early hands, phyllis only came away with a chop. Staying on the offensive, phyllis came in for raise to 42,000. INKO05 popped phyllis back and made it 132,000 to play. Phyllis called the additional 90,000 and they saw a flop of 5cTd7d. INKO05 bet 270,000 and phyllis got the rest of the chips in the middle. Phyllis held 3cTc7sAh for two pair and the second nut low draw. INKO95 held As4dTsAd-- one pair, a flush draw, and the third nut low. The turn, a three of diamonds, was a killer for phyllis. The low draw evaporated and INKO05 picked up the nut flush. Phyllis needed to pair a card for a boat, but the queen on the river didn't cooperate and Phyllis was out in ninth place for $4,417.20.

Mikiantimd was getting a little short and sat on 150,000 chips. He got a free flop in the big blind and saw 6h7c8h. Both he and HotGame76 checked. The turn was the Qc. GotGame76 bet out and mikiantimd raised to 90,000. GotGame76 called. The river was the eight of diamonds. GotGame76 bet enough to put mikiantimd all-in, and so it was. 'Twas a hard turn and river for mikiantimd. He held Kd9d6c6d for the flopped set of sixes and the rivered full house. Unfortunately for him, GotGame76 held 9sQsAc8c for the runner-runner boat. Mikiantimd went out in eighth, cashing for $7,050.24.

VicVega9 was the next to go. He got it all-in pre-flop against INKO05. VicVega9 held 5cQcAs3s to INKO05's monster AcJdAd2s. By the river, VicVega9 only held a pair of threes and a worthless low to INKO05's aces and nut low. VicVega9 picked up $11,427 for seventh place.

Jackarama is one of those people you never miss when he enters a room. His exit was no less eye-catching. Afer calling a INKO05 raise, jackarama saw a 8d6s8s flop. A back and for betting battle ensued and ended with all the chips in. Jackarama held 4cKs5dKc for kings and rthe gutshot draw. However, INKO05 had him in trouble. Jackarama was up against trip eights and by the river was crushed by INKO05's boat. Jackarama went out in sixth and cashed for $16,128.

Mrmanorman followed closely behind. He got all his chips in on a flop holding the nut low draw and a gutshot straight raw. Both draws missed and tiger76's flopped set boated up on the turn. Mrmanorman finished in fifth place for $21,196.

With the stacks now a lot deeper, the four-handed battle lost some of its devil-may-care attitude. The remaining players played tough poker, as careful as they could under the game's in-your-face scariness. The players played for half an hour before another player went down.

PokerSavage1 lost his internet connection for a moment and, when he came back, immeditely got his stack in the middle pre-flop against GotGame76, PokerSavage1 held Ah2d4cKd to GotGame76's 5s4h6hAd. An ace and six fell on the flop and another ace fell on the turn, giving GotGame76 a full house. PokerSavage1 still had outs for a bigger boat and a low, but the river was a nine and PokerSavage1 was out in fourth place, earning $27,095.

Three-handed, the players cut a quick deal, leaving $14,000 on the table for first place.

tiger76 - $47,419
GotGame - $68,974
INKO05 - $46,784

With prize money locked up, the stacks started to move. On the first hand out of the break, tiger76 and INKO05 got it all-in on a flop of 2hAh6s. INK005 held 8cAcJsQc to tiger76's 5sKh7hAs. A deuce on the turn and nine on the river pushed the pot tiger76 and put INKO05 on life support. He was out a few hands later in third place.

Within a few hands of heads-up play, GotGame76 hand jumped out to a 2-1 chip lead, but tiger76 was not going to be tamed that easy. It took just a few more hands for tiger76 to take over. He flopped the nut flush draw to GotGame76's two pair. They got it all-in on the flop and tiger76 hit his flush on the turn. With a lead in hand, tiger76 lunged for the bracelet. He called GotGame76's raise and they saw the flop: 8s3c5h. GotGame76 bet out 100,000, tiger76 raise to 450,000 and GotGame76 called. When the seven of diamonds fell on the turn, they got it all in. Tiger76 held 4sKcTh2s to GotGame76's 2hAsTdQh. GotGame76 was ahead until an ace hit the river and gave tiger76 the wheel and the WCOOP gold bracelet.

2007 WCOOP Event #16 Final Table Report
Based on finishing order and a three-way deal that left $14,000 for first place

1. tiger76 (United States) $61,419.00
2. GotGame76 (United States) $68,974.00
3. INKO05 (Switzerland) $46,784.00
4. PokerSavage1 (United States) $27,095.04
5. mrmanorman (United States) $21,196.80
6. Jackarama (United Kingdom) $16,128.00
7. VicVega9 (United States) $11,427.84
8. mikiantimd (Spain) $7,050.24
9. phyllis (United States) $4,147.20

There is a truth about seven-card stud that most new players to the game fail to recognize: the difference between in good and bad players is likely greater than any other game. Stud requires more than a simple understanding of math and odds. To be a successful stud player, one must have near-perfect recall. Those who don't are reduced to simple Level 1 poker play. They know what they have and hope to make it better. Without that ever-important recall, they won't have any idea of their real odds of getting there. What's more, they will have no way of knowing where there opponent is. Even worse, if you're playing against someone who maintains that perfect focus and recall, you're in even more dire shape. Not only do you don't know where you are in a hand, your opponent does. It reduces one to hoping, and hope is no way to win a poker game. Perhaps that's why stud has fallen out of popularity and and become almost a novelty in the modern poker world. It's hard and better separates the good from the bad players than hold'em.

Nearly 700 people signed up to play in the 2007 WCOOP Event $15, $320 Seven Card Stud. Unlike most other events, it took less than 12 hours to reach the final table. When the eight players got together, they might have noticed they were playing against a WCOOP bracelet holder. A little more than one week ago, spielraum.at won the WCOOP 5-Card Draw bracelet. At the time, he told us stud was his best game. This night, he made good on the statement.

Here's how the final eight measured up to each other.



Seat 1: Ubsolute (518432 in chips)
Seat 2: Lystig (293671 in chips)
Seat 3: scrubbyz (95970 in chips)
Seat 4: sascos (146888 in chips)
Seat 5: spielraum.at (379752 in chips)
Seat 6: Grape (64248 in chips)
Seat 7: Dersu Uzala (400790 in chips)
Seat 8: bull_99 (188249 in chips)

Scrubbyz started the table on the second shortest stack and was unable to recover. On his final hand, he started with 33/T and came in for a raise. Grape called with a 2 showing. Scrubbyz picked up a four on fourth street to Grape's ten. Again he bet, and again Grape called. Fifth street, a five for scrubbyz and a six for Grape, helped neither player. Still scrubbyz bet and Grape called. Sixth street is where the balance shifted. Scubbyz drew a nine and didn't improve his hand, but Grape paired his six. Now Grape bet out and scrubbyz raised all-in. Grape called the final bet. Scrubbyz didn't improve on the river and exited in eighth place for $3,967.20.

Ubsolute had a bad run in the beginning moments of the final table and lost more than half his stack. He turned it around when he picked up rolled up sixes against bull_99. By the river, bull_99 only had a pair of kings and was on life support. He managed to doubled up once, but still couldn't hold on. Three hands later, he was on the rail in seventh place, cashing for $6096.96

With bull_99's exit, the remaining six stacks were all close to even. Grape, who had been on the short-stack to begin the table had managed to catch up with his foes. With the stacks so even, discussion of a deal broke out. After a short negotiation, the players worked out a chop that guaranteed them all a five-figure payday and left $6,000 on the table for the first place.

Ubsolute:$19,000
Lystig: $18,828
sascos: $19,902
spielraum.at: $19,805
Grape: $21,011
Dersu: $22,360

After the nightly 30-minute break, play continued and went on for a few minutes before Lystig got involved in a big hand with Dersu Uzala. At the river, Lystig couldn't beat Dersu Uzala's aces-up and was eliminated in sixth place.

Two hands later, Grape bit the dust after starting with a pair of sevens versus Ubsolute's beginning pair of eights. Grape never improved and finished in fifth.

The next exit erased all hope of having a double bracelet winner. Spielraum.at had fallen below 70,000 in chips. He started with nothing, but picked up a pair of tens on fourth street. That happened to be the same time Ubsolute made two pair. Neither hand would improve and spielraum.at exited in fourth place.

After a protracted three-handed battle, Dersu Uzala eventually fell behind and dropped to lower than 200,000 chips at the 25,000/50,000 limit. With an ace in the hole and a six up, Dersu Uzala brought it in and got raised by sascos, who held a ten down and a ten up. Dersu Uzala raised and got a call. He missed on fourth street, but called a but from sascos. The scene repeated itself on fifth. Then sascos made two pair on sixth and got Dersu Uzala all-in. Dersu Uzala made a pair of aces on the river, but it was no good against two-pair and he was out in third.

Going into heads-up play, Ubsolute held a small chip lead, but after a few hands had passed the lead across the table to sascos. Over time, though, Ubsolute worked his Irish magic. In the end, he pulled a pair of aces on fifth street to best sascos' pair of fours. Obsolute won $25,000 and the Event #15 gold bracelet.

Here are the final table results.

2007 WCOOP Even #15 Final Table Report
Based on finishing order and six-way deal that left $6,000 for first place

1. Ubsolute (Ireland) $25,000.00
2. sascos (United States) $19,902.00
3. Dersu Uzala (Finland) $22,360.00
4. spielraum.at (Austria) $19,805.00
5. Grape (United States) $21,011.00
6. Lystig (Norway) $18,828.00
7. bull_99 (Netherlands) $6,096.96
8. scrubbyz (Canada) $3,967.20
9. Randers (United States) $2,088.00

Full 2007 PokerStars WCOOP Event #15 Results

Confidence. It's an intangible part of a poker player's arsenel and one of the qualities that seperates mere players from champions. It's the ability to look at a table and say, "I'm going to win this."

Many times, confidence can be mistaken for foolhardy hubris. Sometimes it takes waiting until the end of the tournament to tell the difference between the two.

The 2007 WCOOP Event #14, $1,050 no-limit holdem, was the third biggest cash tournament in PokerStars' history. Only the 2005 and 2006 WCOOP main events were bigger. The money at the final table alone (in the neighborhood of $1.5 million) was astounding. With two players busting simultaenously on the bubble, the final table began eight-handed. Almost immediately, a player suggested the players chop it up.

Dissent came instantly from the man in the two-seat.

"No chop as long as I am playing," mig.com said.

Around the world, eyes widened. Who was this guy? Sure, eight-handed was a little early to chop, but who could possibly refuse to consider a deal at any point during the final table.

That role fell to mig.com, known to most people offline as one James Mackey, a red-haired poker wizard from the heart of Mizzou Tiger country in Columbia, Missouri. Mackey won a gold bracelet and $730,000 in Event #22 of the World Series this year, just a few months after taking third and winning $61,000 in a $2,500 event at the Bellagio.

Certainly, Mackey didn't need the money. Certainly, he had the confidence. The only question that remained was did he have what it took to win the final table of Event #14.



Seat 2: mig.com (8642161 in chips)
Seat 3: jochen8 (2804200 in chips)
Seat 4: Kenny Rap (3487870 in chips)
Seat 5: chulwoo (8760270 in chips)
Seat 6: saphire1 (8847480 in chips)
Seat 7: Trickybstrd (4048930 in chips)
Seat 8: ephman (9527811 in chips)
Seat 9: tralaira (3756278 in chips)

With eight players remaining and the blinds at 65,000/130,000/13,000, tralaira looked at AQ suited in hearts in the small blind. When chulwoo came in for a 3x the big blind raise, tralaira decided to pick up the pot right then and there. He moved his entire 3.75 million stack into the middle. Chulwoo, with nearly nine million in chips, wasted no time in calling with AK. While an ace flopped, no queen fell to match tralaira's kicker and he was out in eighth place, earning $43,890.

On the short-stack, Kenny Rap (a solid player in his on right) was in a fun mood. He asked commentator Tom McEvoy for a little advice. McEvoy joked back, suggesting Kenny Rap win his next all-in. It was advice Kenny Rap couldn't follow.

Facing a raise from Mackey and a re-raise from jochen8, Kenny Rap called all-in with a pair of tens. He was actually ahead of jochen8's JhAc. His lead lasted all of one second. A jack fell on the flop and Kenny Rap never caught up. He finished in seventh place for $69,825.

With fewer than than three million chips, jochen8 was looking for a chance to double up. When Mackey came in for a raise 420,000, jochen8 pushed all-in. Chulwoo over-called for the whole amount and Mackey, obviously more than a little suspiscious, folded. Chulwoo held KsAh to jochen8's 5cAs. A king fell on the flop and jochen8 finished in sixth place, a $96,425 payday.

Over the course of the final table, there were three hands that had nearly everyone scratching their heads.

Hand #1

The first began with a min-raise to 320,000 from ephman. Mackey popped him back to nearly $2 million and ephman called. The flop came down 8h9s3d. Mackey led at the pot for four million, nearly his entire stack. Ephman re-raised all-in and Mackey was forced to call with AK. He was dumbfounded when he saw ephaman's hand...TdJd.

"Wow," Mackey said. "Are you serious?"

Although he was ahead at the moment, it looked like disaster for Mackey. When another diamond fell on the turn, more outs materialized for ephman. Mackey needed to dodge 21 cards...and did. The river was the six of hearts.

Hand #2

Suddenly, ephman had the attention of everybody at the table. He sat in the big blind when saphire1 picked up queens on the button. Saphire1 had more than seven million chips and raised to 420,000. Ephman had just slightly more chips and moved all-in. After seeing the JT hand a few mintues earlier, it was an easy call for saphire1. He looked over to see AcJc in ephman's hand. It could not have gone worse for saphire1. Two clubs on the turn and one on the river sent saphire1 in fifth place for $130,340.

Hand #3

Now, ephman had nearly 15 million in chips, nearly the same as two other players at the table, and a huge lead over Trickybstrd. The chances of anyone getting their entire stack in pre-flop while the short-stck was still playing were slim. Or so everyone thought.

From the button, Trickybstrd came in for a raise, ephman re-raised to 800,000, and Mackey re-raised to a huge eight million. Trickybstrd wisely got out of the way. Ephman chose a different route. With less than one million invested in the pot, ephman pushed in the rest of his 15 million chips. Mackey called with AK. Ephman held...AQ.

In just three seconds, Ephman's meteoric rise was reduced to nothing. He finished in fourth place, earning $166,250.

Mackey now had a commanding chip lead...more than $30 million chips.

"It's going to be an uphill battle," Tickybstrd mused.

He thought he'd found his first step up the mountain. Looking down at pocket aces, Trickybstrd flat-called a raise from chulwoo. The flop came down TdQs9d. Trickybsrd decided to make his move, check-raising all-in. His first step up the mountain was a tragic stumble. Chulwoo held a set of nines. Trickybstrd was out in third place for a whopping $210,472.50.

Beginning heads-up play, Mackey held a 3-2 chip lead and was staring at a nearly $300,000 difference between first and second place. Making good on his vow to play it out without a deal, he never offered a chop. He simply went to work.

Mackey played a hyper-aggressive game, but one that couldn't be criticized. He raised nearly every time he was on the button. He controlled the size of the pot and kept chulwoo on the defensive. Chulwoo's only defense was the all-in pre-flop re-raise. It was a scene that played itself out over and over. For anyone watching, there was never a time that Mackey's victory was in question. It only seemed a matter of time.

It came down to this: Mackey came in for his usual raise and Chulwoo re-raised. Mackey called and they saw a flop of 6cQh8c. Both players checked. The turn was the four of spades. This time, chulwoo checked, Mackey bet, and chulwoo raised all-in.

Bad timing.

Chulwoo had nothing. His bluff with K2 had run right into...the nuts. Mackey held 5h7h.

It's quite something to maintain the kind of confidence that allows one to compete for a $300,000 difference between first and second place without even the consideration of a deal. It's quite something else to win it without breaking a sweat.

Congratulations to James Mackey (aka mig.com) for winning Event #14 of the 2007 World Championship of Online Poker.

2007 WCOOP: Event #14 Final Table Results

1. mig.com (United States) $580,212.50
2. chulwoo $292,932.50
3. Trickybstrd (Canada) $210,472.50
4. ephman (United States) $166,250.00
5. saphire1 (United Kingdom) $130,340.00
6. jochen8 (Sweden) $96,425.00
7. Kenny Rap (United States) $69,825.00
8. tralaira (Spain) $43,890.00
9. UWillSuckOut (United States) $25,935.00

Full 2007 WCOOP Event #14 Results

Just a few minutes ago, one of the biggest events in online poker history kicked off. The 2007 WCOOP Event #14, $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em, started with an astounding 3,325 players and a prize pool of $3,325,000. In the event someone wins this tournament outright, they will win $580,000.



Starting with $15,000 in chips and half hour levels, the people who eventually make the final table of this event will need lots of caffeine. In talking with some of the greater minds behind these things, I'm told we could expect a final table to begin between 8am-9am ET.

Yeah, tomorrow morning.

Regardless of how long it takes, this is going to be one of the most fun tournaments to watch of the entire tournament series. If you'd like to follow along, open your PokerStars software, and click on Events, WCOOP, and Main Events.

In this contest, push-monkeys needed not apply. They can win their bananas in another game. In PokerStars WCOOP Event #13, the game was pot-limit hold'em and that meant anyone afraid of a flop had better find another tree in which to play.

More than 1,000 people showed up on Saturday to compete for the Event #13 bracelet, an event that allowed for fantastic post-flop play and let some real poker play shine. Among all the remarkable things that happened throughout the event, one statistic stood out. Two members of Team PokerStars, ElkY and Bill Chen, had made the final table. At the very same time, another member of Team PokerStars, Lee Nelson, was fighting at the Event #12 final table.

Here's how all the final table players in Event #13 stacked up.



Seat 1: ElkY (228419 in chips)
Seat 2: SpotLIGHT19 (384068 in chips)
Seat 3: kedvedert (167596 in chips)
Seat 4: betgo (210463 in chips)
Seat 5: sh00ter (225198 in chips)
Seat 6: Bill Chen (529666 in chips)
Seat 7: Tycoon_Kid (639911 in chips)
Seat 8: antroff (159804 in chips)
Seat 9: shahmat (724875 in chips)

When the final table started, those with keen eyes could see a small sign form above the head of SpotLIGHT19. It read, "Abuse me." The poor guy couldn't catch a break. First, betgo doubled through him with QJ vs KQ on QJx flop. Then, after extended break, antroff doubled through him with KK vs. QQ.

"So sick," was all the man in the two seat could say.

He got a brief repreive when Team PokerStars' ElkY got it all-in pre-flop versus shahmat holding AJo against AKo. ElkY couldn't find the suck-out and finished in ninth place for $6257.50.

With the one-seat gone, it was lot easier to see the abuse invitation in the two-seat. Having not caught a break yet, SpotLIGHT19 was ripe for some more bad luck. He moved all his chips in pre-flop holding TT aginst sh00ter's 99.

Guess what fell on the flop?

The nine popped up, crippling the man already besieged by bad luck. He was out on the next hand when Team PokerStars' Bill Chen flopped two pair against him. SpotLIGHT19 finished in eighth place for $10,900.

As if to atone for the suckout, sh00ter was the next toface the firing squad. All-in pre-flop with AK versis kedvedert's 99, sh00ter couldn't win the race and finished in seventh place, winning $15,805.

The next exit once again put pair against pair pre-flop. Kedvedert got all his chips in with 77 versus betgo's 88. No seven could find its way onto the felt and kedvedert was out in sixth place, picking up $21,255 for his efforts.

Perhaps it was something about Team PokerStars. More likely, it was an odd little coincidence. Regardless, Bill Chen went out holding the same hand as ElkY, AJ. This time, he was up against betgo's AQ. A queen on the flop all but ended it. While he still had some straight outs going into the river, Chen didn't get there and finished in fifth place for $28,067.50.

Chen's exit began a four-handed dance that went on for some time without any serious action. Only when Tycoon_Kid doubled through betgo did the table's adrenal glands start to pulse again. Betgo went on a tear and built a nearly 3-1 chip lead over second place. When it started to look as though betgo may run away with the event, talk of a deal broke out. Rather than try to recreate the comedy at the table, I've simply pasted the chat as it happened.

StaffBryanS [Support]: 1. You must leave $16,000 on the table for the eventual winner.
StaffBryanS [Support]: 2. This is only one way of chopping the remaining prize money. You may of course continue to negotiate, of course.
StaffBryanS [Support]: Having said that..
StaffBryanS [Support]: betgo: $85,019
StaffBryanS [Support]: Tycoon_Kid: $47,247
StaffBryanS [Support]: antroff: $56,848
StaffBryanS [Support]: shahmat: $55,013

betgo: I want 90, since I am running over the table
Tycoon_Kid: lmao
antroff: i want 100k cus im a sumo

betgo: Look up betgo's stats on OPR
Tycoon_Kid: dude ur a donkament pro
Tycoon_Kid: little to no respect
betgo: this is a donkament

In the end, Tycoon_Kid had two words for the deal. "No" and "Gamble."

The end of deal talk set up a confrontation between shahmat and betgo in which they got all in with shahmat holding KJ to betgo's QQ. While betgo flopped a jack and rivered a king, the river also put the fourth spade on board, matching the queen of spades in betgo's hand. Shahmat was out in fourth place, earning $34,880.

Seconds later, Tycoon_Kid got all-in vs. antroff with AK vs. TT. He lost the race. His desire to gamble ended up costing him a little cash. Regardless, he finished with $43,600 for third place.

Heads-up, betgo had a 2-1 chip lead and turned down the offer of a deal. It only took antoff a few hands to even the score. Then betgo took the lead right back.

Therein settled an epic heads-up battle that was the longest so far in this year's WCOOP. Just when it looked like betgo had the game won, antroff battled back. Then betgo would pull ahead again. The stacks were deep, the blinds were small, and both players were fighting for the $50,000 difference between first and second place. When antroff took a slight lead, there was an ever-so-brief discussion of a deal, but it fell apart as quickly as it started,

With the deal discussions kaput, antroff took the initiative and quickly opened up a 5-1 chip lead. A few seconds later, he flopped top pair and got betgo all-in drawing to three outs. Betgo missed and, just like that, antroff was the Event #13 champion.

Here are the final table results.

2007 WCOOP Event #13 Final Table Results

1. antroff (Sweden) $117,175.00
2. betgo (United States) $64,473.50
3. Tycoon_Kid (New Zealand) $43,600.00
4. shahmat (Canada) $34,880.00
5. Bill Chen (United States) $28,067.50
6. kedvedert (Hungary) $21,255.00
7. sh00ter (United States) $15,805.00
8. SpotLIGHT19 (United States) $10,900.00
9. ElkY (France) $6,267.50

Full PokerStars WCOOP Event #13 Results

No-Limit Texas Hold'em may be the Cadillac of poker. It's popularity can't be denied. However, at the same time, there is a growing number of people who believe the best poker players in the world can't be determined by one game. These are the people who see true poker skill not on four tires from Motown but on the four hooves of a mixed game called HORSE.

In the past couple of years, HORSE has enjoyed a resurgence in popularity, spawned in part by the World Series $50,000 buy-in championship and last year's WCOOP $5,000 HORSE event. This year, the first HORSE event of the 2007 WCOOP was a $215 contested by more than 1,600 players.

By morning eight people, including Team PokerStars' Lee Nelson were sitting at the final table.



Seat 1: Hikkespett (121290 in chips)
Seat 2: Cactus Benny (1161571 in chips)
Seat 3: TheBigViking (193611 in chips)
Seat 4: JJJanet (872019 in chips)
Seat 5: LeeNelsonP* (258981 in chips)
Seat 6: Phillyho (870321 in chips)
Seat 7: BBwinz (137704 in chips)
Seat 8: jaliks (1301503 in chips)

It took nearly an hour for the first player to bust. In the opening minutes of the Stud Hi-Lo round, BBwinz started with a three showing and a pair of sixes in the hole. He went up against Cactus Benny who had a pair of aces. Though BBwinz made two pair on fourth street, Cactus Benny made a bigger two pair at the same time. BBwinz never caught up and finished in eight place, adding $6883 to his bankroll.

Phillyho was the next to go. With a little more than 200,000 in chips at the 26000/52000, finding fold with AQ after turning an ace is pretty hard. The only thing harder was dealing with the fact that Cactus Benny held AK. Phillyho was out in seventh place for $9,934.

Team PokerStars' Lee Nelson must have seen the coldest run of cards in all of WCOOP. Over the next hour, he barely played a hand, and those he did, he couldn't show down. By the time the Razz round came up, he barely had any chips and ended up getting all-in with barely a chance at winning. That chance never presented itself and Nelson exited in sixth place, earning $13,112.

The Razz round didn't end without the loss of another final table player. JJJanet was the next to go. JJJanet started strong with a A4/7. At battle with Cactus Benny, it became a battle of sevens. JJJanet finished with a 7-6, but Cactus Benny had made a 7-4 by fifth street, sending JJJanet out in fifth place and a payday of $16,717.

While Cactus Benny had been having a good game, he fell on hard times and by the time the seven-card-stud round rolled around, he was down to the short-stack. With a pair of tens to start, he got to work getting his stack in. He was behind from the beginning against Hikkespett's jacks. Neither hand improved and Cactus Benny was out in fourth place, earning $20,651.40.

TheBigViking might have been the most tenacious of any WCOOP performer yet. For most of the final table, he simply had no chips. Yet, every time he got all in, he manged to survive. He was the Viking who refused to abandon ship. Ultimately, though, he couldn't survive past third place. His two pair just wasn't as big as Hikkespett's two pair. TheBigViking was finished with a $27,863 cash.

The final table began with jaliks holding most off the chips and it ended with him holding all of them. After a drawn-out final table, jaliks made rather quick work of Hikkespett, finally finishing him off with a sixth street straight to beat Hikkespett's two pair.

2007 WCOOP Event #12 Final Table Results

1. jaliks (Netherlands) $72,116.00
2. Hikkespett (Norway) $42,614.00
3. TheBigViking (Norway) $27,863.00
4. Cactus Benny (United States) $20,651.40
5. JJJanet (United States) $16,717.80
6. LeeNelsonP* (New Zealand) $13,112.00
7. Phillyho (New Zealand) $9,834.00
8. BBwinz (United States) $6,883.80

Full 2007 WCOOP Event #12 Results

Razz is just ugly name for a game. It's pejorative. It's ugly. The name aside, though, there is something beautiful about the game. Though it's reputation is perpetuated by the media and misunderstanding of the nature of the contest, Razz is a downright beautiful game.

You think I protest too much? Perhaps I'm on the board of the Razz Preservation Society? Well, maybe, but before you call me a shill, consider this.

On its face, Razz is simple. Make the lowest hand and win. The cards tell you what to do. The decisions seem easy. The bricks are disgusting. On another level, though, there is a complicated beauty to the game.

I liken it to talking to a woman. Almost immediately, you know whether she is a woman worth pursuing. You can tell whether she is in or out of your league. After a short discussion, you know whether there is a chance for a relationship. It's only as you walk down more streets together that you start to realize that finding the truth is not as easy as you might think. When you first started talking, you didn't know what was in her past. You didn't know if she was lying or telling the truth. Soon, you'll discover if it was ever meant to be or if you were being taken for a ride.

Or, maybe Razz is just a sick game that attracts the world's greatest losers and is masochism defined. I just don't know yet. Maybe it's a not-so-latent way of punishing myself for real and imagined transgressions, but I absolutely love Razz. Apparently I'm not the only one. Nearly 1,200 people ponied up $215 to compete in Event #11 of the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker.

Eight of those players made the final table.



Seat 1: lvstraddle (261940 in chips)
Seat 2: JAMEST1 (755997 in chips)
Seat 3: OnlyPlayRagz (645519 in chips)
Seat 4: larki1 (943582 in chips)
Seat 5: needabanana (303132 in chips)
Seat 6: tsudneves (147628 in chips)
Seat 7: atactor (284122 in chips)
Seat 8: Ima_QT (186080 in chips)


The chip stacks at the final table were far from evenly distributed. With the limits at 20,000/40,000, many of the stacks were in danger of crumbling under a couple of bricks. ima_QT found that out the hard way and within a few hands at the final table was reduced to 36,000 in chips. All-in before fourth street, Ima_QT needed to catch well to have any hope of staying alive. It didn't happened. A nine low couldn't best larki1's eight and Ima_QT was out in eighth place earning $5,409.60

With barely any chips to play, lvstraddle decided his work the comedy circuit, quipping, "The remainder of this tournament will be played hand for hand." Shortly thereafter, he managed to double up, proving that laughter is, in fact, the best medicine.

One player could find no reason to laugh, however. Tsudneves had 158,000 chips left and a five showing when he came in for a raise. By fifth street, he was all in against OnlyPlayRagz. By the end, OnlyPlayRagz held a 9-6 low to tsudneves' 9-8. Tsudneves was out in seventh place for $7,761.50.

That's when things started getting bloody. With few laughs and fewer chips, lvstraddle put his chips in with a decue showing. All-in before fourth street, lvstraddle ended with a king-low to OnlyPlayRagz ten. Lvstraddle placed sixth for $10,113.60.

Seconds later, OnlyPlayRagz knocked off another short-stack, putting atactor out with 8,6,5,4,2 to atactor's queen-low. Atactor earned $12,465.60 for fifth place.

Four-handed, the stacks had evened out enough that players had a few bets in them before getting too desperate. Only one player fell into danger within the next 20 minutes. JAMEST1 started getting low and only got lower. Again, it was OnlyPlayRagz who dealt the final blow. JAMEST1 had a nine showing when he raised OnlyPayRagz king bring-in. The bring-in wasn't going away. JAMEST1 was all-in by fifth street with a queen-low. He was ahead of OnlyPlay Ragz, but by the river, OnlyPlayRagz held a six low and sent JAMEST1 out in fouth place, earning, $15,240.96.

Three-handed, all the players were within shooting range of first place and cut a quick deal. Leaving $7,000 on the table for first place, the player locked up the following payouts.

OnlyPlayRags - $34,136.80
larki1 - $29,759.09
needabanana - $37,296.11

Despite the deal being in place, the three-handed match was more protracted that the rest of the final table. The three top players at the table went on to battle for a long while. The next to fall was larki1 who started with an ace showing but couldn't make better than a jack against needaabanana's nine.

In all of WCOOP, if there was a ever player who predicted victory with his screen name, it was OnlyPlayRagz. While it took him a while to defeat needabanana, he did it in perfect Razz style. After 14 hours of play, OnlyPlayRagz had played his way to the role as biggest loser and WCOOP Event #11 champion.

2007 WCOOP Event #11 Final Table Results
Based on finishing order and three-way deal that left $7,000 for first place

1. OnlyPlayRagz (United States) $41,136.80
2. needabanana (United States) $37,296.11
3. larki1 (Norway) $29,759.09
4. JAMEST1 (United States) $15,240.96
5. atactor (United States) $12,465.60
6. lvstraddle (United States) $10,113.60
7. tsudneves (United States) $7,761.60
8. Ima_QT (United States) $5,409.60

Full 2007 PokerStars WCOOP Event #11 Results

Poker is nothing without aggression and when players sit down at a full table, it's never clear who is going to throw the first punch. However, when two players make up the whole of the game, there is no looking around to see who is creeping up behind. It's eye-to-eye. It's an aggressive dance that ends with one player with the belt and the other on the canvas.

If full-table poker is a battle royale cage match, heads-up poker is poker's sweet science.

Nearly 1,900 people signed up to play in PokerStars WCOOP Event #10, a $530 heads-up no-limit hold'em contest. Ten rounds later, two players sat facing each other, the Ali and Frazier of the 2007 WCOOP.



As you might expect, getting to the eleventh round was a victory in itself. Both ugotmeyet? and ansuz decided they'd had almost enough. They chopped all but $17,000 of the prize money and took $65,054.00 each. That left 3% of the prize money and the WCOOP bracelet for which to battle.

Ugotmeyet? jumped out to an early lead in the first 20 hands without showing his cards, but ansuz jumped right back, winning the first showdown with trip queens and evening the score. Ugotmeyet? was not deterred. Aggression was the name of the game and within another 20 hands, he had opened up another sizable chip lead, only to give it back after ansuz moved all in on a KQ5 flop. At the first break, the players were even in chips.

After the break, ansuz proved he could give as well as he gets. He turned Ugotmeyet?'s aggressive game against him and opened up a 2-1 chip lead. Just when it looked like ansuz had his foe where he wanted him, the first big roundhouse of the match fell. Ansuz came in for a raise and Ugotmeyet? re-raised. Ansuz called and they saw a flpo of 3s6h2s. Ugotmeyet? bet out and ansuz raised all-in. Ugotmeyet? called with pocket queens to ansuz's Ts7s. Ansuz missed and Ugotmeyet? re-took the lead.

It wouldn't last for long. Ansuz flopped two pair with QT againist ugotmeyet?'s middle pair with 9T. That pot put ansuz ahead 5-1. He looked to finish ugotmeyet? off and got all-in with QT vs A5. Though he flopped a queen, ugotmeyet? rivered an ace to survive. Within another ten minutes, the stacks were even again.

At that moment, the heads-up match took on an atmosphere of an end-round prize fight, two boxers pounding each other for points, and putting themselves on the edge of destruction for the chance at a knockout. Just when one player moved ahead, the other would slam their way back to the lead.

Ugotmeyet? started his move ahead after turning a queen-high flush. It would prove to be the beginning of the end. After opening up a 2-1 chip lead, he got all-in with AJ vesus ansuz's QQ. An ace on the flop and no queen on the turn and river meant Ugotmeyet? had his first WCOOP bracelet.

Full 2007 WCOOP Event #10 Results

The PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker has now been around for so long, it's sort of hard to keep up with all the fun statistics, like who has won the most money, who has made the most final tables, and who has cashed the most times.

PokerStars is now making it easier for me (and you) to keep up with the best WCOOP players of all time. For instance...

Top 10 cashes in all WCOOP events (through 2006):

Lenny -- 14
copi -- 11
Riverloser -- 11
omaha kid -- 10
osten -- 10
Rabscuttle -- 10
-db- -- 10
Sassenage -- 10
ZZSER -- 10
emptyseat88 -- 9

The people at PokerStars have broken these stats down into a number of cool categories and are keeping track of this year's stats as well as all-time stats.

If you'd like to take a look, check out:

World Championship of Online Poker Stats through 2006

World Championship of Online Poker Stats (2007)

Cardinal7 has been playing casino poker for seventeen years and in that time he's won a lot of tournaments. What's more, there have more than a few times that he's won more than the $67,000 he won in Event #7 of the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker. That said, the pro poker player (who prefers to remain anonymous) is elated to have taken down the WCOOP tournament.

"It was a great feeling to win a WCOOP event. I have won B&M events but never won a major online event," he said. "It is an incredible feeling to win against such a huge field -- by far the biggest field I have ever beaten."

Cardinal7 (the screen name is an homage to John Elway, in case you were wondering) is a full-time pro who is always looking out for the right money-making opportunities. A HORSE specialist, Cardinal7 also excels in both limit and no-limit hold'em. He's been playing on PokerStars for two years.

In just a few short sentences, Carinal7 can sum up a winning poker player's outlook on the game and life.

"My overriding goal in poker is to play my best at all times. There are more talented players, but I try to consistently play my best and to never lose focus. I am strong in these areas," he said. "My basic poker philosophy is not to allow results (good or bad) to affect my play. My plan is to play more poker with the money that I won, always important to maintain a healthy bankroll. I respect all the players who have stood the test of time in poker."

For the entire story of Cardinal7's win, see the 2007 WCOOP: Event #7 Final Table Report