Final Table Set, Greg Merson to Receive 100 WSOP Player of the Year Points
From October 28-30, nine players will play it out to win a WSOP bracelet and the title of World Champion of Poker. Although the final table has been set, it was not an easy journey for any of the nine who secured their positions purely on the basis of merit. From almost 6600 players, nine rose above and against the odds to play in the finals of 2012 World Series of Poker.
Greg Merson to be Guaranteed Points
Greg Merson, one of the lucky few who have made it to the final table will be awarded with a minimum of 100 WSOP Player of the Year points for making it this far into the competition. He will be able to surpass WSOP European player, Phil Ivey, with more than 580 points even if he finishes last in the upcoming finals in October.
Canadian Marc Ladouceur Led Last 27 Players
The last 27 players in the 2012 WSOP were led by Marc Ladouceur, a Canadian. This was a step up for Ladouceur who finished in the 63rd place in 2011 WSOP. However, his winning spree came to an end against Greg Merson’s hand. Ladouceur was playing against Merson’s pocket fours with A-7 that was all-in. After a flop of two 7s and a four, Ladouceur was eliminated and finished 13th in 2012 WSOP.
Robert Salaburu goes for Aggressive and Frequent Play
In the first level, only a few eliminations occurred, namely, Jan Heitmann and Nicco Maag who finished in the 26th and 27th place respectively. They were some of the few German nationals left in the tournament. During this time Robert Salaburu was seen playing aggressively and frequently.
In the next few hours, several players were short-stacked and eliminated. In Level 31, Yuval Bronshtein, Daniel Strelitz and Roland Israelashvili were out of the tournament in the 23rd, 24th and 25th places respectively. It was a disappointment for Daniel Strelitz who began the day on a safer note in the second position. By the time, the level concluded, Robert Corcione and Cylus Watson were also eliminated in the 21st and 22nd places.
Russell Thomas First to Win 20 Million Chips
Russell Thomas becomes the first to exceed 20 million chips. Towards the end of the next level, several other players such as Scott Abrams, Jacob Balsiger and Robert Salaburu would join Thomas in this feat. In this level, David Balkin, an Australian, was beat out in the 18th position by Michael Esposito. The other players who were eliminated were Jamie Robbins and Paul Volpe in the 19th and 20th places respectively.
The A-K of Wilfried Harig’s beat out Robert Buckenmayer’s A-Q. At the age of 67, the latter was one of the older players in the 2012 WSOP and left in the 17th place. Percy Mahatan was the next to leave the event after Salaburu beat the latter’s queens with a two pair.
The final 15 of the 2012 WSOP Main Event had two female players – Gaelle Baumann and Elisabeth Hille. Spectators assumed that this year’s final table would be graced by either one or both the female players, a feat unaccomplished in the last seventeen years. Barbara Enright was the last female poker player to make it to the final table in 1995. However, this was not to be as both crashed in the 11th and 10th places
The first player to hit the one million in 2012 WSOP was Ben Alcober. Click here to read more about it.