WSOP beginning Day 3

Just a quick post to say that the WSOP $10,000 main event is starting day 3 in a few minutes. 5,000 plus players are now down to 569 still competing for a 7.5 million dollar first prize....simply amazing. Everyone at the final table will make $1 million and up, which is more than the winner received just a few short years ago.

Of note, there are few recognizable names left in the tourney....Layne Flack and 2004 Champ Greg Raymer are still alive and kicking, Jason Lester and Sam Farha have some work to do, Matusow is even farther back in the field. But TJ, Doyle, Phil (Ivey and Hellmuth), Hansen, Harrington, etc are all gone at this point. Personally, I'm rooting for Farha this year, Moneymaker stole the championship from him a couple of years ago (IMHO) and I'd love to see Sammy back at the final table....he's just such a cool character for the game.

I almost feel sorry for the ESPN production manager at this point....he's got to start collecting film on some of these players that no one knows, making his job a bit tougher in 'selling' them to the public. Of course, if Raymer makes the final table, it will all be about his defense of his title and all and the possibility of a back-to-back champion for the first time in a number of years. Of course, there is a ton of poker to be played at this point, so who knows what will happen. I am pretty confident that the turn out, and relative success, of these unknown players will allow for the continued success of the game for at least another year.

Hopefully, I'll be one of those unknowns one of these days.....