In the most recent installment of the ESPN.com poker news show “Inside Deal,” 11-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth took center stage. A review of Hellmuth’s most infamous meltdowns also aired.
The latest “Inside Deal” began with Hellmuth facetiously hawking several products, including a limited edition Phil Hellmuth Belt because, as Hellmuth explained, “bracelets are so 2009.” Hellmuth leads all bracelet winners with 11 and is nearly a sure-fire lock to participate in the 2010 WSOP Tournament of Champions, which takes on an all-star game format.
Hellmuth has made headlines in recent days after curling up in the fetal position following his elimination at the hands of Andy “BKiCe” Seth at the World Poker Tour (WPT) Bay 101 Shooting Star event. On his epic meltdown, Hellmuth told “Inside Deal” viewers, “It was extraordinarily frustrating. I don’t think anyone was expecting an ace on the river. I certainly wasn’t. I just was stunned. I was near a corner of the stage and collapsed down. I’m just thinking to myself, ‘This is so unfair.’ I wanted to win so badly.” Then, Hellmuth returned to the stage, signed over his Shooting Star shirt to Seth, and wished everyone at the final table good luck.
Hellmuth’s partner in crime at UB.com, Poker News Daily Guest Columnist Annie Duke, took down the 2010 National Heads-Up Poker Championship earlier this month, defeating longtime friend Erik Seidel. On the significance of the win for Duke, Hellmuth remarked, “I think it’s very significant. I don’t know how people can criticize Annie [for taking five months off]. She’s a professional poker player, but she has a life. She has four kids and she’s in Hollywood. If that’s how she wants to spend her time, that’s cool with me.” Hellmuth is a former winner of the event, having taken down its inaugural installment in 2005. The tournament will air on NBC next month.
Earlier this week, a second suspect was arrested in conjunction with the armed robbery of the European Poker Tour (EPT) Berlin event. The incident has sparked a review of casino security worldwide and Hellmuth gave his take on the rare midday casino heist: “It’s woken up the poker world to [the fact that] we have a lot of cash and we should beef up security. Now, there’s a wake up call.”
“Inside Deal” host Bernard Lee was critical of EPT Berlin officials, who asked players to resume action just a few hours after the robbery went down. At stake was a €1 million top prize. Lee explained his disappointment: “I think it’s absolutely ridiculous that they asked the 20 players to come back. My recommendation was that they call the day, let them get their minds back on the tournament, and ask them to come back, probably a couple of hours earlier [the next day].”
Following a segment explaining how to achieve the poker mindset, Duke gave viewers the inside scoop on success in low-stakes cash games: “Don’t get frustrated by the lower limit games, just come up with a better strategy to beat them and you’ll see that those games are some of the most profitable ones out there.” Duke talked a bevy of poker strategy in her appearance on Kevin Pollak’s Chat Show last weekend. The episode is now archived on the Chat Show’s website.
In our favorite segment of the newest ESPN “Inside Deal,” ESPN.com Poker Editor Andrew Feldman sat down with Hellmuth to recap his top antics. They included “The Poker Brat” describing Cristian Dragomir: “This guy is the worst player in history and they’re cheering.” Another memorable Hellmuth rant came during the 2004 WSOP Tournament of Champions. After losing to Duke heads-up, Hellmuth lamented, “Unbelievable. She won every (expletive) race for two (expletive) days. Damnit.”
Finally, Hellmuth lambasted UB.com pro Adam “Roothlus” Levy during the 2009 WSOP Main Event. Following Levy calling Hellmuth’s raise with Q-10, Hellmuth bashed, “How are they still in this tournament? This kid probably won’t last another hour.” Levy went on to finish 48th in the 2009 WSOP Main Event; Hellmuth took 45th.
Visit ESPN.com to catch the next “Inside Deal.”
