The 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) will certainly be remembered for dominating performances by Jeffrey Lisandro and Phil Ivey (especially if the latter wins the Main Event in November). Lisandro won three bracelets, all in Stud events, to capture WSOP Player of the Year honors, while Ivey won two bracelets before claiming a seat as part of the 2009 November Nine. While those two superstars took the poker world by storm, Poker News Daily was at the Rio all summer to catch some of the other memorable stories from the world’s largest poker event.
Brock “t soprano” Parker Wins Back-To-Back Tournaments
While Ivey, Lisandro, and Greg “FBT” Mueller each won multiple bracelets during the 2009 WSOP, Brock Parker’s feat was arguably the most impressive. Parker, considered by many as an online poker legend, reached his first WSOP final table on June 7th and overcame a significant chip deficit to defeat PokerStars Team Pro member Daniel Negreanu in the $2,500 Limit Hold’em Six-Handed event (#17). Parker received $223,688 and his first bracelet for that victory, but it was just the beginning of an unforgettable week. Parker registered for the $2,500 No Limit Hold’em Six-Handed Event on June 9th and, two days later, found himself at another final table. He would again come out on top, besting fellow online star Joe “floes” Serock to claim his second bracelet in just six days. His determination rang true on June 10th: Parker played the $1,500 No Limit Hold’em Event at Noon as his focus quickly turned toward Player of the Year honors. He busted early from that event, but still managed to cash six times at the 2009 WSOP and finish sixth on the Player of the Year leaderboard.
Thang Luu Defends Title in $1,500 Omaha High-Low Eight or Better Event
As the first-ever $40,000 No Limit Hold ’em final table was being played at the ESPN featured stage, word got around that history was about to be made in Event #3, as Thang Luu was moments away from capturing the $1,500 Omaha High-Low title for the second straight year. Making the achievement even more amazing was the fact that Luu took second place in the same tournament in 2007. Luu ultimately won, defeating Ed Smith heads up, to collect his second bracelet and $263,190. While the buzz began to surround Luu and a possible third consecutive championship in 2010, he might not even be afforded the opportunity to play in it. Reports circled in July that Luu assaulted a dealer during a cash game at the Rio when he broke the employee’s hand with his fist. He was taken into custody by police and allegedly banned from all Harrah’s casino properties.
Brandon Cantu Trounces Event #48 ($1,500 PLO High-Low)
Even the brash Brandon Cantu expressed his lack of experience in Pot Limit Omaha High-Low following his victory in Event #48: “I wasn’t even close to the best player (at the final table). I have played very limited amounts of Pot Limit Omaha Eight or Better.” But the exhibition put on by Cantu during Day 2 of the tournament was unmatched by anyone during the 2009 WSOP. Cantu began Day 2 fourth in chips with 104,000 and quickly darted to the top of leaderboard, reaching one million chips before anyone else in the field had 250,000. With 12 players remaining, he had more than 40% of the chips in play and began the final table with twice as many as the next player. After relinquishing the chip lead to Lee Watkinson at the final table, Cantu bested the Full Tilt Pro in a lengthy heads-up match to earn his second career bracelet and $228,867. A week earlier, Cantu took second place in Event #39, a $1,500 No Limit Hold’em tournament. “This is really special, especially because I should have won a week ago,” Cantu told the media afterward. “That loss was really hard for me to take.”
Ville Wahlbeck Becomes First Bracelet Winner from Finland
Ville Wahlbeck was somewhat of an unknown commodity coming into to 2009 WSOP. That all changed after his performance in World Championship events. Wahlbeck picked up his first ever five-figure score when he took third in the $10,000 Seven Card Stud World Championship (Event #6), collecting $152,914. Four days later, he won the $10,000 Mixed Event World Championship for $492,375, marking the first time that a Finnish player brought home a WSOP bracelet. He then took second in the $10,000 No Limit Deuce to Seven Lowball World Championship ($172,864) and sixth in the $50,000 HORSE Championship ($219,655). In total, Wahlbeck’s six WSOP cashes eclipsed $1 million and he finished second to Lisandro in the Player of the Year race. Wahlbeck posted in his blog that he was thinking about quitting poker before the WSOP. For his sake, we’re glad that he changed his mind.