Through the first 14 events of the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP), a total of 57 nations have been represented, with 84.8% of entrants hailing from the United States. The 2009 WSOP Main Event will kick off on July 3rd with the first of four starting days.
Last year, the 2009 WSOP festivities drew combatants from 124 nations around the world. In 2008, just 87 were represented and in 2006, that number was 54. The 2009 WSOP already boasts the third most number of nations ever through only 14 tournaments. Outside of the United States and Canada, WSOP entrants have hailed from as far away as the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Korea, India, China, Belarus, Bavaria, and Turkey.
All 50 states have been accounted for, with California leading the pack with 3,306 runners. Other states in the top five include Nevada (1,649), Texas (987), Florida (896), and New York (819). All 10 Canadian provinces have sent players to the Las Vegas festivities, with Ontario’s 355 entrants leading the way. Trailing Ontario are British Columbia (221), Quebec (114), Alberta (98), and Manitoba (20).
Through 14 events, a total of 17,093 entrants have coughed up cash to play. Nine of the first ten bracelet winners hailed from the United States in a dominating performance by the North American nation. The sole victory by a non-U.S. native came in the $40,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em tournament commemorating the 40th running of the WSOP. In that event, Russian poker player Vitaly Lunkin notched his second bracelet and earned $1.9 million. Lunkin defeated 2007 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure runner-up Isaac Haxton in a final table that also included 2004 WSOP Main Event Champion Greg Raymer, Bodog Poker pro Justin “ZeeJustin” Bonomo, and five-time bracelet winner Ted Forrest. The event will air on ESPN.
A total of 6,012 runners turned out for the $1,000 buy-in No Limit Hold’em Stimulus Special, the fourth largest live tournament in history and the biggest non-Main Event field ever. To date, the three largest tournament fields in live poker history are the 2006, 2007, and 2008 Main Events.
The United States has sent 14,502 entrants to the Sin City spectacle, followed by Canada with 861. The honor of the country with the third most number of entrants goes to the United Kingdom, with 269. Rounding out the top six are Germany (170 players), France (113), Russia (111), and the Netherlands (83).
As of Sunday night, a total of 12 tournaments have played down to a winner:
Event #1: $500 Casino Employees No-Limit Hold’em – Andrew Cohen
Event #2: $40,000 No Limit Holdem – Vitaly Lunkin
Event #3: $1,500 Omaha High-Low Split Eight or Better – Thang Luu
Event #4: $1,000 No Limit Hold’em – Steve Sung
Event #5: $1,500 Pot Limit Omaha – Jason Mercier
Event #6: $10,000 World Championship of Seven Card Stud – Freddie Ellis
Event #7: $1,500 No Limit Hold’em – Travis Johnson
Event #8: $2,500 Deuce to Seven Draw Lowball – Phil Ivey
Event #9: $1,500 No Limit Hold’em Six-Handed – Ken Aldridge
Event #10: $2,500 Pot Limit Holdem/Omaha – Rami Boukai
Event #11: $2,000: No Limit Hold’em – Anthony Harb
Event #12: $10,000 World Championship Mixed Event – Ville Wahlbeck
By virtue of taking down Event #8, Ivey, a Full Tilt Poker pro, became one of five players to hold six WSOP bracelets. He’s now mentioned in the same breath as Men “The Master” Nguyen, T.J. Cloutier, Jay Heimowitz, and Layne Flack. Ivey owns just over $3.2 million in career WSOP earnings, good for 25th all-time. Each of Ivey’s first eight World Poker Tour (WPT) cashes were as a result of final table appearances. He won the Season VI L.A. Poker Classic for $1.6 million, besting Asian Poker Tour ambassador Quinn Do heads-up. Also at the final table in the 2008 event were Charles Moore, Nam Le, WSOP November Nine member Scott Montgomery, and Ultimate Bet’s Phil Hellmuth, who finished sixth and earned $229,000.
We’ll keep you posted on the latest from the 2009 WSOP right here on Poker News Daily.