Final Table Bios : Seat 8, Kelly Kim (2,620,000)
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In his short time as a pro, Kim has amassed over $326,000 in career tournament earnings, though earning a seat at the WSOP Main Event final table is easily his greatest poker accomplishment. Since turning pro, Kim has netted three cashes in WSOP tournaments and an impressive eight cashes on the World Poker Tour. Kim has played plenty of poker since going on a mandatory hiatus from the Main Event. In August, he finished fourth in one of the preliminary events at the Legends of Poker and also made it to Day 2 of the WSOPE Main Event.
Kim’s biggest challenge heading into the final table will perhaps be trying to overcome his own chip stack, as he returns to the felt with just 2,620,000 in chips – far and away the shortest stack at the table. Nonetheless, Kim remains positive and focused, while maintaining an optimistic outlook toward the situation: “Obviously I'm in critical condition, but if I double or triple early then it's on. I've already reached my goal and everything else is just gravy.”
Kim impressed the poker world with his short stack play in the closing days of the Main Event back in July. He was last in chips with 13 players remaining on Day 7 and managed to outlast four others to secure his November Nine seat. He’s proven that he’s got the ability to lay down big hands when the pressure’s on. Consider the following story, relayed to us by the man himself in a recent interview:
“On Day 6, I laid down queens on a 7-5-3-7-2 board for a bet of one million into a 3.6 million pot. It took all my strength to fold and when I tabled my hand, my opponent showed me quad sevens. At this point, I knew I was dialed in and really felt I was prepared for this moment and task at hand.”
Prepared indeed. Kim is a proven survivor and will not go down without a fight. Don’t be surprised if he makes that 2.6 million-chip starting stack look like 5.2 straight from the get-go.