2017 World Series of Poker

Event #60: $888 Crazy Eights No-Limit Hold'em 8-Handed
Day: 1d
1a1b1c1d234
Event Info

2017 World Series of Poker

Final Results
Winner
Winning Hand
k♠9♣
Prize
$888,888
Event Info
Buy-in
$888
Prize Pool
$6,489,502
Entries
8,120
Level Info
Level
37
Blinds
250,000 / 500,000
Ante
50,000

Flight D of Event #60 Crazy Eights Is in the Books, Paul Berger Leads

simkha
simkha
Level 16 : 2,000/4,000, 500 ante
Paul Berger
Paul Berger

On Sunday afternoon, 2,878 players took their seats in the fourth and final flight of Event #60: $888 Crazy Eights No-Limit Hold'em 8-Handed, but only 136 bagged chips at the end of the night.

Leading the way out of this flight is Paul Berger who put 646,000 in the bag. Berger had already accumulated a relatively large stack of about 350,000 before doubling through nine-time WSOP Circuit ring winner Valentin Vornicu on the final hand of the day, leaving Vornicu with just 68,000 chips heading into Day 2. Behind Berger, the next largest stack currently belongs to Alex Papazian with 516,000.

A handfull of well-known players survived Flight 1d action, including Danny Wong (385,000), Ian O'Hara (267,000), Shannon Shorr (262,000), Kevin MacPhee (250,000), William Kassouf (200,000), Cate Hall (131,000), and Lee Markholdt.

Some of the familiar faces that made an appearance in Flight 1d but didn't find a bag include Chris Hunichen, Andreas Klatt, Sofia Lovgren, Chris Moorman, Rex Clinkscales, Cliff Josephy, and David Pham.

This event saw record 8,120 total entries across all four flights, far surpassing last year's 6,761 total runners. Complete prizepool and payout information is not yet available at the time of this writing, but it will be published no later than the start of play on Day 2.

Play will resume Monday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. local time, when players from all four starting flights will combine. Be sure to check back here for all the updates in this event and throughout the remainder of the 2017 World Series of Poker from the PokerNews live reporting team.

Day 2 Seat Draw Event #60: $888 Crazy Eights No-Limit Hold'em 8-Handed

RoomTableSeatPlayerCountryChip CountBig Blinds
Miranda6001Brady RedingtonUnited States141,00018
Miranda6002Samuel RenshawUnited States87,50011
Miranda6003Kevin McBrideUnited States84,00011
Miranda6004Eric BaldwinUnited States424,00053
Miranda6005Steve RosenUnited States589,00074
Miranda6006Matthew SmithUnited States181,00023
Miranda6007John DolanUnited States270,00034
Miranda6008Kunal PatniUnited States285,00036
       
Miranda6011Vladimir BursteinCzech Republic264,00033
Miranda6012Joseph CappelloUnited States88,00011
Miranda6013Luis ZedanUnited States119,00015
Miranda6014Aleks DimitrovBulgaria88,00011
Miranda6015Nikita NikolaevRussia188,00024
Miranda6016Tony LeCanada49,0006
Miranda6017Kenny HoUnited States45,0006
Miranda6018Noel EicherUnited States206,00026
       
Miranda6021Bradley SniderUnited States103,00013
Miranda6022Santiago NadalCanada105,00013
Miranda6023Darren EliasUnited States307,00038
Miranda6024Arturs DaugisUnited Kingdom124,00016
Miranda6025Richard KirschUnited States260,00033
Miranda6026Jeffery RozierUnited States438,00055
Miranda6027Jeff SluzinskiUnited States357,00045
Miranda6028Peter LevineUnited States34,0004
       
Miranda6031Traian BostanUnited States139,00017
Miranda6032Niall FarrellUnited Kingdom110,00014
Miranda6033Nadezhda MagnusUnited States176,00022
Miranda6034Gilberto AmaralBrazil116,00015
Miranda6035Michael TureniecSweden284,00036
Miranda6036Bastian FischerGermany178,00022
Miranda6037Quan ZhouChina245,00031
Miranda6038Andreas FreundAustria120,00015
       
Miranda6041Nicholas StowellUnited States423,00053
Miranda6042Raymond HensonUnited States195,00024
Miranda6043Warren SheavesUnited States117,00015
Miranda6044Mikhail PokrepaRussia120,00015
Miranda6045Loni HarwoodUnited States353,00044
Miranda6046Randy PfeiferUnited States121,00015
Miranda6047Ray QartomyUnited States444,00056
Miranda6048JC TranUnited States208,00026
       
Miranda6051Joao Dorneles NetoBrazil102,00013
Miranda6052Michel BouskilaAustralia50,0006
Miranda6053Quang NgoUnited States116,00015
Miranda6054Aliaksei BoikaUkraine133,00017
Miranda6055Jared MartinUnited States136,00017
Miranda6056Armando FigueroaUnited States164,00021
Miranda6057Mark EllerbeUnited States140,00018
Miranda6058Clayton FletcherUnited States142,00018
       
Miranda6061Timothy GundrumUnited States107,00013
Miranda6062Jason EverettUnited States326,00041
Miranda6063Pfizer JordanUnited States393,00049
Miranda6064Ralph WongUnited States214,00027
Miranda6065Michael HolmUnited States55,0007
Miranda6066Amy HenkelmanUnited States108,00014
Miranda6067Jay FarberUnited States122,00015
Miranda6068Theodore MayerUnited States50,0006
       
Miranda6071Gary SewellUnited States214,50027
Miranda6072Josh WeissUnited States38,0005
Miranda6073Thiago NishijimaBrazil148,00019
Miranda6074Michael KatzUnited States335,00042
Miranda6075Steven van ZadelhoffGermany235,00029
Miranda6076Steven GibbsUnited States92,00012
Miranda6077Bernard MuhireUnited States252,00032
Miranda6078Richard GrykoRomania199,00025
       
Miranda6081Alan MulleadyUnited States67,0008
Miranda6082Michael SinclairUnited States399,00050
Miranda6083Danny WongUnited States385,00048
Miranda6084Stephen MossUnited States72,0009
Miranda6085Thi NguyenVietnam222,00028
Miranda6086Jonathan ZarinUnited States349,00044
Miranda6087Youngshin ImSouth Korea262,00033
Miranda6088Shannon ShorrUnited States262,00033
       
Miranda6091Kevin SongUnited States30,0004
Miranda6092Dan GrolemundUnited States138,00017
Miranda6093Kenneth BrunoUnited States111,00014
Miranda6094Albert SanchezUnited States96,00012
Miranda6095Timothy McauliffeUnited States122,00015
Miranda6096Jonas WexlerUnited States259,00032
Miranda6097Hiren PatelUnited States144,00018
Miranda6098David FernandezUnited States80,00010
       
Miranda6101Arkadiy TsinisUnited States155,00019
Miranda6102Jorge Chae DongCanada221,00028
Miranda6103Puneeth ModhaUnited States225,00028
Miranda6104Cathal ShineIreland168,00021
Miranda6105Edwin LeeUnited States400,00050
Miranda6106Dylan NguyenUnited States24,0003
Miranda6107[Removed:172]Austria178,00022
Miranda6108Andy ZarroRomania67,0008
       
Miranda6111Paul CoglianoUnited States175,00022
Miranda6112Matthew MossUnited Kingdom48,0006
Miranda6113Farzad BonyadiUnited States297,00037
Miranda6114Lawrence WhyteUnited States105,00013
Miranda6115Shang DaiUnited States88,00011
Miranda6116John AgelakisCanada106,00013
Miranda6117Kazuhiro ShirasawaJapan217,00027
Miranda6118Ilkin AmirovAzerbaijan45,0006
       
Miranda6121Michael DurallUnited States113,00014
Miranda6122Rickey EvansUnited States87,00011
Miranda6123Simeon NaydenovBulgaria78,00010
Miranda6124Jordan PolkUnited States48,0006
Miranda6125Joseph KentUnited States346,00043
Miranda6126Loren KleinUnited States97,00012
Miranda6127Emil EkvardtSweden219,00027
Miranda6128Brian NerneyUnited States160,00020
       
Miranda6131Hans BrownUnited States108,00014
Miranda6132John SimunichUnited States351,00044
Miranda6133Lee MarkholtUnited States90,00011
Miranda6134Atanas KavrakovBulgaria112,00014
Miranda6135Michal DankaSweden134,00017
Miranda6136Roberto BendeckUnited States267,00033
Miranda6137Vuong DoUnited States195,00024
Miranda6138Oluwashola AkindeleUnited Kingdom106,00013
       
Miranda6141Mike AzzaroUnited States93,00012
Miranda6142Michael HatfieldUnited States151,00019
Miranda6143Nelson ChewUnited States115,00014
Miranda6144Danny AlvarezUnited States497,00062
Miranda6145Chang LuoChina316,00040
Miranda6146Riley FullerUnited States190,00024
Miranda6147Andrii NadieliaievRomania108,00014
Miranda6148Shawna BergerUnited States103,00013
       
Miranda6151David DolakArgentina193,00024
Miranda6152Lee TaylorUnited Kingdom119,00015
Miranda6153Andrew RothUnited States98,00012
Miranda6154Chris FurbertUnited States225,00028
Miranda6155Patrick TruongUnited States199,00025
Miranda6156William KassoufUnited Kingdom205,00026
Miranda6157Kyle HartreeCanada143,00018
Miranda6158James StrongUnited States165,00021
       
Miranda6161Vlad DarieRomania250,00031
Miranda6162Joseph RuigomezUnited States104,00013
Miranda6163Zdenko SlavikSlovakia69,0009
Miranda6164Stephen MaUnited States301,00038
Miranda6165Daniel PecheGermany178,00022
Miranda6166James CappucciUnited States350,00044
Miranda6167Rafiki BrownUnited States107,00013
Miranda6168Mark HordingUnited States92,00012
       
Miranda6171Alex HuaUnited States120,00015
Miranda6172Tommy TranUnited States181,00023
Miranda6173Ketan GuptaUnited States169,00021
Miranda6174Bjorn Book LarssonUnited States62,0008
Miranda6175Qiao ChiUnited States482,00060
Miranda6176Adrian MorenoUnited States65,0008
Miranda6177Andrew LeshovskyUnited States89,00011
Miranda6178Enio BozzanoBrazil204,00026
       
Miranda6181Oleksandr TrokhymenkoUnited Kingdom114,00014
Miranda6182Luigi KnoppersNetherlands132,00017
Miranda6183Matthew SchultzUnited States181,00023
Miranda6184Gregory MillironUnited States188,00024
Miranda6185Shiguang ZengChina208,00026
Miranda6186Michael PhillipsUnited States314,00039
Miranda6187Vitezslav CechCzech Republic368,00046
Miranda6188David ZarrinUnited States156,60020
       
Miranda6191Shane MartinUnited States149,00019
Miranda6192Yuyang ZhangUnited States140,00018
Miranda6193Matthew LenkUnited States239,00030
Miranda6194Bryan BerrymanUnited States119,00015
Miranda6195Chris FergusonUnited States66,0008
Miranda6196Marius PerteaAustralia514,00064
Miranda6197Roman ValersteinUnited States110,00014
Miranda6198Christopher KostoulasUnited States157,00020
       
Miranda6201Antonio BuonannoArgentina242,00030
Miranda6202Daniel ChioUnited States167,00021
Miranda6203Rob TepperUnited States331,00041
Miranda6204Michael BeattieUnited States90,00011
Miranda6205Guillaume DiazFrance284,00036
Miranda6206Marc-Andre LadouceurCanada98,00012
Miranda6207Will GivensUnited States127,00016
Miranda6208Jonathan TareUnited States99,00012
       
Miranda6211Angel FernandezGermany367,00046
Miranda6212Luther TranUnited States107,00013
Miranda6213Kyle StraderUnited States273,00034
Miranda6214Itai LevyIsrael140,00018
Miranda6215Sameer AljanediUnited States62,0008
Miranda6216Leslie MorganUnited States70,0009
Miranda6217Yiannis LiperisUnited Kingdom166,00021
Miranda6218Ke ChenUnited States79,00010
       
Miranda6221JJ LiuUnited States201,00025
Miranda6222Richard Tae KimUnited States156,00020
Miranda6223Idris GencogluCanada151,00019
Miranda6224Ioannis Angelou KonstasUnited States364,00046
Miranda6225Sungjin ParkSweden114,00014
Miranda6226David ByerUnited States96,00012
Miranda6227Paul MagrielUnited States69,0009
Miranda6228Ramiro PetroneArgentina212,00027
       
Miranda6231Danny IllingworthUnited States17,0002
Miranda6232Jonathan HannerUnited States214,00027
Miranda6233Brayden GazlayUnited States79,00010
Miranda6234Douglas CarliUnited States180,00023
Miranda6235Pablo MarizCanada105,00013
Miranda6236Jesse CohenUnited States85,00011
Miranda6237Ubaid HabibUnited States407,00051
Miranda6238Bill GermanisRomania407,00051
       
Miranda6241Nir LevyIsrael176,00022
Miranda6242Li FuChina65,0008
Miranda6243Yang ZhangChina406,00051
Miranda6244Felix LambertzGermany337,00042
Miranda6245Mikhail SeminRussia112,00014
Miranda6246Ian O'HaraUnited States267,00033
Miranda6247Timothy DoUnited States77,00010
Miranda6248Derek WoltersUnited States105,00013
       
Miranda6251Wai NgaiUnited States175,00022
Miranda6252Vanessa KadeCanada390,00049
Miranda6253Vedat LeviTurkey125,00016
Miranda6254Richard HoweUnited Kingdom138,00017
Miranda6255Marco SanchezUnited States78,00010
Miranda6256Andrei KonopelkoBelarus184,00023
Miranda6257Shaun McbrideUnited States128,00016
Miranda6258Artur KorenAustria122,00015
       
Miranda6261Toko LuuUnited States110,00014
Miranda6262Kevin MacPheeUnited States250,00031
Miranda6263Rene HochmuthGermany138,00017
Miranda6264Daniel LeCanada105,00013
Miranda6265Harry LodgeUnited Kingdom110,00014
Miranda6266Paul BergerUnited States64,6008
Miranda6267John BerremanUnited States151,00019
Miranda6268Jaime HaletkyUnited States281,00035
       
Miranda6271Patrick AysonUnited States236,00030
Miranda6272Louis LinardFR102,00013
Miranda6273Patrick PopowskiUnited States76,00010
Miranda6274Yorane KerignardRomania176,00022
Miranda6275Benjamin ChalotFrance355,00044
Miranda6276Toby PriceUnited States103,00013
Miranda6277Arturo OrozcoUnited States246,00031
Miranda6278Brett ShafferUnited States85,00011
       
Miranda6281Anthony UtnageUnited States101,00013
Miranda6282Hugo PerezUnited States171,00021
Miranda6283Ho LeeUnited Kingdom112,00014
Miranda6284Michael MadisonUnited States61,0008
Miranda6285Todd WittelesUnited States28,0004
Miranda6286Roberto RomanelloUnited Kingdom157,00020
Miranda6287Will BerryUnited States67,0008
Miranda6288Michael StemberaUnited States156,00020
       
Miranda6291Rick AlvaradoUnited States126,00016
Miranda6292Paul Vas NunesUnited Kingdom307,00038
Miranda6293Daniel [Removed:376]United States78,00010
Miranda6294Joshua KaysUnited States423,00053
Miranda6295Jordan YoungUnited States133,00017
Miranda6296Thomas TaylorCanada92,00012
Miranda6297Taylor FaustUnited States111,00014
Miranda6298Tony MaUnited States250,00031
       
Miranda6301Nicholas ForgioneUnited States130,00016
Miranda6302Nick JivkovBulgaria164,00021
Miranda6303Ivin ArquizaUnited States82,00010
Miranda6304Ben YuUnited States275,00034
Miranda6305Robert DamelianAustralia103,00013
Miranda6306Mitchell ThorntonUnited States101,00013
Miranda6307Peter ForsstromUnited States119,00015
Miranda6308Sadan TurkerUnited Kingdom103,00013
       
Miranda6311Dennis ColemanUnited States311,00039
Miranda6312Benjamin LafeverUnited States185,00023
Miranda6313Brian DarmaninUnited States102,00013
Miranda6314Hui WangChina68,0009
Miranda6314Alexander DeutschUnited States138,00017
Miranda6315Valentin VornicuUnited States68,0009
Miranda6316Edward HislopCanada109,00014
Miranda6317Joseph PergolaUnited States120,00015
       
Miranda6321Onofre VegaUnited States101,00013
Miranda6322Antonio StornoArgentina77,00010
Miranda6323Myagmarsuren BatkhishigArgentina51,0006
Miranda6324Huihan WuUnited States78,00010
Miranda6325Alexander CondonUnited States183,00023
Miranda6326Bart LybaertMeihelen, BE150,00019
Miranda6327Cristian StanGreece92,00012
Miranda6328Jun MogiJapan73,0009
       
Miranda6331Jose ReyesUnited States291,00036
Miranda6332Luther MillerUnited States207,00026
Miranda6333Zachary PeayUnited States100,00013
Miranda6334Paul LeeUnited States113,00014
Miranda6335Pavlo VekslerUnited Kingdom252,00032
Miranda6336Gleb KovtunovUkraine144,00018
Miranda6337Martin StausholmAustria294,00037
Miranda6338David JacksonUnited States370,00046
       
Miranda6341Eduards KudrjavcevsLatvia347,00043
Miranda6342Kevin EysterUnited States233,00029
Miranda6343Federico OttenioUnited States181,00023
Miranda6344Joshua HillockUnited States130,00016
Miranda6345Ryan BuckholtzUnited States97,00012
Miranda6346Michael FerrerRomania131,00016
Miranda6347Catherine DeverUnited States391,00049
Miranda6348Keith FerreraUnited States151,00019
       
Miranda6351Joshua GibsonUnited States160,00020
Miranda6352Cate HallUnited States131,00016
Miranda6353Navid KhorvashUnited States277,00035
Miranda6354Jesper HougaardGermany61,0008
Miranda6355Patrick MancusoUnited States304,00038
Miranda6356DID NOT REPORT 1United States44,0006
Miranda6357Shashank JainGermany53,0007
Miranda6358Dapreesch ScatesUnited States101,00013
       
Miranda6361John DefabisUnited States110,00014
Miranda6362Scott SchwalichUnited States125,00016
Miranda6363Scott StewartUnited States34,0004
Miranda6364Chad DabiereUnited States82,00010
Miranda6365Mark DubeUnited States139,00017
Miranda6366Eiji SuzukiJapanDNRDNR
Miranda6367Alejandro PerezArgentina100,00013
Miranda6368Alexandre SakoBrazil116,00015
       
Miranda6371Dan MurariuRomania89,00011
Miranda6372Seville HaleUnited States713,00089
Miranda6373Anton AstapauLatvia158,00020
Miranda6374Jason WheelerUnited States491,00061
Miranda6375Charalampos LappasBrazil198,00025
Miranda6376Rob FennerSouth Africa98,00012
Miranda6377Alfred GilesUnited States49,0006
Miranda6378Peter AkeryUnited Kingdom314,00039
       
Miranda6381Stephen KawataUnited States121,00015
Miranda6382Daniel FriedUnited States194,00024
Miranda6383Bernd GrundkemeyerGermany72,0009
Miranda6384Alan ChirlsUnited States352,00044
Miranda6385Baitai LiUnited States141,00018
Miranda6386Brad AlbrinckUnited States65,0008
Miranda6387Satish AndalamUnited States59,0007
Miranda6388Michael ComissoUnited States238,00030
       
Miranda6391Hamza QaziPakistan96,00012
Miranda6392Matthias EibingerAustria169,00021
Miranda6393Douglas LadaUnited States72,0009
Miranda6394Steve KarpUnited States152,00019
Miranda6395Mario LopezArgentina86,00011
Miranda6396Conrad MonicaUnited States91,00011
Miranda6397Stefan FabianUnited Kingdom152,00019
Miranda6398Amit RoshanlalIndia234,00029
       
Miranda6401Benjamin EctorUnited States210,00026
Miranda6402Jonathan DimmigUnited States182,00023
Miranda6403Cristiano GuerraRomania358,00045
Miranda6404Bart HansonUnited States254,00032
Miranda6405Iverson SnufferUnited States196,00025
Miranda6406Alex RochaUnited States67,0008
Miranda6407Michael MooreUnited States221,00028
Miranda6408Wellington OnishiazevedoBrazil130,00016
       
Miranda6411James HaytkoUnited States123,00015
Miranda6412Paul HirschornUnited States190,00024
Miranda6413Aurelien GuigliniArgentina181,00023
Miranda6414Joao VieiraPortugal410,00051
Miranda6415Conor BeresfordUnited Kingdom247,00031
Miranda6416Patrik KorsarSweden68,0009
Miranda6417Andrey KotelnikovRomania221,00028
Miranda6418Svetlozar NestorovUnited States73,0009
       
Miranda6421Anselmo VillarrealUnited States267,00033
Miranda6422Sebastien ZanoliniUnited States99,00012
Miranda6423Miro BulatovichUnited States56,0007
Miranda6424Alan MasticUnited States42,0005
Miranda6425Alexander IvarssonSweden136,00017
Miranda6426Je OhUnited States390,00049
Miranda6427Alexander GreenblattUnited States122,00015
Miranda6428Ronald SewellUnited States57,0007
       
Miranda6431Michael UrhausenUnited States92,00012
Miranda6433Andrew DeanUnited States194,00024
Miranda6434Narimaan AhmadiUnited States100,00013
Miranda6435Andrew KatzUnited States180,00023
Miranda6436Tobias ZieglerGermany47,0006
Miranda6437Bryan PiccioliUnited States70,0009
Miranda6438Anuj AgarwalUnited States357,00045
       
Miranda6441Athanasios LazarouUnited States46,0006
Miranda6442Andrew HillsUnited Kingdom100,00013
Miranda6443Tim HicklingUnited Kingdom178,00022
Miranda6444Thomas ScholzeGermany345,00043
Miranda6445Sokhom OumUnited States99,00012
Miranda6447Jakub WojtasGermany335,00042
Miranda6448Klajdi LikaUnited States184,00023
       
Miranda7022Thomas LefortGermany104,00013
Miranda7023Jeffrey LennonUnited States40,0005
Miranda7024Krzysztof StybaniewiczUnited States217,00027
Miranda7025Alexandru PapazianRomania516,00065
Miranda7026Reynaldo PinacateUnited States70,0009
Miranda7027Samuel YunUnited States232,00029
Miranda7028Tomas RuffiniArgentina182,00023
       
Miranda7031Rajiv SakariaRomania77,00010
Miranda7032Aneris AdomkeviciusLithuania184,00023
Miranda7033Dathan KuppinUnited States115,00014
Miranda7035Frederic HwangUnited States256,00032
Miranda7036Steven TabbUnited States108,00014
Miranda7037David LeviUnited StatesDNRDNR
Miranda7038Viet VoUnited States153,00019

Tags: Andreas KlattCate HallChris HunichenChris MoormanCliff JosephyDanny WongDavid PhamKevin MacPheeRex ClinkscalesShannon ShorrSofia LovgrenValentin VornicuWilliam Kassouf

Fossilman Staying Calm in the $888 Crazy Eights

Webjoker
Webjoker
Level 7 : 250/500, 75 ante
Greg Raymer
Greg Raymer

By Paul Seaton

Greg "Fossilman" Raymer became a poker legend when he won the 2004 WSOP Main Event for $5,000,000. 13 years on, he’s still got the same hunger for winning another bracelet and is taking part in today's Day 1c flight of the $888 entry ‘Crazy Eights’ tournament. Raymer run up a big stack in the early levels and took time away from piling his chip mountain to talk to PokerNews about his approach to the tournament and the World Series of Poker in general.

“My approach is always the same in any cash game or tournament. I’m trying to make the smartest decision that will, on average, make me the most money. I don’t play crazily just because you can reenter a tournament like this [Crazy Eights]. If it’s a money-losing decision, the fact that I can reenter doesn’t make it a smart decision.”

"People seem much less likely to fold against me, whatever the situation."

The old Fossilman might have been a little more visible at the table in his trademark orange shades. But the main evolution of the player, as well as the man, has been the accumulation of knowledge over time. It’s like much of poker to Raymer; an equation.

“I’ve evolved as a player and become better and more knowledgeable, so I don’t make the same decisions I made back in 2004. That’s because I know better now and that something else is a smarter choice. Whether it’s a different bet-size or a check behind on a certain street, the goal is the same; play as smart as you can every time it’s your turn.”

The game may have changed along with Raymer’s play, but it’s clear from the enthusiasm he has in every pot that the hunger Raymer had fifteen years ago, still burns at the same heat in the red-hot environment of Las Vegas.

“I’m excited by all the tournaments here. The fact that the Crazy Eights is a lower buy-in here, doesn’t take away that excitement. It’s a chance to compete and I’m very competitive. I was a racquetball player when I was a teenager and bad knees mean I’m not going to compete in a game like that now. Poker is a way to be competitive now. In a cash game, you go home a winner, but then you think of that one hand, ‘If I’d read that guy better or that card hadn’t come I’d have won more’. But if you finish first in a tournament, you can’t have done better.

The defining tournament win of Raymer’s career will almost certainly remain his WSOP Main Event win in 2004. But although he revelled in the glory at the time, it’s not being used for mental-game visualizations now.

I don’t really do any visualization. To me, this is a math game. The on-math component is reading tells or giving off false tells yourself. Those aren’t mathematical skills, but those are still skills you try to hone and then you take that information into account. Once I’ve added that information to the computer, so to speak, It’ll change the calculation, but it’s still calculating that decision based on the new information. It’s still to me a math game, just the non-math stuff is a variable to be added.”

“People seem much less likely to fold against me, whatever the situation. I’ll make a thin value bet on the river that, if you were a student I was coaching, I’d tell you not to make because you wouldn’t get paid off by a worse hand. But I might. And it’s not because I’m a better player, it’s because they’ll call me lighter than they will call you. I’ve been called by jack-high on the river and I think they’re less likely to make that call against other players. I’ve value-bet king-high on the river sometimes and it’s because I think ‘That guy’s going to pay me off, he just won’t believe’.

Raymer was a nobody when he won in 2004 but is now one of the most famous faces in poker. That’s obviously affected how people play against him, and he reveals that he wishes for a little anonymity every now and again.

“The last time I was anonymous was during the Main Event I won. I’d love the opportunity to play any tournament in disguise. Not because I want to fool people or be tricky, just because I want to see how differently they would play me if I was a random, chubby middle-aged guy. It’s not that I want to look 20 or 80, but be a random guy of my sort and see if they fold more, or three-bet more. I’ve been at tables when it’s been three hours into the tournament where I’ve been the only player anyone has three-bet, other than if I’ve three-bet.”

Raymer now coaches players and thrives on passing on information to new blood in the game. His own learning often comes at home at his desk, just grinding the numbers.

“Anyone can benefit from coaching, it’s just if it’s worth the cost and time. I pay attention to what other people are doing. Even if [a play] looks horrible I’ll look at it and think; are there some benefits to it that I hadn’t thought of. I’ll crunch the numbers, sitting at my desk at home and work it out, asking myself ‘What are the benefits of that play?' from that point, you can evolve new thoughts and patterns.

One of Raymer’s clearest goals now is to enjoy more mixed game events, and that stems from his enjoyment of mixed games way back before his Main Event win.

“We used to have a mixed cash game at Foxwoods. I lived six miles from Foxwoods when I won the Main Event. We were playing Hold’em, Omaha and Stud games. When I was traveling around, they were playing triple draw and Badugi. I sat at home for several days before a trip and basically did the math. There’s no book to read so I read some stuff online.”

Raymer’s own story might have made a bestseller in the aftermath of his WSOP Main Event victory, just one year after Moneymaker’s victory pushed poker through the first glass ceiling of its development.

"I missed the train. If I publish now and it’s the runaway poker book of the year, I’ll basically get a tenth of the money I would have made if it was the tenth most popular book in 2005."

“I have a book that’s all but done but I haven’t got around to finishing it. Basically, I missed the train. If I publish now and it’s the runaway poker book of the year, I’ll basically get a tenth of the money I would have made if it was the tenth most popular book in 2005. In that sense, there’s not as much motivation to get it done. I’ve just been too lazy. I spend time with my wife and daughter when I could be finishing that book.”

There’s a reason he hasn’t been writing books and that’s clearly a love for family time. Even away in Vegas or on the road, Raymer’s wife and daughter are ever-present.

“We talk and text all the time. My wife and daughter know that even if I had 100,000 right now, they’d know better than to think I’m going to make the final table. They know I don’t even have 1% of the chips. There have been too many events where I’ve had a big stack and not even made the money, so they’re pleased when I’m doing well but they know better than to plan to come out for the final table.”

“Reporters ask me when did you know you were going to win the final event. I knew [I’d win] when David turned over the final losing hand. When I had 10% of the chips, I thought I had a 15% chance. When I had half the chips, I gave myself a 60-65% shot. I gave myself a little premium for skill rightly or wrongly but I was never thinking ‘this is mine’. That approach leads to too much heartbreak. Even with 90% of the chips, we’ve seen players come back with less. If you get too bothered emotionally, it’s hard to come back and play your A-Game the next day.”

Raymer may never think about winning until the final card gives him that second bracelet he’s waited 13 years to claim. He’ll be focused on the numbers until he’s 100%. And even then, his mind will be processing new information and adding data to his calculations. All these years after his Main Event win, Raymer remains a popular player at the felt and a passionate combatant in any event of any size buy-in. Staying calm in the heat of Vegas is just what he does because anything else would be crazy.

Greg Raymer

Tags: Greg Raymer

Andreas Klatt Felts a Foe

simkha
simkha
Level 3 : 75/150, 25 ante
Andreas Klatt earlier this summer
Andreas Klatt earlier this summer

A player in early position raised to 350, Andreas Klatt called from the hijack, the small blind called, and Luke Sorensen called from the big blind.

The flop came {9-Diamonds}{6-Clubs}{4-Hearts}, and action checked around to Klatt. He bet 600, the small blind folded, Sorensen called, and the preflop raiser folded. The turn brought the {7-Spades}, and Sorensen checked. Klatt bet 1,900, and Sorensen check-raised to 4,000. Klatt called. The {4-Clubs} fell on the river, and Sorensen moved all in for about 6,000.

Klatt quickly called and tabled {6-Spades}{6-Hearts} for sixes full of fours, which was best against Sorensen's {5-Spades}{3-Diamonds} for a seven-high straight. Klatt took the pot to send Sorensen to the rail.

Player Chips Progress
Andreas Klatt de
Andreas Klatt 		24,500 16,500
Luke Sorensen
Luke Sorensen
Busted

Tags: Andreas Klatt

Flight 1d of Event #60: $888 Crazy Eights No-Limit Hold'em 8-Handed begins at 4 p.m.

simkha
simkha
Hung Le
Hung Le

The last of four starting flights for Event #60: $888 Crazy Eights No-Limit Hold'em 8-Handed at the 2017 World Series of Poker begins Sunday at 4 p.m. local time.

Last year, Hung Le triumphed over a field of 6,761 entries to win $888,888 and his first gold bracelet. This year, there were a combined total of 3,170 entries in the first two starting flights and 2,072 in Sunday morning's Flight C for a grand total of 5,242 runners thus far, so it's entirely possible that this year's field size could eclipse last year's. Several players have already spun up huge stacks and, as of this writing, Seville Hale (713,000), Jamie Rosen (589,000), Marius Pertea (514,000), Jason Wheeler (491,000), and Ray Qartomy (444,000) are at the very top.

Players begin this event with 8,000 chips and each level will last 30 minutes. A one-hour dinner break is scheduled to take place after the end of Level 6 at approximately 7:20 p.m. and the field will play a total of 18 levels on Day 1 before bagging chips for the night. There will be a break every four levels with a 20-minute break after Level 4 and 15-minute breaks after Levels 10 and 14.

PokerNews has activated the My Stack App for this event, allowing you to directly adjust your chip counts in our live reporting blog using your iPhone or Android phone.

You can download the app for iPhone or Android now to get started. Then, create a new PokerNews account or update your current one to start updating your status immediately. Your followers can see all the live action that you're involved in.

Click here to download the My Stack app for iPhone, or click here to download the My Stack app for Android.

Check back here for updates on all the action in $888 Crazy Eights No-Limit Hold'em and throughout the remainder of the 2017 World Series of Poker from the PokerNews live reporting team.

Tags: Hung LeJamie RosenJason WheelerMarius PerteaRay QartomySeville Hale