If Ivey can catch a few cards early on he may prove unstoppable

Although the first event of the World Series of Poker Europe culminated in a final table of respected and recognisable pros, the ante has been upped substantially in the run-up to today’s £2,500 H.O.R.S.E. finale. As play ended at 4.30 AM on Wednesday morning, only eleven players remained from the elite field that had assembled earlier in the week. Playing five different games – Hold’em, Omaha Eights-or-Better, Razz, Seven-card Stud and Seven-Card Stud Eight-or Better – the 110 runners comprised one of the toughest and most celebrated fields ever. Yet as Doyle Brunson, Patrik Antonius, Mike Matusow and David Benyamine (amongst many others) all bowed out, a number of huge names still remain;

1. Howard Lederer, 208,500
2. Sherkhan Farnood, 141,500
3. Yuvan Bronshtein, 133,500
4. Phil Ivey, 114,000
5. Jeff Duval, 112,100
6. Spencer Lawrence, 88,500
7. Jeff Lisandro, 84,000
8. Mark Gregorich, 82,500
9. Ivo Donev, 79,500
10. Kristian Eriksson, 43,000
11. Raul Paez, 17,500

Today’s final table will begin when those eleven have been whittled down to just eight. Of those, chipleader Howard ‘The Professor’ Lederer and the irrepressible Phil Ivey will undoubtedly be the centre of attention. While Ivey has been a constant big stack, a terrific late surge from Lederer saw him amass a mountain of chips going into today’s play. With a sizeable gap between him and the other runners combined with his extensive mixed game experience, Lederer has to be considered the favourite.

But never write off Phil Ivey. After a disappointing World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, he will be looking to make amends in London by capturing his sixth bracelet later today. While the £76,999 prize money may play a factor it will be the accolade and the small matter of cashing in on his millions of dollars worth of bracelet bets that will be the true driving force for Ivey. If he can catch a few good cards early on then he may prove unstoppable.

Another Phil who came so close to reaching today’s action was the ‘Poker Brat’ himself Phil Hellmuth, who crashed out on the very last hand of the day. A series of bad beats prior to that had resulted in a predictable blow-up that had even resulted in one poor dealer crying after taking too much of Hellmuth’s abuse! Now that he is is gone though, we can at least assume there won’t be any more tears at the table today.

Other names to look out for include the American Yuval Bronshtein who made the final table of this same event last year, only to finish 6th. And, of course, there is the British contingent of WSOP hero Spencer Lawrence and Jeff Duval who are sure to have plenty of fans on the raill.

The cards get up in the air at at 2.30 PM and there will be a full report of the results here tomorrow.