The World Series Of Poker

The World Series Of Poker

The idea of a World Series of Poker first came to mind when Benny Binion was asked to host a high-stakes poker marathon to be played out by “Nick the Greek” Dandolos and Johnny Moss. This game lasted more than five months and included just about every form of poker you could think of, until Moss had $2 million of the Greek’s money, and Dandolos receded from the table. While history was being made inside the casino, what was happening outside was astonishing, as people crowded around daily to be a part of the action. In 1970, Binion decided to see if the same atmosphere could be created again. The first WSOP was set up, and the winner was actually chosen by popular vote; Johnny Moss would win again.

In the second WSOP, Johnny Moss won the title once more, but this time by process of elimination, he held all the chips and won the game. The next year, Amarillo Slim won the event and began appearing on talk shows, telling the public about his win. This planted a seed in the American culture that would continue to grow for many decades.

Since then, poker has come a long way and defined a sect of global culture for this generation, and the WSOP has played a major role in poker’s rise in popularity. To win a WSOP bracelet is somewhat of a rite of passage for a professional poker player, and if you are a pro poker player, your career is defined by how many WSOP bracelets you’ve won.

There is always a lot of commotion surrounding the tournament, pretty much year round, as there is always something extra interesting to talk about, especially when it comes to the final table, and ultimately, who will win. The 2008 WSOP didn’t fail to generate the buzz, as the WSOP finalists sold their selves on Ebay as advertisement spots, and two players threatened to take away Phil Hellmuth’s 19-year title as the youngest player to win the WSOP. Peter Eastgate, did in fact become the youngest player to win the WSOP, at 22 years old, and the only Dane to ever win first place, as well. Now Eastgate, with his $9 million, and the other eight players, can rest easy without the pressure of such a big tournament looming over them. There will undoubtedly, though, be another nine poker pros within the next year that will be sure to generate attention, particularly in the online poker community.

One element of the WSOP that makes it somewhat of a phenomenon and rather magical, is the fact that many of the players who make it there are everyday people. Many win satellites over the Internet at online poker rooms such as FullTilt or PartyPoker that suddenly land them in a chair at the WSOP. Poker makes celebrities out of average people, most of whom are so much more interesting than super star celebrities. Back in 2003 Chris Moneymaker won the WSOP, having qualified for his seat at PokerStars at practically no cost from his own pocket. But as poker is interlaced with luck in every aspect of the game, this doesn’t happen every year. In fact, Eastgate actually bought his way into the 2008 WSOP, paying the $10,000 buy-in himself. Such is the story, for 2008, anyway. The next WSOP will undoubtedly peak even more interest in the variety of players, the wonder of the game, and the rarity of the poker culture, as a whole.

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