Stories/impressions of name pros at the WSOP?

[betgo]

?

[Slim Pickens]

This is what happens when you spend consecutive weekends hanging around the Rio, essentially getting paid to watch poker for eight straight hours...

David Sklansky went to great lengths to make sure everybody at his ME Day 1 table (61 I think when I saw him) knew he was reading the paper and talking on his cell phone, I'm assuming so everyone could notice he's just that awesome.

Jim Meehan really is as obnoxious as his reputation indicates. Ellix Powers is as well. Marcel Luske is not.

Howard Lederer is back to being "Bubba" again.

Old women love Daniel Negreanu. I was halfway expecting one of them to bake him a cake with a jumper in it. (You have to watch some BBC to get that)

I've never seen a "straight man" mince around the way Phil Hellmuth does.

The best quote came during an exchange between John Juanda and Negreanu. Juanda was playing an Omaha event and made some crack about not getting any playable hands. Negreanu replies in mock horror "You get four cards! You can play every hand!"

[MonkeeMan]

I watched some of the NL Two to Seven Draw Lowball event from the rail and the table right in front of me had 77 year old John Bonetti playing. John has a reputation of being a *rick, and he didn't disappoint. A dispute arose over a flashed card and Bonetti called for the floor, when someone arrived who wasn't to his liking he told them to get someone else (Grooms maybe), somone who knew the rules, and as the original guy was walking away affable John made a self-gratification gesture about him. He then didn't like the ruling and continued to rant about the situation for the next 15 minutes.

I'm glad he's mellowed with age. [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

Was also surprised at how tall Seidel is.

[the_joker]

I sat to the left of Eddy Scharf for all of day 2. He's a low-down, blind stealing mofo [img]/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img] Just kidding, actually he was a very cool guy and obviously a solid player. He did steal many blinds from me, but I didn't have any chips or cards to fight back with.

He taught me quite a cool little trick (at least I think it was a trick, not an accident). The dealer was pushing him a pot after yet another blind steal. He tosses his cards just perfectly into the muck hitting the dealer her arm and flipping them over exposing AQ as if to show that he wasn't stealing with trash, which I knew he was most of the time!

He wore his two WSOP bracelets on each arm, probably to intimidate people - it seemed to work! He pretty much stole blinds and came over the top of people all day. He had around 50 or 60K with only 650 people left in day 2 (when I got knocked out). I see he didn't make the money, so something bad must have happened to him in the last hour.

[Indiana]

I spoke with Ellix Powers while there and shook his hand. He told me that he was badly stuck and had to go to Cali for 24 hrs. to get a loan or something from someone. He's a fish. Phil Gordon was a kewl cat and gave me a 5 min. interview (see his site day 1a. for the download). My favorite guy was Matusow. I was at the table behind him and everytime someone in the room cheered he would yell out "Another two outer on the river."

Indy

[Slim Pickens]

I spotted Ellix at the $2500 limit HE event, standing at the cage apparently in a conversation that was not to his liking. Jim Meehan approached and they talked for a while, also resulting in Ellix looking not happy. He then wondered around the floor as the event was getting started holding about 10 $100's like a dead cat in his hand and complaining to anyone who approached him about how he can't play in any of the events for lack of funds. I'm assuming he was trying to get a stake from Meehan or something. His double socks with sandals were cool. The outer ones were purple.

It looked as though Phil Gordon had by far the largest following among the younger generation. The rail by his table was impenetrable, but the one by the table with four big stars (I think it was Juanda, Lederer, a blank, Todd Brunson, and ??? all in a line) was all clear.

[Jordan Olsommer]

[ QUOTE ]

David Sklansky went to great lengths to make sure everybody at his ME Day 1 table (61 I think when I saw him) knew he was reading the paper and talking on his cell phone, I'm assuming so everyone could notice he's just that awesome.

[/ QUOTE ]

I thought you werent allowed to talk on your cell phone at the WSOP?

[sammy_g]

[ QUOTE ]
I thought you werent allowed to talk on your cell phone at the WSOP?

[/ QUOTE ]
That's correct. They'll kill your hand.

[Slim Pickens]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]

David Sklansky went to great lengths to make sure everybody at his ME Day 1 table (61 I think when I saw him) knew he was reading the paper and talking on his cell phone, I'm assuming so everyone could notice he's just that awesome.

[/ QUOTE ]

I thought you werent allowed to talk on your cell phone at the WSOP?

[/ QUOTE ]

He stood up from the table, but made enough of a scene so that everyone on the surrounding four tables knew what he was doing.

[Slim Pickens]

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Was also surprised at how tall Seidel is.

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Seidel and Luske at forward, Phil Gordon at center, David Williams as the runty point guard, Phil Hellmuth at shooting guard, Howard Lederer off the bench. Doyle Brunson can coach the team. Todd Brunson can be the water boy.