Poker Articles

Day 1-A of the 2008 World Poker Tour Legends of Poker kicks off this Saturday, August 23rd. Day 1-B occurs on Sunday. It’s the first major live tournament since the recently-completed 2008 World Series of Poker, which set records across the board for the largest WSOP ever. Although the Main Event of the WSOP still sits at nine players and is in a 100-day lull before the final table plays down to a champion in November, the WPT is in full swing. This week, in addition to PocketFiver Eric Rizen Lynch, the PocketFives.com Podcast welcomes PocketFivesLive.com Tournament Reporter Court Harrington, who is saddled up and ready to make the sojourn to the Bicycle Casino in Los Angeles, California, the site of the Legends of Poker. It marks the return of activity to the popular WPT coverage site.

With two players still remaining in the Main Event, PocketFivers grabbed eight bracelets that were up for grabs so far in the 2008 WSOP. The total take by members of the site was an incredible $20.1 million, shattering last year’s $15 million in cashes. Grant drossxyu Hinkle and his brother Blair blur5f6 Hinkle became just the second pair of brothers in history to win WSOP bracelets. Michael worldsgrtest Banducci, Barry barryg1 Greenstein, Sebastian miamivice Ruthenberg, Davidi legrouzin Kitai, Alexandre Allingomes Gomes, and Matt mattg1983 Graham all did what nearly every poker player aspires to do: win a WSOP bracelet. After a month-long break since the action from the Rio in Las Vegas concluded, Harrington commented, “I’m looking forward to getting back out on the road after the World Series of Poker. I’m getting that itch to get to L.A. for the Legends of Poker.”

Harrington expects to see 50 to 100 PocketFivers make the trek to the second largest city in the United States for this marquee tournament. Among those competing in the $10,000 buy-in event may be an old face to many PocketFivers. Harrington explains, “One person who has not been around for a while is WeaponX. In the Paradise Poker days, he was one of the top players. He took some time off from the game and then sent me an e-mail a couple of weeks ago saying that he was thinking about playing in the Main Event at The Bike. He’s a very dangerous player, especially if he gets hot.”

The structure at World Poker Tour tournaments has changed as well, affecting both the players involved and media outlets like PocketFivesLive.com. Harrington gives his opinion: “All of the structures on the WPT circuit have gotten better. The knock on them was that the final tables were a crap shoot. They have really good structures now for players. Some of the tournaments are going to a triple-stack structure. That was the case at the Bellagio Cup. It gives better players an even greater chance to rise to the top and make final tables.”

Coverage on PocketFivesLive.com is free to any member of the site. All you have to do is click here and enter your information so that Harrington can get in touch with you at the Legends of Poker. During the tournament, Harrington will report on your key hands, chip stack, and even send shout-outs to your friends and family following your progress back home. Registration for coverage is open right now at PocketFivesLive.com.

After the Legends of Poker, Harrington will travel thousands of miles east to London, England, home of the World Series of Poker Europe Main Event. The six-day tournament begins on Saturday, September 27th. At the same time, PocketFives.com Podcast host David Huber will head to sunny Aruba for the 2008 Ultimate Bet Aruba Poker Classic, covering players in that part of the world. That tournament’s Day 1-A will be held on Monday, September 29th.

Check out the PocketFives.com Podcast.


Front page image: The Bicycle Casino