Las Vegas Weekly

November 6, 2009 · 6:48 AM

November Nine in the hunt for $27 million in World Series of Poker

By Robin Leach

Darvin Moon shakes hands with Phil Ivey.

Photo: World Series Of Poker/Harrah's

At high noon tomorrow, nine card players will battle for the top prize of $8.5 million and split what’s left from the overall $27 million at the finals of the 40th Annual World Series of Poker. Either way, it’s not a bad payday! The showdown takes place at the Penn & Teller Theater in The Rio.

Seven of those men will be eliminated, and two will remain for Monday’s 10 p.m. head-to-head face-off to find the 2009 WSOP bracelet winner who will carry off with the $8.5 million in cash. Play at the table tomorrow will continue for as long as it takes to get down to the final two.

The runner-up receives $5.2 million, and the third-place finisher receives $3.5 million. From the fourth-place spot, the prize money eases down from $2.5 million to the $1.25 million that the first man ousted will win.

There are two players competing from Las Vegas, but the spotlight is on Phil Ivey, who is the heavy favorite, although he starts out in seventh place with 9.765 million chips. Phil has won seven WSOP bracelets, two this year before he became part of the November Nine. Not only has he won more than $10 million in his poker career, but also he once won $16 million in a single game of heads-up poker against millionaire Andy Beal. Insiders say that he’ll earn another $2 million in a side bet from Andy Bloch if he wins the championship bracelet.

The other Las Vegas player is Jeff Schulman, editor of Card Player magazine, who is being coached by legendary poker prince Phil Hellmuth. The chip leader with 58.930 million is Maryland logger Darvin Moon. Other players are Eric Buchman, Joseph Cada, Kevin Schaffel, Antoine Saout and James Akenhead. The remaining player is former Wall Street corporate strategist Steven Begleiuter, who lost his job at Bear Sterns when it collapsed in the financial meltdown pre-stimulus.

Just how do poker players of this caliber relax before what has to be the ultimate test of strength and tension? Well, Joseph and Eric worked it out by racing the electric cars at Pole Position Raceway yesterday on the 1/4-mile track opposite Palms Place.

Also on the WSOP agenda tomorrow night is the Poker Hall of Fame dinner, where Mike Sexton will be inducted as its 38th member. For the amazing history of the World Series of Poker, click HERE.

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

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