WSOP Guide to the November Nine (Part One)

...And then there were nine.

What began with six thousand, eight hundred and forty-four entrants has now been narrowed down to nine men. After days and days of nothing but poker, the field of entrants was slowly narrowed down to just ten players. After the last ten players battled it out for close to three hours, Dean Hamrick was finally knocked out of the World Series of Poker. Although he played a great tournament, Hamrick (who is from Plymouth, Michigan) just missed making it to the final table of Poker's biggest event. At a little before three thirty on Tuesday morning, the only remaining players in the WSOP were the nine players that will sit around the final table in November.

Although you will most likely begin to hear a lot about these players over the next one hundred and seventeen days, over this and the next two parts of this series, you will receive an up close look at each of the coveted nine. So, even though you won't get to see them play against each other until November, you can get the scoop on each player right now:

Seat One: Dennis Phillips
Chip Count: 26,295,000

Going into the final event in November, Dennis Phillips has a dominant chip lead over at least half of his competitors. However, as the game of Texas Hold'em has demonstrated time and time again, going into a major event as the chip leader is not even close to guaranteeing finishing on top. Phillips will be just as nervous as his competitors when he sits down at the final table (if not more nervous).

Dennis Phillips, who lives in Cottage Hills, Illinois and works as a truck salesman, is not a novice to the game of poker. Phillips plays in tournaments hosted by his local casino three to four times per week. In 2007, he earned $2,386 by placing ninth in a No Limit Hold'em WSOP Circuit Event. He added an additional $2,192 two days later at another No Limit Hold'em Circuit Event, which brings his lifetime tournament earnings to $4,578. Obviously, this total is going to get a huge bump after the final table. Even if Phillips is the first to be eliminated from the final table, he will take home a staggering $900,670!

Why does Phil Hellmuth always cry when he gets beat at poker?

Hellmuth is a brilliant man, like his style of play/personality or not he is undeniably the most brilliant man in poker. To keep up the "poker brat" personality as well as the tight passive play and continue to win most times he plays cash games is very impressive.

He owns or is sponsored by UB, proplayer energy drink, He sells hats, t shirts, and other gear as well as the black belt poker series and other training videos. Every time you see a fit, sponsors see a billboard screaming look at me. The man is like every one else on the face of the earth, he is coin operated and hes one of the best.

From a poker enthusiasts point of view, I do enjoy the blow ups.Its fun to see what hes going to do or say next. Its entertainment. If you have the poker after dark with Phil and Sam Grizzle, its some of the funniest poker on TV.

Tiffany Michelle: The Woman to Watch

Last week, I profiled some of the women to watch during the World Series of Poker. Although I listed many of the women that experts were predicting to go the farthest in the WSOP, it seems one woman has come from under the radar and is poised to make a big splash during this year's event.

If the name Tiffany Michelle sounds familiar, it's because she is a video interviewer for Poker News. However, during this year's event, Tiffany is doing much more than just talking to other players about their performances. With only twenty-seven players left in the pursuit for the coveted Main Event bracelet, Tiffany has a chance to become the second woman of all time to make it to the final table of the Main Event. The first woman to accomplish this feat was Barbara Enright, who made it to the final table way back in 1995.

Tiffany became the last woman in the tournament early on Day Six, after Lisa Parsons was eliminated in the seventy-sixth spot. Fortunately for Tiffany, she survived the rest of the day, and will begin Day Seven with 9,755,000 in chips.

Even if luck decides to turn its back on Tiffany during her last push towards the final table, she is still guaranteed to take home at least $257,334! However, she may be able to get to the final table without luck, thanks to the strong position she has established. Tiffany will be entering Day Seven in third place, behind only Craig Marquis and the current leader, Dennis Phillips.

Although you are probably used to seeing Tiffany on the interviewing side of the microphone, thanks to her many years of practice and strong performance, you will be seeing her on the interviewee side of the mic over the next few days.

Texas holdem - what's considered a decent preflop?

A decent preflop hand has more to do with position and action than what you hold. Your rule of thumb is going to get you busted quite a bit with decent players. I see more rookie players get busted overplaying A rags (9 or less) than any other hand. And don't raise with two royals unless paired or suited. These are nothing more than drawing hands, unless paired, and should be pitched if you miss the flop in the face of aggression. As a general rule, you can split how you play into hands that you play cheap and hands that you raise with or call a raise with, all preflop of course and assuming a 9 player table.

Cheap hands:
1) All pocket pairs
2) Two "royals"
3) Suited connectors (like 9 and 8 of spades).
Raise hands:
1) Pocket JJ through AA
2) AQ-AK and KQ, especially if suited.

Situationally, other hands are ok. But A rags is a rookie hand (I see more people get busted playing garbage like A8 and losing the batlle of kickers when the Ace pairs, but someone else has AJ) and K rags is ridiculous. Q8 is ridiculously bad, too. .

If you are New player follow This instruction, you will do good in online poker.

A: Only raise with a pocket pair 10 or better.
B: With two royal cards, I'd only bet/raise if they are suited.
C: If you have a straight draw suited, check or bluff.
Anything like 8-3 or worse you most likely want to fold unless you can check.
NEVER LIMP IN if you only have two off-suit number cards that are not part of the same straight.

If You're a Beginner, Avoid Making these Mistakes!

Not being able to fold good hands

If you got a confused look on your face when you read "not being able to fold good hands," you just proved that you are a beginning poker player. For beginning poker players, if they are dealt a pair of Queens, they will bet big and go all the way to the end with their hand. Although a pair of Queens may be a good hand, you have to also take into account the flop. If the flop contains Kings or Aces, you may not be holding that great a hand. A mature poker player is able to analyze the situation in front of them, without letting the excitement of being dealt a potentially strong hand cloud their judgment.

Being overly timid

In many cases, beginners perform poorly because they are overly excited to play a strong hand, which results in them being wiped out by a more experienced opponent. However, there are situations where a beginner may feel overly timid, and as a result, you will be unable to maintain the strength it takes to finish and win a difficult hand.

Bluffing too often

For the novice poker player, bluffing can seem like a fun way to take money from your opponents even when you are not holding a good hand. Unfortunately, there is more to bluffing than simply tricking your opponent and winning a huge hand. Bluffing takes experience, knowledge and skill, and if you are lacking any of these, not only will you end up ruining hands through your bluffing, but you will also become an easy target for your opponents.

Playing every hand

If you are dealt a bad hand, just fold it. You can waste a lot of chips calling blinds before the flop if you refuse to hold hands that shouldn't be played. Although you're excited to play, it's important to use discretion and only play hands worth betting on.

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