WSOP Main Event Final Table Plays Sunday

The 2011 WSOP Main Event final table starts on Sunday and, after a one-day recess, will conclude on Tuesday.

November Niners Martin Staszko, Eoghan O’Dea, Matt Giannetti, Phil Collins, Ben Lamb, Badih Bou-Nahra, Pius Heinz, Anton Makiievskyi and Sam Holden are all likely on their way to Las Vegas or already there.

The last time all nine players were at the same table was back on July 18 when John Hewitt was finally ousted in 10th place by O’Dea after a four hour final table bubble.

The past three months have seen almost every player in the November Nine active on the live tournament scene, especially at the World Series of Poker Europe. 

Preparing for November with Big Tournament Scores

November Niners have historically done very well at the WSOPE as Ivan Demidov (2008), Antoine Saout (2009) and James Akenhead (2009) have all made the European Main Event final table.

This year’s group wasn’t quite as prominent but there have been several success stories.

Texan Matt Giannetti was perhaps the most impressive as he outlasted 240 players to win WPT Malta for $276k. We just posted a Giannetti interview to get caught up on his last few months.

By next week one of these players will be a world champion.

 

Eoghan O’Dea made the final table of the €5k Pot-Limit Omaha event at the WSOPE. He finished ninth for €21,221.

Ukrainian Anton Makiievskyi finished 19th in a relatively small €3,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em Shootout side event at EPT Barcelona for €6,913.

Meanwhile Ben Lamb and online poker stud Phil “USCphildo” Collins, arguably the two most well-known players at the final table, haven’t cashed since this summer but it certainly wasn’t for lack of trying as both were very active at the WSOPE.

Lamb actually wrapped up the 2011 WSOP Player of the Year race, despite not cashing. Phil Hellmuth snagged a sevent-place finish at the WSOPE but it wasn’t enough to catch Lamb.

Now the 2011 November Nine will set their sights on the big show with an $8.7 million first place prize still up for grabs.

Plot Thickens at November Final Table

There are numerous compelling storylines at the final table but perhaps none are bigger than Ben Lamb who can top off one of the biggest WSOP runs in history by taking down poker’s ultimate prize.

Phil Collins, Eoghan O’Dea and Matt Gianetti also command respect from elite players in the poker world.

This is what the final table looked like in 2010.

 

The final table is also the most international ever and Martin Staszko (Czech Republic) Anton Makiievskyi (Ukraine), Badih Bou-Nahra (Belize) and Pius Heinz (Germany) are all looking to become the first World Champion from their respective countries.

Finally Sam Holden will look to keep the English invasion going and fight back from the short stack to win it all. It doesn't help that it's one of the toughest final tables ever according to a recent interview we did with Holden.

The action begins on Sunday at 11:30 a.m. and the plan is to play all the way down to the final three players. There will then be a one-day recess with a winner to be crowned on Tuesday. 

For the first time ever ESPN2 will televise every hand of the final table. Player’s hole cards will be shown on a 15-minute delay. On Tuesday the action will switch to ESPN, where, once again, action will be shown live, with a 15-minute delay.

PokerListings will also be on hand for the prestigious event and we’ll be firing out news, live updates and photos as fast as you can refresh the page.

Here’s a look at the chip counts heading into the final table. Click on a player to check their profile on PokerListings.com.

1. Martin Staszko – 40,175,000 2. Eoghan O’Dea – 33,925,000 3. Matt Gianetti – 24,750,000 4. Phil Collins – 23,875,000 5. Ben Lamb – 20,875,000 6. Badih Bou-Nahra – 19,700,000 7. Pius Heinz – 16,425,000 8. Anton Makiievskyi – 13,825,000 9. Sam Holden – 12,375,000