History of the WSOPE

The history of the WSOPE is a short and succinct one as it was only officially launched just over a year ago but if it proves to be as successful as the ‘Big Daddy’ of poker tournaments, the celebrated WSOP, all that will change in the very near future!

London Leg Attracts the Crowds

The first edition of Europe’s inaugural mixed event poker tour took place at one of Harrah’s newly acquired London properties, The Casino at The Empire in Leicester Square and participants had three events to choose from including the No Limit Texas Holdem main event. Over 620 entrants from all over the globe took to the felt tables in an attempt to claim their slice of a total prize pool valued at over £4.5 million!

The maiden schedule of the WSOPE reflected the variants of poker that have grown in reputation and popularity in recent years with H.O.R.S.E, Omaha and Texas Holdem as the mainstays. The mixed H.O.R.S.E event has recently been elevated to World Championship status at the WSOP and enjoys the same eminence at the European counterpart. It has been mooted that mixed events like H.O.R.S.E will determine the World Poker Champion in the future at the expense of Texas Holdem simply because a proficient poker player should be accomplished in all forms of poker.

WSOPE 2007 Results

Event 1 - £2500 World Championship H.O.R.S.E 105 Entrants Prize Pool - £262 500

  1. Thomas Bihl – £70 875
  2. Jennifer Harman-Traniello – £40 688
  3. Kirk Morrison – £26 250
  4. Chris Ferguson – £21 700
  5. Alexander Kravchenko – £17 850
  6. Yuval Bronshtein – £14 438
  7. Joe Beevers – £11 812
  8. Gary Jones – £9 188
  9. Jan Sorensen – £7 219

Germany’s Thomas Bihl became the first person outside of Las Vegas to be awarded a WSOP bracelet when he outplayed a formidable field and then went on to blast two-time bracelet winner, Jennifer Harman, right out of the water in the heads-up encounter.

Just over 100 combatants took to the tables and some of the big names included Hendon Mobsters, Barney Boatman, who finished 12th and Joe Beevers who made it to the final table, John Juanda, winner of the Crown Australian Poker Championship speed poker event, who claimed 14th position and one of the real poker celebrities, Chris ‘Jesus’ Ferguson, who ended the event at number 4.

Event 2 - £5000 Pot Limit Omaha 156 Entrants Prize Pool - $779 400

  1. Dario Alioto – £234 390
  2. Istvan Novak – £137 280
  3. ‘Tony G’ Guoga – £94 380
  4. Daniel Callaghan – £65 520
  5. Antoine Arnault – £49 530
  6. Sherkhan Farnood –£ 38 220
  7. Sampo Lopponen – £30 420
  8. Andrew Bloch – £ 22 020
  9. Joe Razaghi - £16 380

Italian, Dario Alioto, was clearly elated with his first ‘big tour’ win at the 2007 WSOPE. He had to battle it out with some very fine poker players including BAPT Singapore champion, Tony G and popular American pro, Andy Bloch. The Pot Limit Omaha event attracted some stellar performers including Greg Raymer, leading bracelet winner, Phil Hellmuth, Johnny Chan and the legendary Doyle Brunson.

Event 3 - £10 000 World Championship No Limit Holdem Main Event 362 Entrants Prize Pool - $3 620 000

  1. Annette Obrestad – £1 000 000
  2. ohn Tabatabai – £570 150
  3. Matthew McCullogh – £381 910
  4. Oyvind Riisem – £257 020
  5. Johannes Korsar – £191 860
  6. Dominic Kay – £152 040
  7. Magnus Persson –£ 114 030
  8. Theo Jorgensen – £85 070
  9. James Keys - £61 540

Norway’s Annette Obrestad became the youngest-ever bracelet winner, at 19, when she outplayed a field, including the cream of the international poker circuit, for the World Championship main event title. The culmination of the heads-up couldn’t have been scripted better for the juvenile gambler – she moved all-in when the flop showed 7c-6c-5h and her final opponent, Tabatabai called. Obrestad had pocket sevens for a set, cancelling out her rivals 6-5 for a low two pair!

WSOPE 2008 Schedule

A second, cheaper No Limit Holdem event has been added to the 2008 WSOPE schedule and this reflects the significance of Texas Holdem both in the States and in Europe. The current schedule is as follows:

  • 19 September 2008 - Event 1 - £1500 No Limit Holdem (3 Day Event)
  • 22 September 2008 – Event 2 - £2500 HORSE (3 Day Event)
  • 24 September 2008 – Event 3 - £5000 Pot Limit Omaha (3 Day Event)
  • 27 September 2008 – Event 4 - £10 000 World Championship No Limit Holdem (5 Day Event)