Ivan Demidov made it to the WSOP and WSOPE Main Event Final Tables in 2008

The World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE) is the first expansion effort of World Series of Poker-branded poker tournaments outside the United States. Since 1970, participants have had to travel to Las Vegas if they wanted to compete in the World Series of Poker (WSOP). Although the WSOP held circuit events in other locations, the main tournaments, which awarded bracelets to the winners, were exclusively held in Las Vegas. The inaugural WSOPE, held in 2007, marked the first time that a WSOP bracelet was awarded outside Las Vegas.[1]

In 2004, Harrah's Casinos purchased the rights to the WSOP label. Harrah's later purchased London Clubs International (LCI). LCI operates three casinos in the London area—Fifty, Leicester Square, and The Sportsman. After the purchase of these casinos, Harrah's decided to expand its WSOP label into Europe.[2] European casinos typically have a different environment than those in the U.S.[2] Jeffrey Pollack, the WSOP Commissioner, indicated that the WSOPE would have a "style and flair that is both unique and appropriate to the setting. So don't be surprised if we require participants to wear blazers at the tables. If James Bond were hosting a poker tournament it may look like the World Series of Poker Europe."[2]

In marketing the WSOPE, Harrah's Casino did not rely upon the reputation of Harrah's or the WSOP alone. On July 5, 2007, Harrah's announced its alliance with England-based Betfair, one of the largest online gaming companies in the world. The agreement, the largest-ever union of an online and offline gaming company, is intended to build on Betfair's European reputation in advertising the WSOPE.[3] Due to changes in U.S. laws, effective in 2007, the WSOP could no longer accept money from online gambling companies. This prevented the WSOP from acknowledging WSOP qualifiers from online events. The WSOPE is not bound by this limitation. The United Kingdom Gambling Act of 2005 allows for legal regulated online poker sites.[4] Furthermore, as the laws that govern the age of gambling differ in England than the U.S., the WSOPE admits younger players. In 2007, one of these younger players, 18-year-old Annette "Annette_15" Obrestad became the youngest player to win a WSOP bracelet event.[5]

The second WSOPE took place between September 19 and October 1, 2008. It consisted of four events held at the Casino at the Empire in Leicester Square, London. The 2008 WSOPE was particularly notable, as Jesper Hougaard became the first person to win a bracelet at both the WSOP and WSOPE. Three-time bracelet winner John Juanda won his fourth bracelet in the WSOPE Main Event. Ivan Demidov, who was one of the November Nine—players scheduled to play in November for the WSOP Main Event—advanced to the final table of the WSOPE, becoming the first player to make it to the final table at both the WSOP and WSOPE Main Events.[6]

Key

* Elected to the Poker Hall of Fame
(#/#) This denotes a bracelet winner. The first number is the number of bracelets won in 2008. The second number is the total number of bracelets won. Both numbers represent totals as of that point during the tournament.
Place What place each player at the final table finished
Name The player who made it to the final table
Prize (£) The amount of money, in British Pounds (£), awarded for each finish at the event's final table

Results

Event 1: £1,500 No-Limit Hold'em

Hougaard after winning his first WSOP Bracelet in 2008
Final Table
Place Name Prize
1st Jesper Hougaard (2/2) £144,218
2nd Fuad Serhan £89,175
3rd Yevgeniy Timoshenko £55,350
4th Neil Channing £44,588
5th John Dwyer £36,285
6th Adam Junglen £28,598
7th Linda Lee £22,448
8th Ian Woodley £17,835
9th Daniel Nutt £13,222

Event 2: £2,500 H.O.R.S.E.

Final Table
Place Name Prize
1st Sherkhan Farnood (1/1) £76,999
2nd Ivo Donev (0/1) £48,125
3rd Howard Lederer (0/2) £30,250
4th Jeff Duvall £22,000
5th Mark Gregorich £17,188
6th Phil Ivey (0/7) £13,750
7th Jeff Lisandro (0/4) £11,000
8th Spencer Lawrence £8,938

Event 3: £5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha

Final Table
Place Name Prize
1st Theo Jørgensen (1/1) £218,626
2nd Sorel Mizzi £132,000
3rd Eric Dalby £84,562
4th Erik Friberg £66,000
5th Max Pescatori (1/2) £51,562
6th David Penly £41,250
7th Chris Ferguson (0/5) £33,000
8th Jason Mercier £26,812
9th Tomi Nyback £22,688

Event 4: £10,000 No-Limit Hold'em Main Event

Juanda at the 2008 World Series of Poker
Final Table
Place Name Prize
1st John Juanda (1/4) £868,800
2nd Stanislav Alekhin £533,950
3rd Ivan Demidov £334,850
4th Bengt Sonnert £271,500
5th Daniel Negreanu (1/4) £217,200
6th Scott Fischman (0/2) £171,950
7th Robin Keston £135,750
8th Toni Hiltunen £108,600
9th Chris Elliott £81,450

The final table took a WSOP record 22 hours to finish. Heads up between John Juanda and Stanislav Alekhin took more than seven hours of play, another WSOP record. It took 242 hands to eliminate the first seven players and it took another 242 hands heads up before Juanda secured the win.[15]

Ivan Demidov finished third, becoming the first player to make the final table at both the WSOP and WSOPE Main Events.[6]

References

  1. ^ "Harrah's Set to Launch World Series of Poker Europe". Gaming Business. 2007-02-27. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2007-07-25.
  2. ^ a b c Warner, Eric (2007-02-27). "Stay classy, London: Jeffrey Pollack on the World Series of Poker Europe". Pokerlistings.com. Poker Listings. Archived from the original on 2009-05-30. Retrieved 2007-07-27.
  3. ^ "Harrah's Selects Betfair.com as 'Presenting Sponsor' of World Series of Poker Europe". PRweb.com. PRweb. 2007-07-05. Archived from the original on June 19, 2008. Retrieved 2009-02-08.
  4. ^ World Series of Poker (WSOP) Comes to Europe This Fall Archived 2009-02-19 at the Wayback Machine February 27, 2007. Pokerpages.com. Accessed 2007-07-25
  5. ^ "£10,000 NLHE, Final Table: Annette Obrestad Makes History". Pokernews.com. Archived from the original on 30 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-09.
  6. ^ a b Bradley, Lance (2008-10-02). "WSOPE: Ivan Demidov Makes Historic Double Final Table Appearance". BluffMagazine. Archived from the original on 2011-07-08. Retrieved 2009-02-08.
  7. ^ The results from the 2008 WSOP can be found on numerous websites. The ones utilized in compiling this list are:
    "No-Limit Hold'em (Event 1)". World Series of Poker. Harrah’s Entertainment. Archived from the original on 28 February 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-08.
  8. ^ Carter, Barry (2008-09-23). "Hougaard wins WSOPE Opener, WCOOP Main Event Result and more". Poker News. Retrieved 2009-02-08.
  9. ^ The results from the 2008 WSOP can be found on numerous websites. The ones utilized in compiling this list are:
    "H.O.R.S.E. (Event 2)". World Series of Poker. Harrah’s Entertainment. Archived from the original on 31 January 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-08.
  10. ^ Hartness, John (2008-09-07). "WSOPE, Event 1 - £2,500 HORSE: Kirk Morrison Grabs Early Lead". Official Live Update at Pokernews.com. Poker News. Retrieved 2009-02-08.
  11. ^ The results from the 2008 WSOP can be found on numerous websites. The ones utilized in compiling this list are:
    "Pot Limit Omaha (Event 3)". World Series of Poker. Harrah’s Entertainment. Archived from the original on 31 January 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-08.
  12. ^ "Event 3, Pot-Limit Omaha Live Updateslisting.com". Poker Listings. Archived from the original on 2009-03-27. Retrieved 2009-02-08.
  13. ^ The results from the 2008 WSOP can be found on numerous websites. The ones utilized in compiling this list are:
    "WSOP Europe Main Event No-Limit Texas Hold'em (Event 4)". World Series of Poker. Harrah’s Entertainment. Archived from the original on 31 January 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-08.
  14. ^ "Pot Limit Omaha (Event 3)". Pokerlistings.com. Poker Listing. Archived from the original on 26 December 2008. Retrieved 2009-01-25.
  15. ^ "WSOPE £10,000 NLHE Main Event, Final Table: John Juanda Triumphant in Record-setting Marathon". PokerNews. 2008-10-03. Archived from the original on 2009-06-02. Retrieved 2009-05-01.

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