Kevin Schaffel in the final 6 of World Poker Tour Legends

Kevin Schaffel was of the view that it all seems like a dream who looks like have matched Ivan Demidov’s achievement i.e. making to the WSOPE main event final table. He added that he just happen to face one of my nastiest streaks in his poker career commencing in the month of January. To face these two things continuously was just unfeasible for him. He is very keen to enter the next tournament and observe if he is capable of reaching the final table.

In Los Angeles Begleiter whose name is also included in November Nine, enjoyed the lead in the first two days but he finished at 9th position. Schaffel said that right now he is concentrating on what he has currently rather than thinking about November. He said that he has at least four players with decent chips than him and the whole story of the table will not be the same. He can be a little antagonistic with the players having short stacks in the Main Event as they are not in a position of knocking him out as the other players with high stacks can do.

This year at Borgata Winter Open main event Todd Terry finished off at second place and he is just short by 10k from Schaffel’s 2,219,000 chips stack. He is feeling good about his game. He made a comment that he is not repenting on the decisions he has made and he is really excited about it. He added that it is been a while that he has been playing WPT and he knows that he is not good at it. He has never cashed even once. Behind the two chip leaders is Prahlad Friedman who has two deep runs in 2006 and 2009 WSOP Main Event. He is an expert in online cash games.

He is just concentrating on making money and that is his job and he is not assuming that he has made WPT final table. He is just concentrating on the opportunity of winning million. Next on the players on the list is Mike Krescanko with two WSOP Stud final tables. Following Mike is Sam Stein who is positioned at ninth position at WPT Bellagion Cup. Sam said that it is good to be on television and to be noticed amongst the people and he is quite happy. He said that he is aware of his position and he is making desperate attempts to register a win.

Adding to the final six players is Toto Leonidas. He is a Full Tilt expert and his career earning is three million dollars and he is joining others to make their first appearance at WPT final table. Previously he has been removed in different WPT tournaments. He has also different close encounters but this surely feels good. The live action will be broadcasted at 4 p.m. PT and the cash prize of $1,009,000 is given whosoever comes at first place.

James Akenhead : From a Train conductor to playing poker

James Akenhead, 25 years old British, has two WSOP cashes to his credit. During WSOP 2008 in $1,500 buy-in No Limit Hold’em, he finished as a runner up for $520,000. He also finished 39th in £1,500 buy-in No Limit Hold’em event, which was a part of European celebrations in London. James worked as Train Conductor earlier and now he is trying to become famous on the Poker scene. At the age of 20, he started playing Poker casually and today, he is a professional Poker player.

James plays regularly on Grosvenor U.K. Poker Tour and he finished at 4th position in 888.com U.K. Open in the year 2008. He is one of the famous players of Britain, as he joins famous names like David Ulliott, John gale, Liv Boeree, and Roland de Wolfe. In 2007, James won $1,000 poker tournament in buy-in tournament for $41,000, at Bellagio Cup. Since then he has also cashed in France, America, Germany, and Ireland etc. He will be joining Phil Ivey who is seven-time WSOP bracelet winner, at the final table of Main Event 2009.

Two other players who will be making to the table are Eric Buchman and Steven Begleiter, sponsored by Full Tilt Poker. At Main Event final table 2009, James is one of the two non-American players who will be joining Antoine Saout.

Sunny Chattha, James Akenhead, Chaz Chattha, Karl Mahrenholz, and Praz Bansi are the members of Hit Squad. When James joined the new squad of November Nine, Chattha made a remark on the website of Hit Squad that now we all will have a good time and we will surely enjoy.

Antoine Saout : The Russian Warrior

Saout is a Frenchman hailing from Saint Martin des Champs, France. He is 25 years old and he started playing Poker only year and a half ago. He is one of the only two players from Europe to be selected in WSOP November Nine, and has signed up with Everest Poker.

Saout won his seat at WSOP Main Event 2009 through $50 satellite at Everest Poker and they are now his sponsors. He carved his way through the field of 6,494 players and the best part is that he achieved all this without any prior training or experience. The Frenchman did faced tribulations to make his way to November Nine. He sat next to one of the most famous poker player, Phil Ivey for the tournament’s final three days. For these three days, Saout probably must have noticed all his moves, which will probably help in facing him at Las Vegas soon this year.

At WSOP final table, Saout has to rise above the considerable shortage. He has merely 9.5 million chip stacks and is the second player with smallest stack, with James Akenhead having the smallest chip stack along with 6.8 million. The player with highest chip stack is Darvin Moon along with 58.93 million.

Although, Saout hasn’t won any previous cashes and has no live tournament experience, he has an opportunity to become famous if he wins WSOP Championship Bracelet 2009.

In just a period of eighteen months, Saout has begun playing the world’s most famous game i.e. Poker. He won himself a WSOP seat, has conquered more than 6,400 players, and now, has successfully made his place in November Nine.

Kevin Schaffel : The budding poker world champion

A semi-professional poker player, Kevin Schaffel is from Coral Springs, Florida and on November 7, he will be seated in the sixth place, along with 12,390,000 chips, at the WSOP Main Event final table 2009.

He is supported by PokerStars and for him, Seminole Hard Rock Casino, in Hollywood, Florida, is his home casino. It is his exceptional contribution to World Series of Poker 2009, which makes him different from other American players.

A father if two, Kevin is 51 years old. He used to own different businesses before making Poker his passion and being a contender at World Series of Poker 2009. Unfortunately, in the year 2006, after suffering a heavy loss in his business of direct mail and printing, he had to close his business. This is when he started giving more attention towards the Poker tournaments. Though Kevin is not famous amongst the Poker community, he has surely had considerable amount of success in WSOP Championship Event.

Kevin should not be mistaken for a first-timer, as in the year 2004 Main Event, he finished 42nd from 2,800 players. In the year 2008, he cashed in the 2008 WSOP Main Event, 2 World Poker Tour events, and a European Poker Tour event.

Kevin was very influenced by the two things said by women’s tennis sensation Serena Williams, which he believes helped him reach the WSOP Main Event 2009. Serena had said that the two things which had helped her in the difficult situations are- calm and endurance.

Kevin kept these two things in his mind while playing his game of Poker, and has played fairly well so far and has entered the list of 9 finalists. He is the player to look out for when all November Nine will be seated together, and will decide who will be the next World Champion of Poker.

Phil Ivey : Tiger Woods of Poker

The name of Phil Ivey is quite famous in the Poker community and in the first glance, anyone would think of him to be quite young for playing Poker professionally. There is no doubt that there are so many young poker players, but he has something that differentiates him from other players. He has made a big name in both cash games and tournaments. He is quite calm and concentrated while playing and once he begins playing, one is totally drawn towards his game. Phil is one player who has been victorious in the WSOP main event game along with other tournaments winnings.

33 year old, Phil is from Riverside, California, and was just three years old when his family moved to New Jersey and during his teens, instead of playing Poker just for fun, he took the game seriously. His grandfather taught him Five Card Stud and after that, Phil never looked back. This is how he developed passion for the game of Poker. Along with the cards, he has a passion for video games as well.

He was an active participant in the Poker games organized by his friend’s father. Every single time on the table, he proved that he is better than any one else. He is constantly working towards making himself better and better and this is the reason he is one of the great players of Poker today.

Joe Cada : Youngest main-event champ in history

Joe Cada, a young poker player from Shelby Township, Michigan, showed major interest in becoming professional player soon after he started attending classes at Macomb Community College.

In World Series of Poker 2009, he survived 6,494 players guaranteeing himself a payday of $1,263,602. This tournament will conclude on November 10th and now, Joe only has one motive, which is winning the first prize of $8,546,435 and a shining golden bracelet.

Even though Joe prefers playing cash games, at an age of 21 years, he got a chance to play his first World Series of Poker this year. Even before the Main Event, Joe has managed to cash twice taking 17th in Event 34 ($1,500 No Limit Hold’em) for $21,533, and 64th in Event 13th ($2500 No Limit Hold’em) for $6,681. One time amongst the chip leaders of Event 34, he got eliminated by Bertrand Grospellier, a PokerStars Team specialist, who got two-outer on the river to defeat him.

At the end of Day 1C of Main Event as the chip leader, Joe had told his fellow player Justin Pechie that he believed he was getting his winning touch back.

At his table, Joe was considered the most energetic player and he even re-raised at Phil quite a few times. With 13,215,000 chips, Joe will be entering November’s final table at fifth position. Joe Cada will enter Poker history if he takes his seat as a part of November Nine on November 7th, 2009.

Jeff Shulman : A Born Poker star

Jeff is the Editor of CardPlayer Magazine and lives in Las Vegas (Sin City), Nevada. His love for Poker made his gaming interest boom at the age of 25, when he came at seventh position in World Series of Poker 2000 Main Event, making a win worth $146,000. Today, Jeff is member of 2009 WSOP Main Event’s “November Nine”.

Jeff Shulman has been in news recently for all the wrong reasons! In the month of July, following the final exclusion of Main Event, Jeff initiated a debate by saying that if he won, then he would probably be discarding the golden bracelet instead of wearing it! He has also been saying that he is not happy at all with the management of WSOP and the way the players are treated.

These comments by Jeff have sent waves in the gambling industry. Some have asked why Jeff has joined the tournament and others have inquired whether he should go back to Main Event’s final table in Rio. It was in the year 2005 when Jeff made last table appearance at WSOP where he finished at seventh position with Five Thousand dollars Buy-In Limit Hold’em tournament for Fifty Thousand dollars. He finished at 12th position in Season III WPT Championship where he took home $94,000.
The casual gaming attitude of Shulman’s is quite opposite to many Poker players. When Jeff was asked if this really helps him, he replied that he felt like he is on Adderall and others are on Xanax.

Barry Shulman (owner of CardPlayer and Jeff’s father) is quite famous in the gambling industry as well. CardPlayer is recognized as the foremost Poker magazine and has over ten thousand subscribers. They also have CardPlayer Europe besides their American version, which distributes more than ten thousand copies in over twenty countries. CardPlayer also cover top tournaments which comprises of WPT events.

Steven Begleiter : An ardent Poker player

Working with Flexpoint Ford (Investment Company), in New York City, as a Senior Principal, Steven Begleiter is surely taking home some extra money with his excellent game play at the Word Series of Poker Main Event 2009.

Steven is extremely focused on his career, and a true Poker lover, who loves to play Poker with his friends at any local home game. It was in one such local Poker game event that Steven won and made place for himself in the WSOP Main Event. He won a poker league, which paid for his $10,000 WSOP seat.

Steven has been heard saying in many of his interviews that his place in the Main Event has been quiet a difficult task, having survived the field of 6,494 to secure his place in “November Nine” which assures the players a minimum payout of $1,263,602. Steven currently stands at third position with 29,885,000 chips despite the fact that he has never cashed in on WSOP event before, which is why he is all set to give in his best in winning his first ever WSOP gold bracelet and prize money of $8,546,435.

Once the tournament is over, Steven would be best remembered for his cheer group who cheered him throughout the last two days of July’s Main Event. Whenever he used to win a pot, his cheering team used to start cheering his name.

Steven believes that while playing at the WSOP Main Event, he has been fortunate enough a lot many times. However, so far, he is quite satisfied with his game play and is anticipating to be playing with the other 8 players for the title of Poker World Champion.

Eric Buchman – The New York Pro

Eric is professional Poker player from Valley Stream, New York. Playing Poker like a pro, Eric has been participating in live Poker tournaments since 2002 and has earned nearly $1million till now, from various live Poker events. With his amazing game play, Eric has earned a well-deserved chance of playing at the final table of WSOP Main Event 2009, having won a chip stack of 34.8 million.

Before the Main Event 2009, Eric’s noteworthy results included a win at New England Poker Classic 2004 where he won $275,400 cash prize, second position at $1,500 Limit Hold’em Bracelet event in the WSOP 2006, with $174,938 cash prize, as well, as a Runners-up attempt in WSOP Circuit for $5000 buy-in Main Event. All this and more has made Eric attain the position of the third most promising player at the Final table of the WSOP 2009 event, after Phil Ivey and Jeff Shulman.

Day 7 of Main Event saw Eric caught up in one of the most exciting hands at his Poker game. Soon after the dinner break, along with the blinds $50,000-$10,000 and $10,000 bet, Eric chose for the usual opening raise and opted to move All-In with Ace-10 of hearts, for over 3 million. However, he was unsuccessful in his attempt as Jonathan made a stand along with a pair of Jacks.

With the flush coming down with the ideal 9-7-2 that provided him with the Nut flush and double equal to 6 million chips, Eric then didn’t look back, ending the Day 7 with more than ten million. On Day 8, with his family support and with years of experience, he successfully tripled his stacks by the end of the play, without facing any major competition.

In the month of November, when the final table is resumed, undoubtedly Eric will be equipped with his best Poker moves along with the chips, which make him a strong competitor for WSOP Main Event 2009 bracelet.

Darwin Moon - From Logger to a Chip Leader

On July 15th, Darwin Moon was named one of the famous “November Nine” players, to play at WSOP Main Event’s final table later this year, after having proved his Poker skills in the WSOP Main Event as a Chip Leader with 58.93 million chips.

A native of Oakland, Darwin Moon is a Logger by profession and a Poker player by interest. In Maryland, he used to play in the fund raising tournaments for the fire department and for other charitable reasons. He never knew that the poker would one day take him to the Main Even of WSOP 2009.
His grandfather used to play with Moon when he was a young boy. During those days, he loved playing 7 Card Stud.
Moon is not like other entrants to WSOP. Actually, he has never cared about winning lot of money or earning fame. Just getting a chance of playing in one of the major tournaments of the year was a big enough reason for him to be happy.

In Wheeling, West Virginia, Moon took part in $130 Buy-In tournament and came out as a winner. He had two choices at that time, either to take the winning amount of $10,000 or the Buy-In for Main Event of WSOP 2009. In his family, everybody had different opinion, with his father wanting him to gather the money, his wife leaving the decision to him, and his brother, who was supportive and encouraged him to continue playing.

Darwin Moon then decided to take his chances at WSOP and has been since, been successful in defeating every player who has come in his way. He has a unique playing style and along with his chip stack, he surely looks like a hard player to be pushed from the Number One place.
Currently, Moon is enjoying his position as the Chip leader of “November Nine”.