2011 WCOOP in Full Swing - A Recap
With 5 events of the scheduled 62 gone, the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) is now in full swing. Here's a recap of how the action has played out so far.
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| $100k cash - Tobias "Pokernoob" Reinkemeier |
A Brief History
The 2011 WCOOP may have been dashed somewhat by the absence of the US market, but the month long online poker festival still boasts a guaranteed prize pool of $30 million.
With the precarious Full Tilt Poker situation meaning the disbandment of the FTOP's, the WCOOP has cemented its status as the number one online poker series. The WCOOP has grown rapidly since its 2002 inception, however this year's withdrawal of US players will mean smaller fields.
The WCOOP is a hunting ground for pros as well as amateurs - past WCOOP event winners include ElkY, David Williams, Alexander Kravchenko and J.C. Tran. In 2009, Ukrainian sensation Yevgeniy "Jovial Gent" Timoshenko scooped victory in the $5,200 Main Event to the tune of $1,715,200.
Events So Far
WCOOP proceedings kicked off with the $215 6-max NLH. 7,900 players took to the virtual felt, with "LOL_U_91" of Belgium prevailing to clinch the $211,000 first prize. Glamorous PokerStars pro and media figure Liv Boeree finished a respectable 18th for $9k.
One of the festival's several flagship events was next - the $10,300 NLH High Roller. 200 players forked out the buy-in, and it was "DYBYDX" from the UK who secured the $430k first prize.
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| Liv is also playing |
PokerStrategist Tobias pokernoob Reinkemeier came 6th for $100k, in a final table that also included Tom "Kingsofcards" Marchese. Australian WSOP Main Event champion Joe Hachem was another notable name to cash, finishing in 24th for $20k.
"K_O_S_T_Y_A" bested a field of over 10,000 players to claim a $288k victory in Event 3, the $215 NLH. "Bratpack1979" ran away winner in Event 4, the $320 PLO, for $83k. Event 5, the 6-max $320 NLH Shootout, was won by British player "Mossop7".
Still to Come
With 57 events remaining, there's still plenty of life left in the 2011 WCOOP. Round the clock satellites run from as low as $0.91+$0.09 and 25 FPP.
Marquee events include the $10,300 8-Game High Roller on September 25, and the $5,200 Main Event on the same day. The WCOOP Main Event guarantees a $5 million prize pool, with $1 million set aside for the winner.
You can visit the PokerStars WCOOP home page for more details here.
From September 7-27, PokerStars will be holding a live radio show to celebrate the WCOOP season. It is a daily broadcast produced in four languages - English, Spanish, Russian and German.
The focus will be on interaction with listeners, who are invited to call in and voice their opinions. The Big Game host Joe Stapleton will be hosting the English broadcast, alongisde Nick Wealthall. For more information, click here.
