Check-Behind !?
No, we're not talking about the former PokerStrategy blog, but the stunner on the first day of the $10,000 Pot Limit Hold'em event of the WSOP 2008, when Jan van Halle played a royal flush check-behind on turn and river.
You don't get a royal flush that often and especially not at the World Series of Poker. Jan van Halle
had this luck on the first day of the WSOP, but didn't realize it. Jan raised pre-flop from the button with a pot-size bet, Kathy Liebert
(SB) called and Allen Cunningham (BB) folded. The flop came with 
. Kathy checked to Jan who raised about 2/3 of the pot and Kathy called. The turn brought the 
and Kathy checked to Jan who also only checked. The river was a blank and both checked again. Jan flipped over his »Straight« (as he thought) and must have had the scare of his life when he saw that he had the needed 
for the royal flush.
The aftermath was a huge buzz, the floorman was called and warned Jan as it is not allowed to play check-behind on the river with the absolute nuts, to avoid collusion. By his own admission it was Jan's »most embarrasing move«
of his poker career and he got nothing but scorn and derision after his feat. Irony of the day: It was Kathy Liebert who eliminated Jan from the tournament later on with pocket kings.
Texas Dolly launches the Tourney
None other than Doyle Brunson had the honour of opening the first tournament of the WSOP with the famous words »shuffle up and deal«. 351 further players heeded his call for a sensational kick-off to the Series. The prize pool adds up to an impressive $3,308,800, first place receives $794,112.
Parade of Stars
The list of stars is so long that one cannot count them anymore. Besides Doyle Brunson, also David Benyamine, Humberto
Brenes, Chad Brown, Freddy Deeb, Eli Elezra, Antonio Esfandiari, Chris
Ferguson, Barry Greenstein, Gavin Griffin, Jennifer Harman, Phil Ivey,
Alex Kravchenko, Dario Minieri, Sorel Mizzi, Daniel Negreanu, David
Pham, Vanessa Rousso and Lee Watkinson, countless other pros were sitting down at the tables.
Some Germans are also participating
Besides the numerous international stars, some German pros also gathered in the Rio Hotel and Casino, not wanting to miss the chance for the first bracelet of this year's WSOP. Apart from the unlucky fellow Jan van Halle, also Sasa Biorac, Andreas
Krause, Markus Lehmann, Katja Thater and the Austrian Markus Golser
paid for their ticket.
Only 70 Players in Day 2
Where wood is chopped, splinters must fall, and thus only 70 players survived the first day. Amongst the victims were, of course, also some pros. Shannon Elizabeth, for example, lost twice with pocket aces against threes of a kind for her opponents and had to join the rails. Doyle Brunson bet everything on a flush draw with overcards and had to leave his seat as well.
Chip leader of the day is the American Eli Elezra, who finished with 302,000 chips. Elezra won his first bracelet last year when he was able to win the $3,000 World
Championship Seven Card Stud Hi-Low Split-8 or Better event.
Amongst the German participants, only Andreas Krause survived the first day and will rejoin the tables in the Rio today.
Origin of photo material: WSOP
