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The Return to Vegas, Part 3

I've been waiting a while to write this next blog entry about my experience at the WSOP. The whole event still has yet to fully sink in.

The day of the final table of the Main Event of the 2006 World Series of Poker was exciting. There was this great sense of anticipation, a buzzing in the halls of the Wynn. Seating at the World Series is extremely limited, so people were lining up early on. I used my press pass to push through to the media bleachers, where I would spend the first few hours of the World Series chatting with an Englishman representing 888.com. He talked about the stresses of the World Series, having to travel to the United States and deal with Customs when the very legality of your business is in question. Like much of Vegas, he seemed to be a contradiction - loving the game but hating what it's become. It was one of the more sane, honest, and enjoyable conversations I had in Vegas.

Much was made of Paul's cheering section, and it truly was the loudest and rowdiest. There were times when it felt like the outcome of a hand depended only upon how loudly we shouted. I won't try to go into detail about the hands. I honestly don't remember them, and you can find coverage of them online or in the constant reruns on ESPN. But Paul kept hanging in there. And then finally it came down to two. And at some point it felt like reality had swung away and that there was nothing else going on in the world. Paul came in second. Second place in the main event of the 2006 World Series of Poker. For six point one million dollars.