The 2011 WSOP gets under way

That's right. What used to be a single tournament that took a couple of days back in the early 1970's has sprawled in to a massive, some might say bloated, extravaganza that now includes fifty eight separate events culminating in the main event, which doesn't start until July (no that's not a typo; July not June) 7th. As the WSOP has gotten bigger, it is hard not to argue that having so many events is diluting the mystique somewhat. Can earning a WSOP bracelet be considered the ultimate poker achievement when they are handing out fifty two of them in a year?

Some events are considered more prestigious than others. The main event has always been considered, well, the main event. A couple months ago I had written four posts on the main event from 1971-2000 ( 1971-1981, 1982-1991, 1992-1997, 1998-2000) because I knowing about the history of the main event was integral to having a basic knowledge of poker history. Then I petered out...interestingly I stopped writing about the main event just at the point in it's history when it began to be won by people who were previously unknowns in the poker world. Amateurs and unknowns make up the vast majority of the massive numbers of competitors in the main event, making it statistically unlikely that a well known celebrity player will win the big one.

Because of this, many poker snobs see the main event as a circus and claim that the winner of the event called "The Poker Player's Championship", a five-day event starting July 2nd, crowns the true champion. One reason this tournament is considered a tougher test is that instead of just playing the ubiquitous No-Limit Texas Hold 'Em, players are required to play a number of different forms of poker in rotation: Limit Hold'em, Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better, Seven Card Razz , Seven Card Stud, Seven Card Stud Hi-Low Split-8 or Better, No-Limit Hold'em, Pot-Limit Omaha and 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball . Obviously only extremely serious players are going to be skilled at all these different forms of poker; I don't even know what 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball is! And just as obviously this not a tournament that an average person could follow on television without getting confused. So for the great unwashed masses, the main event remains the ultimate tournament.

I will try to complete my little summation of the WSOP main event before the 2011 main event gets under way. With over a month, I should have no problem.