| Competition: | 2011 World Series of Poker |
| Location: | Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada |
| Dates: | May 31 – July 19 |
| Champion: | Pius Heinz |
| Prev: | 2010 |
| Next: | 2012 |
The 2011 World Series of Poker was the 42nd annual World Series of Poker (WSOP). The WSOP is the most prestigious poker tournament in the world with the winner of the Main Event considered to be the World Champion. It was held at the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada between May 31 – July 19, 2011. There were 59 bracelet events, beginning with the WSOP National Circuit Championship and culminating in the $10,000 No Limit Hold'em Championship (also known as the "Main Event"). The November Nine concept returned for a fourth consecutive year, with the Main Event finalists returning on November 6, playing down to three that evening and then adjourning until November 8.
The 2011 WSOP marked the first time that every event at the WSOP was covered nearly live. Due to the nature of the competition, live coverage was not allowed by the Nevada Gaming Commission. WSOP.com streamed 55 gold bracelet events on a five-minute delay via the internet.[1] ESPN3 streamed the $25K Heads Up, $50K Poker Players Championship and the Main Event online.[1]
ESPN also doubled the airtime given to the WSOP from prior years.[2] For the first time ever, television coverage of the WSOP Main Event was "live" with a 30-minute delay.[3] The "live" coverage of the WSOP Main Event ran for six consecutive days from July 14-19 and offered 32 additional hours of coverage, with Lon McEachern and David Tuchman handling the play-by-play commentary.[4]
Poker PROductions, led by Mori Eskandani, produced the coverage of the 2011 WSOP, with the goal to enact changes that would put poker coverage on par with the coverage delivered for live sports.[5] It was the first year for Poker PROductions producing the WSOP.
The final table of the WSOP Main Event was televised in its entirety on ESPN. As per Nevada Gaming Commission stipulations, play was broadcast with a 15-minute delay and the hole cards were not shown to the television audience until after the hand was over.
Since 1970, the WSOP was held exclusively in Las Vegas, Nevada. In 2004, Harrah's Entertainment purchased the rights to the WSOP and almost immediately started to expand the name brand. After the purchase, Harrah's introduced Circuit Events around the country. These events were intended to build up hype for the WSOP. In 2011, they introduced WSOP Circuit National Championship.
The WSOP Circuit National Championship was an exclusive tournament, limited to 100 players who qualified through the circuit events. The winner of the championship was awarded a WSOP bracelet. The event, which took place from May 27 through May 29, was won by amateur player Sam Barnhart.[6] [7]
Through the first 57 events, the 2011 WSOP:
The Main Event:
| Event | Entrants | Winner | Prize | Runner-up | Results | Reference | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $500 Casino Employees No Limit Hold'em | 850 | Sean Drake | $82,292 | Jason Baker | Results | [9] | |
| 2 | $25,000 Heads Up No Limit Hold'em Championship | 128 | Jake Cody | $851,192 | Yevgeniy Timoshenko | Results | [10] | |
| 3 | $1,500 Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better | 925 | Francesco Barbaro | $262,283 | Kostas Kalathakis | Results | [11] | |
| 4 | $5,000 No Limit Hold'em | 865 | Allen Bari | $874,116 | Maria Ho | Results | [12] | |
| 5 | $1,500 Seven Card Stud | 357 | Eugene Katchalov | $122,909 | Alessio Isaia | Results | [13] | |
| 6 | $1,500 Limit Hold'em | 675 | Harrison Wilder | $205,065 | Thomas Jamieson | Results | [14] | |
| 7 | $10,000 Pot Limit Hold'em Championship | 249 | Amir Lehavot | $573,456 | Jarred Solomon | Results | [15] | |
| 8 | $1,000 No Limit Hold'em | 4,178 | Sean Getzwiller | $611,185 | Sadan Turker | Results | [16] | |
| 9 | $1,500 2-7 Draw Lowball | 275 | Matt Perrins | $102,105 | Chris Bjorin | Results | [17] | |
| 10 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em Six Handed | 1,920 | Geffrey Klein | $544,388 | Eddie Blumenthal | Results | [18] | |
| 11 | $10,000 Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better Championship | 202 | Viacheslav Zhukov | $465,216 | George Lind | Results | [19] | |
| 12 | $1,500 Triple Chance No Limit Hold'em | 1,340 | David Diaz | $352,808 | Anders Meli | Results | [20] | |
| 13 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em Shootout | 1,440 | Andrew Badecker | $369,371 | Robbie Verspui | Results | [21] | |
| 14 | $3,000 Limit Hold'em | 337 | Tyler Bonkowski | $220,817 | Brandon Demes | Results | [22] | |
| 15 | $1,500 Pot Limit Hold'em | 765 | Brian Rast | $227,232 | Allen Kessler | Results | [23] | |
| 16 | $10,000 2-7 Draw Lowball Championship | 126 | John Juanda | $367,170 | Phil Hellmuth | Results | [24] | |
| 17 | $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. | 963 | Aaron Steury | $289,283 | Michael Chow | Results | [25] | |
| 18 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em | 3,157 | Foster Hays | $735,400 | Casey Kelton | Results | [26] | |
| 19 | $2,500 Limit Hold'em Six Handed | 354 | Darren Woods | $213,431 | Stephanie Nguyen | Results | [27] | |
| 20 | $1,000 No Limit Hold'em | 3,175 | Jason Somerville | $493,091 | Yashar Darian | Results | [28] | |
| 21 | $10,000 Seven Card Stud Championship | 126 | Bertrand Grospellier | $331,639 | Steve Landfish | Results | [29] | |
| 22 | $1,500 Pot Limit Omaha | 1,071 | Elie Payan | $292,825 | Rafael Kibrit | Results | [30] | |
| 23 | $2,500 Eight Game Mix | 489 | John Monnette | $278,144 | Eric Buchman | Results | [31] | |
| 24 | $5,000 No Limit Hold'em Shootout | 387 | Mark Radoja | $436,568 | Jeffrey Gross | Results | [32] | |
| 25 | $1,500 Seven Card Stud Hi-Low-8 or Better | 606 | Chris Viox | $200,459 | Mike Sexton | Results | [33] | |
| 26 | $2,500 No Limit Hold'em Six Handed | 1,378 | Oleksii Kovalchuk | $689,739 | Anton Ionel | Results | [34] | |
| 27 | $10,000 Limit Hold'em Championship | 152 | Daniel Idema | $378,642 | Matthew Gallin | Results | [35] | |
| 28 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em | 2,500 | Andy Frankenberger | $599,153 | Joshua Evans | Results | [36] | |
| 29 | $2,500 10-Game Mix Six Handed | 431 | Chris Lee | $254,955 | Brian Haveson | Results | [37] | |
| 30 | $1,000 Seniors No Limit Hold'em Championship | 3,752 | James Hess | $557,435 | Richard Harwood | Results | [38] | |
| 31 | $3,000 Pot Limit Omaha | 685 | Sam Stein | $420,802 | Ben Lamb | Results | [39] | |
| 32 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em | 2,828 | Kirk Caldwell | $668,276 | Corbin White | Results | [40] | |
| 33 | $10,000 Seven Card Stud Hi-Low Split-8 or Better Championship | 168 | Eric Rodawig | $442,183 | Results | [41] | ||
| 34 | $1,000 No Limit Hold'em | 3,144 | Mark Schmid | $488,283 | Justin Cohen | Results | [42] | |
| 35 | $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha Six Handed | 507 | Jason Mercier | $619,575 | Hans Winzeler | Results | [43] | |
| 36 | $2,500 No Limit Hold'em | 1,734 | Mikhail Lakhitov | $749,610 | Hassan Babajane | Results | [44] | |
| 37 | $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. Championship | 240 | Fabrice Soulier | $609,130 | Shawn Buchanan | Results | [45] | |
| 38 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em | 2,192 | Arkadiy Tsinis | $540,136 | Michael Blanovsky | Results | [46] | |
| 39 | $2,500 Pot Limit Hold'em/Omaha | 606 | Mitch Schock | $310,225 | Rodney Brown | Results | [47] | |
| 40 | $5,000 No Limit Hold'em Six Handed | 732 | Matt Jarvis | $808,538 | Justin Filtz | Results | [48] | |
| 41 | $1,500 Limit Hold'em Shootout | 538 | Justin Pechie | $167,060 | Dale Eberle | Results | [49] | |
| 42 | $10,000 Pot Limit Omaha Championship | 361 | Ben Lamb | $814,436 | Sami Kelopuro | Results | [50] | |
| 43 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em | 2,857 | André Akkari | $675,117 | Nachman Berlin | Results | [51] | |
| 44 | $2,500 Seven Card Razz | 363 | Rep Porter | $210,615 | Stephen Su | Results | [52] | |
| 45 | $1,000 No Limit Hold'em | 2,890 | Kenneth Griffin | $455,356 | Jean Luc Marais | Results | [53] | |
| 46 | $10,000 No Limit Hold'em Six Handed Championship | 474 | Joe Ebanks | $1,158,481 | Chris Moorman | Results | [54] | |
| 47 | $2,500 Omaha/Seven Card Stud Hi-Low-8 or Better | 450 | Owais Ahmed | $255,959 | Michael Mizrachi | Results | [55] | |
| 48 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em | 2,713 | Athanasios Polychronopoulos | $650,223 | Simon Charette | Results | [56] | |
| 49 | $2,500 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball | 309 | Leonard Martin | $189,818 | Justin Bonomo | Results | [57] | |
| 50 | $5,000 Triple Chance No Limit Hold'em | 817 | Antonin Teisseire | $825,604 | Darryl Ronconi | Results | [58] | |
| 51 | $1,500 Pot Limit Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better | 946 | David Singontiko | $268,235 | Michael Yee | Results | [59] | |
| 52 | $2,500 Mixed Hold'em | 580 | Matt Matros | $303,501 | Jonathan Lane | Results | [60] | |
| 53 | $1,000 Ladies No Limit Hold'em Championship | 1,055 | Marsha Wolak | $192,344 | Karina Jett | Results | [61] | |
| 54 | $1,000 No Limit Hold'em | 4,576 | Maxim Lykov | $648,880 | Dror Michaelo | Results | [62] | |
| 55 | $50,000 Poker Players Championship | 128 | Brian Rast | $1,720,328 | Phil Hellmuth | Results | [63] | |
| 56 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em | 3,389 | Alexander Anter | $777,928 | Nemer Haddad | Results | [64] | |
| 57 | $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better | 352 | Nick Binger | $397,073 | David Bach | Results | [65] | |
| 58 | $10,000 No Limit Hold'em Championship | 6,865 | Pius Heinz | $8,715,638 | Martin Staszko | Results | [66] |
The $10,000 No Limit Hold'em Championship began on July 7 with the first of four starting days. After reaching the final table of nine players on July 19, the remainder of the tournament was delayed until November 6.[67]
The Main Event drew 6,865 players, creating a prize pool of $64,531,000. The top 693 finishers placed in the money, with first place paying $8,715,638.[68] The Main Event was won by Pius Heinz.[69] There were 301 hands played at the final table, including 119 hands of heads-up play, which was the most in WSOP Main Event history.
Several celebrities also participated in the Main Event:[70]
Of these celebrities, Sam Simon (500th), Robert Iler (275th) and Mars Callahan (94th) finished in the money.[71]
| Name | Championship Year(s) | Day of Elimination | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doyle Brunson | 1976, 1977 | 1A | |
| Bobby Baldwin | 1978 | 2A | |
| Tom McEvoy | 1983 | 3 | |
| Berry Johnston | 1986 | 4 | |
| Johnny Chan | 1987, 1988 | 2A | |
| Phil Hellmuth | 1989 | 4 | |
| Dan Harrington | 1995 | 2A | |
| Huck Seed | 1996 | 3 | |
| Scotty Nguyen | 1998 | 2A | |
| Carlos Mortensen | 2001 | 3 | |
| Robert Varkonyi | 2002 | 4 (514th place) | |
| Chris Moneymaker | 2003 | 1C | |
| Greg Raymer | 2004 | 1A | |
| Joe Hachem | 2005 | 2B | |
| Jamie Gold | 2006 | 2B | |
| Jerry Yang | 2007 | 1A | |
| Joe Cada | 2009 | 3 | |
| Jonathan Duhamel | 2010 | 2A |
NB: This list is restricted to top 30 finishers with an existing Wikipedia entry.
| Place | Name | Prize | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26th | J.P. Kelly | $302,005 | |
| 28th | Philipp Gruissem | $302,005 |
| Name | Number of chips (percentage of total) | WSOP Bracelets | WSOP Cashes* | WSOP Earnings* | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 40,175,000 (19.5%) | 0 | 4 | $22,875 | |
| 33,925,000 (16.5%) | 0 | 5 | $37,516 | ||
 | 24,750,000 (12.0%) | 0 | 10 | $237,249 | |
| | 23,875,000 (11.6%) | 0 | 8 | $48,769 | |
| | 20,875,000 (10.1%) | 1 | 12 | $2,157,249 | |
 | 19,700,000 (9.6%) | 0 | 1 | $7,582 | |
| 16,425,000 (8.0%) | 0 | 1 | $83,286 | ||
 | 13,825,000 (6.7%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
 | 12,375,000 (6.0%) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Place | Name | Prize | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | $8,715,638 | ||
| 2nd | $5,433,086 | ||
| 3rd | $4,021,138 | ||
| 4th | Matt Giannetti | $3,012,700 | |
| 5th | Phil Collins | $2,269,599 | |
| 6th | Eoghan O'Dea | $1,720,831 | |
| 7th | Badih "Bob" Bounahra | $1,314,097 | |
| 8th | Anton Makiievskyi | $1,010,015 | |
| 9th | Sam Holden | $782,115 |