2012 WSOP Main Event: Nearly the Year of the Woman
This year nearly saw two women make the final table of the World Series of Poker Main Event. It has never happened before and, at least until next year, won’t be a reality. France’s Gaelle Baumannand Norway’s Elisabeth Hille (pictured) bowed out of the $10,000 buy-in poker tournament in Las Vegas in 10th and 11th place, respectively, resulting in an all-male, virtually all-American final table.
WSOP Vice President of Corporate Communications Seth Palansky told PocketFives what it was like watching Baumann and Hille battle with the boys down the stretch in the Main Event: “It was a terrific year for the ladies all throughout the 43rd annual World Series of Poker, culminating with the sensational performances of Elisabeth and Gaelle in the Main Event. Outlasting 6,580+ people is an incredible accomplishment and we’re proud of the poker and positive contributions both ladies made to this Main Event.”
ESPN poker editor Andrew Feldman, who was Tweeting in earnest down the stretch in July as the Main Event was trimmed to its Octo-Nine, gave his take on the strong showing from female population: “It was incredible to watch Elisabeth and Gaelle make their run during the WSOP Main Event. Both showed incredible fearlessness and brilliance during play and although they will not be part of the 2012 WSOP Main Event final table, they’ve become stars of the game.”
In 1994, the year that alleged UB cheating scandal mastermind Russ Hamilton won the Main Event, Annie Duke landed in 26th place and Barbara Samuelson took 10th. That year was the last prior to 2012 that two women made the top 27. To date, the only woman to make the Main Event final table was Barbara Enright, a member of the Poker Hall of Fame who did so one year later in 1995.
The departures of Baumann (pictured) and Hille, both non-Americans, mean that eight of the Octo-Niners hail from the United States. In stark contrast, last year, seven countries were represented at the Main Event final table: the United States, Germany, the Czech Republic, Ireland, Belize, the Ukraine, and the United Kingdom. Pius Heinz, who calls Germany home, trumped the pack and won $8.7 million. The highest finishing American, Ben Benba Lamb, was third.
As a result of Baumann’s and Hille’s eliminations, the final table of the Main Event sans one player is entirely composed of American men. On the U.S. angle, Palansky told PocketFives, “The Americans performed really well at this year’s WSOP and it seemed to continue with the Main Event in terms of the final table.”
What will happen next is anyone’s guess. What we do know is that the Main Event resumes on Monday at 8:00pm ET and can be seen on ESPN2, ESPN3.com, and WSOP.com on a 15-minute delay. Feldman offered the following preview: “Considering the game of poker has seen dramatic growth internationally over the past few years, it’s surprising that eight members of the final table are American. This year’s final table includes some very talented players and I’m excited to see it how it plays out this October.”
We’ll have continuing coverage of the 2012 WSOP Main Event October Nine right here on PocketFives starting Monday afternoon.
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