Speaker 1: Hello, everyone, Welcome back to a new episode of the
Poker Go Podcast. My name is Donnie Peters. His name
is Tim Duckworth. It is the evening of Tuesday, February eighteenth.
How are you doing, mister cowboy? Got a haircut? Huge,
check cut huge. It doesn't look that much different. There's
not much that it just a little clean up, Okay,
up the Cowboy locks. Big news dropped one day ago.
The twenty twenty five World Series of Poker schedule has
been released in full, one hundred live gold Bracelet events.
Tim and I are going to hit on it a
bit of a rapid reaction. I know it's more than
twenty four hours later, so quotes around rapid. But we've
been very, very busy here at the Poker Gro Cup,
at the Poker gro Studio, so it still is a
very rapid reaction for us. I'm gonna say that we
should probably like we'll give our thoughts, okay, and then
maybe like some things will marinate, we'll see more takes
or whatever, and we'll have like more thoughts as we
go towards the city, towards the summer. So don't take
this with you know, an end all be all type
of idea. So yeah, the wa space schedule got released.
One hundred live gold Bracelet events. As I mentioned, May
twenty seventh is when it all kicks off, and it'll
end on July sixteenth. Of course, it will end with
a new World Champion of Poker being crowned. The Main
Event everyone's favorite tournament of the year. Whether you are
a player, a fan, whatever you are in the game,
the WSP Main Event is the biggest and the best.
The Main Event runs July second through sixteenth. We are
going to talk a lot about the Main Event because
mister WSP himself, mister phil Helmuth, decided to drop a
bombshell last night and ignite the poker world. There are
thirty PGT qualifying events on this year's schedule, so thirty
percent of the schedule qualifies for the PGT. I believe
that's up from twenty eight last year. Basically, we're just
gonna run through our biggest takes, the new additions that
are on there, you know, maybe touch on some things
that they have missed, but yeah, kind of more of
an open form. Let me first say that they did
add some new events. You know, something's got removed or replaced,
one thing, I feel like people are calling it a
new event the industry employees, it's really just the casino
employees of the new name, my brand. But I also
felt that they always allowed the industry, you know, but
the official new events, if you want to call them that,
they have a one thousand dollars buy in Battle of
the Ages, no limit hold them. So this is going
to be I believe it's two starting flights. One starting
flight is for people who are fifty and over. The
other starting flight is for people who are under fifty,
or maybe it's fifteen under and then over. I forget exactly,
but it's basically split down the middle, over fifty, under fifty,
and then they'll combine. I think this is kind of
an interesting concept. I don't hate it. Hate it? Oh
you hate it? Why doesn't make any It's a normal tournament,
just split up. I don't like it.
Speaker 2: They're trying to copy what Trent does with the VIPs
in a way, but like, does it I really do.
Speaker 1: I don't think you're trying to do that. I think
they're much I think they are. I think they are
just trying to kind of lean into the fact that
like seniors events are hot like in general, So how
do you like kind of build out like you can't
have it? I mean, I mean it's combined. Not Okay,
it's not. Maybe this is where they're stealing from the
trit and thing where you allow the seniors to play
with fellow seniors on the day one, just like VIP's
play with VIPs. So you know, you feel like you're
you're getting into the water battling with the people that
are of your ilk versus you get in there and
you're like, eh, I gotta play with all these young kids,
they're better than me whatever. At least you might feel
like you have a better shot on day one against
people like you in terms of skill level and all
that sort of age, et cetera.
Speaker 2: Sure, I just think they might have. They should have
made us a one more day of separate fields, because
if you if you were talking try and trying is
you know eighty player is doing the same thing, is
going to be maybe eight thousand plays something crazy. Make
it two day split up.
Speaker 1: Now.
Speaker 2: I know logistically that's difficult, so that's probably why they
didn't do it. But to me, it doesn't Outside of
the Day one doesn't really change much for me.
Speaker 1: It doesn't really move the interest meter for me with
this WS. I do think that I would almost reserve
kind of one weird, wacky, gimmicky type of event. This
one I would put into that bucket. It might not
even be weird enough for like what I would be
going for, but you know, I think it's important to
have like kind of fun with one of them. They
finally did it. They added one hundred thousand dollars buy
in high roller yellow. Speaking of copying, stealing, they stole
from from you, let them have it. Come on, they
stole from me. Listen. Imitation the highest flattery. I was
about to say it took them a couple of years,
but it's here and listen. This is going to be huge. Yeah, massive,
It's going to be that word I love so much,
massive massive. They should have put massive roller. Oh that's
a good name. I might, you know I might so, Yeah,
one hundre k buy in pot limit Omaha high Roller.
This is going to be absolutely freaking in. Before it
was fifty it was crazy. Then Now you know this
hunter k. It's it's about time. It's rightfully on the schedule,
and like I said, it's going to be absolutely crazy
in there they added a twenty five K high roller
half and half half PLO half no limit hold them.
I think this is also awesome. They've had this tournament
before at much lower price points. I think the highest
was five K. Yeah. I think they even have a
fifteen hundred before, they've had a yeah, and then they
had a five hundred. I think, yeah. I mean, but
this is going to be awesome. I think this one's
going to be really cool. Players have been asking for this,
so yeah, they're listening to the players.
Speaker 2: You know, we're thinking of doing something like this after
the World Series, so you know, that's why you'll be up.
Speaker 1: That's when we will be looking like some copycats. But
that's okay.
Speaker 2: I think this event will be you know, I heard
the guys talking about it here in the studio this week.
It's hard for the PLO players to miss this. It's
going to be hard for the no limbit guys to
miss this too. They'll just play tighter and PLO. So
if you are a multi game specialist like a Daniel
mcgroaran or Jeremy Osmas, you're gonna be licking your lips
when you go and play this in that.
Speaker 1: So last year they had a fifteen hundred dollars double
Board Bomb Pot tournament that was half no limit, hold
Them half PLO speaking up the half and half mix.
This year, they took that tournament and they made it
just PLO double Board Bomb Pot, So it fits in
my opinion, it fits more with what double board Bomb
Pot is used to and that's the PLO variant. So
that's on the schedule. Fifte hundred dollars Buying. They have
a five thousand dollars Super Turbo Bounty Nolanmit Hold Them
event that I'm sure will be crazy. And then they
took out the three K horse that was at the
end of the schedule last year and they replaced it
with a three thousand dollars Buying Tours TRS replacing Hold
Them with Triple Draw. So those are the those are
the new events on the schedule this year. Some other
changes that popped out. Initially, Colossus Buying went up and
went from four hundred dollars to five hundred dollars. Yeah.
I kind of always liked the four and dollars one.
You know, what's the big deal? Why you got to
go up to five hundred, Yeah, exactly. They added some
extra flights for some of the massive field Nolan that
hold them tournaments. I'm gonna try and just work that
word in as much as awesome now massive, So Mystery
Millions I believe went up to four or sorry, went
up to five flights from four, and that Mystery Millions
the one K buy and that's that's right at the
front of the schedule. Again, I think this is an
incredible move when they did it, to put it at
the front of the schedule like that kicks off the
World Series. It's gonna be massive, you know, massive, first
place prize, massive, big bounty, massive, massive, massive, massive, massive,
massive Millions. Colossus I think added a starting flight as well.
Monster Stack added a starting flight. I believe Mini Main
Event added the starting flight. So just like one extra
starting flight for a lot of these different tournaments, which
is fine because as these fields continue to grow, you know,
I think it's only necessary that that's how you get
more people in. I mean, we see it every single
year with these events, the alternate lines, the Late REDGS lines,
they're ridiculously long, you know, hundreds of people along stuff
like that. So slamming another flo no big deal. I
don't hate it. I also understand it from a business perspective,
you know, drive up that revenue. It's good for the
bottom line. Of course, fewer freeze outs on the schedule
this year kind of a bummer. I like the freeze outs,
but listen, I can say that here now if I
was the one, you know, looking at the p and L,
I get it, like, you know, so it's not like
the end of the world. I guess. One kind of
big notable change is the Flipping Go is gone, and
that's mostly notable because now the Waspy is under ownership
of GG Poker. That event was I think it was
the flipp and Go buy GG Poker is what it
was called. Like they put it in as like their
sponsored event, their element, and it was like everyone kind
of complained about the event, but then everyone also blasted
in it like all the time, so it was weird.
But that's out this year, so that won't be on
the schedule. I also found it interesting that the if
you exclude twenty five K and higher buying events. This
is from a news Aurora on Twitter. He works for
Pope Refuse does great work. A news twenty two to
one to two on Twitter. He said, excluding the twenty
five K and higher buying events, the average buy in
has gone up. And I'll just run through what he
put on Twitter, and it says twenty twenty one was
thirty two hundred and thirty nine dollars, twenty twenty two
thirty two hundred and ninety two dollars, twenty twenty three
thirty two ninety six, twenty twenty four thirty three seventy three,
and then twenty twenty five is now up to thirty
four seventy seven. And I believe if you include the
twenty five K and higher buying events, the average buying
number also goes up. Of course, as we mentioned earlier,
there's that there's one hundred K PLO high Roller on
the schedule, there is the twenty five K high Roller
half and half on the schedule, so all of that
good stuff. So like what year kind of thoughts takeaways?
You know, what do you got for me?
Speaker 2: Let's go back to the new events to start with. Yeah,
I actually do like the toss, you know, for the
fifteen hundred buy in. I think it's good keeping hold
of them in there. The three K where it is in
the schedule, it is a little more I'd say pro heavy.
That's probably not the right word. But I don't mind
that that that little change, you know, I don't think
it's going to change the numbers too much, but I
think it would be slightly better. Event the double board
bump put, I think they made a mistake last year
in two ways, one adding no limit and then the
other it was it was a bump put every orb.
Speaker 1: Now they're going to make every was it every orbit
or was it every happen or whatever it was, it
should be every hand. So I'm hoping they think we
all when we first saw it, we were like every
hand exactly to be the shit show. It's going to
be great.
Speaker 2: So I'm wondering if they if they'll make that tweak.
I think they should. I love the I love the
five K super Turbo Bownie. That's great. Now that's for
the new events. I'm kind of sad that the flipping
goes out. I did like that, you know, especially with
the GG sponsorship element. My question is, will we see
another event of the schedule, maybe become GG branded, you know.
Speaker 1: Maybe it's the G The whole thing is GG. No
I know, but like you know, owned by law. But
I'm wondering if they will have like you know.
Speaker 2: Okay, let's for example, there's the Poker News Deep Stack
Championship six hundred dollars by do you think that they
could easily be a GG Poker named event. Now, yes,
I know what he's saying that I'll schedule is name,
but I'm wondering if we'll see that added later. A
big discussion. I don't know how much we want to
get into it. The increase in rate. Personally, it's class
of doing business. It's not going to change the numbers.
It is what it is.
Speaker 1: It is, so I I don't think we should even
neat a waste it's in any sort of poker, it's
obviously a bummer when you see increase in RAKE. My
only thing is is that the increase in RAKE always
seems to effect the lower buy and stuff more than
it affects the higher buying stuff. And that's you know,
most apparent at the w soop when the lower buying stuff,
like when you're playing the three and llars Gladiator's Poker
Tournament and there are eighty five thousand people in that building,
and like you're using every single dealer you have available,
every single table you have available all this sort of stuff.
Like obviously, the more dealers you need, the quality of
the dealers goes down a little bit. So and you
like oftentimes in that tournament, I played that tournament many years,
like you have to you're playing ten handed, yeah, for
a long period of time. Like, so you're charging more
RAKE for say, a lesser experience, you know, And it's
that to me is like that doesn't equate in my head,
Like you know, you should pay more RAKE for a
better experience, or a more luxurious experience, or a more
efficient experience, like all of that sort of stuff. Right,
So like when you're playing the high buy and stuff,
you're getting the best dealers of the dealers that they have,
You're sitting in a special area with some better seats,
all that sort of stuff. So there's all of that
you know so greatly. But I also, I mean again
going back to like if I'm on the other side,
the business person in me would say, I get it,
Like it's not you're probably gonna set record numbers in
all you know, in the majority of not all of
those fields. It doesn't really matter. So you know, I
get it right, you know, And the price of everything
has gone up, inflation and all that sort of stuff.
So yeah, I understand it. Do I wish it wouldn't happen,
of course, Like yeah, I don't want more Rake, who
the heck does? But I don't think it's going to
slow down the World Series at all. You know, I
think it's going to be one of those talking points.
You know, some complaining here and there, but you know,
ultimately everyone's gonna sho up and everyone's going to play
it because that's how it is. All right, continue what
else you got?
Speaker 2: You know they removed or we talked about the GG
event they removed, they removed that event. They brought in
Lassy the champions, bringing in terrible event, get rid of
that one that was that was silly V I do.
Speaker 1: Like, but that also falls under like just when I said,
like the gimmick, you know, do something new every I
think the one thing, you know, I haven't seen much
on it.
Speaker 2: Last year there was a big I think there was
more voices about it, but you know, the tournament champions.
You know, last year, it didn't come with the schedule.
Then it was announced. I think it was in like
March or earlier.
Speaker 1: Yeah, but it was part of the Commerce series yea,
and everyone like freaked out that they're like, oh, they
put it in Commerce. They didn't give us enough time
to travel there. We didn't know about it.
Speaker 2: But what I mean is that when they announced or
series last year, they announced it details coming soon but
held in Las Vegas. Then in March it was announced
that it'll be part of this Commerce schedule this year
wasn't part of any announcement, so a lot of people,
I guess are already expecting it to potentially go back to
Commerce in you know, late May or something.
Speaker 1: I I think that it should be at the World
Series of Poker. In the screen, you know, that is
your your flagship series, your flagship event for the entire
so tournament of champions to meet aligns with wanting to
celebrate those champions at that series. You also get the
added benefit of, like, you know, everyone's there playing they
can then you know, take some shots and whatnot in
the WSP and and you have those storylines and all
of that. So yeah, I think it should be at
the World.
Speaker 2: I think yeah, I think it should either open the
World Series or conclude the World Series. I think opening
is probably better because it gets maybe people that were
on the fence about coming out to come out, and yeah,
I understand what they're doing. If they're trying to make
the circuit a bigger deal with their partner at Commerce,
then I get it. But it should maybe just be
announced a lot earlier, like it could actually be announced
at the start of.
Speaker 1: The circus season.
Speaker 2: But no, sure otherwise, you know what, it's nothing too
crazy with this schedule.
Speaker 1: I think a lot of people on that point. I
think a lot of people were anticipating a lot, yeah,
because of the new GG Poker ownership, and everyone was like, oh,
here we go, like they're gonna they're gonna you know,
bells and whistles, you know, jazz hands, like all this
sort of stuff. But I mean, this to me, looks
like that ownership thing is not changed. Like this is
like just what I would expect from the w SP.
You know, they they bumped it up to one hundred. Fine,
some subtle changes, not anything too crazy, didn't really mess
with it. All the dates are pretty similar, like you know,
everything pretty much aligns right.
Speaker 2: Yea, So we may see that is maybe in the
online schedule, maybe we see it.
Speaker 1: Maybe you don't know. I think I would expect more
changes next year, kind of play, uh, see how it
goes this year, you know, really get in there, get
their hands on things, see how things operate, and then
and then go for it next year. But also you know,
we'll see. Maybe maybe it just kind of could just
continues like this. Who really knows. I know a lot
of people made mention of the fact that the WSP
plus that was used and a lot of players loved
for wasby Paradise was not included in the press release.
So I don't know if that's a thing that's to
come or if that's a thing that's like held up
by gaming because we are now in the States, we
are in Nevada, et cetera. So maybe just TBD on that.
But you know, I know a lot of people pointed
that out, that that's not in the schedule. They also
pointed out, as we mentioned, there's no TOC stuff in
the schedule too, So overall, you know, I think it's fine.
One idea that popped into my head when I was
reading through the like the new events list, and and
this came from actually came from you in a way,
because the upcoming PGT Mix game series has an event
called Mary's Mix the Player of the year should get
to pick an event for the next year, So like
Sean deeb, but Shan Deep wins Player of the Year,
he can essentially like pick an event like and like
he like designs it under like certain parameters working with
their officials and like you know, you can call it
the so and so by Sean Deep, you know, buy
w S player there Sean Deep or like whatever, you
know something like that, Like I think that would be
fun and just like a way, and it's only a
one year thing, like you get it unless you win
it again, of course, but like you get you get
like your stamp on the schedule for winning WSP Player
of the Year. Like I think that would just be
a fun little maybe we should sprinkle. I mean listen,
like they have so many events, they have one hundred events,
Like what's throwing away one event to like some kind
of like thing, you know, like it'd be fun. That's
not bad idea, Like instead of dealers choice, you call
it Sean Deep's choice, like you know something like jerem
about it. Obviously you can't be like you know, we're
gonna play blind man's bluff whatever, like like you know,
they have to be like, okay, listen, like we can
do this, this, this, this, this, you know, like these
are the options. Build your own meal, you know, like
that that sort of thing. And maybe it's just like
a straight like Nolan and Holdham event, or like you know,
it's something super boring, but it still has that person's
name attached to it, you know, they kick it off
on the microphone like all that. I like that. I'm
gonna steal that idea for us. Well you already I
told you. I stole it from you because you named
an event Moury's Mix. By the way, speaking of this,
Mory's Mix. Okay, so there's an event on the upcoming
PGT Mixed Game schedule called Morey's Mix. I asked more
the other day. I said, limit Omaha. Why is limit
Omaha More He's like, I don't know, Tim put it
in there. All the players are asking what the hell's
limit Omaha is doing in there? I don't play limit Omaha. Well,
just so everyone knows, he limit Omaha high, No high low,
limit Omaha High.
Speaker 2: Okay, I'm gonna break it down for you right now. Ready,
we wanted to add something new I wanted I'm mixed
that was what the mix. I know why you did this,
by the way, but continue, Okay, it's called it's it's
called a blood mix because basically it's all one winning
games and it's all limit So where did you get
this from? This was my original idea for the super
higher roll Evolve Max.
Speaker 1: You know who used to always run a limit Omaha
high game, no Crown casino. Oh yeah, all the time. Yeah.
So you may not have done it on purpose, but
in the back of your brain subconsciously you designed it
me because of your roots common all the millions these
guys are playing this five to ten limit amet. Yeah,
it was brutal, but here's no I have two flop
games to stud to jaw.
Speaker 2: It's very well balanced. Now we want to talk about
why is it called Morris. So originally it was called
the Commissioners Mix after me, but I thought that's a
little too you know, I currently more mixed. So I
was like, let's just name it after more ass Mori's
just okay, he goes, you can name it after me.
Speaker 1: If I was advising him, I would have said it
has to royalties. But that's sure.
Speaker 2: He can have royalties of the series. He eyes but
like that's the thing we we it's an easy one
to omit. But then what do you add? Do you
add a third draw game, a third start it. Look,
with the mixed game series, we try a lot of
different things. This is something new we're trying for this series. Look,
if you gets twelve players, it's off the list and
we'll find something new next year.
Speaker 1: I mean, it's not going to get to well, no,
I know, but it'll do all right.
Speaker 2: Look, the omahahi is very uncommon, but let's just see
how it goes. It'll be fun to I think it
should be a fun tournament.
Speaker 1: Anything you think they might have missed that they didn't
put on there?
Speaker 2: To be honest, I would say maybe a high buy
in bounty or mystery mystery bounty type of event.
Speaker 1: The ten K they have the ten they call it
the Secret Boundy before sure, but.
Speaker 2: Like I'm wondering, you know what the appetite would be
for say a twenty five K mystery Yeah, you know,
obviously the one K mystery millions is the massive bounty
event of the series. But I think there is an
appetite for a higher buy in. Some kind of bounty
doesn't have to be missed, I would have gone.
Speaker 1: So you a PKO Progressive Boundy Progressive knockout would be
great at the DOVISSIPI. Now, the problem is is that
you can't probably do it at a lower buying because
the scale would just be ridiculous, and I think you could.
You just have to really wait for the progressives to
kick in. Yeah, I don't know so, but you could
easily run that at a higher buying for sure, where
the field is much smaller, more manageable, all that sort
of stuff. So like, you know, a twenty five k
PKO I think be cool, and I think a lot
of that player pool would love that sort of thing,
So that would be that would be fun and introduce
it that way.
Speaker 2: The one event events I'm gonna say plural, that I
have been pushing for for many years, and if I'm
ever in charge of the WSB, It'll be the first
thing I implement. But I would implement a five like
a five hundred dollars buy in, twenty five hundred dollars
buy in and a ten K buying heads up championship
online that plays down to say in the money plays
down to maybe eight players, and all those are restarting
prior to the twenty five k heads Up, so we
have to say the five hundred buying starts on Monday,
the conclusion of it live, you know, then you followed
by the twenty five hundred, followed by the ten k
that all wraps up the day before the twenty five
k heads up starts. I think heads up poker is
still a big thing, and you know, we couldn't really
run a five hundred dollars buy in live. It takes
up a lot of blood of room, but you could
run it on.
Speaker 1: Tournaments are always kind of a mess because like people
are waiting for the draw, yeah they haven't. So that's
why I think you can do it online. Do it online,
lay down to eight bring them in.
Speaker 2: So you'd have to obviously do the online early in
the series and do the actual Heads Up Championship, say
late journey. Obviously it's one of the first few events
that has been for the last few years, so that
would take one wrinkle. But I think those you know,
maybe you just trial it with say a one K
to start with online.
Speaker 1: I think it would be very popular. Yeah, I definitely
think doing the heads up stuff online would be cool.
I've always been a fan of bringing back the FORMAX tournament.
I would also do that online to start, because just
four handed tables is just takes up a lot of
real estate, right, and I don't know if you could
necessarily dedicate the real estate to do that. So what
if you just did day one of the formats online,
then you had like a couple hundred people coming back
for day two live, much more manageable, you know that
sort of thing. I also back in they remember the
Mixed Max Yeah, that was sweet. I love that one too, like,
you know, so I would I would bring you know,
some of those back. A part of me, I listen,
I know they've never had a PLO tournament above fifty K,
and they are going to one hundred k. I think
they could have gone higher too, Like, I just think
they could have just, you know, absolutely slammed it. But
other than that, you know, I I got nothing with
the one tournament that always kind of like felt I
guess a little bit weird to me was the twenty
five K horse I just because I think it should
be a lot earlier. Well, because you have the you
have the fifty k PPC, and I don't, you know,
I just feel like they're too close. It's like just
it's a weird thing overall. You know, I think the
schedules it's good, you know, it's it's what you can
be expected. It's not like anything you can really complain
about unless your name is pel Helmi. Then we're going
to get to that in a second. But uh, other
than that, you know, good, fine, And yeah, I'm excited
for another summer.
Speaker 2: I guess you know, it's very early and looking at
this schedule and we haven't doubt either of us have
dived too deep in the structures. But and the thing
stands out to you that you want to play outside
the WSP main event.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I don't know. I mean I've always wanted to
play the Monster Stack. Yeah, I just so, I know
it's long and it's listen, it's not long in the
sense that I can't handle the endurance aspect of it
feel hummy, But I mean, okay, we're going to get
into this guy. It's just long that you can't like,
I don't want to be off of work for that long.
And if I am like off of work or away
for or whatever playing a tournament, I wanted to be
the main right, like that's what I wanted to be.
So so yeah, I think maybe, you know, there's part
of me says that there's an appetite to make like
some of these high roller stuff just two day tournaments
just because like the office away. Now. Well yeah, but
I think I know, but I feel like that crowd
just they play all of our stuff, they put all
the trait and stuff like they don't care like that.
You know, they want in and out let's go. You know,
they're in there out like it doesn't really matter to them.
I think the numbers would be fine there. But also
you know, I don't mind the way that it is.
It's not that big of a deal. I was. I
think the thing that I was thought we had the
best chance of seeing in terms of a GG poker
effect was a smaller buying bracelet event than three hundred dollars.
I thought that that had the best chance to be
like the big change. Now. I didn't think anything would
really be that big of a change for this year,
but I thought, if you if we see anything, they
might do like hundred dollars like something like nuts right,
like something like that. But you know, a very very
similar schedule to recent years they're up to one hundred
uh bracelets now live and then and then we'll have
such a They're always going to ask there's a demand,
is there? They're going to just continue to ask demand.
But that's just how it is. Let's protect this brand.
That's just how it is. All right, Let's get to
uh mister, what is it? Seventeen old races now eighteen
gobers and that's probably where they am. How many? How
many is seventeen? Yeah, I mean, it's just this guy.
So last night, Monday night, right around eleven pm Vegas time,
a story drops from poker dot org. I believe they
were the first ones, right, And it's from Phil Hellmuth
saying that he's not playing the WSP main event this
year twenty twenty five. And then a tweet comes out
with a video from Phil Hellmuth where he is talking
about it. I'll read what he put in the tweet,
and then we'll have our our TRUSTe producer Rich Ryan
put in the audio from what Phil Helmy said. Phil
Helmy tweeted, I am not playing the WSP main event.
It has become an quote endurance contest. I truly believe
that eighty percent of the players want changes made to
the WSP main event. Twelve hour days or longer for
six to seven days in a row is brutal and
disproportionately affects older players. Let's hear what all Youth had
to say in his video.
Speaker 3: Folks, here's a video I never wanted to make. So
the World Series Booker Main Event. I played it every
year since nineteen eight. I will not be playing it
this year.
Speaker 4: It's just too tough. It's just too tough.
Speaker 3: You know, people at home are like, oh, Phil, you
could play seven days in a row.
Speaker 4: Yeah, try it.
Speaker 3: Try try getting up and playing at noon until midnight
seven days in a row.
Speaker 4: And then they're, oh, well.
Speaker 3: Today we have to play till two or three in
the morning, which also happens at the WSOP main Event.
It's just exhausting and I can't win. And I think
that it really hurts the older players in a much
bigger proportion than the younger players. And I'll say this,
I had four great players come and tell me that
they blewe the main event because they got too tired.
With fifty left, with thirty left, with one hundred left.
It's turned into an endurance test. I don't think that
the World Series of Booker main event is measuring skill.
It's still my favorite event in the world. Don't misunderstand me.
I don't want to miss it, but I know that
I can't do that. You know, I'm sixty years old.
I know.
Speaker 4: I don't think I could have done at age fifty.
Speaker 3: So I think the World Series of Poker is set
up as an endurance test, and we're losing a lot.
And if you go out there and you pull the
players on whether or not they should have days off
in the main event, eighty percent are going to say yes.
In the twenty percent because I did a little polling myself,
the twenty percent that don't, they're the guys who are
twenty years old, and I mean twenty five, twenty six,
twenty seven.
Speaker 4: They're yeah, yeah, people get tired, they blow all their chips.
Speaker 3: Of course, wanted to be ten days straight, but I
don't think that's what the World Poker World Series of
Poker should be about.
Speaker 4: People getting tired and blowing their chips.
Speaker 3: So it's going to really hurt me to not play
in the world's best poker tournament, the World Series of
Poker Main Event.
Speaker 4: But in twenty twenty five, I'm out.
Speaker 3: I hope that in twenty twenty six there's some changes
made so that, you know, so that we can restore
more skill and less endurance. I really hope they make
those changes because I don't know if I can do
an entrance this year either, So I guess I'm just out, Folks.
Speaker 4: I love the.
Speaker 3: World Series of Poker, very important to me, but just
can't play the main event anymore.
Speaker 1: All right, So that was your boy, Philip Hellmuth, mister
WSP himself. I'm pretty sure. I'm pretty confident to crown him.
That he does have the most bracelets. You know, he
is pretty synonymous with THESP brand. I can only imagine
you're the dowsity brass and this guy drops this video
and this announcement, I'd be like, what the hell are
you doing? What is happening? I mean, seriously.
Speaker 2: Sure, but I'm not really I don't think they have
any sponsorship liaisons or anything with Phil.
Speaker 1: Right, see, he's not on the shape know what? This
video feels like? This video feels like I just remember
watching I think it was like the preview of the
trailer for the Mike Madis at Don And I want
to say he said something in there along the lines
of like him Daniel Phil et cetera, like basically helped
build the city, Like then that's how he wanted to
be remembered. This to me feels like Phil thinks he
has more to do with the WSP than THEWSP has
to do with the hunk, when if there's novasp, there's
no hunk. I mean, bottom line, that is true. So like,
why does this need to be blasted out on the internet.
Why can't you just go to your people, because like
who you obviously have a good relationship with and and
actually have a conversation and talk to him about this.
This seems silly he just thought of this and just
shot it out there. It seems extremely weird to just
go about it like this, announcing this now, you know,
hours after they dropped the dovasby main event schedule. Is
an attack on the was a B. That's what this is. Like,
I'm attacking them and I'm gonna make the biggest noise
possible because i want to get my way, which seems
not the right way to go about this. It's definitely
like why would she just why wouldn't you just advocate
for it? Maybe you do some sort of silent petitioning
talking to all the different players being like hey, and
why don't you also like come with you know, some solutions,
being like, hey, this is what I think. Maybe we
cut the levels down from two hours to ninety minutes,
you know, maybe we cut them down to one hundred minutes.
Maybe we put a day off in the middle here,
like maybe we do this, this and this, and like,
you know, get some people on your side, right. I
remember years ago down at PCA. I think it was
Scott Clements. This is when I forget which tournament I
want to say. It might have been the WPT five Diamond,
but it was one of the tournaments Appolage you had
like changed their whole schedule to be like all no
limit tournaments like one k nolmit Urm the main and
Scott like made this petition and had like all these
people at PCA signing. He was going around having all
these people sign this thing, because then he was gonna
go to them and say, look, this is what the
players want. They don't want this, they want this over
here like do something like that. You know, this seems
like this seems like hey, look at me, I'm gonna
throw a fit about this. And yeah, I mean, first
of all, if you stack it correctly, there are plenty
of days off in the Maine, okay, plenty is like,
if you play one A, you have what three days off,
four days off, three days off? Yeah, yeah, and then
you play ABC and then you have a day off
and then you start going and then there's a day
off after you make the final table if you get
that far, Like, I like what, I don't understand why
you can't stack it like that. It's very easy, simple.
This may not surprise you, but I do side with
Phil Homes. I'm so shocked. I think he could tweak this.
And listen, let me also say this. Let me also
say this. I'm not necessarily saying that Phil's entire message
is wrong because I have said it. I think I've
said it on this podcast before. Like the times that
I've played the main event, I've like caught myself being like,
we're still on this level type of thing. I mean,
I don't but like his thing was about the whole endurance,
like big picture, right, like we'd put days off and
this and that and whatever I would before trimming down
the levels a little bit. Yeah, one hundred minute levels
whatever that is, right, And you know, I'm team no
dinner break. I don't care, Like I just think dinner
breaks are ridiculous, but that's me. I also don't think that,
you know, when he's claiming that, like sometimes you play
the three am Like, I don't think that that. I
think that's more rare than it is. It is common,
you know, it's oftentimes it just has to do with
like how the field is playing and how things are
breaking and what's happening, you know, versus like that's the
plan from the start, Like that's not the plan from
the start. You usually end right around midnight, you know,
give or take of course, Like it's it's not crazy,
and you have you have a break every two hours.
You have the long dinner break, so it's not the
worst thing in the world, you know, to grind it.
And I personally do feel like, and I've said this before,
I've always thought this going back to when Sebastian Ruthenberg
was heads up with Chris Ferguson and I believe it
was the five K stud High Low event they were
playing Forever in the Amazon Earth, and I was like,
you know, part of it is endurance. Like part that
that's part of poker in certain situations. Now, should it
always be an endurance match, No, but like part of
it is. Part of the skill of this thing is
who can play the best poker over the long haul?
And this thing is the long haul. I'm but I
also will say that I, you know, probably one hundred
minutes or whatever. But now if I'm WSOP, I would
say that I want this event to be the biggest
and the best in the world, which it is, but
I also wanted to have the best structure give the
most play to the players. So when there's other tournaments
out there in the world that might have ninety minute
levels on certain days, well we have to be better
than that. Yeah. So that like that's where I would say, Okay,
you can't go lower than one hundred minutes, right, you know,
but let's just blow everyone out of the water, and
we're two hour levels.
Speaker 2: I don't think they're ever going to go back to
our levels ninety minute levels on hundred minute levels. Is
that the best way they should do it? Yeah, But
like you said, I don't think they're gonna They're never
gonna wind it back. So they do you want to
be the biggest and best tournament in the world. I
think it is the biggest and best main event in
all the world. But you know, but like I said,
if I was in chidship with probably ninety minute levels
until you're in the money and we'll go from there.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I don't mind doing something like that where you
stagger it. I always do think it's funny that the
the everyman, you know, they are drawn to this bucket
list item event when the structure is so against them
in a lot of ways. And producer Rich Ryan has
had this take forever that the structure is too good
in the was main event and like you get down
to you know, day six, day seven, and everyone is
an absolute crusher. Other than maybe like a couple people,
everyone is pretty pretty good. The structure is very good,
and if you're not a decent player, you're just gonna
get eaten a lot. So now that said, while I
said that, like, if I'm doabsity, I want like the
biggest and the best, and I want the best structure
in all of that, I would also be like, well,
how do we make the final tables where? Because this
is obviously the biggest finel table in poker, the bigest
spectacle in poker, right, how do we make it where
it's not nine robots for lack of a better term,
at the final table. Well, if you make the event
itself more of a crapshoot in a way. You know. Now,
I'm not saying crazy turbo like we're doing here in
the studio, you know, like I'm not saying a two
day event or anything like that. But if you do
make the structure a little bit faster, allow for a
little bit more gamble, you know, push people a little
bit more, then maybe you get a more colorful final table,
you know, with some kind of wacky personality, some people
that aren't just like the best of the best and
they've studied so much and all this sort of stuff.
So I can see the argument for both sides there.
I just think that the way Phil went out there
and like delivered this message and essentially was like attacking
them in a way that made it seem like he
was making them force their hand, Like I'm Phil, I'm
mister w Sop. I'm sitting out at the main event,
you know. But if you change it, I'll come. Now.
The second part of this is that do you really
believe he's gonna not play. He's one hundred percent playing
in event. I mean, right, let's be serious, right, I
mean he has to play, right, Yes, like I it
just I mean I don't see any ways, someone as
I saw, I saw his agent, Brian Balls, but said
he's one hundred percent. Seriously, he's not sitting out. And
then I saw Sean Deep say, Phil's actually really sharp
because he realizes that bracelets are the best thing for
Phil helm youth. That is, why would you get locked
up in the tournament for ten days, but instead you
can just play like fifteen different events, you know, all
these like two and three day tournaments that they have
at the WSB. That's where Phil can go play and
hopefully win, you know, another bracelet, another bracelet, another bracelet.
You know. So if someone brought up, you know, like
is he really going to play not play? And I
was like, he's playing.
Speaker 2: And then the guy was someone who said he must
have like the longest streak of WSP main events.
Speaker 1: He doesn't. I believe that belongs to Juwey Tumpko. But
Phil said he's been playing since eighty nine.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I would probably have to bet so the year
the year he won it, Phil is probably still top
five and main events play it for sure, I mean
for sure, Yeah, so does he really I mean in succession.
So I'm wondering if he really wants to risk that
kind of you know, we know feel like records. You know,
he likes to have, he likes to be number one
in something. Is going to be a point where he's
close to passing Dewey Tompco because I don't know who
knows the Dewey plays this year. I don't think Phil
wants to give up that. So I think we'll see
him play.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean I don't I don't think you won't
see him play. But you know, it is what it
is another way that you could you know, if you
are w s ap and I guess you're entertaining because
I saw, you know, his thing is like we need
a day off, and I think he also put out
like a solution, like my solution would be like like
three days day off, three days day off or something
like that, is maybe you do a split day three,
you know, so then you can still have the option
of like essentially one A to a three A and
you you know, every other day is a day off
in kind of that scenario. You know. Of course, what
I just said is not totally perfect because there's four
day ones, but you guys get the points. You know,
something something like that I think would be better than
just like slamming a day off in there. I al
because because and the reason why I say that is
I like that once the main event starts, like having
it out there and happening every single day other than
the day off right before the main event, I think
that that's good natural promotion for the event itself. You know,
don't give people any sort of out to look away,
to not tune in to watch it, to not think
about it, like you know, have media outlets and whatever,
not talk about it, like you want everyone talking about
that every single day, right, So if you just slam
this day off in there, it's like, okay, well no
one's talking about it for that day, you know, they're
talking about something else, especially the World Series, when there
would be other stuff going on of course, you know.
So so yeah, that's what I think, you know, kind
of breaks that. But yeah, it's funny that, you know,
if if you're doubs appear, if i'mbasp, this is the
the most frustrating. Part of this is that we just
dropped our schedule. It's a day that everyone looks forward
to every single year. Like they started publicizing it, you know,
last week. They were like it's coming on Monday, blah
blah blah. And then Phil goes and does this and
like essentially steals all your thunder takes all the headlines
and whatever, and like listen, yes, in a way, all
publicity is good publicity, you know, no matter what. But
he's also like stealing it away from you and trying
to make it seem like this event is not the
great thing that it is because it is a great event,
you know. So yeah, I think that that would be
you know, if you're if you're in those offices, that
would be like what you see this thing like come
across your feet. You're like, he did what? Now he
said what? Like, huh what? Let's say he doesn't play,
I'm with you. I think he puts Yeah, if he
doesn't play, is the doubest manament softer you're mister helmet
over there, dude, Okay, A serious question though. Do you
think him putting this message out there actually deters anyone
from not playing? Now I'm not saying it affects the
number at the end of the day, But like, are
there ten people out there in the world that say, like, yeah,
Phil's right, I'm not playing. I mean, probably yes, but like, no,
I'm just wondering. I'm sure there's.
Speaker 2: People that were already thinking that way anyway. So you know,
we've heard people complain about stuff of the WSP and
it's like, Okay, well then don't come play, but they
always come back. So yeah, sure, maybe he's influenced ten
people out there, but there's probably another twenty five people
that are like, screw you, Phil, I'm gonna go I'm
gonna go play even though it wasn't planning on something,
you know, And there's look, I think you kind of
voice your opinion on the length to play, but you'll
pub still going to play.
Speaker 1: I've voiced my opinion. I would like to try and
play it this year. When I say, like, I think
the levels are long, it's it's not that they're The
urgency isn't there as much as I think it should be.
Meaning like you you like because the levels are so long,
people play hands and every hand lasts seven minutes because
everyone knows that, like you don't need you can take
super long because it's it's a lot right now. Like
I feel like if if you still had two hour levels,
but maybe you have clocks in play at an earlier juncture,
it just speeds everything up, you know, because like people
just like there's just so much tanking and tanking and
tanking and thinking like all this sort of stuff because
people can be so deliberate because there isn't that urgency.
You're not like, oh, the blinds are gonna go up
in twenty minutes, No, the bindes are going to go
up in seventy minutes. Like it's you know, it's just crazy.
So you can be like, you know what, I can
kind of just chill and whatever. And I mean, I'm
not a professional poker player. I'm a recreational poker player.
Do I take it seriously? Yes, very But I'm not
a professional voka player. I don't go to play a
poker tournament to just sit there and fold. So I
just have a hard time relating to the people who
bucket list item or not, Like they show up and
they literally just full and like they like the fact
that they can fold for longer because the levels are
someone like aren't you there to for a competition to
try and win, Like, well, I don't understand why you
would just show up and just be like just fold
to get aces and eventually like go all in, Like
that's the best. That's how I play. Yeah, I know,
I'm talking to somebody. So it's been It's been a
fun twenty four hours, uh for the World Series of
Poker overall. You know, I think that the thebasity schedule
is good. You know, I would give it an as
you know, it didn't blow my doors off, yes, but
it certainly didn't go down from wherever it was before,
unless unless I'm missing something that I don't see. But
you know, I feel that it's it's another good schedule
and I think people are happy, you know, and I
I know this year obviously people were like okay, gig poker,
let's see what they do type of thing. But also
just having the schedule out there allows people to start planning,
start pooking trips, start being like, oh, I'm like, you know,
I'm going to go home like some nights this week
and I'm gonna be like okay, like I would want
to play this event here, in this event here and
this event over here, you know, like and try and
kind of map it out in my head because that's
what you want to do. And then you know, for
a lot of people, myself included, that leads to you know, okay,
like I need to raise this much money here, I'm
gonna sell this much action, so like, you know, you
just have it now. You know it's not you're not
just waiting on this this unknown thing that you know
is coming and is likely going to be similar to
what it has last year, but you're still waiting on
for the official thing to draw. So I don't need
a look at any events because I play one. Yeah
you yeah, what's up with this? I just keep every year,
I keep saying going to play the main event, and
I finally, well, let me tell you how you need
to play one event before I end a warm up? Yeah,
I don't need it. I'm saving all my money. I'm
going in cold even I'm saving every dollar to my
name to play the WSP Man.
Speaker 2: Ever, so when I went on June seventh, when I'm
like thinking about playing the Glad eight is a poker
flight one d I need you to be like, no.
Speaker 1: You say that you think you're going to play the
in of it.
Speaker 2: I'll play it day two D max late register with
whatever blinds I get, because like sixty, that's fine, it's
a time thing. I don't really want to waste a
day and a half because of our work situation and
because you know, I'm like, I'm probably going dead in
early levels against superpros.
Speaker 1: So I mean yeah, but a lot of the super
pros don't. Yeah, I mean yeah, they show up.
Speaker 2: That's my plan is, you know, just to play one
event and it's the main event. We'll see how the
funds go. Put my MSPT cash to the side. There
you go my WPT three roll cash at the time.
Hopefully it's still there in July ninth.
Speaker 1: I think this year, I'm going for one A. Okay,
I'm going for max breaks. That's you're doing the film
like I'm doing what film should correct. If he's complaining
about like you know, I'm gonna pound a brain fuel,
I'm gonna play one A. I'm gonna take my three
days off. I'm gonna play two A best whatever. You know.
Hopefully that that I yeah, and then you get another
day off and then it gets serious, right and then
you're like, okay, it like let's go, you know, and
then it's a then it's a big tournament. But I
think it's gonna be a good summer. I'm sure you
and I will talk about it plenty. Have you Have
you heard anything from the field like players today, Like
have they had any comments on it? Has it been
any sort of talking point here at the Poke Grove Cup,
Like has anyone said anything? Is anyone commenting on Phil?
Like you know what? You should almost run a bedding
pool on Phil, like show into the room and just
be like.
Speaker 2: Shot some big you know what. Last year we heard
a lot of stuff. This year, I haven't heard much
at all. A little bit of discussion about the one
hundred k and you know, the twenty five k half
and half, and that's what led to a little conversation
about some of the events we're going to do. But no,
it's actually surprisingly not a lot of chatter, and maybe
that kind of reinforces the point, you know, we've touched
on where it is nothing's crazy. There's nothing like super
out of line, both negative or positive. So I think
the players is like, oh it's out now I can
start planning my stuff. I was standing behind an unknown
pocal player and he was writing notes about you know,
dates and events, so it looks like he was kind
of you know, planning his schedule and it was some
bigger buying stuff. So maybe he's trying to put his
own like you know, package together that he can sell.
So I guess that's probably just at the forefront of
everyone's mind right now, is just creating their own schedule
and focusing on that.
Speaker 1: And also, you know, as it relates to the dovs AP,
now that the doc schedule is out for the year,
all the dates are locked in, the events are locked in.
Now is when you start to get the other venues
around town will start dropping their schedules, you know, or
or at least they can now fully flesh out their
schedules and line everything up, because you know, you don't
want to like have a big event competing with certain
events that of pee, you kind of want to dance
around each other all that sort of stuff. So you know,
the wind Poker Aria like et cetera. MGM usually has
stuff in the summer, Gold Nugget has stuff like all
these places have. Venetian of course has massive STUFFGTGT yes
as well, you know, but everyone's able to kind of like, okay,
this is out, you know, we can do our thing now.
And yeah, the other thing I wanted to ask you
is super super early take ten and twelve entries? Is
the record? Really they're going over, just going over. I've
always been no, I don't know what you were. Actually
ten thousand, So two years ago, ten thousand and forty
three entries, first time ever, A ten thousand beat the
previous record of eight thousand, seven hundred and seventy six.
I believe it was so smashed it massive increase, massive increase, massive,
and then last year ten and twelve, So are they
going to do it again? They're going to crush it.
And here's why it's very soon. As crush it means
like you crush it means eleven thousand, or like ten thousand,
three hundred, Yeah, more like ten thousands.
Speaker 2: Right, first year that it is owned by Gigi Poker,
they're going to do something absode online with something like
three thousand seats and packages all kinds of that.
Speaker 1: Same with Club GG. I think more. I think more
of that stuff comes next year, but I still think
they're going to obviously have all I think they're going
to start.
Speaker 2: I think they're going to just try and blow it
out every year, do as big as big as possible,
and with this being their first year, they want to
kind of hit it.
Speaker 1: Hard, and I'm only in on the others. I think
it comes in over to I just generally think that poker,
live poker, I should say, is in a very healthy spot.
I feel like I feel like most of the negative
stuff that comes out about poker is all directed at
online poker specifically, and then you know, live poker. I
just I feel like fields everywhere are very healthy, if not,
you know, up a lot, there's a lot of poker around,
so you know, even if even if specific events may
see like year over year declines or they're just holding
steady and not really seeing a big increase, oftentimes there's
like two tournaments or two big series going on at
one time, and in that case, like they're both doing
extremely healthy. Whereas you know in years past, maybe there's
a time when it's just one series and then that
allows for that one series to get all the attention
and everyone to go there. Even stuff like the high
roller stuff that we see on Triton, the stuff that
we see here in the studio with all of our
events everything is you know, going very well. You see
it a lot when you play at the Wind, you
see it down the street at Venetian, you know. So yeah,
I think Live Poker is in a really good spot.
So I would I would only guess that that carries
over to the biggest series of the year, and that
is the World Series pok And you know, we see
an increase in the devisity mainavent field size. I'm not
saying it's going to be some ridiculously crazy large increase,
but I think, you know, I'll go with ten thousand,
four hundred is my number right now. I'm sure we'll
we'll feel things out, you know, we'll try and keep
our finger on the pulse and feel what people are saying,
what they're going to be doing, all that sort of stuff. Actually,
I should say ten three and ninety nine because we
won't have the Hammi from there. But maybe we'll replace
maybe we'll replace Philammy with the Sun who has been playing.
He's been playing, you know, better than help with the
well he can he you know, he's probably got more stamina,
you know, being younger. She doesn't need to. He just
put his son in. That's what you do. And coach
him on the side. No, don't, no coach. Well, that's
that's like not a lot, right, that's yeah, that's not that.
I think you know, mister w S's gonna standard laptop,
but yeah, he.
Speaker 2: Might not even own a lot. Real quick PGT dot
com slash gleam pod. Okay, password for this week is
Weisman of the Joey Variety w E I S S
M A N. The next part we do, we're probably
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Speaker 1: Cool, that's Tim Duckworth. My name is Tony Peters, and uh,
we're out next time.
Speaker 4: J