As a result, we figured it would be a good idea to give you a glimpse of what is going on at this year’s Main Event, but rather than focusing on the actual poker, we are going to turn our attention towards the lovely ladies that you can find both at the tables and along the railings on the casino floor at the WSOP.

Enjoy!

Hat Tip – [Wicked Chops Poker]

That may sound odd, with the winning prize being only $96,361, but for Phil it wasn’t about the prize money.  It was all about the side bets.  Ivey is known for his knack to increase the stakes, and that was exactly what he was faced with at the final table of this tournament, one of the many offered at the World Series of Poker.  No one (besides Phil) is clear on the exact amount of money he won as a result of his earning this bracelet, but one reliable source indicated that they heard him say his possible payout would be $12 million.

“You may have heard that Ivey bet a lot of money on himself to win a bracelet at last year’s WSOP, and he came up short. (His best finish was 9th.) Rumors swirled that he increased the action on himself this year in a wider variety of bets. There were the standard bets on whether or not he would win a bracelet, and he also has several head-to-head bets with players like Erick Lindgren to see who could win more bracelets. (So those players still have a chance to tie Ivey by winning a bracelet of their own this year — which could save them hundreds of thousands of dollars or more.)”

So much for just the simple joy of taking home the bracelet and prize money that often comes with victories at the WSOP.  Many of the pros are known for adding a little more bread to the basket, but in Phil’s case, he added a whole five course meal.  Now with the added incentive brought about by these side bets, look out for Phil Ivey in the main event.  He may very well have some business to take care of on the side.

Hat Tip – [Tao of Poker] via [BustedCoverage]

Early into the wee hours of the morning, and after 104 hands of heads up play Peter Eastgate is the winner of the 2008 World Series Of Poker Main Event. Peter Eastgate becomes the first ever Danish Main Event winner, and now the youngest WSOP Main Event winner in history a title held by Phil Hellmuth for nearly twenty years.

“It’s incredible. It’s great to have this record. Phil Hellmuth wished me luck yesterday.”

Eastgate wins a total of $9,152,416 USD for first place and the second most in WSOP history behind Jamie Gold. Ivan Demidov wins $5,809,595 for second place, not bad for basically 5 months of work for both.

“Well, I guess I haven’t really realized how big this is. I’m sure in the next day or week I will become more emotional.” says, Eastgate after an emotional win.

The 104th and final hand went like this – Peter Eastgate limped on the button, and Ivan Demidov checked the big blind. Eastgate bet out 1.25 million on a 2DKS3H flop, Demidov called. Ivan Demidov checked the turn which brought the 4C, and Peter Eastgate bet 2 million. Demidov then check raised to 6 million, putting in half his stack to the pot. Eastgate made the call. As soon as the river fell 7S, Ivan Demidov announced an all-in. Peter Eastgate snap called, and Demidov flipped over 4H2H for two pairs and Eastgate had AD5S for the wheel straight and the winner of the hand.

Peter Eastgate jumps into the top 5 all time money list with his $9,152,416 victory at the 2008 Main Event.