Well Known Charities to Benefit from WSOP Win!

You might have guessed this years WSOP winner, Jerry Yang held it down at the final table, personally removing 8 of the 9 World Series of Poker final table contenders from the game.

Earlier I said perhaps it was skill, perhaps it was luck. Perhaps though, it was skill, mixed with a bit of good Karma ..

Jerry managed to fill in a gutshot straight draw in the last hand of the 2008 WSOP main event, a gutshot, meaning a six and only a six would win him the hand, and knock Tuan Lam out of the game.

Perhaps good deeds just do not go unrewarded, Jerry Yang previously pledged 10% of his WSOP winnings to three very worthwhile and well known charity organizations.

The Make a Wish foundation - Known for honoring wishes of dying children.
The Ronald McDonald House - Providing food and shelter to endless numbers of battered women and children.
Feed The Children - A Christian organization that provides food, medical care and educations to countless children world wide.

Jerry Yang, father of six, took home a prize of just over 8 million dollars ($8,250,000), knocking out Lam who won 2nd place in the tournament for a prize of nearly 5 million dollars ($4,840,981)

Raymond Rahme Busts out in 3rd, WSOP down to Heads Up Play!

The final four WSOP players played for eight hours before Alex Kravchenko finally busted out, swooping up a 4th place WSOP win, however, it took much less time to go from the final three, to heads up WSOP main event final table action!

Eight minutes in fact.

With an ace on the board, Raymond Rahme pushed all of his chips to the middle, Jerry Yang, who has been killing at this years WSOP final table, thought about the decision for a lot longer than many thought necessary, he held ace 5 and did eventually make the call. The turn and river cam blank and Raymond Rahme from South Africa ended his 2008 World Series of Poker adventure taking home just over 3 million dollars.

Be it luck, or be it skill, Jerry Yang has been burning up this years final table since taking his seat, of the 9 original final table contenders, only one of them was not removed by Yang.

The two remaining WSOP Bracelet contenders:

Jerry Yang in the lead with 104,450,000 chips and Tuan Lam with 23,025,000 remaining in WSOP tournament chips.

Alex Kravchenko eliminated from the WSOP in 4th

The final four players remaining at the World Series of Poker main event final table played for more then eight hours before one of them finally busted out. Alex Kravchenko was nothing if not patient, he got his chips in with a monster, big slick, and found himself up against, you'll never guess who, this years final table force, Jerry Yang.

To rub it in, fate layed down a third eight for Yang on the flop. The turn was no help, and left Kravchenko drawing dead at the river.

Alex won nearly 2 million dollars for his efforts, taking home a prize of $1,852,721.


Chip Counts after Kravchenko's departure:

Jerry Yang - 67,300,000
Raymond Rahme - 36,100,000
Tuan Lam - 24,075,000

John Kalmar Busts Out in 5th - WSOP 2007

Breaking News! Two WSOP final table players went all in, and Jerry Yang was not involved! The all in moment involved John Kalmar of the United Kingdom, and Raymond Rahme of South Africa.

Kalmar pushed his stack all in preflop, and was called by Rahme, who showed the same hand Yang took out Khan with, pocket jacks.

The fans went crazy, each shouting for their chosen player, the jacks held, and the Rahme fans raised the roof!

Kalmar didn't do to bad either though, being one of the final five at the World Series of Poker final table, he is the first to cash for more than one million dollars, taking home a total prize of $1,255,069. That win ought to make entry into the World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE) this September a pretty easy choice.

"It was so great," Childs said minutes after his elimination "The best day of my life is when I got married, and this is probably the second."

Childs was staked into the WSOP by his father, Bill who joined him from the rail at the event, not a bad investment at all.

Current Final Table Chip Counts:

Jerry Yang: $65,425,000
Raymond Rahme: $29,100,000
Alex Kravchenko: $17,950,000
Tuan Lam: $15,000,000

All soon to be millionaires.

Yang Still at it, Eliminates Hevad Rain Khan from the 2007 WSOP

Khan's exit from the World Series of Poker began when he pushed a $3 million chip bet into the pot from the small blind, Yang called. Rain Khan went all in .. in the dark, All in pre-flop, in the dark, at the World Series of Poker final table.

Khan pushed the remainder of his chips into the pot, before the flop even fell onto the table.

The Flop:

King of Clubs
2 Diamonds
4 Spades

Yang called the all in bet, and flipped over pocket jacks. Khan turned over his cards, showing the Ace of Spades and the Queen of Diamonds. Two overs it could have been worse.

The turn and river were both uneventful for the players, a 4 of clubs for the turn, a 3 of spades on the river, there was no screaming, piggy back rides for chairs, or invisible basketball games to follow this hand.

Remaining WSOP Final Table Chip Counts:


Jerry Yang: $73,040,000

Tuan Lam: $19,915,000

Raymond Rahme $15,955,000

Jon Kalmar $13,405,000

Alex Kravchenko $5,170,000

Second Lee Busts out of the WSOP

Lee Childs met the poker playing wrath of Jerry Yang. Jerry "The Juggernaut" Yang eliminated Childs in 7th place, this is the third player Yang has sent packing since the final table commenced, just 2 and a half hours ago.

Yang has played his large chip lead to the fullest, raising nearly every hand, calling nearly everything preflop.

In Child's last hand for the 2007 World Series of Poker, Childs bet out $720,000, moved was there, ready and waiting to move all in. Childs thought it over for some time, a little under 5 minutes in fact.

Holding the King of Hearts and the Jack of Clubs, Childs made the call, finding with relief I'm sure, that he had Yang dominated! Yang showed the Jack and Eight of spades. The flop came blank for both players, but brought Childs a runner runner flush option.

The Flop:

Six of Clubs
Four of Clubs
four of Diamonds

The turn, an 8 of clubs, bringing Yang a pair of eights, and Childs a flush draw with two over cards to Yang's pair. Any king, any jack, any club, would bring Childs a double up through Yang, any other card, brings him a cash prize of $705,229 and a spot on the rail.


The dealer turned over the 9 of diamonds, sending Childs on his way out of the 2007 Milwaukee's Best World Series of Poker.


Current Final Table Chip Counts:



Jerry Yang: $63 million
Tuan Lam: $20 million
Raymond Rahme: $17 million
Jon Kalmar: $16 million
Hevad Khan: $8 million
Alex Kravchenko: $4 million

WSOP Chipleader First to Bust Out of Final Table

Hilm, who began his poker play at the WSOP final table was the first to bust out of the World Series of Poker Main Event Final Table. In less than two hours, Philip Hilm was eaten alive by the strong aggressive poker play of Jerry Yang.

The other WSOP final table players chose to stay tight, and let Yang do the work, and he did, pushing all in over and over again, taking down huge pots, and chipping away at the big stack brought to the table by Hilm.

Hilm decided to push back, can't have a monster every hand right? Only this time he did.

Yang bet out 1 million in WSOP tournament chips, Hilm and only Hilm called.

The flop:

King D
Jack D
Five C

Hilm checks, Yang bets 2 million. Hilm thinks his decision over for a minute, and then he calls.

The turn brought the 2 of hearts, Hilm checks again, Yang bets out 4 Million tournament chips, Hilm re-raises, all in.

With just a moments thought, Yang called, and turned over the ace of diamonds, and the king of spades. Hilm was definitely the dog, with just a pair of fives (8d/5d), and a flush draw. Hilm needed another 5, an eight for two pair, or any diamond to make a flush.

In the words of many poker players, "He had outs". The rail was quiet, the dealer paused a moment, and then flipped over both men's fate, the six of clubs, no help to Hilm, Yangs kings held up, and living proof, big slick can win. Hilm was eliminated from the WSOP in 9th place, with a total cash prize of $525,934. This hand left Yang with nearly a third of the remaining chips in play, a total of $45 million.

The next player to bust will take home $585,699.

Lee Watkinson Busts out of WSOP 2007

Lee Watkinson, one of Bodogs top picks for this years World Series of Poker Main Event tournament, has busted out of the tournament. Jerry Yang, amateur poker player who was originally given 9 to 1 odds by Bodog.com dominated Watkinson's A 7 with his own A 9. Watkinson sat quietly for a moment before deciding whether to push his chips all in with the hand, after about a four minute wait, Yang called him.

The flop came blank for both poker players, 2/4/6, followed by a king, leaving Watkinson needing a seven and only a seven to win on the river. The river came jack, eliminating Lee Watkinson, who owns a chimpanzee rescue camp for chimps retired from laboratory testing in 8th place, for a WSOP main event win of $585,699. The original buy in to the WSOP main event is $10,000, not a bad net profit at all.

WSOP odds on Bodog!

Bodog.com offers 14 to 5 odds on Philip Hilm winning the 2007 World Series of Poker.

Of the nine poker players that will be seated at this years WSOP final table, Philip Hilm holds the most tournament chips, with a stack that totals more than 23 Million WSOP tournament chips. Philip and 8 other WSOP final table players together vie for a prize totalling $8,250,000, in adition to the famous, and highly coveted 2007 WSOP bracelet.

Bodogs odds makers are offering odds on all nine WSOP finalists, as follows:

Philip Hilm: 14/5
Tuan Lam: 17/2
Lee Watkinson: 17/2
Raymond Rahme: 7/1
Hevad "Rain" Khan: 7/1
Lee Childs: 8/1
Jerry Yan: 9/1
Alex Kravchenko: 9/1