WSOP

The World Series of Poker is now a high profile poker tournament that takes place every year in Las Vegas. It was until the ’80s when what are known as poker satellite tournaments that the World Series of Poker truly blew up in number. These tournaments allowed any player, of any skill level, to have a chance at playing in the big event for free. In the 80s the entrants had surpassed 2,000.

In the 1970s the first broadcasts of the World Series of Poker were aired. These were produced and broadcasted as documentaries as opposed to a sporting event being narrated by Jimmy Snyder. CBS sometimes showed the main event in the ’70s and ’80s only showing action from the final table of the World Series of Poker.

In the late 1980s, ESPN took over duties from CBS and began providing fans with extensive coverage of the event, albeit primitive compared to modern accessibility. From the year 2000 to 2001 The Discovery Channel and Travel Channel showcased the main event of the WSOP. This was short-lived as the sports broadcaster giant ESPN then took over the spotlight.

The power of computers and the World Wide Web was redefining the poker world. This made poker available to an unlimited number of people all around the world. Thanks to numerous online bookmakers, people from all over the world could play poker for money at any time. This created a sensation that has peaked but remains very much alive today.

As this phenomenon began its ascent, interest in The World Series of Poker,  highest profile Texas Hold Em Poker game, ascended with it. ESPN was ready every step of the way to increase coverage to meet demand and even orchestrated a delayed final table in 2008 in order to maximize ratings. Unfortunately, due to the need to keep players’ hole cards a secret throughout the tournament, the winner of the tournament is often known before the event is aired on tv. It was in the year of 2006 that the number of entrants reached an outstanding 8,773.

Although fans are likely to remember the events from 2002-2008 as the WSOP’s signature moments, the event has a long and illustrious history. For instance, we pay great attention to the non-professionals who have won or come close to winning the final table. However, the first non-pro to win was Hal Fowler and he did it back in 1979. Some WSOP historians assert that Benny Binnion, the father of the WSOP, had to lend him the money for the entry fee.

During the 2000 WSOP, female poker player Annie Duke made it to the final ten, just four short of the final table that year. Coming close  in 2006, reaching the final 88, ESPN took the opportunity to congratulate and publicize Annie’s feat. One of the announcers even commented that Duke might be the first woman to reach the final table. But in 1995 a female poker player by the name of Barbara Enright actually made the final table, finishing 5th in the World Series of Poker main event that year.

Likewise, fans often believe that famous World Series of Poker participant Johnny Chan is the only player to reach the final two, three years in a row. However, Tennessee native Puggy Pearson was the first to do that back in 1971, 1972 and 1973. When he finally won the event in 1973, he also became the first non-Texan to accomplish the feat.