Potential Male Winners of the 2006 World Series of Poker
Will any of the 'big men' win this year's Poker World Series?
MEN ONLY Yesterday I looked at potential female WSOP 2006 contenders for the Main Event title. Today, I want to profile one of the outstanding male players definitely ripe for a final table place. Erick Lindgren represents the new blood on the professional poker circuit with career winnings so far of $3,500,000 that we know about. Despite living in Las Vegas, Erick is a global player and you’ll be just as likely to see him cashing out in the Caribbean or Monte Carlo as in his home town. Lindgren plays a lot of online Hold’em to keep himself sharp and what I like most about his style in live games is the way he stays aloof to all around him. You could bad mouth or attempt to irritate Erick all day long and it would have no effect whatever. He puts up a wall of focus around him that is most disconcerting to his opponents. Some players attempt to look cool. Erick must have actually been born in a fridge. Away from the game Lindgren is a fun loving thirty year old with a horde of female fans but the green felt seems to throw a switch in his head and he becomes the ice man. If those of you who like sports bets are looking for a value, long odds outsider I’d say you could do a lot worse than Erick Lindgren to make the final table.
THE FAVOURITES Obviously the likes of Erick Lindgren are outsiders and the odds you are offered should dramatically reflect that in a field of 8,000 players. If you only bet on favourites then you are looking at Phil Ivey where a lot of the odds being quoted simply don’t reflect fairness or reality in my book. I’ve seen quotes as mean as 30-1. Loopy in a field this wide open. More realistic prices available stretch to 125-1 and with Phil in such amazing form maybe that represents a glimmer of fair play. Obviously Gus Hansen is close on Ivey’s heels at around 200-1 and Negreanu, Lederer and Men “The Master” Neguyen are all positioned around about 250-1. I have seen quotes as tight as 100-1 for Johnny “Orient Express” Chan and Phil Hellmuth, both great players, but hardly value at those prices. In short: Shop around for value because clearly there is wide variation to the odds on offer.
SOME ODD ODS! I’ve just noticed last year’s winner Joe Hachem at 600-1 to repeat his victory and 2003 Champ Chris Moneymaker at 500-1. These are less than flattering offers on two inspired players with proven track records at the highest level of the game and probably warrant consideration. I would expect these prices to shorten as kick off time closes in. Good luck.
