The 2016 World Series of Poker Main Event final table is led by Cliff Josephy, a veteran of the online and live poker worlds, with over 75 million in chips.
Each of the remaining nine players is assured a minimum of $1 million, with the champion slated to win an additional $8 million, the title, and the Main Event bracelet.
The players will gather again on Oct. 30 to continue the game until a winner is determined, with the subsequent seating and chip counts as follows:
Griffin Benger is in Seat 1 with 26,175,000 points. Seat 2 is occupied by Vojtech Ruzicka who has 27,300,000 points. Fernando Pons is in Seat 3 with 6,150,000 points. Qui Nguyen, with 67,295,000 points, is in Seat 4. Cliff Josephy is in Seat 5 and has 74,600,000 points. Michael Ruane, with 31,600,000 points, sits in Seat 6. Gordon Vayo is in Seat 7 and has 49,375,000 points. Seat 8 is occupied by Kenny Hallaert with 43,325,000 points. Finally, Jerry Wong, with 10,175,000 points, is in Seat 9.
In the 2016 WSOP Main Event, 6,737 players participated, creating a prize pool exceeding $63 million. This event marks the fifth-largest Main Event in WSOP history, and the biggest since 2011.
WSOP November Nine 2016: Player profiles
Here’s a brief overview of all the remaining players:
Griffin Benger
The Canadian, known as “shaGuar”, is a former Counter-Strike champion who has earned millions from playing in online poker tournaments.
Vojtech Ruzicka
The professional from the Czech Republic has earned over a million dollars from live tournaments and won the EPT High Roller title at the 2013 Deauville series.
Fernando Pons
Pons, a Spaniard with a short stack, qualified for the Main Event through a €30 satellite. This marks his first-ever participation in a WSOP event.
Qui Nguyen
Nguyen, a resident of Las Vegas, frequently participates in the Aria and Rio tournaments, typically buying in for about $200. Before this, his highest tournament earnings were a mere $9,029.
Cliff Josephy
Joseph has amassed millions through participating in poker tournaments and sponsoring others in such events. He notably backed 2009 champion Joe Cada and is a recipient of two WSOP bracelets.
Michael Ruane
Before the 2016 WSOP, Ruane had only participated in a few tournaments, with his best performance resulting in a cash prize of €13,000 at the EPT Campione 2012.
Gordon Vayo
American professional player, Vayo, has nearly one million dollars in tournament earnings to his credit, which includes a second-place finish in the 2014 $3,000 Six-Handed WSOP event, where he won over $300,000.
Kenny Hallaert
Hallaert, a professional Belgian player, is familiar with major poker events, having made it to the final table at EPT Deauville 2011. However, this is his largest cash win to date.
Jerry Wong
This marks Wong’s sixth cash-in at the 2016 WSOP. His impressive resume includes a final table at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure and a title from a World Poker Tour side event.
The next steps
The nine finalists will now take a three-month break before the tournament resumes on October 30th, at which point the “November Nine” will compete until a winner is determined.
The concept of the November Nine was launched in 2008 to heighten the anticipation for the final table. This allowed spectators to watch the unfolding action on ESPN, without yet knowing the winner.
Pros at the final table
As usual, the final table is populated by relatively obscure players. Of the nine finalists, Josephy is the most recognized name in the poker world, yet he doesn’t rank as one of the world’s most famous poker players.
Daniel Negreanu nearly made it to the November Nine last year, finishing in 11th place.
Michael Mizrachi was the last “TV pro” to reach the final table in 2010. Prior to him, Phil Ivey ended in seventh place in 2009.
