Hellmuth Leads WSOP POY Race

World Series of Poker / Matthew Pitt / 22 June 2011 / Leave a Comment

Rather tool-like but one hell(muth) of a record at the WSOP

It pains me to write this but Phil Hellmuth Jr is one of poker's true greats. There I have said it. It kind of stuck in my throat on the way out but I have to hold my hand up and admit that I may have been a little hasty in my negativity about "The Poker Brat."

The problem with Hellmuth is that the image he has created for himself makes him a target, that and the fact he was a shill for the cancer of online poker that is Ultimate Bet for such a long time. In all walks of life people who constantly blow their own trumpet and come across as completely egotistical set themselves up for being the target of abuse. Look at how much stick someone like Cristiano Ronaldo gets for example. Whilst I find Hellmuth entertaining at times, some of the self-promotion he does, such as his ridiculous WSOP Main Event entrances, make me want to exact some violence on his face. That said you cannot argue with the man's results over the years, particularly at the World Series of Poker.

Anyone who has every read or heard anything to do with Hellmuth will know that he has won the most WSOP bracelet of any other player, with him owning 11 of them. Despite winning 11 bracelets, Hellmuth is still often teased about them all being in Hold'em disciplines and referred to as a great player against weak opponents, the type of player who frequents these large-field No Limit Hold'em events. However, this ridicule is complete unjust in my opinion and not just because of his performances in non-Hold'em events at this year's WSOP.

Last week Hellmuth finished second in the $10,000 Deuce-to-Seven Draw Lowball (No Limit) event to John Juanda, arguably the best 2-7 player in the world. Then he once again narrowly missed out on bracelet number 12 yesterday when he finished as runner-up to Eric Rodawig in the $10,000 Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo Championship. These two results alone have earned him 393.75 WSOP Player of the Year points, just enough to put him ahead of Sam Stein who has already won a bracelet and made the top three of a $10,000 event. Full standings can be found here.

These two results, although great, are not clarification that Hellmuth is not a one-trick pony but a check of his Hendon Mob Database page shows that he has made no fewer than 17 final tables in non-Hold'em WSOP events, including four second place, two thirds and two fourths. Pretty amazing going. You also have to take into consideration the fact he has finished second in four Hold'em events too and he could quite easily have won 20 bracelets.

I got a little bit of stick myself for laughing at Hellmuth over on Twitter in the moments after his most recent second place finish and calling him a "complete and utter tool," and although I stand by that statement due to the image he has created for himself and his affiliation with UB during the cheating scandal and his silence on the matter, I have to doff my cap (if I was wearing one) to Hellmuth and his remarkable record at the WSOP. Could you even find me rooting for him in future events, quite possibly. I never thought I'd hear myself say that.