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Final Table

All linked player names have free bios, courtesy of FullTiltPoker
November Nine World Series of Poker Main Event

November Nine from the World Series of Poker Main Event left to right: James Akenhead
Jeff Shulman, Phil Ivey,
Antoine Saout, Darvin Moon, Joseph Cada, Steven Begleiter
Kevin Schaffel, Eric Buchman
Here are the names of the 9 players with chip counts for the 2009 Main Event final table:
- Darvin Moon -- 58,930,000
- Eric Buchman -- 34,800,000
- Steven Begleiter -- 29,885,000
- Jeff Shulman -- 19,580,000
- Joseph Cada -- 13,215,000
- Kevin Schaffel -- 12,390,000
- Phil Ivey -- 9,765,000
- Antoine Saout -- 9,500,000
- James Akenhead -- 6,800,000
Official Player Bios From the WSOP:
Darvin Moon
Chip Count: 58,930,000
Age: 46
- Chip Leader heading into the Main Event Final Table
- Holds 30% of the chips in play
- First time playing in a World Series of Poker event
- Self-employed logger
- No documented cashes
- Never played online poker; doesn't own a computer nor have an email address
- First time on a jet plane was when he came to Las Vegas to play in this tournament
- Won his Main Event seat via a live satellite in Wheeling, West Virginia
- Almost opted for the cash prize instead of the seat
- Learned to play 7-card stud from his grandfather as a child
- Began playing Hold'em about three years ago
- Never put all his chips at risk en route to the Final Table
Eric Buchman
Chip Count: 34,800,000
Age: 30
- Poker pro
- Enters Final Table second in chips
- More than 20 tournament cashes totaling some $900,000 prior to Main Event
- 10 in-the-money finishes at the World Series of Poker (including Main Event)
- Placed sixth in Event#25 Omaha/Seven-Card Stud Hi-Low during 2009 WSOP
- Best WSOP finish: second place in 2006 Limit Hold'em event, paid nearly $175,000
- Began playing Atlantic City and Connecticut casinos while in college
- Buchman's brother introduced him to Hold'em
Steven Begleiter
Chip Count: 29,885,000
Age: 47
- Third in chips entering the Final Table
- Principal at private equity group Flexpoint Ford in New York City
- 24 years at Bear Stearns & Co. on Wall Street
- Plans to keep his day job, regardless of Final Table outcome
- Won seat in Main Event through a 22-person home game league
- Plans to pay out 20% of his winnings to home league members
- One previous Main Event appearance: didn't cash in 2008
- Finished 9th at LA tournament in August
- Has been playing poker most of his life
- Married with three children
Jeff Shulman
Chip Count: 19,580,000
Age: 34
- Enters the Final Table fourth in chips
- Second appearance at a Main Event Final Table
- Finished in seventh place at 2000 Main Event, collected nearly $150,000
- Only player at this final table with previous Main Event final table experience
- Editor of Card Player magazine
- More than $2 million in career poker winnings
- Married; father of two; daughter was born in September
- Made Final Table of $5,000 Limit Hold'em tournament at 2005 WSOP
- Two in-the-money finishes at the 38th annual WSOP
- Three in-the-money finishes at the 37th annual WSOP
- Two in-the-money finishes at the 36th annual WSOP
- Three in-the-money finishes at the 34th annual WSOP
- Father Barry just won World Series of Poker Europe Main Event in September
- A win for Jeff would make them the second father-son duo to win WSOP bracelets (Doyle & Todd Brunson) They would be first WSOP Main Event champions from same family
- A vocal WSOP critic, despite his ongoing participation and success
Joseph Cada
Chip Count: 13,215,000
Age: 21
- Enters Final Table fifth in chips
- Can become youngest-ever champion (Peter Eastgate's record set last year)
- Turns 22 on November 18 and could best Eastgate's record by 340 days.
- Eastgate was 22 years, 10 months and 28 days old when he won last year
- Bought his first house at age 19
- Former Macomb Community College student
- Significant online poker playing experience
- Has played in more than a dozen World Series of Poker events
- Nearly $500,000 in career poker winnings prior to 2009 Main Event
- Two cashes at 40th annual WSOP prior to Main Event:
- 64th place in Event 13, a $2,500 No-Limit Hold'em tournament
- 17th place in Event 34, a $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em tournament
- Good friends with Dean Hamrick, who finished 10th in last year's Main Event
Kevin Schaffel
Chip Count: 12,390,000
Age: 52
- Enters the Final Table sixth in chips
- Oldest member of the November Nine
- Been playing poker for 40 years � from family games to big-time tournaments
- Considers himself semi-retired
- Recently closed the printing company he owned and operated for 30 years
- Including guaranteed ninth-place prize money, has some $1.9 million in winnings
- Placed 324th in the 2008 Main Event, winning more than $32,000
- Finished in-the-money at 35th annual WSOP Main Event: 42nd place for $60,000
- Has played the WSOP Main Event each year since 2004
- Finished 2nd in LA tournament in August, winning $471,670
- In addition to poker, enjoys gin rummy and golf. (Is a scratch golfer)
- Credits Serena Williams' use of "calm" and "patience" as inspiration for his style of play
Phil Ivey
Chip Count: 9,765,000
Age: 32
- Begins Final Table play seventh in chips
- Regarded by many as the world's greatest poker player
- Often referred to as the "Tiger Woods of Poker"
- Seven World Series of Poker gold bracelets
- Youngest player in history to have won seven bracelets
- Won two bracelets in 2009 in addition to making Main Event Final Table
- Captured title for Event 8: $2,500 No-Limit Deuce-to-Seven Lowball
- Captured title for Event 25: $2,500 Omaha/Seven-Card Stud Hi/Lo/8 or Better
- Has amassed more than $12 million in career poker winnings; 3rd all-time
- Finishing 5th or higher in this Main Event will move him to 1st on the all-time money list
- Won three bracelets in 2002, tying him for most WSOP wins in a single year
- Seven bracelets tie him for sixth most all-time
- A win will move him into a tie for fifth-place on the all-time list with Erik Seidel
- A win will make him the youngest-ever player to win 8 WSOP gold bracelets.
Antoine Saout
Chip Count: 9,500,000
Age: 25
- Enters Final Table play eighth in chips
- Former engineering student
- Won Main Event seat via online satellite on Everest Poker
- Upon making the November Nine, 50 fellow Everest players each received $19,000
- Buy-in for online satellite was $50
- Final tabled this year's World Series of Poker Europe Main Event, finishing 7th ($186,039)
- Credits math and analytical skills for his success
- Regularly plays multiple games simultaneously online
- Played much of the Main Event at the same table as Phil Ivey
James Akenhead
Chip Count: 6,800,000
Age: 26
- Enters Final Table play as the short stack
- Former train conductor
- Briefly studied accounting in college
- Member of the "Hit Squad", a team of pros who share tips and strategy
- Finished 9th at September's World Series of Poker Europe Main Event ($109,687)
- Received $520,000 as runner-up in WSOP $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em in 2008
- Expects previous prominent cash before ESPN's cameras to give him a Final Table edge
- Has incredible 25 tournament cashes in just the past two calendar years
- Besides WSOP tournaments, plays exclusively in European events