What are the odds that two poker players from a tiny town located in the north of England would fly halfway
around the globe to the 2011 World Series of Poker in Las Vegas and each win gold bracelets within just a
week’s time?
If you’re keeping track at the moment, the odds are 100 percent.
Matt Perrins, from the small suburban town called Rochdale, situated within a short distance of the bigger
and meaner industrial city of Manchester, matched the feat of his close neighbor by winning a WSOP title in
the $1,500 buy-in No-Limit Deuce-to-Seven Lowball Championship. The three-day competition concluded
today at the Rio in Las Vegas. Perrins’ victory took place only days after Jake Cody, also from Rochdale,
won the $25,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em Championship.
Perrins’ victory was impressive for at least one additional reason. Incredibly, he had never played this game
until this tournament began.Perrins later explained he was tired of playing Hold’em and decided to try something “different.” For most
people, that means sitting down in a small-stakes cash game or perhaps entering one of the many daily
tournaments spread throughout Las Vegas, during WSOP-time. For Perrins, that meant ponying up a $1,500
entry fee and entering a tournament filled with many hardcore Lowball enthusiasts. Indeed, many of the
players in this tournament had been playing Lowball for decades.
Before taking his tournament seat, Perrins had to familiarize himself with some rules and basic strategy of
the game. Since there aren’t too many tutorials out there on mastering No-Limit Deuce-to-Seven Lowball, he
turned to a place where virtually no one else goes to learn new poker:
YouTube.
That’s right, YouTube – the site famous for music videos, pranks, and pet tricks.
Apparently, Perrins found a YouTube link that must have included some pretty good material. He watched
what he estimated to be a total of 30 minutes of video about Lowball Single-Draw basics. A short time later,
he owned a WSOP gold bracelet.
Sick. Amazing. Absurd. Ridiculous….take your pick of adjectives. But the reality is – the best single-word
description would be IMPRESSIVE.
Indeed, sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.
This was the first of four Lowball events to be held at this year’s World Series of Poker. The winner, Perrins,
is a professional poker player. This was the first year he has attended the WSOP. Perrins earned $102,105
in prize money. He was also presented with the supreme symbol of achievement in the game of poker – the
WSOP gold bracelet. This marked his first-ever WSOP victory.
The runner-up was Chris Bjorin, one of the game’s finest gentlemen. If any player, particularly from abroad,
deserves serious consideration as the first international Poker Hall of Fame inductee, it is most certainly the
amiable gambler from London. Bjorin owns two WSOP gold bracelets and ranks sixth on the all-time list of
WSOP career cashes. Unfortunately, he just missed what would have been his first WSOP victory in 11
years.
This was the ninth official tournament event on this year’s WSOP SCHEDULE. The tournament attracted
275 entries. Attendance increased 10 percent from last year’s turnout when there were 250 players. The
overall trend at this year’s WSOP thus far has been a slight increase in attendance in tournament
participation and a large increase in action both in cash games and satellites.
Perrins’ account of his inexperience playing the game was reminiscent of at least two legendary poker
accomplishments. Jennifer Harman famously declared that she had never played the game, after winning
the $5,000 buy-in version of this game in 2000. She took a five-minute course from another player moments
before the action began and ended up winning her first of two gold bracelets. A similar story occurred in
1980 when Stu Ungar won the WSOP Main Event Championship. That was only the second time Ungar had
played in a No-Limit Hold’em tournament. The runner-up that year (Doyle Brunson) quipped afterward that
he was astonished by Ungar’s ability to learn so much so quickly and pick up things about the game as he
went along. Undoubtedly, Perrins’ victory in this tournament (with a much larger field size) will entice some
comparison.
For the tournament portal page for this tournament, including all REPORTS and RESULTS, click here.
EVENT #9 CHAMPION – MATTHEW “MATT” PERRINS
The 2011 World Series of Poker $1,500 No-Limit Deuce-to-Seven Lowball champion is Matt Perrins.
Perrins is from Rochdale, UK, which is adjacent to the much larger English city of Manchester.
Perrins considers himself to be a No-Limit Hold’em specialist. He does not normally play other forms of
poker.
Perrins collected a $102,105 for first place. He was also awarded his first WSOP gold bracelet.Perrins had never played the game he won, in any capacity, prior to his victory. Incredibly, he learned the
basics from watching a few free poker videos that were posted online. He admits to being unfamiliar with the
game when he began Day One. By Day Three (final table), Perrins had come to several realizations about
strategy that allowed him to succeed.
During the tournament, Perrins was late to arrive on Day Two. The second day began at 2:30 p.m.; however,
Perrins arrived one hour late because he could not get a ride to the Rio on time.
According to official records, Perrins now has 1 win, 1 final table appearance and 1 in-the-money finish at the
WSOP.
This is the first year Perrins has attended the WSOP.
Perrins currently has $102,105 in career WSOP winnings. He has an estimated $650,000 win live
tournament career winnings, according to several major popular websites.
Perrins’ biggest tournament victory up to this point was a first-place finish in the Italian Poker Tour’s
championship held in Venice, in 2009.
Perrins is a close friend of the winner of Event #2, Jake Cody. Both Perrins and Cody reside in the same
town of Rochdale, UK. In fact, the two new poker champions have known each other since they were
children.
Perrins is to be regarded as a professional poker player, since he works and plays poker successfully fulltime.
WINNER QUOTES
(Note: The winner was interviewed at tableside moments after the victory)
On winning his first WSOP gold bracelet: “This is great. To have all my mates here and to come for the first
time and win it. It’s really amazing. I can’t describe it right now.”
On what motivated him to play a new game for the first time at the WSOP: “My friends talked me into it.
They said it was fun. So, I decided to give it a try. I guess that kind of went well.”
On how he was able to grasp the complexities of the game so quickly: “During Day One and the first three or
four hours, I was not sure what was going on. I was getting into a few hands, and I was not sure what I
should do here. So, I ended up speaking to some of my mates. I started to pick it up. As the tournament got
deeper, it was kind of similar to Hold’em as in where being aggressive and three-betting will get you a lot of
chips. That’s where I started moving toward the final table.”
On playing against a very tough lineup at the final table: “I knew that everyone had a lot more experience
than me, but since I was able to play it a bit like Hold’em, they would fold. When I three-bet and was
aggressive, it worked.”
On his future goal in poker: “To win another bracelet.”
THE FINAL TABLE
The final table was comprised seven players.
The final table contained two former gold bracelet winners – Chris Bjorin and Jason Mercier.
Two nations were represented at the final table – including Great Britain (2 players) and the United States (5
players).
It was an all-British finale when play became heads-up. The top two finishers were from the UK.
The runner-up was Chris Bjorin, from London, UK. He is originally from Sweden. Bjorin holds two WSOP
gold bracelets, winning in 1997 ($1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha) and 2000 ($3,000 No-Limit Hold’em).With this cash, Chris Bjorin currently ranks in a sixth-place tie with Humberto Brenes for most career cashes– at 59. With this final table appearance, Chris Bjorin currently ranks in 10th place with Doyle Brunson for most career
final tables – at 25.
The third-place finisher was Robin Rightmire, from Glenwood Springs, CO.
The fourth-place finisher was Bernard Lee, from Wayland, MA. He is a well-known poker personality and
player. Lee is a columnist for The Boston Herald (newspaper) as well as ESPN. He also hosts a radio talk
show, called “Inside Deal.” Lee now has more than $800,000 in WSOP earnings.
The fifth-place finisher was Thomas Fuller, from Boulder, CO. He now has more than $250,000 in career
WSOP winnings.
The sixth-place finisher was Josh Brikis, from Pittsburgh, PA. He is a 31-year-old poker pro. Brikis has more
than $1.5 million in worldwide tournament winnings. His best showings at the WSOP were a second-place
finish in 2009 and finishing 55th in last year’s Main Event Championship.
The seventh-place finisher was former gold bracelet winner Jason Mercier, from Davie, FL. He is one of the
most respected all-around poker players in the world. Mercier won the $1,500 buy-in Pot-Limit Omaha title in
2009. He now has more than $900,000 in career tournament winnings at the WSOP.
The final table began at 3:10 pm. Final table play ended at 8:20 pm. Hence, the final table lasted about five
hours, 10 minutes.
The final table had an unusual atmosphere for a Lowball Draw game. On most occasions, loud cheering
sections can be found only at No-Limit Hold’em finales. Rarely does a Lowball match generate much crowd
interest, and certainly raucous celebrations are almost unheard of. Nevertheless, an all-British finale
guaranteed some fireworks in the stands. The gallery was packed with English players, most of whom
rooted for Matt Perrins. The crowd was respectful toward Bjorin and the other players. But Perrins was the
overwhelming crowd favorite. When cards were revealed during all-in situations and players were drawing,
the atmosphere was as exciting as any No-Limit Hold’em finale.
The final table was played in ESPN’s new main stage, which is getting raves in terms of design and
appearance. No stage in the history of poker has ever looked as spectacular. Early reports from the
television crew are that this year’s preliminary footage looks “spectacular.” Viewers will be able to see
ESPN’s coverage again once the WSOP Main Event begins.
Action was streamed live over WSOP.com. Viewers can tune in and watch most of this year’s final tables.
Although hole cards are not shown, viewers can follow an overhead camera as well as a pan-shot of the
table. The floor announcer provides an official account of the action.
OTHER IN-THE-MONEY FINISHERS
The top 28 finishers collected prize money, which meant the last four tables of players were paid.
The defending champion was Yan Chen, from Los Angeles, CA. He did not cash this year.
Former WSOP gold bracelet winners who cashed in this event included Chris Bjorin, Jason Mercier, Dan
Kelly (11th), Rami Boukai (13th), Greg Mueller (18th), Dario Alioto (20th), Eli Elezra (25th), and “Captain” Tom Franklin (28
th.) The 10th-place finisher was Avery Cardoza, from Las Vegas, NV. He is the founder and owner of Cardoza
Publishing (and the Gamblers Bookstore in Las Vegas), which has printed and distributed many best-selling
poker books. Among Cardoza’s catalogue is Doyle Brunson’s autobiography, which was released last year.
The 14th-place finisher was Don McNamara, from Menlo Park, CA. He finished third in the Limit counterpart
to this tournament, at last year’s WSOP.The 15th
-place finisher was Don Zewin, from Las Vegas, NV. He has been playing at the WSOP for more
than 20 years. Zewin finished third in the 1989 Main Event Championship, topped in the final only by Johnny
Chan (second) and Phil Hellmuth (winner). The 16th-place finisher was Sean Snyder, from San Diego, CA. When asked details about his background by
the media, Snyder called himself a “professional losing player.” He also insisted his favorite poker player is
“Bill Frist,” which is an inside joke to all of those who have been involved in the online poker scene since
2006.
The 17th-place finisher was Don Walsh, from Park Ridge, IL. He insists he has played more No-Limit Deuceto-Seven Single-Draw poker than anyone in the world. Most of Walsh’s hours were accumulated playing the
game online.
Tournament results are to be included in the WSOP official records. Results are also to be included in the
2011 WSOP “Player of the Year” race.
ODDS AND ENDS
This is the 900th
gold bracelet awarded in World Series of Poker history. This figure includes every official
WSOP event ever played, including tournaments during the early years when there were no actual gold
bracelets awarded. It also includes the 16 gold bracelets awarded to date at WSOP Europe (2007-2010).
For the first time ever, one gold bracelet was awarded for this year’s winner of the WSOP Circuit National
Championship.
The tournament was played over three consecutive days.
The official WSOP gold bracelet ceremony takes place on the day following the winner’s victory (or some
hours later when the tournament ends very late). The ceremony takes place inside The Pavilion, which is
the expansive main tournament room hosting all noon starts this year. The ceremony begins at the
conclusion of the first break of the noon tournament. The ceremony usually starts around 2:20 pm. The
national anthem of the winner’s nation is played. The entire presentation is open to the public and media.
Video and photography is permitted by both the public and members of the media.
Perrins’ gold bracelet ceremony is set to take place on Tuesday, June 7th. The National Anthem of Great
Britain will be played in honor of his victory.
WSOP LOWBALL RECORDS
Poker Hall of Fame inductee Billy Baxter holds every conceivable meaningful record in the Lowball game
category. He has dominated this form of poker in a manner that is unprecedented for any player in any
game in history. Perhaps only late poker legend Bill Boyd, who enjoyed similar domination in the game of
Five-Card Draw poker (which is no longer spread at the WSOP) can arguably rival Baxter’s mastery of a
single poker game.
All of Baxter’s seven WSOP gold bracelets were won playing various forms of Lowball.
Baxter holds 16 WSOP cashes in Lowball events, the most of any player in this form of poker. To give some
perspective of Baxter’s excellence, the current second-place leaders in Lowball career cashes are Bobby
Baldwin and “Oklahoma Johnny” Hale, with nine apiece.
EVENT HISTORY
Deuce-to-Seven Lowball made its tournament debut at the 1973 WSOP. The game is rarely played
anywhere except at the very highest levels. It’s rarely spread inside public card rooms — either as cash
games or tournaments. In fact, the WSOP is one of the few places where this poker variant is offered. The
game was initially tacked onto the WSOP schedule because it was the preferred game of many high-stakes
cash game players and has since become a tradition.
The very first Deuce-to-Seven Lowball champion was Aubrey Day. Since then, the Deuce-to-Seven gold
bracelet has been won by a royal court of poker champions, including Jack Straus, Sailor Roberts, BillyBaxter, Doyle Brunson, Bobby Baldwin, Sarge Ferris, Stu Ungar, Dewey Tomko, Seymour Lebowitz, Bob
Stupak, John Bonetti, Freddy Deeb, Johnny Chan, Erik Seidel, Jennifer Harman, Howard Lederer, O’Neil
Longsen, Barry Greenstein and others.
Deuce-to-Seven Draw Lowball means the worst, or lowest ranked, hand wins the pot. The very best
possible 2-7 lowball hand is 2-3-4-5-7 of mixed suits. An ace counts as a high card. Flushes and straights
count against the player. While a wheel (A-2-3-4-5) is the perfect hand in standard lowball, in Deuce-toSeven it is a losing hand since the straight counts against the player.
In the “Triple-Draw” variant of this game, players may draw up to three times to make their hand. This
tournament employed a “Single-Draw” format.
This same game was played at last year’s WSOP at the $1,500 level. The buy-in for the “cheapest” Lowball
event declined from $2,500 to $1,500 in an effort to encourage more players to enter and perhaps learn
more about the game. The lower buy-in boosted attendance from 147 (in 2009) up to 250 (in 2010). This
year, there were 275 entries, which seems to confirm the reality that if tournaments are more affordable,
more players will take a chance and play (what is for many) a new game.
There is some difference of opinion as to where and when this game originated. Since the 1930s, variations
of standard Lowball have been spread throughout California and Nevada. According to poker theorist David
Sklansky, Limit ‘Double-Draw’ Lowball was first spread at the (now defunct) Vegas World during the early
1980s. Others cited a game called “10-Handed Triple-Draw Lowball” as the forbearer of Triple Draw, which
was played at Amarillo Slim’s Super Bowl of Poker tournaments in Reno and Lake Tahoe during the period
1979 through 1984. Since 10-handed poker could only accommodate perhaps three or four players at most
due to the number of cards needed to complete a hand, reducing the number of cards (to five) enabled more
players to sit in the game.
TOURNAMENT PLAY
The tournament officially began on Saturday, June 4th at 5 pm. The tournament officially ended on Monday,
June 6th, at 8:20 pm.
2011 WSOP STATISTICS
Through the conclusion of Event #9 (sans Event #8 which is still being played at press time), the 2011
WSOP has attracted 4,424 entries. $13,831,800 in prize money has been awarded to winners thus far.
Through the conclusion of this tournament, the nationality of gold bracelet winners has been:
United States (6)
Great Britain (2)
Through the conclusion of this tournament, the national origin (birthplace) of winners has been:
United States (4)
Great Britain (2)
Ukraine (1)
Israel (1)
Through the conclusion of this event, the home-states of winners have been:
California (1)
Illinois (1)
New York (1)
New Jersey (1)
Florida (1)
Nevada (1)
Through the conclusion of this tournament, the breakdown of professional poker players to semi-pros and
amateurs who won gold bracelets is as follows:
Professional Players (6): Jake Cody, Cheech Barbaro, Eugene Katchalov, Allen Bari, Harrison Wilder, Matt
PerrinsSemi-Pros (2): Sean R. Drake, Amir Lehavot
Amateurs (0): None
All of the first eight tournaments completed so far have been won by first-time champions (non-winners from
previous years).
Four of the first eight winners this year also enjoyed their first-ever WSOP cash with the victory.
Every WSOP over the past 11 years has included at least one multiple gold bracelet champion (wins within
the same year). 1999 was the last year the WSOP was comprised exclusively of single-event winners. The
record for most multiple gold bracelet winners in a single year was in 2009, when five players managed to
win two or more titles.
The streak of male WSOP gold bracelet winners has now reached 170 consecutive events. Aside from the
annual Ladies Championship, the last female player to win a WSOP tournament open to both sexes was
Vanessa Selbst, in 2008.
The highest finish by a female player (open events) at this year’s WSOP was Maria Ho, who finished second
($5,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em)
