It seems like just last week that we were talking about how Phil Hellmuth squandered a huge chip lead against John Juanda in the 2-7 Lowball Championship, and cost himself a twelfth WSOP bracelet. Okay, maybe that’s because it was last week when Hellmuth missed out on the opportunity to extend his all-time lead over Johnny Chan and Doyle Brunson (both have 10 gold bracelets).
Fast forward to this week, and Hellmuth was once again in a situation to distance himself from the competition in the Seven Card Stud Hi-Low 8′s or Better Championship. In this installment of Hellmuth-tries-to-redeem-his-reputation, the Poker Brat worked his way into a showdown with Eric Rodawig. The good thing about this matchup for Hellmuth is that he wasn’t facing quite the caliber of a John Juanda; the bad thing is that he was sitting at a 3-1 chip disadvantage to Rodawig.
And the chip disparity was something that Hellmuth wouldn’t be able to overcome as he busted after failing to connect on a straight. Once again, Hellmuth missed a golden opportunity to win his first non-Hold’em bracelet and repair his image, which has taken a hit over the past few years due to annoying self-promotion tactics.
Other players worth mentioning in this tournament include John Racener (3rd place), Ted Forrest (4th place) and David Benyamine (5th place). Racener is particularly interesting here since he is quietly becoming more than just the guy who lost to Jonathan Duhamel in the 2010 Main Event. In fact, he now has $7.25 million in live tournament winnings.
