WSOP 2013 Main Event November Nine Player Profiles

Written by

Nicola Davidson on 7/17/2013

2013 WSOP Main Event November Nine Player Profiles

After 7 days of intense action, 6,343 players have been eliminated from the 2013 World Series of Poker Main Event, resulting in the historic November Nine. This year’s final table will consist of several well-known poker pros, as well as a couple of virtually unknowns, representing a total of 5 countries around the world. The eventual winner stands to receive $8,359,531, while the remaining eight will share in a lucrative pie of $18,302,535. The ultimate payout schedule will look like this:

• 1st place: $8,359,531
• 2nd place: $5,173,170
• 3rd place: $3,727,023
• 4th place: $2,791,983
• 5th place: $2,106,526
• 6th place: $1,600,792
• 7th place: $1,225,224
• 8th place: $944,593
• 9th place: $733,224

1. JC Tran – For the moment, 36 year old JC Tran is leading the pack with the largest chip stack of 38,000,000, more than 8 million more than the next nearest opponent, but as we all know, chip leads come and go like mayflies in this, the most prestigious of all final tables. Tran is a highly decorated American poker pro with 2 WSOP bracelets under his belt, earned in the 2008 and 2009 WSOP. He’s scooped up $7,566,822 in live tournament winnings over an illustrious career that spans 99 cashes and 9 outright victories. 44 of those cashes came in WSOP events. He is clearly the most ornamented and experienced player among the final table. Assuming Tran doesn’t cash in any other poker events before the November Nine reconvenes, his WSOP finish will be the historic 100th cash of his career.
2. Amir Lehavot – The second largest stack of the November Nine is held by Israeli poker pro Amir Lehavot, who ended with 29,700,000 at the final break. Lehavot is another proven World Series competitor with 1 WSOP bracelet, earned for taking down the 2011 WSOP Pot Limit Holdem Championship. At 38 years of age, the Florida resident has racked up just over $1.5 million in live tournaments over 32 cashes.
3. Marc-Etienne McLaughlin – Coming in third with 26,525,000 chips remaining is Canadian poker pro Marc-Etienne McLaughlin. Though not quite as successful as the November Nine’s superior chip leaders, this 25 year old tattoo artist has wrangled up 7 live tournament cashes worth $677,168, including a 3rd place finish in a NL Holdem event of the 2011 WSOP that landed him $292,634, and a 30th place finish in the 2009 WSOP Championship valued at $253,941. He also finish 86th in the 2011 WSOP Championship for $76,146.
4. Jay Farber – Although he’s an amateur poker player, he is not new to the Las Vegas scene. He’s spent the last five years working in Sin City’s nightlife industry as a VIP host, and while the rest of the final nine showed distinct signs of exhaustion after the 10th place elimination of Carlos Mortensen, the 2001 WSOP Champion, Farber was a grinning bubble of energy that grabbed a lot of attention from railbirds. As such, the 28 year old business graduate of UC Santa Barbara could be the crowd favorite when these proficient poker players reconvene later this year. He is presently fourth place in chips with 25,975,000.
5. Ryan Riess – Just behind Farber is 23 year old American Ryan Riess with 25,875,000 chips to his name. Riess has been playing poker since he was 14, but started making live tournament bubbles persistently since claiming his first of 18 cashes in October of 2012. The majority of his wins are in the 3- to 4-figure range, but his first cash was much more munificent, pulling in $239,063 for a 2nd place finish in a WSOP Circuit Event. This marks Riess’s first attempt at a WSOP Main Event, and is guaranteed to be the largest cash of his career to date regardless of the outcome. The youngest of the November Nine, the Michigan native currently boasts $308,659 in live tournament winnings.
6. Sylvain Loosli – Next up is amateur poker player Sylvain Loosli, a business school graduate born and raised in France, but currently calling London, England his home base. Loosi is holding the sixth largest stack of 19,600,000. Although his live tournament cashes amount to only $3,198, the Frenchman is a proficient online poker player who’s earned more than $1 million in cash games.
7. Michiel Brummelhuis – Coming in seventh among stacks is Michiel Brummelhuis of the Netherlands, with 11,275,000 chips, less than one-third of the leader’s stack size. Brummelhuis has quite the year ahead of him, expecting his first child in September. At 32 years of age, the Amsterdam native has made four attempts at the WSOP Main Event, but this year will mark his first in-the-money finish. However, he has earned a total of $174,170 in other WSOP events, adding to his current total of $610,518 spanning 18 live tournament cashes. Brummelhuis’ November Nine status will be a historic one as it marks the first time a Dutch player has made the final table in the history of the 44-year WSOP Main Event.
8. Mark Newhouse – Coming into the final table rather short stacked is another acclaimed American poker pro, Mark Newhouse, with 7,350,000 chips remaining. This 28 year old poker pro has been grinding away at the WSOP Main Event since 2006, but only cashed once for $47,107 in the 2011 NL Holdem Championship. His WSOP earnings total $152,725; nothing compared to his overall live tournament winnings of $1,946,082. His largest cash earned him a WPT Title at the 2006 Borgata Poker Open, worth $1,519,020, sparking his professional poker career.
9. David Benefield – David Benefield falls into the category of ultimate short stack of the final table, carrying just 6,375,000 into the 2013 WSOP November Nine. His live poker prowess has earned him $648,177 thus far, guaranteed to more than double before the year is out. The 27 year old American poker player is only a part-time pro at the moment, taking time off from his game to pursue his Political Science studies at Columbia University in New York. Benefield was a heavy grinder at Full Tilt Poker’s nosebleed tables up until 2009, where he racked up over $1 million in online poker winnings.