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WSOPE event sets record

LONDON, England -- (PRESS RELEASE) -- The inaugural 2007 World Series of Poker Europe presented by Betfair.com will pay out the largest prize pools for live HORSE and Pot-Limit Omaha tournaments in European poker history.

"We are pleased that we are establishing new records for live tournament play in Europe," said Jeffrey Pollack, WSOP commissioner. "Out of the gate, WSOP Europe has attracted many of the world's greatest players -- all competing to win the first WSOP bracelets ever awarded outside the United States."

The strength of the tournament field is evident in the final table of the HORSE event, which began right at 3 p.m. GMT today with nine WSOP bracelets among the eight players competing for a 70,875 pounds Sterling first-place prize -- and the first WSOP Europe bracelet ever awarded. All told, the top 16 players in the HORSE event will collect a total of 262,500 pounds. The 105 players that started the HORSE event owned a total of 98 WSOP bracelets.

With 204,000 in chips, two-time WSOP bracelet winner Jennifer Harman started the HORSE final table as the chip leader, not surprising since she is a regular winner in the world's biggest cash games that feature several variations of poker. HORSE, after all, is an acronym for five versions of the game -- hold'em, Omaha, razz, stud and stud high-low.

Other final-table HORSE players included young Yuval Bronshtein with 185,500 in chips, one-time WSOP bracelet winner Kirk Morrison with 172,500, five-time WSOP bracelet winner Chris Ferguson with 142,500, Betfair.com poker pro Thomas Bild with 130,500, 2007 WSOP Main Event final-table finisher and WSOP bracelet holder Alex Kravchenko with 114,500, Hendon Mobster Joe Beavers with 74,500 and UK poker pro Gary Jones with 30,000.

Earlier today, more than 160 players anted up 5,000 pounds apiece for the start of the pot-limit Omaha championship, ensuring the second event's prize pool will be at least 900,000 pounds -- nearly $2 million. Poker legend Doyle Brunson, who participated in the first World Series of Poker in Las Vegas 37 years ago, announced "Shuffle Up and Deal" for the start of the Omaha event.

The World Series of Poker Europe presented by Betfair.com debuted in London September 6 and runs through September 16. The tournament is hosted at three casinos operated by London Clubs International -- Fifty on St. James Street, The Casino at the Empire on Leicester Square and The Sportsman at Marble Arch.

The World Series of Poker Europe consists of three events. The largest of these is the Main Event, a 10,000 pounds buy-in, 750-player, six-day tournament spread over three casinos with an expected prize pool of roughly 7.5 million pounds. The winner could take home more than 1.5 million pounds in cash, depending on the number of entrants, as well as a WSOP gold-bracelet, the most coveted prize in poker.

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