WSOP rail - Chad gets married, Negreanu is charitable and Hasan Habib makes a friend

Norman Chad ties the knot…again

It's official. ESPN World Series of Poker color man Norman Chad got married last week, leaving this reporter wondering whether there will be any more references to his multiple failed marriages in the 2007 WSOP broadcasts.

"You better print this quick, I might be divorced again before you finish writing," Chad said.

He started to tell me that he had married a woman fresh out of prison, but stopped short, explaining that the mystery wife is a really "wonderful woman."

"It's true I did get married," Chad said. "But I made up the prison stuff."

Negreanu is charitable

Daniel Negreanu is today's ESPN featured player. His appearance on the main stage has drawn the largest featured-table crowd to date. The standing-room only crowd cheered loudly every time Daniel earned some chips.

One fan, seated in the Milwaukee's Best Light Lounge, yelled out to Daniel between hands, asking him if he could get him a water (water at the poker tables is free). An incredulously Negreanu asked the fan to repeat his question. Again the jovial fan made his request.

"Can we do that?" Negreanu asked the table's floor person.

"I guess," the official said.

The fan eventually received his complimentary water.

Later on, Negreanu asked the fan if he was all set.

"How was the water?" he asked. "Need anything else? Some brandy, maybe a beer?"

Hasan Habib's fan

A short-stacked player entertained Hasan Habib's table and the fans around it all afternoon by screaming the professional's name every time Habib wins a pot.

After Habib raked in one large pot, the short-stacked player tried to negotiate with Habib, asking for some chips in exchange for some more verbal publicity. Habib just laughed, but the player went ahead and screamed the name again anyways.

"Now let's talk about stack percentages," the loud player said.

An empty Rio

The Amazon Ballroom is quiet and virtually empty for the first time since the WSOP began. A few cash games were still running Wednesday, but the Main event was down to just 500 players before the dinner break and the usual din was minimal.

It's still six days from the Main Event final table, but the mood is changing from chaos to calm.