Where Are They Now: Stan Schrier Reflects on Historic 2001 WSOP Final Table
Unless you were around before the poker boom, you're probably not familiar with Stanley Schrier. An elder statesman of the game, Schrier was a part of what many consider to be the greatest final table in World Series of Poker Main Event history, one that included Phil Hellmuth, Mike Matusow, and Carlos Mortensen, just to name a few.
The year was 2001, and 613 of the best players in the world packed Binion's Horseshoe in downtown Las Vegas. A few years prior, Schrier, who was in his late 60s, sold his car businesses in Omaha and relocated to Vegas to play poker, but that year marked the first time he'd ever played in the WSOP.
As legendary players fell by the wayside – players such as Billy Baxter (37th - $20,000), Barny Boatman (33rd - $30,000), Mike Sexton (29th - $30,000), Allen Cunningham (27th - $39,960), and Jim Bechtel (23rd - $39,960) – Schrier remained. With just 11 players remaining, the field lost a young up-and-coming player, one who is now one of the most famous players in the world.
"I knew Daniel Negreanu real well," Schrier recently told PokerNews at a poker tournament in Omaha. "I think he took a bad beat. I remember when we were down to 11, during hand-for-hand, Daniel was at the other table, so I can't remember what he went out with. It was quite the experience."
Negreanu, who was the chip leader with 12 left, fell just shy of the final table, which in addition to the names already mentioned included future poker host and author Phil Gordon and 2008 Poker Hall of Fame inductee Dewey Tomko.
The 2001 WSOP Main Event Final Table
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Carlos Mortensen | $1,500,000 |
| 2 | Dewey Tomko | $1,098,925 |
| 3 | Stan Schrier | $699,315 |
| 4 | Phil Gordon | $399,610 |
| 5 | Phil Hellmuth | $303,705 |
| 6 | Mike Matusow | $239,765 |
| 7 | Henry Nowakowski | $179,825 |
| 8 | Steve Riehle | $119,885 |
| 9 | John Inashima | $91,910 |
"All the guys were real nice," Schrier reflects. "I think the greatest memory was when we watched Hellmuth get busted out. He cried like a baby, and ran to his dad sitting back there. I mean, he's really a nice guy when you get him away from poker, but he can't take it when he losses. But he's really a nice guy, I always kid him about it."
"I knew all those guys," Schrier continued. "Mike [Matusow] I had played with. The guy who wrote the book, Phil Gordon, and then a guy about my age, or probably a little younger from Miami, he got second, Dewey Tomko. Real nice guy."
As for the man who won it all, Schrier kept it simple: "The young man who won it just got cards all day and played real well."
Like so many players back in the day, Schrier, who is going on 80 years old, never imagined poker world blow up as big as it did.
"Unbelievable, but it's great," he said. "I love it. To me poker is just about having fun."
Indeed, while he eventually left Vegas and headed back home to Omaha, Schrier has never quit playing.
"I'll be out at the World Series," Schrier confirmed to PokerNews. "It's funny, I'm not a spring chicken. They've got the Super Seniors coming up, so I definitely want to play in it. The thing is, I've already had nine of my friends call me wanting a piece of me, saying that they're putting me in. I want to put myself in [laughs]. At my age I can still play."
With $966,962 in total live earnings in the last 15 years, Schrier has shown he's more than capable of keeping up with the young guns. Among Schrier's other notable cashes were $48,790 for a ninth-place finish in the 2005 World Poker Tour Mirage Poker Showdown; eighth in the 2006 WSOP Seniors Event for $26,936; and 30th in the 2009 WSOP Seniors Event for $10,149.
PokerNews will be sure check in on Schrier this summer during the 2015 WSOP.
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In this Series
- 1 Where Are They Now?: The 2003 WSOP Main Event Final Table
- 2 Where Are They Now?: The 1989 WSOP Main Event Final Table
- 3 Where Are They Now?: The 2002 WSOP Main Event Final Table
- 4 Where Are They Now: 2007 World Series of Poker Main Event Final Tablist, Phillip Hilm
- 5 Where Are They Now: 2006 World Series of Poker Main Event Final Tablist, Rhett Butler
- 6 Where Are They Now: 2003 WSOP Main Event Final Tablist, Tomer Benvenisti
- 7 Where Are They Now: 2005 WSOP Main Event Final Tablist, Steve Dannenmann
- 8 Where Are They Now: 2009 WSOP Main Event Final Tablist, Kevin Schaffel
- 9 Where Are They Now: 2006 WSOP Main Event Final Tablist, Dan Nassif
- 10 Where Are They Now: 2005 WSOP Main Event Final Tablist, Aaron Kanter
- 11 Where Are They Now: 2007 PCA Champion, Ryan Daut
- 12 Where Are They Now: 2003 Aussie Millions Champion Peter Costa
- 13 Where Are They Now: 2007 World Series of Poker Main Event Final Tablist, Raymond Rahme
- 14 Where Are They Now: Eric Crain
- 15 Where Are They Now: WPT Season 1 Stars Ron Rose & Chris Bigler
- 16 Where Are They Now: WPT Season V Borgata Poker Open Champ Mark Newhouse
- 17 Where Are They Now: WPT Season II Borgata Poker Open Champ Noli Francisco
- 18 Where Are They Now: WPT Season IX Foxwoods Poker Finals Champion Jeff Forrest
- 19 Where Are They Now: Adam Friedman
- 20 Off The Felt With Nadya Magnus: Where Are They Now?
- 21 Where Are They Now: Don Zewin, the Man Who Finished Third to Hellmuth & Chan in 1989
- 22 Where Are They Now: 1981 World Series of Poker Main Event Runner-Up Perry Green
- 23 Where Are They Now: 2007 World Series of Poker Main Event Finalist Lee Childs
- 24 Where Are They Now: 2008 World Series of Poker Main Event Bad Beat Victim Paul Snead
- 25 Where Are They Now: 2007 World Series of Poker Player of the Year Tom Schneider
- 26 Where Are They Now? Harrah's New Orleans Poker Dealer Darrell Guillory
- 27 Where Are They Now: Former Team PokerStars Pro Pat Pezzin
- 28 Where Are They Now: 2007 WSOP Main Event Fifth-Place Finisher Jon Kalmar
- 29 Where Are They Now: The Nine Past EPT Barcelona Champions
- 30 Where Are They Now: EPT Season 1 Barcelona Champ Alexander Stevic
- 31 Where Are They Now: 2006 WSOP Main Event 12th-Place Finisher John Magill
- 32 Where Are They Now: The Past Nine EPT London Champions
- 33 Where Are They Now: EPT6 London Champ Aaron Gustavson
- 34 Where Are They Now: EPT4 Baden Champ Julian Thew
- 35 Where Are They Now: Past EPT Prague Champions
- 36 Where Are They Now: 2011 WSOP Main Event Champ Pius Heinz
- 37 Where Are They Now: 2007 World Series of Poker Runner-Up Tuan Lam
- 38 Where Are They Now: Stan Schrier Reflects on Historic 2001 WSOP Final Table
- 39 Where Are They Now: Bracelet Winner Matt Hawrilenko Temporarily Comes Out of "Retirement"
- 40 Where Are They Now: Battling Multiple Sclerosis, Paul Darden Returns to WSOP Felt
- 41 Where Are They Now? Mike Gracz Returns To Poker After Three Years To Lead Event #31
- 42 Where Are They Now: 2004 Poker Boom Breakout Gabriel Thaler
- 43 Where Are They Now: "Minneapolis" Jim Meehan Pretty Much Out of Poker
- 44 Where Are They Now: Poker's Good Guy, a Survivor, and a Rogue
- 45 Where Are They Now: 2006 WSOP Stud Dmitri Nobles
- 46 Where Are They Now: Esther Rossi’s 7-Card Stud Journey
- 47 Where Are They Now: 2007 WSOP & WPT Champ Bill Edler
- 48 Where Are They Now: Fabian Quoss Announces His Exit from Poker
- 49 Where Are They Now: Jon Aguiar Fondly Remembers Tilting Brandon Cantu
- 50 Where Are They Now: Family & Business First for Adrienne “TalonChick” Rowsome
- 51 Where Are They Now: Xuan Liu Swaps Poker Passion for eSports
- 52 Where Are They Now: Alan Boston Offended to Return to WSOP After Long Hiatus
- 53 Where Are They Now: An 'The Boss' Tran Fighting Curse from Selling Bracelet
- 54 Where Are They Now: 1996 WSOP Chinese Poker Bracelet Winner Gregg Grivas
- 55 Where Are They Now: Ali Eslami Returns to WSOP After Five-Year Hiatus
- 56 Where Are They Now: Former EPT Champ Sander Lylloff Competing in Biggest Backgammon Duel in History
- 57 Where Are They Now: Dustin Woolf Back in Poker But Not as Player
