25K Fantasy Coming Down to the Wire in the WSOP Main Event
The 25 Fantasy League is a fun, competitive side attraction to follow along with all summer, and once again the race has come down to the World Series of Poker Main Event.
As a quick recap, this year there were 11 teams to compete. Each drafted eight players using a budget of $200 in an auction-style draft. Points are awarded in all open WSOP events, and the top three teams will cash. Heading into the Main Event, Team Gipsy held a nice lead over the pack, with Team Glantz/Volpe in second place and Team Hastings in third place. Tied for fourth place on the bubble were Team Run It Up and Team Negreanu.
Let's take a look at the current scoring heading into Day 4 of the 2015 WSOP Main Event with 661 players remaining. The "Players Left" column represents those players still in before the start of play on Saturday.
| Rank | Team | Score | Players Left | Chips | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Team Gipsy | 783 | --none-- | -- | |
| 2 | Team Glantz/Volpe | 725 | Bryce Yockey | 296,000 | |
| 3 | Team Hastings | 689 | Brian Hastings | 1,034,500 | |
| Justin Bonomo | 745,000 | ||||
| T-4 | Team Run It Up | 663 | Chris George | 303,000 | |
| Phil Hellmuth | 170,500 | ||||
| George Danzer | 155,000 | ||||
| T-4 | Team Negreanu | 663 | --none-- | -- | |
| 6 | Team Waxman | 636 | Matt Glantz | 581,000 | |
| John Racener | 338,500 | ||||
| 7 | Team Leah | 594 | Daniel Negreanu | 444,000 | |
| Jonathan Duhamel | 53,000 | ||||
| 8 | Team Kroko-Ushan | 559 | --none-- | -- | |
| 9 | Team Fleyshman | 544 | --none-- | -- | |
| 10 | Team Gorodinsky | 527 | Marco Johnson | 236,500 | |
| 11 | Team Brunson | 454 | John Monnette | 45,500 |
As you can see, a couple of teams have been eliminated from scoring anymore points in the WSOP Main Event. Those teams include Team Gipsy, Team Negreanu, Team Kroko-Ushan, and Team Fleyshman. But, with 12 players still remaining in the fight across seven teams, there is still a lot to play for.
Using the 25K Fantasy League scoring system, points in the WSOP Main Event are worth three times the normal amount. Plus, there is a big field bonus of 64 points that kicks in if a player reaches the top 72 spots. There's still a long way to go to earn the field bonus, but reaching it is the first big step towards jumping up some spots.
Let's take a look at how the scoring should look for the 2015 WSOP Main Event. Remember that all points will lock in once the November Nine is reached on Tuesday.
| Place | Points |
|---|---|
| 1 | 214 |
| 2 | 199 |
| 3 | 184 |
| 4 | 169 |
| 5 | 154 |
| 6 | 139 |
| 7 | 124 |
| 8 | 109 |
| 9 | 94 |
| 10-18 | 79 |
| 19-72 | 67 |
| 73-1,000 | 3 |
Without getting into too many specifics, as the field is still very far away from the final table or final two tables, here are a couple of scenarios that could play out if players reach the field bonus portion of the scoring.
Team Glantz/Volpe could move from 725 points up to 792 to take the lead if Bryce Yockey makes the field bonus and no one else does anything. Right now, with the three points earned for reaching the money in the event, Team Glantz/Volpe has 728 points.
Team Hastings is currently third, but they are in a great spot with two players left yielding very big stacks — Brian Hastings with 1,034,500 and Justin Bonomo with 745,000. Being only 94 points out of first place, Team Hastings could also jump into the top spot if things fall their way. Both Hastings and Bonomo reaching the final 72 will likely do it, or a very deep run into the final table for just one of them.
Team Run It Up has the most players remaining with three — Chris George, Phil Hellmuth, and George Danzer — and there could still jump up into the money spots with a few favorable finishes. Just one player from their team making the top 72 will give them 736 points, but they're going to need help from Team Glantz/Volpe and Team Hastings not earning much more than they currently are.
Team Waxman has two players remaining with Matt Glantz and John Racener, and they too could jump into the money spots if something similar happens to them as to Team Run It Up. Basically, they'll need one really, really good result or two field bonuses to give themselves a shot, but either will come with having to avoid the teams ahead of them earning any big scores.
Team Leah is the last squad with more than one player remaining, and they have two. Being 95 points out of third place as things currently stand, it's going to take a final table by one of their players or two field bonuses to move them into contention to cash, but they'll have to fade lots of players making a move on teams who are already on higher-ranked teams.
The last team that can really do anything is Team Gorodinsky, but it's going to take a valiant effort by Marco Johnson and a lot of help elsewhere. To have any shot, they'll need Johnson to not only make the final table, but finish top four in chips.
Team Brunson also has one player left with John Monnette, but even bagging the chip lead for the November Nine won't give them enough points to move up to better than fifth place.
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