No 12th WSOP Bracelet for Hellmuth

He came very close this time; Phil Hellmuth was up for his 12th bracelet today at Event #16, the $10,000 2-7 No-Limit Draw. Instead of Hellmuth winning his 12th, it was John Juanda who got his 5th in this less popular poker format.

Play began three days ago with a very strong field, mainly consisting of professionals. This showed at the final table, with only noted pros at it like Greg Raymer, Steve Sung and Nick Shulman.

When it came down to the Heads Up, the ‘Poker Brat’ had a 3:1 chiplead. The problem for Hellmuth was, Juanda is a world class 2-7 player and it soon became apparent he was far the better one in this confrontation.

With big precision Juanda bluffed and folded at the right times, getting Phil Hellmuth frustrated. In the last hand, Hellmuth got his money in pat with a queen, with John Juanda drawing live at a jack to lock up his fifth bracelet and a nice bonus of $367,170.