ESPN Poker Blog

Posted by Andrew Feldman

Editor's note: You can find out more about each of these players by heading to our main event recap. Podcasts, videos, columns, chats and more are available for each of the November Nine. You can also read Gary Wise's predictions here.

The hype of this final table has been sweeping across the Bristol campus, and being the only true poker "analyst" (and I use that term loosely) here, everyone has been asking me one question: Who is going to win this thing?

Before I continue, I'll be honest: I've given at least nine answers. However, in true ESPN.com WSOP tradition, I'm going to give my best shot for 2008 and just know that I've been really, really wrong before:

"Feldman's take: [Jerry] Yang will have to be hit with the deck if he's going to pull this off. Yang hasn't played great poker, but has survived this way due to his desire to win. He's been all-in behind a number of times and he'll have to avoid playing weak hands if he's going to have a chance." -- My blog on July 16, 2007.

Yeah, that turned out as expected. No more than 24 hours later I was thoroughly eating my words and writing about our new champion: Jerry Yang.

In any case, each of these nine are very talented players. After watching our coverage on ESPN, each of them had their streaks of good reads and good luck, and after speaking to every single player numerous times throughout this hiatus, I'm confident in one thing: I'm going to tick at least one of them off with these predictions.

Here we go:

9th place: Kelly Kim. I think KK is a great player and smarter than most. He truly understood the value of making this final table, and hopefully has done some magic and earned some extra sponsors when he returns to the Rio as the short stack on Sunday. His position is also the biggest of problems, and with no redraw, Kim had a real-life bad beat, sitting between chip leader Dennis Phillips and Peter Eastgate. The two won't let him see many pots for free, so he'll have limited pushing opportunities. He's going to have to find a hand and go with it.

Feldman caveat: If KK manages to double up even once, I'd expect to see a good performance. I honestly think that if he somehow has chips, he's experienced enough to make this improbable dream come true.

8th place: Craig Marquis/Chino Rheem. I know you're asking me here, how can I possibly list two players? The truth is, one of these players will make a run at the title. The other will pick a bad spot and fizzle out in eighth place. Both of them have a very similar style in that they'll be very aggressive early, looking to pick up chips. I see one of them -- and I'm leaning toward Rheem due to his experience -- being able to pick a good spot and getting down to the big money.

Feldman caveat: Lon McEachern said on the Poker Edge podcast that every morning he wakes up and Craig Marquis is on his mind.

7th place: Ylon Schwartz. The former chess master has been deep in WSOP events before, but never to this extent. He has 12 WSOP cashes and has anxiously been waiting for this final table to play out. He admitted he was nervous for Sunday, and as much as keeping calm should be a priority, it might cause a problem for Schwartz. He is the ultimate wild card at this final table, and neither a top- nor bottom-three finish would shock me.

Feldman caveat: He has the experience. He's been playing for a long time and perhaps understands better than anyone what winning this bracelet could mean, but if he wins, another main event champion will fall off the map, as he hopes to find a hammock somewhere and disappear with the $9 million. He also said that he would take a "swan dive off the Rio" if he finishes in last. I'm pretty sure he'll be folding until someone is eliminated.

6th place: Peter Eastgate. Many professional players have been picking Eastgate to take this table down. The 22-year-old is extremely talented, and has proven that with his extensive cash-game victories and recent tournament performances. That said, this is his first major final table, and the players here will make sure it will be no cakewalk. I think many players understand what Eastgate can do, and for some reason I have an inkling he's going to bluff his chips away to Ivan Demidov.

Feldman caveat: He's extremely hard to read, but has been preparing for this final table by playing in other events. He's done his homework and didn't want to give away any bit of his strategy in any interview, showing just how seriously he's taking his opportunity to make history.

5th place: Darus Suharto. I've said it before and I'll say it again: I really like Darus Suharto. As one of the two amateurs at the final table, Suharto is the only member at the table with a WSOP cash and has worked on his game during the break. He considers himself a donkey, but I think this donkey will finish in the middle of the pack

Feldman's caveat: He's been working with Eric Lynch, and maybe that will loosen up his game a bit. I think he'll have trouble getting paid off on his big hands early, and that might prevent him from building a stack with which to compete.

4th place: Craig Marquis/Chino Rheem. I spoke about this earlier. One will rise, while the other will fall. I'm still leaning toward Rheem in this spot due to the experience factor, but it will be fun to watch either of them try to maneuver a big stack at a short-handed table -- which happens to be Marquis' specialty.

Feldman's caveat: I don't know how I can caveat a point where I pick two players for one spot, but I'll try. Marquis learned from two of the game's most talented young players in Tom Dwan and David Benefield, while Rheem learned from the Mizrachi brothers. The common thread: aggression. Both of them will put the pressure on -- probably Darus and Dennis when possible -- and attempt to put them in position for the win, not just the cash. I'd love to see either of them win this thing; I just think the two at the top will be tough to take down.

3rd place: Scott Montgomery. He has freely admitted that his play with the A-4 was just terrible, but in fact, Paul Snead was very close to folding. Either way, this is how Montgomery plays. He plays fast … OK; really, really, really fast, and he'll have to hope he's able to catch a big hand and get paid off on it early on. He has a ton of TV experience after the WPT final table, and I think that will really help him settle in when play begins Sunday. Look for him to start off big early and then get caught for a lot of chips late in the day.

Feldman's caveat: If he finishes ninth, my jaw would not be on the floor.

2nd place: Dennis Phillips. "Has there ever been a chip leader to get less respect?" Lon McEachern asked. I honestly don't think so. Phillips is a great player and tremendous humanitarian. He has taken advantage of this break like no other: hiring coaches, throwing out first pitches and donating to charity. He's been a great ambassador over the past 116 days and I believe he'll continue to be, no matter where he finishes. Now, to his poker abilities: He's a solid player with a good read on his opponents, but I think while he'll coast as the chip leader for a while, heads-up play will be his nightmare and he'll eventually finish second.

Feldman's caveat: The only possible way I see Dennis going out early would be him getting caught on a big bluff and him losing all focus and concentration. We've never seen Phillips in a spot where he could tilt, and that is a very important thing to take into consideration when determining a winner. I'd love to see him as the ambassador, but he'll have to prove his game is there first.

Winner: Ivan Demidov. The target on his forehead has never been bigger. He proved to everyone his appearance at this table isn't a fluke by making the final table at WSOP Europe against a much tougher field. At that table he had to battle Daniel Negreanu, John Juanda and Scott Fischman, and although he finished third, I think that experience is what will lead Demidov to the top and spark a poker boom unlike any other in Russia. He has the ability to win, and I think people will take his recent performance into consideration and stay away from playing big pots with him early on. As the night goes on, he'll play aggressively and put everyone else to the test.

Feldman's caveat: If he's going to finish out of the top three, he's going to have to get unlucky on a number of hands.

Best of luck to all the nine, hope you guys don't hate me for this, and as for everyone else, feel free to post your predictions in the conversation section! I'd love to hear what everyone else is thinking as well!