WSOPE Results Could Impact WSOP Player of the Year Race

What once looked like a runaway victory for Ben Lamb in the World Series of Poker Player of the Year race could now end in a very dramatic race when the November Nine reconvenes in just over two weeks.

Heading into the WSOPE Europe, all eyes were on Phil Hellmuth, who trailed Lamb by only a narrow margin after considering Lamb’s guaranteed 100 points for his final table appearance in the Main Event. Once Hellmuth was eliminated from the WSOPE Main Event, most observers – including Hellmuth himself – were ready to crown Lamb the Player of the Year.

However, several players were still playing who had the potential to pass Lamb with a truly stellar performance in the WSOPE Main Event. Amazingly enough, two of those players actually made the final table, and now stand in position to overtake Lamb – at least temporarily.

Both Chris Moorman and Shawn Buchanan have a chance to leapfrog Lamb with strong finishes at the final table of the WSOPE Main Event. Moorman come into the final table with the better chip position, being in 4^th place with 2.23 million in chips. Should Moorman win the tournament, Lamb would have to finish in at least 4^th place in the WSOP Main Event in order to win the POTY award.

Shawn Buchanan comes into the final table with the short stack, but has more paths to victory than Moorman. If Buchanan should win the WSOPE Main Event, Lamb would have to finish 3^rd in the WSOP Main Event in order to clinch the award. However, Buchanan can also take a slight lead by finishing 2^nd tomorrow, which would mean Lamb would have to at least sneak up into 8^th place at the WSOP final table in order to hold on to the title.

The final table of the WSOPE Main Event will be played tomorrow, and will make it clear what Lamb needs to do in order to secure the Player of the Year award – if anything at all. Should either Buchanan or Moorman pass him, Lamb’s chance to retake the lead will come on November 5^th, when the “November Nine” return to the Rio in Las Vegas to determine this year’s WSOP World Championship.