In poker, as with sport in general, everyone has their favourites and their villains too. I have no doubt that not everyone will agree with my view on the favourites for PKR's 32-runner $10,000 buy-in Heads Up Grand Slam, which takes place in London in October. But seeing as it's just for fun, the debate should be more valuable than the numbers. I'll take neither £1 on the Devilfish, nor £1K on Dwan, so save your monies...
| Player |
Price |
| JC Tran |
10 |
| John Duthie |
12 |
| Tom Dwan |
12 |
| John Tabatabai |
14 |
| Ilari Sahamies |
16 |
| Luke Schwartz |
16 |
| Ivan Demidov |
20 |
At the head of my fictional betting market sits the ultra-consistent JC Tran, who earns his place courtesy of some oustanding performances over the last 24 months, often against many of his Grand Slam rivals. The cool-headed dual bracelet winner remains one of few players who seem to gain plaudits and respect from the poker world en masse. Rarely does he make mistakes, and as formats go, he's good on any ground.
EPT godfather John Duthie has been around for years, winning millions of bucks against the top players. He has some decent heads up form in the book too, with runner up finishes in the 2009 WSOP World HU Championships and it's 2003 Parisien cousin. The draw hasn't been kind to him with Dwan first up and JC Tran a possible second round opponent, but if he overcomes Dwan, I expect him to progress to the latter stages.
Tom Dwan needs no introduction and little discussion. A player with the perfect game for this format and a wealth of heads up experience, he carries the huge weight of fanboi expectation on his shoulders, though he may not know or care.
Tabatabai is known for his heads up skills, while the legendary Ilari 'Ziigmund' Sahamies has the right game and a multitude of heads up hands under his belt, against the best in the world. The Finn faces Theo Tran in round one, then potential matchups with a PKR qualifier and Jennifer Tilly in what some may see as the softer of the four brackets.
Luke 'Full Flush' Schwartz and Ivan Demidov have solid claims, much like 'The Magician' , 'The Toothpick', the 'Fish' and world champ Peter Eastgate. Team PKR Pro james666 and APPT High Roller champ Beyne sit comfortably mid-table with a decent shot, while Tony G is always a live wild card contender.
Until we know the identity of the four PKR qualifiers on 01 October, it's hard to place them in the market. That said, were the likes of Goldeneyehd, Pokey85 or any of the other talented (yet lesser known) pros to qualify, they'd no doubt reshuffle the market significantly.
Some caveats: I am not a bookie. I am not a professional poker analyst. I am not a heads up champion. I expect some flaming for placing Ziigmund higher than the Nam Le, or Schwartz higher than the Devilfish. Whether it's even possible to create an accurate market for this field is a moot point. If you have a different take, feel free to comment below or fuel the raging fires of debate on the PKR Forums!
Qualify for the Heads Up Grand Slam for just $7.28!