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The 2007 WSOP $10,000 buy-in championship Hold'em event attracted 6,358 players this year, due largely to the UIGEA bill passed in the dead of night in Congress, attaching it to the crucial Port Authority bill. This has restricted the entry of the Online entrants from the USA, but still qualifies as the second-largest live poker tournament in history. Only the 2006 main event attracted more entries (8,773).

Because seats were still given away as prizes at the European Union & UK Online poker sites, the European contingent is noticeably larger this year.

Former World Series of Poker Champions who played in the main event included:

T.A. “Amarillo Slim” Preston, 1972 (eliminated on Day One)
Doyle Brunson, 1976, 1977 (eliminated on Day One)
Bobby “the Owl” Baldwin, 1978 (eliminated on Day One)
Tom McEvoy, 1983 (62,600 in chips starting Day Two)
Berry Johnston, 1986 (118,500 in chips starting Day Two)
Johnny Chan, 1987, 1988 (eliminated on Day One)
Phil Hellmuth, Jr., 1989 (eliminated on Day One)
Brad Daugherty, 1991 (eliminated on Day One)
Jim Bechtel, 1993
Dan Harrington, 1995 (43,600 in chips starting Day Two)
Huck Seed, 1996 (67,500 in chips starting Day Two)
Scotty “the Prince” Nguyen, 1998 (129,000 in chips starting Day Two)
Chris “Jesus” Ferguson
Carlos “the Matador” Mortensen, 2001
Robert Varkonyi, 2002
Chris Moneymaker, 2003
Greg “Fossilman” Raymer, 2004 (eliminated on Day One)
Joe Hachem, 2005 (eliminated on Day One)
Jamie Gold, 2006 (eliminated on Day One)

Defending world champion Jamie Gold, of Malibu, CA was eliminated on Day 1-D. He sat at the ESPN feature table and played about four levels (two-thirds of the day) before busting out.

This year’s main event attracted several celebrities. The following notables were eliminated on Day One:

Antonio Tarver (World Light Heavyweight Boxing Champion)
Nelly (singer and four-time Grammy Award winner)
Shannon Elizabeth (actress)
Jose Canseco (former Major League Baseball star)
Jason Alexander (actor and comedian)
Jennifer Tilly (actress)
Norm McDonald (actor and comedian)
Ray Romano (actor and comedian)

A few celebrities survived past Day One:

Montel Williams (talk show host) – eliminated on Day Two
Brad Garrett (actor and comedian) – eliminated on Day Two
Jason Alexander (actor and comedian)
Tobey Maguire (actor)
Todd Phillips (film director)

This year, Barbara Enright and Phil Hellmuth, Jr. were inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame. However, both were eliminated on Day 1-D.

On this year’s WSOP schedule was the second annual $50,000 buy-in H.O.R.S.E. championship. Both winners from the previous two years busted out on the first day as Chip Reese and Freddy Deeb were eliminated from the main event.

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