The $10,000 No Limit Hold'em Main Event began on July 6 with the first of four separate starting days. 6,358 players entered, 2,415 fewer than in 2006. This is the first time since
1992 that the Main Event experienced a reduction in participants. As the total number of registrants for the 2007 WSOP set a record at 54,288 with a total prize pool of $159,796,918 ($59,784,954 for the Main Event), the decrease in the number of participants in the Main Event has been attributed to a
recent law that limits Internet gambling. As a result of this law, Harrah's did not allow online poker websites to directly purchase Main Event seats and offer them as prizes, if the sites conducted business with US citizens. Online entries to the Main Event that were won as prizes on Internet poker sites were a substantial contributor to the dramatic growth the Main Event seen in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006. The reduced field also meant a nearly one-third reduction in the Main Event's grand prize, from the record $12 million (
US) in
2006 to $8.25 million. A flatter payout structure was introduced in 2007 further reducing the prize money awarded to the final table finishers. Players who busted early in the money received a larger share than they would have in 2006. The lowest payouts in 2007 were $20,320 (just over double the buyin), as compared to $14,597 in 2006. Every player who made the final table in 2006 won over 1.5 million dollars. A minor controversy arose during the main event. The colors of the chips made it very difficult to differentiate between the chip values. Pokernews.com posted the following note on its live reporting log, "It has literally been impossible for us to count these players' stacks due to the positioning of the cameras and the incredibly similar colors of the various chip denominations." Pokernews also reported that the chip color has affected play, "Because of the similarly-colored chips it took the dealer some time to count down Kluber's stack, and not long after Rahme began thinking about his response Kluber called the clock on him." Other players have complained that they can't count their opponents stacks and fear asking for a chip count as speaking may reveal the strength of their hand.
Final table • Career statistics prior to the beginning of the 2007 Main Event.
Final table results Other notable high finishes NB: This list is restricted to top 100 finishers with an existing Wikipedia entry. Performance of past champions Celebrities in the 2007 Main Event • Out in Day 1:
Kirk Acevedo,
Hank Azaria,
José Canseco,
Steve Davis,
Shannon Elizabeth,
Janet Gretzky,
Norm Macdonald,
AJ McLean,
Nelly,
Ray Romano,
Teddy Sheringham,
Maxime Talbot,
Antonio Tarver,
Jennifer Tilly • Out in Day 2:
Jason Alexander,
Rene Angelil,
Tomas Brolin,
Brad Garrett,
Rick Salomon,
Rick Tocchet,
Montel Williams • Out in Day 3:
Todd Phillips (380th place, $34,644) • Out in Day 4:
Sam Simon (329th place, $39,445),
Tobey Maguire (292nd place, $39,445),
Sully Erna (237th place, $45,422) ==World Series of Poker Europe==