All the parties, all the celebrations and all that money....for some.  A few thousand people will be descending upon Las Vegas to take part in the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event, which begins on Friday.  The final nine are pretty much guaranteed no less than a million dollars.

While a few of the WSOP events leading up to the big one have fallen short in terms of attendance, others broke records and it is widely believed the main event attendance will top that of last year.  Then again, the average Joe might not be able to make it to Vegas thanks to the global recession and near 10 percent unemployment rate.

For most of us here at Gambling911.com, the official start of the World Series of Poker kicks off with the annual Doyle Brunson Celebrity Party.

"When the Main Event of the World Series of Poker kicks off on July 3rd, you can blame Doyle Brunson if some of the greatest poker players stumble in a little tired and a little late," a presser declared this week.

"If anyone knows how to throw a world-class World Series party, it's the legend who's been to them all," stated Will Griffiths, VP of Marketing for DoylesRoom.com. "Doyle has handpicked the biggest names in poker along with Hollywood favorites to attend this VIP celebration so our players are definitely in for an amazing night."

Nicky Hilton, Sparky Collins, Kevin Connolly, Jenny Woo, Eve, Mickey Rourke, Jack Binion, Phil Ivey and a number of other big-name poker players and celebrities were invited to attend. No word on whether Doyle's world famous pooch, Kasper, planned on making an appearance. 

Ace King, Gambling911.com