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This article is being republished with permission courtesy of our friends at AintLuck.com.
Just a few reflections as we get set for a new year in the poker world. No one really knows what the next 12 months have in store. That is perhaps the only thing that anyone knows for sure right now. In January 2010, no one would have imagined any of the following:
• That the 2nd incarnation of the Durrrr Challenge on Full Tilt Poker would be further along than the 1st one, which seems to be all but dead.
• That Isildur1 would somehow remain anonymous despite having the most recognize handle in online poker.
• That after terrorizing the games as a nosebleed player on Full Tilt, that Isildur1 would sign a pro contract, WITH POKERSTARS.
• That the top money earner in 2010 was someone whom the mainstream didn’t know, Dan Cates.
• That this unknown would be whipping on Durrrr to the tune of $800K with half the hands of the Durrrr Challenge being complete.
• That Annie Duke would leave UB.com,
• Only to be trumped by Phil Hellmuth leaving the next day.
• That one of the brightest young minds in poker would end up on the biggest money losers lists, Brian Townsend, not once, but TWICE, under two different user names.
Yes, the poker world is hard to pinpoint, as the ebbs and flows of the game make anonymous players stars seemingly overnight. It seems that any well heeled player with skills can go on a heater and become a household name.
One thing that may perhaps never be fully understood by the more common player is just what the login screens of these pros must look like. It’s likely that most players can’t fathom what it’s like to click on the “Cashier” tab and see, 5, 6, 7 or 8 figures staring at them. But it must be the case. After all, look at the figures of the top 5 winners and losers for 2010, a virtual who’s who of poker’s finest on either side of the docket.
Winners
5. Di “Urindanger” Dang: $2.2 million
4. Phil Ivey: $3 million
3. Tom “durrrr” Dwan: $3.6 million
2. Andreas “Skjervoy” Torbergsen: $3.7 million
1. Dan “jungleman12” Cates: $5.5 million
Losers
5. Brian “sbrugby” Townsend: – $1.5 million
4. Gus Hansen: -$1.6 million
3. cadillac1944: -$1.8 million
2. Ilari “Ziigmund” Sahamies: -$2 million
1. Brian Townsend: -$2.5 million
With losses such as these, one can only imagine what an online poker sponsored pro’s contract must entail. By the end of the year, there will be new names on this list, new sponsored pros raking in cash from lucrative deals earned at the World Series of Poker perhaps. Or perhaps that elusive young pro holding out for the big score gets it. Somewhere, Prahlad Friedman is just nodding.
What will happen in 2011 in the Poker World? Will Urindanger ever post a losing year? Or Phil Ivey? Will Gus Hansen win again? Or Brian Townsend? Will this be the year Isildur1′s mask shroud flies off? Or is it better we don’t know? Where will the Poker Brat end up? Does anyone care other than his ego?
There’s only one way to find out.
