The WSOP is of course the most exciting time of year for poker players around the world. For those who haven’t had the chance to come out to Vegas during the series there are a few key things to know about life here in the Rio.

1) Night and Day don’t exist
“What? It’s 7 am? It’s Tuesday?” is a comment you may very likely hear while playing here in the Rio. With cash games running 24/7 and tourneys running day in and day out it is easy to lose track of the time and sometimes even the day.

2) Blood is Replaced by “All In”
As a result of the abundance of the “All In” energy drink there has been speculation that players may in fact have the berry flavored liquid running through their veins in an effort to stay awake during the marathon nights of some of the events. Perhaps this is why Phil Laak is so antsy… no, wait, he’s always like that.

3) Estrogen is in Short Supply
Although there has been a rise in the number of female poker players over the last few years, each field is still predominantly filled with men. As a result, the few women who are present receive more attention than usual. Earlier Shannon Elizabeth left her table in the O8 tournament for awhile after a bad beat and the men at her table seemed very pleased when she returned. Don’t be fooled by her good looks, she’ll take your chips the first chance she has.

4) Aces Are No Good
This statement obviously isn’t always true, but if you hang around the Amazon room long enough you’ll see aces get cracked so many times it will make your head spin. Beaten by kings, queens, deuces, 74 suited, 67 offsuit, etc…etc…etc… Maybe this “site” is rigged… hmmm…

Stay tuned for more on life at the Rio!

• August 24, 2008 -- Volleyball Gold
• June 6, 2008 -- Phil Kills Phil
• June 4, 2008 -- Best-Selling Author Jeff Hwang Takes a Hit
• June 4, 2008 -- PearlJammer Loses Vitalogy, Bubble Bursts in Event #4

The blinds continue to rise in event #6 the $1.5k O8 tournament and players are starting to drop more frequently. Pros Scotty Nguyen, Marcel Luske, Chip Jett and Chad Brown are amongst the casualties so far.

One player who has gone mostly unnoticed by players and reporters alike today is Jeff Hwang (pictured left), author of the new best-selling book “Pot-Limit Omaha Poker.” Jeff also writes a Pot-Limit Omaha article for CardPlayer magazine.

Hwang, Shannon Elizabeth, and the player on the button all called 3 bets preflop to see a flop of T83. The leader in the betting changed each round but all three players stuck around to see a 2 on the turn and a 4 on the river. At showdown, Elizabeth tabled the AAK6 for the nut high hand with a flush and the player on the button showed the A952 for a rivered wheel. Jeff said “post this” as he showed PocketFives his A742 before he sadly mucked his hand. He had flopped a nearly unbreakable low draw along with the nut flush draw and although he was getting half the pot on the turn, the river counterfeited his hand completely. At the beginning of level 5 he has just above the 3k starting stack.

Some P5ers still playing in this event include Senovio Ramierez who has around 1.5k in chips, just barely hanging in there, Scott Clements who has a little over 8k, and Mike Spegal who has around 6k in chips.

833 players entered creating a prize pool of $1,249,500. The top 81 players will finish in the money and receive at least $2,728 in cash while 1st place will pay $243,356.

• June 6, 2008 -- “Worldsgrtest?” World’s Greatest!
• June 5, 2008 -- Poker Pro Tip of the Day
• June 5, 2008 -- Lindgren Wins 1st Bracelet
• June 5, 2008 -- The End of Day 6