May 28, 2015
6 Poker Pros looking for their First Bracelet at 2015 WSOP
By RTR Dennis
Given the large field sizes and elite talent in many World Series of Poker events, it's definitely not easy winning a gold bracelet. In fact, there are some very good poker pros who've yet to win a WSOP event in their years of playing. This being said, let's look at 6 poker greats who'll be looking to finally reel in their first bracelet.
1. Mike 'Timex' McDonald - $11,427,015 in Winnings
The thing that really sticks out about McDonald is that he's one of the best live tournament players in the world, yet he's still searching for that first WSOP win. In his career, Timex has won the 2008 EPT Dortmund Main Event (€933,600), a 2011 Epic Poker League event ($782,410) and final tabled many major tournaments. So it's interesting that the big bracelet win still eludes him. But at the same time, given that he focuses on high rollers and online poker tournaments, it wouldn't be surprising to see McDonald remain bracelet-less after this summer.
2. Tony Cousineau - $2,565,088 in Winnings
You can't talk great poker players who haven't won a bracelet yet without bringing up Cousineau. That's because he has the most WSOP cashes ever without a bracelet at 68. Interestingly enough, in these 68 cashes, his best finish has only been fourth place. Coming off the 2014 WSOP, where he cashed 9 times, it wouldn't be the strangest thing in the world if Cousineau finally gets that elusive WSOP win.
3. Mario Ho - $1,690,564 in Winnings
With two Main Event "Last Woman Standing" billings to her name, Maria Ho has obviously earned her fair share of WSOP success. What's more is that she also had eight WSOP chases last summer. So will she finally be able to bring home her first gold bracelet. The closest that Ho has come was a second-place finish in a 2011 $5k NLHE event ($540,020). She has the skills and experience to get back to this position, where hopefully she'll be able to finish the job.
4. Matt Glantz - $5,857,738 in Winnings
Some great players' inability to win a bracelet can be attributed to their lack of focus on the WSOP. But not Glantz, who commonly plays dozens of WSOP tournaments every year. And in 2014, he was able to cash in nine different events, bringing his total cashes to 30. But the closest he has come to a gold bracelet was finishing second in a 2005 $3k NLHE tournament ($364,620). Glantz has also earned a WSOP Circuit ring, but that's not quite the focus of this article.
5. Sam Trickett - $20,566,809 in Winnings
In past years, Trickett hasn't been quite as focused on WSOP events, given that he's a high stakes cash pro. But last year, as part of his sponsorship deal with Everest Poker, Trickett did play a high volume of tourneys, which only resulted in a pair of cashes. It's unclear whether or not the Brit will be putting the same fire into the 2015 WSOP. But if he does, it's not unfathomable that he could notch his first win at the Rio.
6. Shawn Buchanan - $5,731,242 in Winnings
Like his fellow Canadian countryman McDonald, Shawn Buchanan is also without a bracelet, despite years of poker success. Take 2010 and '11, for example, where he garnered a total of 17 WSOP cashes in this time span. These years also saw him finish runner-up twice in WSOP events, taking second to Dan Kelly (2010) and Fabrice Soulier ('11). Buchanan will be back again at the 2015 WSOP and hungry for a bracelet.