Quote:
Originally Posted by smashed you bro
1. Johnny Chan - 1987/1988, 1st/1st - 152, 167 & 178 entrants (seeing as some people were including the 2nd the next year)
Yes I know the fields were not large back then and the quality of play wasn't as deep but still to win a the championship in 2 straight years is still very hard to do. To best a field of 150+ consecutively is still a feet that very few if any could do.
2.Dan Harrington - 2003/2004, 3rd/4th - 839 & 2576 entrants
Fields of 800+ and then 2000+. Right at the inception of the poker boom an old veteran mastered two straight gigantic fields to come very close to the bracelet each time. Incredible
3. Mark Newhouse - 2013/2014, 9th/9th - 6352 & 6683 entrants
These days making the November Nine is seen as a once in a lifetime opportunity. Besting fields of 6000+ with all of the best players in the world, requires luck, skill and great timing multiple times. Doing it twice?? Insane. Even though his 9th place finish in 2014 was a disappointment considering his entering stack, it was still remarkable to make back to back November Nines.
4. Greg Raymer - 2004/2005, 1st/25th - 2,576 & 5,619 entrants
Most recent Main Event Champions fade away a bit after they take home the big prize. But Raymer followed up his championship with another deep deep run in a field that was nearly twice as big as the year before. He had a serious chance to return to the final table in 2005 as well if not for some rotten luck in a few spots.
5. Peter Eastgate - 2008/2009, 1st/88th - 6,844 & 6,494 entrants
Like Raymer, Eastgate followed up his title with an impressive deep run the very next year.
6. Steve Gee - 2012/2013, 9th/24th - 6,598 & 6,352 entrants
I've added the amount of entries to your post. And to me it's clear that Newhouse is the winner of this.
Chan's wins are impressive but odds are he played pretty much the exact same people + a handful of newcomers. Whilst it's incredibly impressive it's no more impressive than Fedor etc absolutely crushing SHR's.
I think it's Newhouse, Raymer, Chan, Eastgate, Harrington, Gee.
Raymer just edges out Chan due to the massive minefield that the main event became after his win
Here's the math for each:
1. Johnny Chan: 152 x 167 x 178/2 = 2.26 x 10^6
2. Dan Harrington: 839/3 x 2576/4 = 1.80 x 10^5
3. Mark Newhouse: 6352/9 x 6683/9 = 5.24 x 10^5
4. Greg Raymer: 2,576 x 5,619/25 = 5.79 x 10^5
5. Peter Eastgate: 6,844 x 6,494/88 = 5.05 x 10^5
6. Steve Gee: 6,598/9 x 6,352/24 = 1.94 x 10^5
Johnny "****in" Chan wins. Plus, 1st-1st-2nd is so much cooler than what anybody else has done in consecutive years.
Cheers, Greg Raymer (FossilMan)