Through The Lens of Drew: The Poker Players Championship

Drew Amato • Jun 16, 2018

For the next five days, Poker Central Photographer Drew Amato brings a daily photo blog of poker’s most prestigious event.

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Drew Amato has been covering the World Series of Poker since 2014. This year he’s covered the U.S. Poker Open and Super High Roller Bowl for Poker Central. Twice per week, Amato will share his favorite images from the World Series of Poker. Enjoy this recurring piece as, in his own words, Amato describes the biggest moments in the game.

For me, it doesn’t get much better than the $50,000 Poker Players Championship. Granted, I might be a little biased as my love for mixed games tends to outweigh the more traditional variant of no-limit hold em.

This event is the pinnacle of poker as the greatest players in the world have gathered in their quest for the David “Chip” Reese memorial trophy. Eight different games are spread over the course of five days to determine the best overall player in poker, in perhaps the toughest field of the summer.

Over the next five days, I will be bringing you a front row seat to all of the action in a series of photoblogs as we narrow down the field to the next PPC Champion.

PPC Plaques: Eight games, right around 100 of the best players in the world, and more than a million dollars up top in the annual clash of titans that will crown the best all-around player in the world.

He’s Got The Whole World: Fresh off his fifth WSOP bracelet earlier in the morning in the $10,000 H.O.R.S.E, Championship, John ‘Johnny World’ Hennigan wasted no time registering for the PPC. Hennigan is always a viable contender in this event as he’s cashed it three times, including his epic victory in 2014.

Big Decisions: Winner of more than $10 million in live tournaments, two World Poker Tour and WSOP bracelets, Nick Schulman mules over a decision earlier here on Day 1 of the Poker Players Championship.

Grinder Time: When you look up the results in this event, one player sits atop the board and that player is Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi. The Grinder has notched three final tables in this event, including two bracelets and a fourth-place finish, so it’s hard to not imagine him as one of the toughest players in the field.

Championship Can Be Casual: Poker at such high stakes can often be very intense, but Brandon Shack-Harris and Talal Shakerchi sitting side by side, lightens the mood. The two have been laughing and trading off finger puppets that Shack-Harris brought over from a recent trip to Spain. When asked about the significance of the puppers, Shack-Harris said “I chose the devil and the duck because the devil is up to no good, and the duck is just wacky. A perfect fit for us both.”

You’ll also enjoy “Super High Roller Bowl Highlights”, “Poker’s Annual Gold Rush” and “Doyle’s Final Ride” in the series “Through the Lens of Drew” by clicking the links.

Follow Drew Amato on Instagram. The 2018 World Series of Poker streams live on PokerGO now. Don’t miss a minute of the action by subscribing to PokerGO. The final table of this event will be live on PokerGO. Follow Poker Central on Twitter to stay up to date with all the latest from the world of poker.

Nick Schulman, John Hennigan, Michael Mizrachi, Drew Amato, 2018 World Series of Poker, Talal Shakerchi, Poker Players Championship, Brandon Shack-Harris