Two Ladies Near 2012 WSOP Main Event Final Table

Already, this year’s Main Event has really showcased the talent of women players in the game with deep runs being made by Susie Zhao, who finished in 90th ($73,805), along with Vanessa Selbst in 73rd ($88,070) and Marcia Topp in 71st ($106,056).
However, with the original starting field of 6,598 players now reduced to just 27 hopefuls, Norway’s Elisabeth Hille in 5th place (9.77m) and France’s Gaelle Baumann in 20th (5.53m) present the intriguing possibility of having a female player reach the Main Event final table.
In the history of the Main Event, there has only been one women who managed to achieve that feat, when back in 1995, three times bracelet holder Barbera Enright finished 5th out of a field of 273 entries for a $114,180 payday. (Its important to note we are talking about the US series and not the WSOP Europe Main Event, which was won in 2007 by Norway’s Annette Obrestad for £1million ($2,013,734).
Nevertheless, that could all change if either or both of our two remaining ladies survive the 18 eliminations necessary on Day 7 to become a member of the November Nine.
Even getting this far is a major achievement for the fairer sex considering the small numbers they field in a traditionally male dominated game. Putting Elisabeth Hille (photo right) and Gaelle Baumann’s impressive run into perspective, here are the Main Event ‘Last Woman Standing’ results over the past few years:
2011: Erika Moutinho in 29th ($242,636)
2010: Breeze Zuckerman in 121st ($57,102)
2009: Leo Margets in 27th ($352,832)
2008: Tiffany Michele in 17th ($334,534)
2007: Maria Ho in 38th ($237,865)
This year, our two remaining ladies are guaranteed at least a minimum of $294,601 each for getting this far but when asked whether it was important for her to be the 2012 WSOP Main Event last woman standing, Elisabeth Hille, 26, replied:
“I’m not really focused on that..I think it would be awesome having two women going deep into it, and it would be much cooler to have two women on the final table than being the only one..I hope we both make it far.”
With seventeen years gone since we last saw a woman at the final table, there’s many a poker fan now hoping that this could be the year when the ladies finally go all the way.