10th Place Finisher Brandon Steven Still Reeling From 2010 WSOP Elimination

Despite winning $635,011 for his 10th place finish at the 2010 WSOP Main Event, Brandon Steven is still reeling from his dramatic exit from the competition.
With all the media focus being lined up exclusively for the “November Nine,” Brandon Steven can’t help but feeling conflicted when reflecting on his incredible run at this year’s event.
“It’s like bittersweet right now. It’s real bitter…I feel like a spoiled brat when I say I get upset about it.”
It took over four hours of play at the table of ten before the bubble finally burst, after Jonathan Duhamel raised to 1.225 million and Steven pushed all-in over the top for his remaining 4.475 million with Ac-Ks.
Matthew Jarvis then called from behind with a pair of Q’s, which was enough to get Duhamel off the hand and force a classic heads-up race where the stakes couldn’t have been higher for the short-stacked Steven.
The board ran out Tc-4h-3d-4c-5h, shooting Jarvis up to 5th spot with 16.7 million in chips, while Brandon Steven had to walk away from the tournament with the sound of the raucous crowd still cheering in the background.
Reflecting on his performance on the bubble, Steven explains that primarily two things cost him a place at the final table. Firstly, he describes a $2.5 million bluff he played as an “amateur mistake” that went horribly wrong.
Secondly, Steven said the more costly problem was that he “went card dead at a really bad time.”
The 36 year-old Kansas native now feels that he has missed out on his one big chance for ultimate poker glory and, commenting on his prospects at future WSOP Main Events said:
“It’s hard to reproduce that. It’s going to be nearly impossible.”
However, its not all disappointment for the father of five with a used car dealership in Wichita, Kansas. As well as the $635,011 he won to take his career poker earnings to $680,906, Steven was also offered an endorsement deal with PokerStars while at the final table, which he accepted.
As the initial bitter feeling of being the bubble boy subsides, it won’t be long before Steven starts to appreciate that there is plenty there to be pleased about.