UK Player out of WSOP

November 9 - As the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event kicked off over the weekend, the first two players have already been eliminated.

The UK player, James Akenhead joined US pro Kevin Schaffel as the ninth and eighth players respectively to leave the finals of one of the most prestigious live poker tournaments in the world.

The former train conductor was the first to go, with the crowd giving Akenhead a standing ovation for reaching so far in the competition and becoming part of what has now been dubbed the November Nine.

The audience stands were not without their own action, after it was learnt that fans of one of the November Nine, Joe Cada, had gotten into a fight during the course of the tournament.

"The fans were part of the group of Cada supporters that have been heavily frequenting the bar on breaks," read a statement on the official WSOP site. "Security made quick work of removing them from the building to keep things under control."

Kevin Schaffel was eliminated next, and was also given the honor of a standing ovation when he emerged from backstage.

"If you're not going to shove it with aces, what are you going to shove it with?" Schaffel told reporters after his elimination, and describing his strategy of the day.
"I shoved with aces against kings twice and was right back in it. I would have been behind Darvin Moon in chips and there's nothing you can do."

The other players left at the table - for now - include Darvin Moon, Eric Buchman, Steven Begleiter, Jeff Shulman, Joseph Cada, Phil Ivey, and Antoine "Tonio" Saout.

Akenhead earned $1,263,602 for his ninth place elimination, while the 52 year old Schaffel walked away with $1,300,231.