The World Series of Poker released their schedule for the 2025 WSOP this week. Phil Hellmuth, the 1989 WSOP Main Event Champion and all-time bracelet leader with 17, said he will not play in this year's WSOP Main Event. Hellmuth released a video explaining why he's not playing because he lacks the stamina at 60 years old to play the Main Event due to its grueling schedule and long days.
The Poker Brat will skip the2025 WSOP Main Event. Don't worry... he'll still be in attendance and try to pad his bracelet lead in pursuit of #18. It's just that he will not play in the prestigious WSOP Main Event now that he has reached 60-years old. Hellmuth had not missed the Main Event since he won in 1989 and became the youngest champion at 24 -- a record that had stood for nearly 20 years.
"I truly believe that 80% of the players want changes made to the WSOP Main Event. 12 hour days, or longer, for six to seven days in a row is brutal and disproportionately affects older players... It's still my favorite event in the world, don't misunderstand me, I don't want to miss it. But I know that I can't do that. I'm 60 years old. I don't think I could have done it at age 50."
Super agent Brian Balsbaugh confirmed Hellmuth's statement. "FWIW, he's not bluffing," tweeted Balsbaugh. "He's not grandstanding. He's sad about it. It's authentic. Nobody loves it more. The man has dedicated his life to the pursuit of gold bracelet."
"It's just too tough," Hellmuth continued. "People at home are like, 'Phil, you can play seven days in a row.' Yeah, try it. Try getting up and playing noon until midnight seven days in a row. That really hurts the older players in a much bigger proportion than the younger players."
Hellmuth suggested that many pros admitted that the grueling schedule led to their eventual downfall.
"I'll say this: more great players come and tell me that they blew the Main Event because they got too tired with 100 left, 50 left, with 30 left. It's turned into an endurance test. I don't think that the World Series of Poker Main Event is measuring skill."
The statement opened the floodgates for Hellmuth haters to pile on the Poker Brat. It also stirred up a vibrant debate from other pros who agreed with Hellmuth that the WSOP in general needs to have better structures, especially the Main Event.
"I agree with Phil, this shouldn't be an endurance contest," said Erik Seidel. "I'd be great to look at shortening the levels, the days or having break days."
"There should be 12 hour turn around in any/all WSOP events between end of day and start of play next day," suggested Ari Engel.
Faraz Jaka is much younger than Hellmuth, but he experienced serious back problems and understands the brutality of the WSOP grind. "I've realized how brutal these 2AM+ finishes and short turnarounds are and have reduced my play volume as a result of it – not just for performance, but for basic health, sleep, and life balance," said Jaka.
Alec Torelli also agreed and explained he was in the best shape of his life entering the 2023 WSOP but the grind caught up to him a week into the Main Event.
"I was cruising for 6 days, but on Day 7, I hit a wall," said Torelli. "I made a few mistakes, one of which cost me a lot of chips near the final table. It's my responsibility and I own it completely, but I can sympathize with what Phil is saying. I can't even imagine trying to compete in this event in 20+ years. I'd hate to compromise the structure because that's what makes the Main so great."
Several players suggested shorter days, while others asked for more days off. Torelli suggested a full day off after Day 5 or Day 6.
Other pros who disagreed with Hellmuth felt that the long days is what makes the WSOP Main Event the toughest tournament in the world. Some of them mentioned that any solutions could cause more problems or take away the difficulty of the Main Event. That included a faster structure (versus the iconic two-hour levels) or extending the Main Event to a three-week tournament if there's additional days off.
We'll see if the WSOP suits decide to address this issue in the future, but I doubt it. The WSOP has been a corporate cash grab ever since it was moved to the Rio in 2005. After getting sold to the parent company behind GGPoker, they need to recoup some of their investment which is why the rake went up this year. As the WSOP continues to grow (100 bracelets and counting!) and the Main Event numbers continue to increase, the overall structures are an issue that will only get worse. From a large-scale perspective, there are numerous logistical headaches behind running the WSOP let along making it the most efficient and cost-effective manner. However, time and time again we've seen ruthless corporations, especially those in the gambling world, place a higher emphasis on profit over people.
Does Hellmuth have a point? Sure, he makes a valid argument that the Main Event is a young person's game. The data backs it up.
Is Hellmuth just being Hellmuth and seeking attention? Sure. He has one of the biggest egos in poker and making this about himself.
Of course, if Hellmuth doesn't play the Main Event then we won't be able to see a grandiose entrance that he had been doing over the last two decades. Hellmuth has always made his delayed entrance an opportunity to fluff up his ego and garner headlines. My favorite entrance was when he walked into the Rio dressed as Julius Ceasar, but in true Hellmuthian fashion he lacked to oversight that Ceasar was murdered on the steps of the Curia of Pompey in the Theatre of Pompey when his own friends and colleague stabbed him to death.
Another favorite entrance is when Hellmuth crashed a race car in the parking lot of the Rio. The race car and driver's suit was covered in Ultimate Bet's logo and branding. That was during the height of the UB superuser scandals, so many players felt it was divine intervention or karmic retribution that the gambling gods made sure Hellmuth was hexed that year with a crash.
Here's some compelling data about previous Main Event champions correlated with age. Irish pro Noel Furlong was 61 when he won the WSOP Main Event in 1999. There has not been a champion that old since then. Only three players 40 or older won since then: Robert Varkonyi was 40 in 2002, Hossein Ensan was 55 when he won in 2019, and Damian Salas was 45 in the controversial pandemic Main Event in 2020.
Chris Moneymaker was 27 when he won in 2003. During the peak of the online poker boom in the mid-2000s, late 30s was the sweet spot for a champion: Jamie Gold was 36 but Greg Raymer, Joe Hachem, and Jerry Yang were 39. Over the last four years, the Main Event champions were in their 30s.
After Peter Eastgate broke Hellmuth's record as the youngest champion in 2008, that ushered in a wave of 20-something wunderkinds as the fields were between 6400 and 7300 runners. Joe Cada broke Eastgate's record in 2009 at 21. Starting in 2008, nine out of the next ten Main Event champions were in their 20s including eight in a row. Those 20-somethings include Eastgate (22), Cada (21), Jonathan Duhamel (23), Pius Heinz (22), Greg Merson (24), Ryan Riess (23), Martin Jacobson (27), Joe McKeehen (24), and Scott Blumstein (25).
Since 2001, 21 champions were in their 20s or 30s and only three winners were 40-plus. The three largest fields in WSOP history saw a champion in their 30s including Tamayo last year at 38, Daniel Weinman at 35 in 2023, and Gold at 36 in 2006. Hellmuth has a point that the WSOP Main Event is better suited for younger players, especially as it continues to grow.
So, if you're 40+ and want to play in the Main Event for a shot at winning $10 million, start working out and acquire enough Adderall to stay awake for 2-plus weeks!
