And let the game begin.........But who wins the WSOP Crown will not be decided until November, that's when the final table will be played. This year, tournament officials are betting that delaying the tournament's final table moments will generate more interest and a leap in the ratings for the Championship. The hope is that this will lead to certain fame for the players who remain, and with all the hype that will be going on for the next few months I tend to think it will.

"This is probably going to be a watershed moment for poker," said series commissioner Jeffrey Pollack. Pollack,  Nascars former vice president, says the goal is to help the tournament build a reputation for poker similar to other mainstream sports leagues. To do that, Pollack says poker has to excite the fans.

"We've been very forthright in that ambition," Pollack said. "Change doesn't happen overnight but a change in intention can happen overnight and our intention here is to help more people experience our thrills and excitement."

In the past fans of poker got word of the main event winner long before the tape-delayed event aired on television by way of the written word and the web. This year the network telecast will not air until hours after someone cashes in.

"This will be poker's biggest night," Pollack said.

 The more I think on this, the more I believe Pollack may have just hit on something. If nothing else it keeps the WSOP in the media attention more, and it should bring the TV ratings way up when it's aired in November.

 And now for the latest 2008 WSOP standings:

# Winner of Event 49 - $1,500 No Limit Hold'em - JC Tran

# Winner of Event 50 - 10,000 Pot Limit Omaha Championship - Marty Smyth

# Winner of Event 51 - $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. Champion - James Schaaf

# Winner of Event 52 - $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Champion - David Daneshgar

# Winner of Event 53 -  Limit Hold'em Shootout - Matt Graham