It's been an incredible summer for German pro George Danzer. At the end of May he kicked off his 2014 World Series of Poker by placing fifth in Event #5: $10,000 Limit 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball for $70,308, and then a week later he won his first gold bracelet and $294,792 in prize money in the Event #18: $10,000 Seven-Card Razz Championship. Toss in two more cashes, and Danzer jumped out to an early lead in the 2014 WSOP Player of the Year race with 456.20 points, which is more than 42 points ahead of his next closest competitor.
Today Danzer will add further to his résumé and WSOP POY total as he is already in the money coming into Day 3 of the Event #38: $10,000 Seven-Card Stud Hi-Low Championship, a tournament that originally attracted 134 players. What's more, he starts the day as the chip leader with 785,000. Will Danzer be able to capture his second gold bracelet and the $352,696 first-place prize?
It's certainly possible, but if he's to do it he'll have to overcome a dozen other players comprised of some of the best in the game. For instance, there is Jeff Lisandro (420,000), who finished as the 2009 WSOP POY after winning three bracelets that summer (all in stud variants we might add); online superstar Brian Hastings (415,000); and Ted Forrest (387,000), who defeated Phil Hellmuth heads up in Event #7: $1,500 Seven-Card Razz to capture his sixth bracelet.
Also in contention are players like Richard Sklar, John Racener, and Chris George, all looking to claim their first bracelet. Finally, we'd be remiss if we didn't mention that famed ESPN poker commentator Norman Chad is still alive, though he is one of the shorter stacks. Even so, he's confident and clearly having some fun:
Daniel Negreanu stared me down. Bang! KOed him. Mike The Mouth stared me down. Bang! KOed him. If Jeff Lisandro even looks at me, he’s GONE.Follow @NormanChad
He's also receiving some support from those in the poker community:
The always witty @NormanChad bracelet hunting in $10k Stud 8 w/13 left. Believe it or not, he REALLY can play this game. GL! #hopeforallFollow @MikeSexton_WPT
It's official: @NormanChad has outlasted Mike Sexton in the @WSOP 10K Stud-8 event. Anything more is gravy.Follow @lonmceachern
The PokerNews Live Reporting team will be on hand with all the live coverage starting at 2 p.m. local time, which is about an hour from now. Join us then as we look to crown a champion in the Event #38: $10,000 Seven-Card Stud Hi-Low Championship!