There are a lot of reasons to dislike Phil Hellmuth. The way he arrived at the World Series of Poker Main Event just added one more to the pile. This year he entered the Rio dressed as a Roman (well, at least the best version of a Roman that a cheesy all-night costume store could supply him with). Let’s start with the aesthetic problems with his outfit. If your legs can be unfavorably compared to something that most folks find in a bucket with Colonel Sanders name on it, and your arms could double for one those little sticks that most people use to stir their coffee, a Gladiator outfit was probably the wrong direction. The second thing that people should notice about this latest in the long line of over the top Hellmuth entrances is that he, again, had a gaggle of scantily clad models with him. Each girl was supposed to represent each one of his World Series of Poker bracelets. What one cannot help but notice though is the fact that for the last few years he has been hiring the same number of models. While most players can get away with going the entire summer without winning a WSOP bracelet, Hellmuth’s big talk and grand entrances just emphasize the fact that he has been about as close to winning a piece of WSOP jewelry this year as the Detroit Lions have been to a Superbowl appearance.
Chances are Phil will fail again this year in his quest for a 12th bracelet, and will be hiring the same number of models when he arrives at that the Main Event next year. As of the writing of this article, he is way down in the chip count. He may rally and make it to his first final table of the year, stranger things have happened in the world, but it is still unlikely.
While we have had to endure another Hellmuth entrance, we must acknowledge the fact that he probably enjoys the fact that he annoys half the poker world with his antics. If he can’t succeed in competition anymore, he can at least keep his name and persona alive by making an annual spectacle of himself. At the very least he should be happy that he outlasted his arch rival Daniel Negreanu.
