I agree with the absurdity of it all, but I think ESPN is just resigned to the notion that everyone who cares enough to watch poker on TV probably already knew what happened through another media outlet (i.e. CardPlayer). However, the fact that ESPN can actually SHOW what happened vs. just telling about it still makes it an extremely marketable venture. I, for one, will be curious to see how it plays out on TV.
Remember, this is the same station that broadcast the entire final table for a cost (and in our case, for free
), so I don't think it's worried about the lack of surprise. I think the draw is more, "OK, we know Phil won his 10th bracelet. But what kind of antics does he pull en route to winning it?" Or, "Wow. Is this Jamie Gold guy really as big a dick as people claim?" This is the kind of stuff that only TV can show, not some blog.
To me, that's the draw of poker on TV, not watching some amateur suck out a runner-runner flush against some pro.
EDIT: Unfortunately, I didn't see any shots of you, TP. But I was looking.