Did the ESPN/WSOP November experiment work?

[2Tone]

So I’m going to with “No.”

Back when this was announced, they said this would be about exposure and building suspense.

“Our intent is to provide an even bigger stage for our players,” said Jeffrey Pollack, Commissioner of the World Series of Poker. “Now fans and viewers will ask ‘who will win’ our coveted championship bracelet instead of ‘who won.’ The excitement and interest surrounding our final nine players will be unprecedented.”

Well, I didn’t see much exposure for any of the “November 9” anywhere but on ESPN’s poker show and in the (now diminished) poker media. So I’m not sure that it increased the exposure of the players much if at all. Just judging by us, it's not like this place, or even 2+2, was overrun with "Who is your favorite November 9 star!" threads.

And here it is the day of the final two players going HU for the title, with who they are having been widely reported in sports pages across the country. But ESPN hasn’t shown the first part of the final table yet. So if we all know who won before it airs, doesn’t that make this whole thing pointless?

I guess the ratings of tomorrow's broadcast will tell for sure. Which BTW -- if you aren't airing it live, why not air in prime time for the West Coast?

Schedule for next year should be out in a month of so. It will be interesting to see if they keep the final table delay, or go back to the standard tournament schedule.