$50,000 H.O.R.S.E: (Sort of) Handicapping the Field

Arguably the most prestigious event in poker, the $50,000 WSOP H.O.R.S.E. tournament, has just gotten underway.

Who do we like? Well, we figure Phil Ivey is a lock for second place. And we figure strong performances again from all of the Big Gamers like Doyle, Barry, Patrik Antonius, and of course, Chip Reese. Some "dark horses" to keep an eye on this year include Gavin Smith, who finished 11th last year and cashed in an earlier 2007 WSOP H.O.R.S.E. event, Josh Arieh, who has been playing consistently great poker at this year's WSOP and is due for a breakthrough, just a gut on this one, but Howard Lederer, and Huck Seed, because we've been picking this guy to win something for over a year now.

As for a winner, watch out for T.J. Cloutier. With so many Main Event close-calls, and with a final table finish in last year's H.O.R.S.E. event, this could be his year.

Stay tuned...