Shy Phil undersells himself again

Author: Simon Dexter

Next Wednesday, as part of a three year deal signed in 2006, the “Official beer of the WSOP*” will launch to coincide with the opening day of the first 2008 WSOP* event. In case you didn’t know, Milwaukee’s Best Light, Milwaukee’s Best, and Milwaukee’s Best Ice are the said beers, although there are no plans to have the company’s special poker cans on sale on this side of the Atlantic.

In the States however, limited edition cans of Best Light will feature the much-used visage of Phil Hellmuth, the man who boasts the most WSOP* cashes (64) and bracelets (11) including one for his world title in 1989 when he picked up 5,000. Underneath Phil’s grinning photo will be a selection of his most famous quotes including: “If it weren’t for luck I’d win ‘em all”, and perhaps the most frequently cited by players who flop a monster, “I can dodge bullets baby.”

Hellmuth has a reputation for being a tad prickly (which he denies), but he’s never been known to sell himself short. Interviewed a couple of years ago, he said, “I think I’m made to be a professional poker player. But also, I’m made to do other things. I’m made to write books and to promote. So, I think that a lot of skills that separate me from the other poker players in the world are beyond poker skills. I’ve been given some sort of gift for seeing reality clearly. I could see poker was going to explode, so I put myself in the position to take the maximum financial advantage of that. And I think that’s a skill. I’m a really good opportunist, whether it’s in poker or in life, and I think that’s something that distinguishes me from the other players. A lot of them haven’t done a good enough job promoting themselves.” Not a charge that could be levelled at Phil.

*World Series of Poker and WSOP are trademarks of Harrah’s License Company, LLC (”Harrah’s”). Harrah’s does not sponsor or endorse, and is not associated or affiliated with Littlewoods Gaming or it’s products, services, promotions or tournaments.

Tags: Phil Hellmuth, poker, poker players

This entry was posted on Friday, May 23rd, 2008 at 10:11 am and is filed under News & Promotions Blog.