Justin "BoostedJ" Smith is one of seven WSOP rookies looking to make a splash at the 2009 World Series of Poker.

When the World Series of Poker kicks off in late May you’ll notice a number of players walking around the Amazon Room with a gaping jaw, heavily-dilated pupils and the sheepish look of a freshman trying to find his locker on the first day of class. They’re also going to their wallet more than most players because every security guard, floorperson and dealer is asking to see their drivers license.

They’re the WSOP rookies and having just turned 21 they’re testing themselves against the world’s best. It usually doesn’t end well for most of this crowd, but each year there’s a select few who have success and each year BLUFF gives you a guide to who those talented youngsters might be before the cards are even in the year.

The five players we selected in 2008, Tom Dwan, Andrew Robl, Jimmy Fricke, Jeff Williams and Mike Sowers, all made final tables. That’s a lot of pressure to live up but this year’s class is certainly up to the challenge and we’ve expanded the list this year to seven players that will make a big splash on poker’s biggest stage. Each of these players first found success playing online and thanks to international tournaments with lower age requirements than Las Vegas they’re also battle-tested against opponents in a live setting.

Christian Harder, known online as “charder30”

Harder almost single-handedly made putting this list together irrelevant. The Maryland-native had a few final tables, including a 7th place finish at the 2008 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, but he was still going to be our sleeper pick. Then in late April he nearly won the $25,000 buy-in World Poker Tour Championship. After finishing in 4th he left the Bellagio with $571,965 and the attention of everybody in poker community.

In his relatively short live career he’s cashed nine times, made two European Poker Tour final tables and one WPT final table. Online he’s been terrorizing tables since January of 2006. Starting with $1 and $2 buy-in tournaments the then 18 year old started winning almost immediately. In his 24th tournament on PokerStars the newcomer came out on top of a 1008-player field. His payday was a whopping $587.35.

“To this day I think I have never felt so happy then after I won that tourney,” said Harder. “It was huge for me.” The three-figure cash is now a distant memory and he’s looking forward to his first taste of the madness that is the Amazon Room in June and July. He’s not entirely sure what to expect but realizing just how much work he’ll be putting in.

“I’m just preparing for the live poker grind. Six weeks of live poker is a shit ton, so I think getting in the right mindset and trying not to burnout,” said Harder. “I’m going to take some time off poker until the WSOP and relax and then six weeks of live poker.”

Soren Kongsgaard, known online as “Kongsgaard”

The only European-born player on this list, Kongsgaard also has something else that the other six don’t have, a national title. In September 2007 Kongsgaard won the Danish National Championship and nearly $250,000. The next month he won Full Tilt Poker’s $1 Million Guaranteed for another $197,894 score after playing the duo of Sorel Mizzi and Chris Vaughn in heads-up play.

While the two wins put his name on the tip of the tongue of every online poker railbird he’d already made a fairly large statement earlier in the year. European Poker’s premiere event is the EPT Grand Final at Monte Carlo. The best players from around the world make their way to the event. Kongsgaard outlasted everybody but runner-up Marc Karam and winner Gavin Griffin to earn $814,306.

“He’s one of those next-generation players who have managed to implement his online game onto the live scene,” says Per Hagen, whose agency PokerIcons represents Kongsgaard. “He’ll probably remind people of Peter Eastgate, but with a little less gamble in him.”

The Danish wunderkind’s lifetime live earnings are just north of $1.5 million and his online winnings almost match that. Still, he’s different from the other players listed here in yet another area – he’s in the Red. By no means is Kongsgaard a losing player, far from it, but in January online poker room Full Tilt Poker signed the rising poker superstar to be a part of the Full Tilt pros. At the time he was the second youngest player to sign a deal with Full Tilt.

Isaac Baron, known online as “westmenloAA”

Since 2006, when he was just 18 years old, Baron has won over $1.3 million in online poker tournaments. In that same time span he’s also banked over $1 million in live tournaments earnings all while playing a limited schedule due to his age. So when he sets foot in the Amazon Room he won’t be the least bit nervous.

“Well, I’m definitely very comfortable playing live. I have been playing big live toureys pretty consistently for close to three years now,” said Baron, who like most 18 year old online poker players made his live tournament debut at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. “So I don’t think I’m going to have to make any adjustments to my game or anything like that like some online players who are more inexperienced live may have to.”

At the 2006 PCA Baron came in 35th and earned $13,500. He cashed again at the 2007 PCA in what was only a small precursor to a big time showing in one of poker’s biggest tournaments. At the 2008 European Poker Tour Grand Final Baron came in 4th for $936,692. He feels that experience will help him keep the nerves at bay when the bracelets are up for grabs.

“I kind of doubt I will have any (nerves) since I have a pretty good amount of experience and am very confident that I will do well, but it’s tough to say for sure until the day of the first event,” said Baron who also admitted that the WSOP is a bigger deal than any other tournament he’s ever played in.

“I have been looking forward to this forever.”

Jeff Garza, known online as “ActionJeff”

To followers of online poker they might be surprised to find out that Garza, known by his screenname “ActionJeff”, is only 21. It seems like he’s been beating online poker forever.

His tournament winnings on PokerStars and Full Tilt since 2006 are over $570,000 but he’s focused some of his energy on the cash games than tournaments in the past few years. He regularly sits in some of the higher stakes games available online. He’s proven himself a winner there too.

“He’s an utter sicko and has amazing instincts. He was touted as the next big thing in Magic the Gathering when he played,” said Jimmy Fricke, who was one of the five players BLUFF featured last year and has gotten to know Garza quite well while touring the under-21 tournament circuit overseas. “He quit that, started playing poker and won a million dollars when he was 18. He’s a Jedi basically.”

He’s also got some previous live experience and success to his credit. It started with a final table at a Turning Stone event in 2006 but that $10,207 cash is the smallest of his live career. In May 2007 he travelled to Vancouver, BC where the gambling age is only 19, and outlasted a sold out field of 300 players in a Six Max No Limit Hold’em tournament to win $76,440.

From the West Coast of the Great White North Garza headed east for the WPT North American Poker Championship at Niagara Falls, Ontario. He made the final table there and banked $170,216. With Canada conquered, and his first live win out of the way, Garza started 2008 by winning a $5,000 buy-in event at the Aussie Millions.

In February of this year, not long after turning 21, Garza showed up at the WPT LA Poker Classic and amidst the best players in the game posted a 46th place finish for just over $27,000. With so much live success, two wins and a televised final table, the WSOP won’t be such a huge spectacle.

Ozzy Sheikh, known online as “Ozzy87”

Like others on this list Sheikh made his first impression on the live poker scene as a teenager. A 6th place finish in the 2006 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure wasn’t all that shocking to those that had watched the player known as “Ozzy87″ play online.

But his live resume isn’t nearly as impressive as others on this list. Since his PCA performance Sheikh has focused largely on cash games and has developed a reputation as one of the most fearless No Limit Hold’em players online. So even though he’s not solely focused on tournaments, his summer plans this year are something he’s been waiting patiently for.

“I have been feigning to play in the World Series of Poker for three years and the time is finally coming. I am very excited for WSOP 2009,” said Sheikh. “I’m not nervous yet, but I am sure I’ll feel some nerves during big all-ins but I will do my best to keep my composure.”

He’s also given some thought to what it will take to make his first WSOP a successful one and he’s been prepared a game plan to make that a reality.

“It will take an overall profit in the WSOP, and at least three final tables or a WSOP bracelet,” said Sheikh of how he’ll define success at the end of it all. “I am renting a condo in Vegas for the Series. I will be waking up at a routine time every morning and doing my daily workout and eating much healthier so I am much more fit for playing. I will have much more energy to think and play clearly.”

Adam Junglen, known online as “AJunglen7”

Of the seven players profiled here Junglen has something that the others don’t – the endorsement and support of one of the biggest names in poker. Daniel Negreanu first saw Junglen play while he was providing commentary for the EPT Barcelona Open and instantly was reminded of another superstar.

“(The) first time I saw him, his demeanour and betting style reminded me of a mini-John Juanda,” said Negreanu. “They don’t play a similar game exactly, but his table presence reminded me of Juanda in a big way.”

Junglen finished sixth in that event, one of five live final tables he’s made. He also already has the experience of a WSOP final table under his belt thanks to his sixth place finish in Event #1 (£ 1,500 No Limit Hold’em) of WSOP Europe in 2008. He’s ready to improve on that this summer in Las Vegas and has taken time to ask his poker-playing friends, including roommate Shaun Deeb, what the WSOP is like.

“Everyone’s stressed how it’s a really long grind,” said Junglen. “This’ll be the longest series of live tournaments I’ll have ever played, the longest being either at Turning Stone or Commerce (two weeks). I plan on being more healthy. I’m also kind of an insomniac so I hope my sleeping issues aren’t a factor.”

Junglen is just 21 but he speaks like a poker veteran who’s focused more on the long haul. Rather than
“I could whiff every event I played, but still consider the Series a success if I felt I played well and grew as a poker player,” commented Junglen. “I came awfully close to a bracelet in London. It would be nice to take one in the States.”

Justin Smith, known online as “BoostedJ”

Smith’s only televised poker appearance came courtesy of the 2008 WSOP Europe Main Event but to followers of the online poker scene “BoostedJ” was a known commodity before that. Having terrorized online cash games for years now Smith might the closest thing this year’s group has to Dwan. He’s not a No Limit Hold’em specialist and finds himself regularly playing in and beating the biggest mixed games both online and live, and that includes time inside Bobby’s Room at the Bellagio.

Given his ability to play every game Smith doesn’t plan on sticking to just Hold’em events at the WSOP. He’ll be in some of the smaller-field mixed game events including the $50,000 buy-in HORSE event.
“I plan on playing all the larger events, the non NL events take precedent,” said Smith.”But I plan on playing the big cash games as well.”

His only two live tournament cashes include a 16th and a 14th place finish in two event at the WSOP Europe event in London this past September. Still, Smith is confident enough is own abilities at each game variation and he’s set lofty goals for himself for his first time at the tables inside the Rio.

“A bracelet or the final table in the main event,” noted Smith about what it would take for him to consider his first WSOP a success. “That or winning at least a million in the side games.”

That’s what might set Smith apart from his counterparts in this group. Like the old school road gamblers of yesteryear, Smith recognizes the value in the cash games when every poker player in the world is in one city. Smith promises though that the lure of a juicy cash game won’t distract him from winning a bracelet.

“Well, in a lot of the tournaments I’ll be playing, most of the guys that I play with in the live cash games will be in the same event, so the only way there will be a good game running most likely is if I make a deep run, which will be more than worth it anyways.”

There you have it, the seven players we’ve pegged as the cream of the crop for 2009 WSOP rookies. They’ve got their wallets at the ready to show their ID and if this group can replicate the success of last year’s rookies, they’ll be padding their wallets significantly.

This article appears in the current issue of Bluff Magazine available on newsstands now.

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