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There is a phenomenon in poker that few people get to experience. While everyone at a tournament table wears a target, those big name pros who have spent hours on television are painted with the biggest bullseye you'll ever see. It doesn't matter what big name pro you talk to, the situation rarely varies. When people come in this room, they are looking for a story to tell. They want to be able to say they busted a big name.

Greg Raymer is no stranger to this phenomenon. Since his $5 million win in the 2004 World Seres Main Event, players around the world have settled their scopes on the FossilMan. Sometimes, it works to his advantage. The following year in the World Series, Raymer had a banner year and threatened a repeat appearance at the final table of the main event. Sometimes, though, it works against him. This World Series was one of those times.

Raymer had one of the most frustrating World Series of his poker career. Out of more than 20 tournaments this summer, he cashed in one. The main event was Raymer's chance to come back, his chance to shake off the bullseye and recover for the year. Before the end of Level 2 today Raymer's opportunity disappeared.

From a distance, it looked almost peaceful. The crowd gave an appreciative clap and recognized the world champion's departure. Raymer stood and put his trademark duffel bag over his shoulder. He walked around the rail and toward the back door. The omnipresent ESPN cameras followed behind. It was only as Raymer drew closer to this reporter's desk that it was clear the FossilMan was done letting the bad beats roll off his shoulders. He had had enough.

The resulting conversation is neither for print--or despite the presence of the TV cameras--for broadcast. Suffice it to say, Raymer found his nemesis at the table today. "He sucked out on me three times," Raymer said. The final time, the guy ended up having an overpair to Raymer's top pair. Raymer, usually a cool customer, was decidedly ready to blow off some steam.

It was an illustration of a reality few people recognize. Even some of the top players in the game can have terrible years. Tens of thousands of dollars can be invested without any significant return. As this room filled up with 1,158 people today, it was clear that for many of them this would be the only big tournament they'll play this year, and maybe in their lifetime. To win this thing...to even make Day 2...takes the confluence of superior skill, good timing, and no small amount of good fortune. The latter did not grace Raymer's cards this year.

It was the same kind of day for Team PokerStars Pro Daniel Negreanu Set over set sent him out in Level 1. He talks about his exit in the video blog below. Be sure to check out all of our video blogs at PokerStars.tv.

Watch WSOP 08: Daniel Busts on PokerStars.tv

After four days of paced, measured play in the $50,000 HORSE event, it's a bit unsettling to watch the fortunes change so drastically. The blinds and limits are such that one or two close hands can take a player from the top to the bottom in no time at all.

Witness the fall of Daniel Negreanu. At the dinner break, Negreanu sat near the top of the leader board. Moments ago, he walked out in 13th place.

As has been mentioned more than a few times, Negreanu helped serve as the inspiration for this event's creation. After winning his bracelet earlier this Series in the $2,000 Limit event, Negreanu aimed to win his fifth. This looked to be one of his best opportunities.

Instead, his 13th place finish earns him $142,080 and the opportunity to play in tomorrow's $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha World Championship.

At this hour, Barry Greenstein is the only member of Team PokerStars Pro remaining in the $50,000 HORSE event. His fortune hasn't been much better in the last couple of hours. His girlfriend Alex described the past several hours with one word: "Rollercoaster"

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While we look for a bit better news to report, Joe Hachem has some ideas about how to balance math and instinct in big poker events. Check it out the video blog below.

Watch WSOP 08: Joe Hachem On Math on PokerStars.tv

This is the HORSE event, so amidst the rush of an Amazon Room shoehorned full to the doors with poker tables, a few equine puns and references might inadvertently slip in. Bear with me.

Here’s the first. In the racing world the term “mudder” is a one of endearment and refers to a thoroughbred horse that favours difficult conditions (read muddy ground) – the type of turf able to render the competition sluggish and ready to quit. Well, at the risk of comparing Daniel Negreanu to a horse, he may be this tournament’s “mudder.”

Back on day one it started well for the Team PokerStars Pro, his usual chipper demeanour in place all day. But as the day became night a few hurdles appeared, a few bad hands that left Daniel towards the back of the pack with some difficult ground to make up and down to 26k he was at risk of being among the first fallers.

"It was a whole load of hands" reasoned Daniel on day one. "I couldn't scoop anything. And you can't bluff...not as effectively."

His plight wasn’t helped by the tough scenery at his table, one that featured Phil Ivey on the one side and Phil Galfond to the other. But Daniel rallied in the conditions (after a back rub), defying the expectations of the vulture press to finish the day on 70k. Not a lead exactly but certainly close to the pace. From there the conditions changed from harsh to fair, bringing him to where he began today on over 370,000.

Even a time lapse of these tentative stages of day three would show little action, just more of the careful atmosphere at the table with no one among the all star list of names ready to blow it all and risk a shot at $2 million - and perhaps the most distinguished title in the modern game.

They’ll do it their way thanks. Marcel Luske chews peacefully on a green drink straw, occasionally using it to get the attention of whomever he wants to talk to. Team PokerStars Pro Chad Brown in seat one mixes it up with a few pots, one of which he gives up to the Flying Dutchman without a fight...

“Do you know how hard it is to give Chad Brown chips?” joked Marcel, getting a quick laugh.

As play went on Daniel stepped out of his seat to go through a series of stretches. This is long distance poker, a poker pentathlon with the events coming up over and over again in an endless procession worth over $7.1 million. Being in peak condition certainly helps but few doubt Daniel to be among the most serious when it comes to this.

Take the green bag for instance. Sat by his feet, it’s full of whole foods and various assorted goodies – the type that are unlikely to shorten your life in any way. It strikes guilt into the nearby reporter who just inhaled pizza for lunch.

So play goes on, switching from Razz to a round of Stud and collectively the railbirds mentally shift gears, re-organising their mind into what’s now a good hand and what’s bad.

The trouble behind him, Daniel plays on into level 13 with 348,000, alongside the 59 players remaining. Sure he may be a mudder, but he’s a fair weather stayer too.

That’s it. No more references to horses from me.

With the HORSE feed bag put behind us, we now find ourselves staring at a different breed. The $50,000 event that started with 148 players has now fallen below the 100 mark. Though we're not yet at the point at which the stress causes heart palpatations, things are starting to get more interesting in this five-day event. With still two more levels to play tonight, Team PokerStars Pro and its family are faring quite well.

Of the whole group of PokerStars players who started in this event, only PokerStars-sponsored Alex Kravechenko has been eliminated. The rest still remain in serious contention. Team PokerStars Pro Barry Greenstein is very close to the chip lead and looking to repeat his final table appearance from 2007. Bill Chen, Isabelle Mercier, and Daniel Negreanu are not too far behind.

Speaking of Negreanu, he kept busy in advance of this event. He took off to L.A. for a night. He offered this dispatch from the life of Kid Poker.

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by Daniel Negreanu

Ok, so I’m back from L.A. and the reason that I went is that Phil Ivey invited me along with his mother and his wife to attend a celebrity fund raiser for Barack Obama, and of course I was in on that. So, we hopped on a plane and flew out there.

We got in and there were a lot of celebrities there. I’m not a big name dropper, so I won’t go there. Then what happens is you go through the dinner and everyone takes a picture with Obama. I could tell he was really good at this sort of thing. I mean, I could tell some people were talking and being really annoying and he was still smiling and pretending like he really cares about what they were saying. Anyways, I get up there and I’m walking up there, Obama looks at me and says I know you!

Then, he grabs his buddy and says we played poker last night. One of his aids said he is Canadian and he said, “Hi, I’m a fellow Canadian, nice to meet you.” Then Obama pulls out sixty bucks out of his pocket to sort of prove that he played last night. Anyways, I took a couple pictures, and I wasn’t about to ask him about the UIGEA bill. I’m just not going to be that guy. I mean he has bigger fish to fry, you know? I just told him I was happy he ran a really clean campaign and stuff. Phil Ivey was next and he went up there and Obama said “Can you beat that guy?” Ivey said “I dunno man”

We then went in and had a big dinner, and there was like 100 of us there, and Obama said a couple of words and sat at some of the tables. Then, Seal performed a couple songs, which was pretty strong. Barack Obama spoke, and for some reason Ivey turns to me in the speech and says, “he’s gunna take Hillary” then he lays me ten to one on 10k. I said “you got it,” I didn’t even hesitate. It’s funny that we go there and we still have to gamble. So we have a bet, I have any vice president other than Hillary Clinton, for 10k. Ivey has Hillary Clinton for 100k. He feels he can’t win because I took the bet so quickly.

So we flew back that night, just hopped on a plane. Now we are playing the $50k H.O.R.S.E. I have a pretty rough table draw. I spent way too much time with Ivey, and now he is sitting right on my left, along with John Hennigan, Ralph Perry, Robert Willamson, Perry Friedmen and the two internet guys “OMGclayaiken” Phil Galfond, and DURRRRRRRRRR just sat down at my table. Not crazy about my table but all the tables are going to be tough in $50K HORSE, but it’s a good field and a good prize, and I’m going to try to win it.

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No only that, but Negreanu sat down with the PokerStars Video Blog team to talk about how he looks at the World Series.

Just under the surface of the HORSE event lays the fact that a few players are beginning to feel the heat of the blinds. One of whom is Team PokerStars Pro Daniel Negreanu.

Daniel started the day in typical high spirits and nearly eight hours later remains in the same state of mind. The one thing that has changed though is the size of his stack which has descended steadily from its original 100k to now, hovering tentatively around the 20k mark.

This could all be nonsense, a case of call off the dogs, stop floating around the table like the angel of death – 20k is enough, in a game like this, to mount a comeback, particularly if your name is Daniel Negreanu.

But right now he’ll have to deal with the added attention with a table that features the multiple threats of Phil Ivey on his left, Robert Williamson III and Phil Galfond on his right.

Whilst the merits of Ivey are well known, those in any doubt as to how big a threat Galfond poses should ask Daniel himself. He finished 7th in the Omaha event that Galfond went on to win just over a week ago for a payday of over $800,000.

Daniel was full of praise for the American then and he now sits to his immediate left. They go into the break with one more 90 minute level left to play tonight.

"It was a whole load of hands" Daniel said of his stack. "I couldn't scoop anything. And you can't bluff...not as effectively."

Time for a massage as we enter level 5.

Daniel Negreanu is taking a breather from the World Series. No worries, as it's not very long. Here's a quick note from Negreanu on his day off.

So I think I might have made a strategy error for player of the year. I hope it doesn’t cost me. I didn’t play in the $1,500 pot limit Omaha event with rebuys. That is essentially like an automatic cash, because there’s only 300 some people in it. If you're one of the re-buyers, it very easy to make the money, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you're going to make money.

Other tournament updates: Stud eight or better, I tried my butt off, I really did. I started at about 16K and got anteed down to 8k, and I just never caught a hand. I finally had to go in with two kings, it was heads up, and the guy made his flush. So this morning I actually got some rest, which was nice. I really needed it, I’ve been playing poker every day and I was just exhausted.

In the Omaha 8 or better tournament, I was playing with the most insane poker player ever, Abe Mosseri. He is an absolute insane person. Every time I bet I always call it an Abe, cause he just bets…always bets. He is like bet, bet, bet, bet, bet, bet, bet, bet.

I’ve been hanging out in the Poker Royalty lounge again, I’ve been in there for the last couple of days instead of the VIP room which I’m also a member of. It’s a little more private, just a different vibe in the Poker Royalty lounge you know. My boys are always in here, E-dog and Gavin, and there’s always like 100 people in the VIP room, so this is even better.

Over the weekend I played in two tournaments. I played the triple draw, and I tried real hard in that, and I played like sick good and got beat. Then I foolishly decided to play the $1,500 no limit/limit tournament. No energy, so no results in that one.

I am just exhausted. I’ve got nothing, no energy. So we got a couple days until the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E event, so I’ve decided that until then, I’m done with poker.

I’m getting bored playing poker now which is not good. I am really looking forward to this little two day hiatus from the game and then I’ll come back recharged and ready.

As good as he is, it's easy to imagine Daniel Negreanu never thinks about anything but poker. That would be wrong. Here's a quick dispatch from Kid Poker's World Series. Read to the end to figure out why Negreanu won't be shaking your hand.

by Daniel Negreanu

First of all, congratulations to both Tiger Woods and Rocco Mediate. I didn’t get home till 6 AM that day, so I didn’t wake up till they were on the 18th green and they were putting. I only got to watch that and one playoff hole, but from what I heard it was insane golf. I’ve actually golfed with Rocco Mediate, over at Summerlin TPC last October. He was showing me a few things, and I mean at that point he was only a journeymen just coming back from an injury like he wasn’t going to do anything, and to almost have a chance to beat Tiger. That’s pretty impressive, GO ROCCO.

Congratulations to Barry Greenstien, I had a list of ten players I thought were going to do really well this year, and a lot of them have bracelets; myself, Mike Matusow, Barry, Ted Forrest came in 2nd. My team would be doing pretty good. I think that this year really put to bed the talk that online players are better than live or that online players are taking over the live games. I think this year’s tournaments are playing a lot slower the whole way through so there’s less mathematics and more poker. It really favors the live player’s skill sets.

FYI, I busted out in 7th of the PLO tournament. I had virtually nothing left, a lack of sleep has caused some sickness here. I’ve got me some allergies or some kind of whatever, but I have a box of Kleenex with me at the table, not good.

Anyways back to the final table, I did my best. I lost my final key hand to Galfond. He raised the button and I had to move in with kings, he had aces, end of story. I really had no choice there so, seventh place not too bad.

I want to make a reminder for those out there, and I myself even forgot how dirty and filthy the WSOP can get. With all these different random people and germs everywhere I’ve been shaking everyone’s hand and there have been some wet hands. I mean why if you knew you had wet hands would you ever shake anyone’s hand, instead of just going pound? I mean it’s the worst feeling in the world when you go to shake someone’s hand, and than your like 'OHHH come on what did u just pee on your hands?'

Don’t be offended if I don’t shake your hand. It’s nothing personal, just trying not to get sick like I just done did!

With barely time to grab a meal since Team PokerStars Pro Barry Greenstein won a bracelet in the $1,500 Razz event, we're now looking at two more PokerStars players at a big final table.

Team PokerStars Pro Daniel Negreanu, fresh off his $2,000 Limit Hold'em Bracelet, is sitting at another final table, this one the $5,000 PLO Rebuy event. He will be sitting with PokerStars-sponsored player Kirill Gerasimov as they sit down today to fight for the bracelet.

When Negreanu won his fourth bracelet last week, the first thing he did was hold up five fingers. He no doubt intends to pick up his fifth bracelet during this year's World Series. He does not have the biggest stack going into the day, but the PLO rebuy event has deep stacks and anyone with chips stands a chance of doing some damage.

Good luck to Daniel and Kirill as they head into action today.

At some point, people may stop calling Daniel Negreanu "kid." Ten years ago, that may have been true. Back then, he was a young, brash upstart. Since then, the nickname "Kid Poker" has stuck tight. Kid or not, tonight Negreanu sits among the greats of poker with four World Series bracelets.

There were some people who might have said this time two days ago that Negreanu's victory in the $2,000 Limit Hold'em contest was a foregone conclusion. He had bullied the field into submission through Day 1 and most of Day 2. He entered the final table in third chip position. Slings and arrows as they are in limit hold'em, Negreanu's chances looked in jeopardy several times through the final table. Unrattled, he stuck to his game.

His game? Well, it is.

"The last time I won [a bracelet] was this event in 2004," he said after his victory. "i love the game."

Negreanu has likely logged more limit hold'em hands than any other game he's played. He knows that even when the literal chips are down, Kid Poker is not out.

"The key is stay composed and stay focused," he said.

That was exactly what he did. Aces cracked? He came back. Kings cracked? He came back. By the time play was three-handed, some people watching were alredy predicting Negreanu's bracelet. It was a good prediction. Once he reclaimed the lead, he never gave it up and finished off his opponents in short order.

Negreanu won $204,874 for his victory. For some folks, that's life changing money. For Negreanu (who was on the golf course this week betting for sums in excess of that), the money seems less important than the reality that no matter how old he gets, he will always be Kid Poker...and Kid Poker wins poker tournaments. Better yet, Kid Poker wins World Series bracelets.

As Nolan Dalla presented the bracelet tonight, Negreanu slipped it over his hand. With a grin, he said, "I might have to take a few links out. I have pretty skinny wrists."

Thanks for the show, Kid.

As mentioned here earlier, there is a large contingent of Team PokerStars Pros in the field today. Some members of the Team, however, have one more day of rest before launching into a marathon week of poker.

Among those with the day off is Daniel Negreanu. Well-rested and feeling good, Negreanu is already predicting he could "do some damage" in this event.

For a look at the PokerSttars EPT Grand Final through Kid Poker's eyes, check out the video blog below.