Five Poker Predictions for 2017

Another calendar year has passed and 2017 is upon us. That means its time for an annual PokerNews tradition, firing off with some bold and not-so-bold predictions for the coming year.

Last year was my first taking over the yearly predictions column. Before we get into this year’s calls, let’s look over how I did for the five I submitted at the beginning of 2016. As expected, there were some hits and some misses.

Joe McKeehen will cash for $2 million — McKeehen had already hit his big score in the $100,000 Super High Roller at PokerStars Caribbean Adventure so I was essentially betting on another million. He doubled that, proving he’s here to stay after his World Series of Poker Main Event win.Scott Seiver will win GPI Player of the Year — The crystal ball was really foggy for this one. Seiver cashed for $678,798, his worst total since 2009 and did not even finish in the top 300 of the Global Poker Index rankings. Sorry if I shipped you any run bad, Scott.One Drop will stick at the $111,111 price point — I suppose this is more of a multi-year prediction, but it’s held through the first year. The $111,111 buy-in was back at this summer’s WSOP and was won by — who else? — Fedor Holz.Stephen Chidwick and Mike Watson win their first bracelets — I keep waiting for these guys to break through, but it still hasn’t happened. Watson came oh so close with a runner-up finish to Jason Mercier, while Chidwick came sixth in the same event. That was about it for bracelet sweats from these two deserving greats.Legislation stays on hold — Sure enough, while some rumblings occurred in a few states, things stayed pretty stale on the legislative front. A prediction I’m not happy to get correct, to be sure.

On to 2017.

1. Forget What You Know About Consuming the WSOP

Myriad big-picture stories have swirled around the WSOP in recent years, not the least of which is what effect the pending bankruptcy of Caesars could have on the WSOP.

However, one other development that’s fast approaching is the end of ESPN’s contract with the WSOP. This year’s WSOP is currently slated to be the last one televised under the current contract. The agreement was last extended back in 2009. That extension came up in August the year before the contract was set to end, so we’re already well past that time frame.

It’s no secret that the landscape of poker has changed massively since then. Black Friday dramatically altered sponsorship opportunities and the poker economy, and while it’s seemingly stable, it certainly isn’t what it once was. Whether ESPN negotiates a new deal or not, it seems safe to assume the WSOP isn’t in any danger of not being televised. However, changes are likely coming either way.

For one, poker fans demand and consume content completely differently now. Much has migrated to online platforms, with Twitch broadcasts and stuff like Doug Polk’s YouTube series commanding big audiences. The WSOP has begun to follow suit with cards-up live streams of final tables and these have rendered the old-school “edit-and-voice-over” style a bit obsolete.

Another big change could be concerning the November Nine. Scanning over the WSOP’s “save the dates” press release, there’s no mention of the November Nine even being a thing this year. Now, it does say the final nine will be reached July 17, which is also the last day listed on the schedule. But the concept never really seemed to be fully realized and this year’s final live broadcast running until about 7 a.m. on the East Coast ruined any chance of capitalizing on a hugely exciting final table.

The guess here is that changes are coming, and whether they start in 2017 or 2018, you’ll be hearing about them this year.

2. David Peters Will Repeat as GPI POY

I can’t decide if this is especially bold or the complete …

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