Our Verdict:
The success of Alex Kravchenko & Nikolay Evadkov at recent WSOP’s has highlighted the bourgeoning Russian poker scene and now Ivan Demidov looks set to continue the mantle. Kravchenko cashed 7 times at the ’07 Series and came 4th in the Main Event for over $1.8million. Evadkov cashed a phenomenal 10 times this time around. Can Demidov follow the success of his countrymen? The 27-year old Moscow resident will go into the Main Event final table second in chips (on 24.4 million), just two million away from chip leader Dennis Phillips. A self-described ‘semi-professional’ poker player, his bankroll has mostly been formed online since he started playing in 2006 but had shown some live promise before the ME kicked off. A modest cash in the 2006 Russian Poker Championships (5th for $3,517 in the $200 PLO) must have whetted his appetite for offline poker and he made his first trip to Vegas the following year.
In December 2007 he started with a bang by going very deep in the Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic, eventually busting in 3rd for $21,710 (ironically, Evadkov came 10th in the same event). This is his first World Series but he already has a cash under his belt, coming 11th for $39,854 in the $1,000 NLH re-buys (Event #44). Of course, his takings come November will significantly increase from the $65,081 accumulated live so far.
As a result of this, he brought into the Main Event the old-fashioned way: $10,000 cash. Soft-spoken and shy, he confessed his final table appearance is the equivalent to “winning the lottery” but now he is here Demidov has a superb chance of beating Kravchenko’s 4th place finish last year and becoming the best placed Russian finisher in Main Event history.