While watching the 2011 No-Limit Hold'em Championship in the World Series of Poker rage on, it's surprising to see how excellent these players are at holding their poker faces when so much money is at stake. Usually, you only see them break when they've lost a huge pot. We're calling it the "lost-the-farm" face, because if life were a '50s movie, these losers would be mortgaging their family farms to cover their debts.
Like the guy above, Gus Hansen, who had just lost several hundred thousand dollars on "Full Tilt." Dude further ingratiated himself by then accusing his opponents of cheating. And with that we present you this photo gallery of the very finest professional poker players grappling with epic defeat.
Phil Ivey
Many experts regard Phil Ivey as the best all-around player in the world today. However, his "lost-the-farm" face is sadder than a sick puppy. The above photo was snapped in 2007, when Ivey lost two gigantic Omaha pots against Ilari "Ziigmund" Sahamies during Full Tilt Poker.
Niki "KaiBuxxe" Jedlicka
Niki Jedlicka was an up-and-comer poker player a few years ago but seems to have shrank from the limelight after losing some huge bankrolls. The above photo is Jedlicka losing $629k. Oof.
Paul Pierce
Boston Celtic Paul Pierce entered this year's World Series of Poker and outlasted more than half of the field. However, with only 20 minutes to go in Level 9, Pierce was bounced from the competition.
Howard "The Professor" Lederer
The veteran Lederer had a rough 2010, losing buy-ins quicker than Lindsay Lohan loses sobriety and ending up down $176,500 by midyear. His "lost-the-farm" face may induce vomiting.
Nick Schulman
MTV's "World of Jenks" followed Nick Schulman for an episode, as he battled depression and doubt on his way to the 2010 World Series of Poker main event. This photo is snapped as he loses his buy-in during the first round.
Chris Ferguson
This photo is taken from a blog posting by Chris Ferguson, discussing his previous losing streak in 2008. It's good that he figured it out in hindsight because he looks totally perplexed in the moment.
Tom "Durrrr" Dwan
The 24-year-old Tom Dwan is one of professional poker's hottest young stars, but he's also been known to lose and lose big. His "lost-the-farm" moments seem to bring immediate, painful constipation.
Ylon Schwartz
Ylon Schwartz makes such amazing "lost-the-farm" faces that we needed to include him twice. In the top one, he asks his god, "Why?!" In the second, Schwartz displays his best "punished teenager" pout.