Well, folks, we're back from the desert. Two weeks in Las Vegas is a curious experience. I think it requires a certain constitution.

While out there, we were keeping tabs on the World Series of Poker Main Event. Earlier this morning, the final table -- meaning the final nine players -- was set. If you follow poker, you will undoubtedly notice that this group will be promoted by the SOP and, I suppose, ESPN, as the November Nine because play is being suspended until Nov. 9-11 when the players return to the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino in Vegas for the grand finale. The delayed conclusion is designed to create suspense and make ESP N's telecast on the night of Nov. 11 have as much of a feel of a live event as possible. Up to now, WSOP telecast on ESPN have been filmed, edited and aired weeks or months after the fact.

Getting back to the November Nine, there are no household names. The common threads are that most of them are under 30 years old (five) and are identified in their WSOP thumbnails as professional players (six). However, the chip leader is one of the players who is not in that mold.  He is Dennis Phillips, a 53-year-old account manager from suburban St. Louis. He wound up in the Main Event by winning a satellite (qualifying) tournament a Harrah's casino back in St. Louis.

First place is about $9.1 million and everyone who qualified for the final table is guaranteed at least $900,670 and they're getting paid that money right away. The WSOP and ESPN will try to make these guys as  familiar to the public as possible before the final table resumes on Nov. 9.  At least one interesting personality should be a player in the middle of the pack (about 12.5 million chips), Ylon Schwartz, 38, of Brooklyn, N.Y., whose brief bio says that he "hustled" chess games for money in New York City's public parks before discovering poker could be more lucrative. He's a regular at the WSOP having cashed in 12 times in various events over the years.