Ante up Las Vegas, World Series of Poker kicks of its Main Event today.

Drew Barrymore plugged her new movie Lucky Me, Pamela Anderson made the rounds taking snap shots with the poker gods, and the ubiquitous Ben Affleck was spotted with cards in hand but now that the stage has been set, the stars are gone and the players are all in.

Dutch Boyd, Sam Farha, Phil Hellmuth have already captured a WSOP bracelet in the mega tournament that began June 25.

With up to 10,000 players kicking in 10 grand a person today’s event marks the beginning of the highest-stakes poker game in history. The game boasts $60 million in prize money, with the winner of the No Limit Texas Hold'em World Championship stuffing $10-$12 million into their boot.

No longer confined to smoky basements and converted garages, poker has become televisions latest obsession and grabbed prime time slots for the growing audiences that dream of making a final table.

ESPN will be broadcasting edited footage of the flops, the bluffs, and the cards on River Street beginning August 22.

Today’s event in the Amazon Convention Center at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas begins the process of shaving the field down to the final nine. Those nine will meet August 10. to determine the 2006 World Champion.