WOAH, CANADA
It is hard to pinpoint exactly what is going with Canada at the World Series of Poker. Obviously, one thing is clear - they can’t stop winning. Through 21 events, we’ve had six Canadian bracelet winners, which ties them for the most in a single summer. Throw in Daniel Negreanu’s Asia Pacific Main Event though, and you have a record-breaking seven.

Some theories are floating around about what is causing this rush of Northern good fortune. ESPN’s Andrew Feldman speculated the continued presence of online poker might explain the success. Others have joked that the often chilly temperatures of the Amazon Room mimic the Canadian climate, making those players feel more at home.

One could even suggest that the opposite of Feldman's argument might help explain Canada's success.  The Canadians had unprecedented success on the WSOP Circuit this year, thanks in large part to the addition of a Circuit stop at River Rock Casino in Vancouver, BC.  That stop generated some of the biggest numbers of the season, including a Main Event with over 1,000 entries.  Throw in the addition of some other major, international events in Montreal and elsewhere and you could argue Canada isn't just a haven for online poker enthusiasts--it is a place where live poker is thriving and growing as well.

Perhaps we have a new “Moneymaker Effect”. In 2010, Jonathan Duhamel finished the year with a giant exclamation point for the Canucks, becoming the first Canadian Main Event champion in addition to Canada’s sixth bracelet winner of the year. Since then, other French-Canadians have risen to prominence, like Marc-Andre Ladouceur, who took 13th in last year’s Main Event. In fact, this year, one of Duhamel’s friends, Charles-Andrew Sylvestre kicked off the cavalcade of Canadian winners by taking down Event 3, a $1,000 No Limit Hold’em Re-Entry event.

While Duhamel may have inspired some friends to take up the game, it is fair to say that he hasn’t caused much of an uptick in overall participation for Canada. In fact, fewer Canadians participated in the 2012 WSOP than they did in 2011. Canada is the second-best represented country each year at the WSOP, but they still only make up a small percentage of overall entries with around 5,000 each series compared to the United States’ 56,000.

Through 21 events, we’ve had 1,231 Canadian entries in bracelet events, comprising 5.3% of the total number of entries. Despite their relatively low representation, they have managed to win 28.5% of the bracelets. Throw in the six other final table appearances from Canadians like Greg Mueller and Gavin Smith and you have a country far outperforming its numbers.

They are also achieving in a diverse category of events. In addition to large field No Limit Hold’em events like Sylvestre’s re-entry win or Benny Chen’s win in the Millionaire Maker, Canadians have also thrived in other formats. Mark Radoja triumphed in Heads-Up No Limit Hold’em, Calen “Big Wheel” McNeil won the $1,500 Omaha Hi-Lo event while Michael Malm defeated fellow Canadian Greg Mueller for the Eight Game bracelet.

Moreover, the Canucks have a chance to make it an Omaha Hi-Lo sweep today as both Shawn Buchanan and none other than Jonathan Duhamel are back in action for Day 3 trying to bag a bracelet and keep the Canadian momentum going.

Here are the Canadian bracelet winners so far this summer:

Event 3: Charles-Andrew Sylvestre - $491,360
Event 6: Benny Chen - $1,198,780
Event 8: Michael Malm - $225,104
Event 11: Levi Berger - $473,019
Event 16: Mark Radoja - $336,190
Event 20: Calen McNeil - $277,274