With the advent of television and the hole-card camera, players sitting on their sofas at home now also get unprecedented access to the inner workings of those who have won millions at the tables, making it difficult for pros to successfully play the same game they did before.

This year at the World Series of Poker $10,000 buy-in main event, the scenario is no different.

In a starting field of 6,358 players, the pros are facing many well-educated players who have read the professionals' books, studied them on TV, know their strategies at no-limit Texas Hold 'em and try to fight back with an eye on the tournament's $8.25 million top prize.

As play began Tuesday for 1,032 players, or about half the remaining field, many of the missing were poker's pros.

Dan Harrington, a poker professional known for his "Harrington on Hold'em" series, said in a few years he might have to write new books to counter the detailed hand analysis he espouses.

"As my books become absorbed into the general poker-playing population, the good players develop counterstrategies," he said.

But Harrington also throws the odd curve ball, like playing strange cards against opponents who perceive him to be more conservative.

"Fortunately I haven't had to turn the hands over," he said. "They were pretty bad."

Chris Moneymaker, a one-time unknown who set up his 2003 main event win with a colossal bluff against pro Sammy Farha, said it cost him chips to learn this year that the same maneuvers weren't working.

"I'm figuring out I can't bluff anybody," Moneymaker said. "So, I know that information now and it cost me 3,500 to find out."

Antonio "The Magician" Esfandiari's bag of tricks was reduced to waiting for cards after appearing on TV so often that his deceptions were revealed to the world.

"They tend to think I'm always bluffing," said Esfandiari, who busted out early Tuesday morning in his first day of play. "I couldn't really push anyone around. I was pretty much always waiting for a good hand."

Harrington later pushed in most of his chips in a reraise move against a player who raised, and Sam Simon, co-creator of "The Simpsons," who went over the top with everything riding on an ace and king, forcing Harrington to call.

Harrington had only a suited ace and queen, and busted out when the community cards didn't improve him, giving Simon the better hand. Simon and the other player, Jim Marrone, who folded a king and queen, were surprised.

"His play was not from his books," said Marrone, a 36-year-old pediatrician from American Samoa. "I thought he'd at least have a pair of jacks or better, or even ace-king."

Simon joked afterward, referring to the World War II movie "Patton," when U.S. Gen. George S. Patton believes he has defeated Erwin Rommel in North Africa using the German's field marshal's tactics against him.

"He yells out, 'You son of a b—-, I read your book!" Simon said after sending Harrington to the rail. "I decided it would be a graceless thing to do."