For the past seven years, Phil Hellmuth has been the all-time leader in WSOP gold bracelets with 11. However, that number has remained painfully stagnant for the Poker Brat - until now.

Hellmuth recently extended his bracelet lead over Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan (10 bracelets each) after winning the 2012 WSOP Event #18 $2,500 Seven Card Razz tournament, which you can read about below.

A Familiar Foe

A buzz was already starting to emanate throughout the Rio's Amazon Room when Hellmuth grabbed the chip lead in Day 2. From here, he stayed in the lead throughout most of the day as the 309-player starting field was further whittled down. Going into a final table that included noted pros like Michael Chow, Barry Greenstein, Scott Fischman, Brandon Cantu and Don Zewin, Hellmuth was about the only person anybody was talking about.

The story got even better when the Poker Brat ended up facing Zewin heads-up to decide the title. This is interesting because Zewin finished 3rd place in the 1989 WSOP Main Event when Hellmuth won this tournament. So it was only fitting that Hellmuth would face off against a familiar opponent during his record-extending attempt. Unfortunately for Zewin, he wasn't able to pull off the upset - despite playing valiantly.

A Joyful Occasion

After winning his 12th WSOP bracelet, Phil Hellmuth was nothing short of jubilant as he jumped around the table in excitement. After calming down he said, "This is the first tournament in my life (where) I have no idea what the prize money is. But it’s all about the bracelet. It’s unbelievable! I’ve been waiting for this since ’07. I’ve been knocking, knocking, knocking on the door."

Hellmuth also acknowledged the people who came to watch him play by saying, "I appreciate everyone for being here. I want you to know that I’m going to take every picture and sign every autograph." Now here's a quick look at how the final table finished out in this 2012 WSOP Event #18 Seven Card Razz tournament:

1. Phil Hellmuth – $182,793
2. Don Zewin – $113,024
3. Brandon Cantu – $74,269
4. Scott Fischman – $54,248 
5. Brendan Taylor – $40,167
6. Barry Greenstein – $30,150
7. Michael Chow – $22,945 
8. Jeffrey Mitseff – $17,693
9. David Rosenau – $13,827