WSOP Event 34 - $1,000 no-limit hold'em rebuy

Phil Hellmuth, Jr. Makes Poker History with Record-Tying Tenth Gold Bracelet

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 754
Number of Rebuys: 1,691
Total Prize Money: $2,340,238

Official Results:
1. Phil Hellmuth, Jr. Palo Alto, CA, $631,863
2. Juha Helppi, Helsinki, Finland, $331,144
3. Daryn Firicano, Boston, MA, $187,219
4. John Spadavecchia, Lighthouse Point, FL, $163,817
5. Terris Q. Preston, Toronto, Canada, $140,414
6. Elio Cabrera, Miami, FL, $117,012
7. David Plastik, Las Vegas, NV, $93,610
8. Rafael Perry , Las Vegas, NV, $70,207
9. Antanas Guoga (Tony G), Vilnius, Lithuania, $46,805
10. Phillippe Rouas, San Francisco, CA, $25,743
11. Jose Brenes, Coral Gables, FL, $25,743
12. John Taylor, Satellite Beach, FL, $25,743
13. James McCrink, Las Vegas, NV, $21,062
14. Ryan Hughes, Phoenix, AZ, $21,062
15. Jordan Morgan, Norman, OK, $21,062
16. Alex Balandin, New York, NY, $16,382
17. Shane Schleger, Santa Monica, CA, $16,382
18. Jennifer Leigh, Wilmington, DE, $16,832
19. Paul Gianfriddo, Australia, $11,701
20. Howard E. Perry, Joelton, TN, $11,701
21. Hilbert Shirey, Winter Haven, FL, $11,701
22. Brandon J. blake, Palme, AK, $11,701
23. Joseph N. Bartholdi, Las Vegas, NV, $11,701
24. T. Jurgens, unknown, $11,701
25. Hoa Nguyen, Sunnyvale, CA, $11,701
26. Ross Boatman, London, UK, $11,701
27. Julian Gardner , Manchester, UK, $11,701
28. Kevin Ho, Gainsville, FL, $8,191
29. Prahlad S. Freidman, Los Angeles, CA, $8,191
30. Ulises Roman, Huntington, W. VA, $8,191
31. William G. Gazes, Miami Beach, FL, $8,191
32. Kevin Ratliff, Chicago, IL, $8,191
33. Hasan A. Habib , Downey, CA, $8,191
34. James Van Alstyne, Las Vegas, NV, $8,191
35. Gregg R. Merkow, Plano, TX, $8,191
36. Lance Allred, Los Angeles, CA, $8,191
37. Ian A. Mahaney, Forest Hill, MD, $6,787
38. Brandon Wong, Crovis, CA, $6,787
39. Robertos H. Hollink, Groningen, Holland, $6,787
40. David Levi, Las Vegas, NV, $6,787
41. Robert Boyd, Columbia, MO, $6,787
42. Theobald Tran, Las Vegas, NV, $6,787
43. Scott Epstein, Las Vegas, NV, $6,787
44. Carl Sciandri, Belmont, CA, $6,787
45. Jonathan Gaskell, Manchester, UK, $6,787
46. Shannon Shorr , Birmingham, AL, $5,500
47. Phillipe Boucher, Quebec, Canada, $5,500
48. Mark Schoichet, Royal Palm Beach, FL, $5,500
49. Mike Metcalf, St. Augustine, FL, $5,500
50. Joe Sebok, RPV, CA, $5,500
51. Vassilios A. Lazarou, Las Vegas, NV, $5,500
52. Neil Stone, Atlanta, GA, $5,500
53. Champie Douglas, Las Vegas, NV, $5,500
54. Mark Seif, Las Vegas, NV, $5,500
55. Marc R. Whitford, Rockford, MI, $4,680
56. Mark Wilds, Biloxi, MS, $4,680
57. Joseph F. Faust, Jacksonville Beach, FL, $4,680
58. Neil Webber, Austin, TX, $4,680
59. Patrik Selin, London, UK, $4,680
60. John Esposito, Las Vegas, NV, $4,680
61. Andreas Hoivold, Christiansand, Norway, $4,680
62. Ray Haskell, Tampa, FL, $4,680
63. Carl Hostrup-Pedersen, Denmark, $4,680
64. Mark Peterson, Denmark, $4,095
65. Barry Paskin, United Kingdom, $4,095
66. Beng Beh, Australia, $4,095
67. Edward Brogdon, Litchfield Park, AZ, $4,095
68. J.T. Anderson, Carthage, TX, $4,095
69. David Lurvey, Springfield, MO, $4,095
70. Patrik Antonius, Finland, $4,095
71. Thithi Tran, NA, $2,730
72. Chris Bush, BC, Canada, $2,730
73. Scott Fishman, Las Vegas, NV, $2,730

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Every World Series of Poker tournament has a special moment or two. This one had a dozen special moments that will linger on in the minds of everyone lucky enough to have been at the Rio on the night of July 25, 2006. Phil Hellmuth, Jr. finally broke down the barricade that had separated him from winning an elusive tenth World Series of Poker gold bracelet and sky rocketed to the top of the poker pyramid.

Money, fame, and glory are but a fickle reminiscence of what has already come and more often gone. But what captivates us most are -- the memories. Pick your favorite unforgettable moment: Before the start of the final table, Hellmuth warmly embracing his wife in the middle of the tournament floor for what seemed like minutes, oblivious to hundreds of onlookers; During a break, Hellmuth, the ticking human time-bomb, pacing the tournament hallways in isolation; Hellmuth catching a lucky life-saving card at a key moment to stay alive on his quest for win Number Ten; Hellmuth falling into his proud parents’ arms immediately after achieving victory; Hellmuth being mobbed by fellow poker pros Mike Matusow and John Bonetti; Hellmuth high-fiving the entire front row of the grandstand as he took a well-deserved victory lap; Hellmuth being an ultimate class-act by congratulating the runner-up Juha Helppi in a post-tournament celebration; and perhaps the greatest moment of all – Hellmuth himself officially being christened as a ten-time gold bracelet winner by WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack. Indeed, if Hellmuth’s poker triumph is ever to be set to music, it would take a symphony orchestra to provide the full sense of spectacle and historical relevance of the triumph. Beetoven may be famous for his Ninth. But Hellmuth will be celebrated for his Tenth.

The No-Limit Hold’em with Rebuys championship was played over a three-day period. There were 754 entries and 1,691 rebuys -- including a record “48” by Daniel Negreanu, believed to be the most of any major tournament in history. Negreanu’s heavy investment failed to pay off as he finished out of the money. It took two long days to eliminate Negreanu along with 745 players. The nine finalists returned to the Rio poker stage on Day Three. The final table consisted of several players with high-stakes experience, but only two former gold bracelet winners – Phil Hellmuth, Jr. with nine wins (coming in) and Ralph Perry, who won his first-ever gold bracelet last week. All eyes were on the combustible Hellmuth, who was making his sixth cash this year and third final table appearance. Alas, the third time would prove to be a charm.

Ralph Perry, $235,000, 1
Terris Preston, $164,000, 2
Tony G, $77,000, 3
John Spadavecchia, $122,000, 4
Elio Cabrera, $95,000, 5
David Plastik, $121,000, 6
Juha Helppi, $436,000, 7
Phil Hellmuth, Jr, $768,000, 8
Daryn Firicano, $450,000, 9

Hellmuth, the early chip leader, lost 15 percent of his chips on the first hand of play. Then, Antanas Guoga (a.k.a. “Tony G”) lost 100 percent of his chips as the shortest stack. The Lithuanian-born poker pro, who won the European Poker Championship in 2005, busted out ninth and received $46,805.

This has been a fabulous week for Ralph Perry. The Russian-born poker pro won a WSOP gold bracelet just five days ago and was sitting at the final table competing for win Number Two. Perry’s dream of joining Bill Chen and Jeff Madsen as two-time winners in 2006 was shattered when his pocket nines were stomped by Phil Hellmuth’s pocket jacks. Perry added another $70,207 to his World Series winnings.

David Plastik is a extraordinary player who has been around for years. However, he has yet to win at the WSOP. Plastik, now with 21 lifetime cashes, came up short for the 21st time with a seventh-place finish. This time, pocket jacks were no good as Plastik’s J-J was battered by Hellmuth’s pocket aces. Plastik melted away and received $93,610.

Elio Cabrera has an interesting story. The Cuban-born poker player now living in Florida was making his first cash at the WSOP and was playing on poker’s grandest stage. Cabrera managed to survive with a short-stack for over two hours, but was ultimately knocked out when his straight was rivered by Phil Hellmuth’s diamond flush. Cabrera collected $117,012.

Terris Preston was the next player to go out. The Canadian moved all-in on a flush draw, but missed. Preston, an investment advisor from Toronto (13th in the Short-Handed championship held two weeks ago) earned $140,414 for fifth place.

Two more hours passed before “The Marble King” hit a wall of stone. John Spadavecchia, who made his fortune selling marble for homes of the rich and famous in south Florida, was severely short-stacked. He went out in fourth place. The silk-shirted, gold chain festooned Spadavecchia, so eloquently described by British author Tony Holden as “looking as though he stepped right off the set of ‘Goodfellas,” was whacked as the fourth-place finisher. Spadavecchia’s take amounted to $163,817.

Daryn Firicano could very well have been the headline of this event. He played remarkable poker over three days. In fact, Firicano had the chip lead when play was three-handed before taking a fall. The 25-year-old Boston poker pro gave both of his opponents a scare before ultimately busting out in third place, which paid $187,219.

Great final tables require monumental gladiators. This one had at least two. Juha Helppi, who has emerged within just three years as one of the world best tournament players, has won just about everything except a WSOP bracelet. Sitting on the opposite end of the table was Phil Hellmuth, the nine-time gold bracelet winner and captivating character study of all that makes poker so compelling to watch.

Hellmuth had already made it to two final tables this year. Both times, he came up short. The first setback came when the largest gallery in WSOP history left stunned after seeing Hellmuth finish second to Jeff Cabanillas. A week later, in the Omaha High-Low championship, Hellmuth finished a disappointing sixth.

But this time, Hellmuth would get the intangible breaks that had shattered him in the past. One of the most dramatic hands of the entire year took place when Hellmuth was dealt pocket fives and flopped a five – making a set. The trouble was – there were three diamonds on board. An amazing turn of events ensued when a fourth diamond fell on the turn, to match Helppi’s lone fifth diamond. Helppi, holding a flush, was one blank on the river away from winning his first WSOP title. But the board paired on the final card and Hellmuth made a full house.

The look of anguish on Hellpi’s face afterward was worth a thousand words. Picture getting hit in the stomach with a sledgehammer. Hellpi could not believe his eyes and could not disregard the crowd’s roar for Hellmuth. If there was a turning point, this was it.

A short time later, Hellmuth regained the chip lead when he called Hellpi’s all-in raise holding pocket kings. Hellpi tabled an ace-ten. An ace failed to appear for Hellpi, which only added to the proverbial prairie fire that would engulf the final table and result in Hellmuth’s explosive victory.

The final hand of the tournament came when Hellmuth (with ace-jack) called Hellpi (with ace-nine) after the Finn made an all-in pre-flop re-raise. Neither player made a pair, so the ace-jack played and Hellmuth won the championship. That set off a half-hour celebration that rocked the Rio tournament area to its core.

Lost in the great storyline that was Hellmuth’s victory was the supporting cast, led by Juha Hellpi. The Finnish poker pro, who has won more money in Europe than any other player over the last three years, collected $331,144 for second place.

As the boisterous crowd flooded onto the stage and began to chant, “Ten! Ten! Ten!” in unison, Hellmuth basked in the glow of what was perhaps his most satisfying poker victory. The 1989 WSOP certainly came to define Phil Hellmuth as a world champion. But wining gold bracelet Number Ten now establishes Hellmuth as a bona fide living legend.

With the victory, his first at the World Series in over two years, Hellmuth joined his fellow poker legends Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan, who have already won ten gold bracelets each. Brunson and Chan both won their tenth titles last year, leaving Hellmuth behind to simmer over the last 13 months. Now, the three-way race to win gold bracelet Number Eleven is on.

“I honestly would have paid a million dollars for this moment,” Hellmuth told a cheering crowd afterward. “I know it’s my time. I don’t play this well every World Series…this year is my time. I’m maybe the best hold’em player in the world, at the top of my game and I felt it would be a shame if I didn’t win the bracelet. Nothing else matters from here, but I do anticipate a successful run in the championship event (next week). I really feel like I can win it.”

Anyone who still doubts that this poker victory meant everything to Phil Hellmuth, Jr. would be advised to reflect upon his final question whispered in the most straightforward manner possible to the Tournament Director as he walked away from the Rio poker stage. “So, how much money did I win?” Hellmuth asked.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #34):
Total Entries to Date: 30,092
Total Prize Money Distributed: $67,868,330

WSOP Event 32 - $5,000 pot-limit hold'em

Jason Lester Finally Wins a WSOP Gold Bracelet

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 378
Total Prize Money: $1,776,600

Official Results:
1. Jason Lester, Miami, FL, $550,764
2. Alan Sass, Las Vegas, NV, $284,256
3. Stuart Fox, Birmingham, UK, $142,128
4. Tony Hartmann, Minneapolis, MN, $124,362
5. Michael Tedesco, Menlo Park, CA, $106,596
6. Gregg Turk, Sterling, VA, $88,830
7. Emad Tahtouh, Melbourne, Australia, $71,064
8. Tom Smith, St. Cloud, MN, $53,298
9. Kirill Gerasimov, Moscow, Russia, $35,532
10. Nam Thien Le, Huntington Beach, CA, $21,319
11. Benjamin Arnold, Santa Ana, CA, $21,319
12. Chau Giang, Las Vegas, NV, $21,319
13. Laura Fink, New York, NY, $17,766
14. John Shipley, Solihull, UK, $17,766
15. Tonio Scali, New York, NY, $17,766
16. Cyndi Violette, Los Angeles, CA, $14,213
17. Kevin O'Donnell, Scottsdale, AZ, $14,213
18. Rami Boukai, Laguna Hills, CA, $14,213
19. Nick Schulman, New York, NY, $10,660
20. Alexander Kravchenko, Moscow, Russia, $10,660
21. Jon Knauf, Garland, TX, $10,660
22. Greg Mascio, Brea, CA, $10,660
23. Jeff Buffenbarger, UK, $10,660
24. Ayaz Mahmood, Houston, TX, $10,660
25. Garth Derbyshire, London, UK, $10,660
26. Nick Guagenti, Westerville, OH, $10,660
27. Joe Beevers, London, UK, $7,106
28. Daniel Alaei, NA, $7,106
29. James Romptz, Cordova, TN, $7,106
30. Constantine Moustakis, Danvers, MA, $7,106
31. Lonnie Heimowitz, Monticello, NY, $7,106
32. Jamieson Pickering, Surfers Paradise, Australia, $7,106
33. Mark Tehscher, London, UK, $7,106
34. Erik Seidel, Las Vegas, NV, $7,106
35. George Abdallah, Houston, TX, $7,106
36. Patrick Antonius, NA, $3,553
37. Mark Gregorich, Las Vegas, NV, $3,553

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – When Jason Lester walks into any poker room, everyone seems to recognize him. He’s been playing in poker tournaments for twenty years. He’s cashed 16 times at the World Series of Poker, and made six final table appearances. He was part of poker’s biggest story ever when Chris Moneymaker rocked the world and won the 2003 championship event. Lester finished fourth that year. Had a few key hands gone the other way, perhaps it would have been Lester’s day and he’d be a world champion. But alas, that’s poker.

In fact, it’s more of a surprise to learn that Lester did not have a gold bracelet – at least not until the midnight hour on June 24, 2006. The Miami-based investor finally accomplished his breakthrough victory when he topped a highly-competitive field of 378 players and won the $5,000 buy-in Pot-Limit Hold’em event at the World Series of Poker, presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light.

Lester added his name to this year’s memorable list of tournament winners -- players who had previously been members of the WSOP’s supporting cast, while others got the starring roles. Sammy Farha, David Williams, Chip Reese, Mike Sexton, John Gale, and now Jason Lester have all slain the poker demons of years past with gold bracelet victories.

The Pot-Limit Hold’em championship was played over a three-day period. It took two long days to eliminate 369 players. The nine finalists returned to the Rio poker stage on Day Three. The final table consisted of several players with high-stakes experience. However, none had previously won a WSOP title.

Michael Tedesco, $278,000, 1
Jason Lester, $222,000, 2
Tony Hartmann, $163,000, 3
Stuart Fox, $214,000, 4
Alan Sass, $431,000, 5
Emad Tamtouh, $97,000, 6
Kirill Gerasimov, $124,000, 7
Gregg Turk, $122,000, 8
Tommy Smith, $238,000, 9

Kirill Gerasimov was the first player to go out. The Russian poker player, who was making his second final table appearance at this year’s World Series, was eliminated when his ace-king was booted by Emad Tahtouh’s pocket queens. A queen flopped, which improved to a full house, putting the Russian out in the cold. Gerasimov collected $35,532 for ninth place.
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Next, Tommy Smith got the axe. The 21-year-old college student took a tough beat with set-over-set holding pocket sixes. After Alan Sass re-raised on the flop with pocket queens, Smith called instantly with trip sixes. Smith’s joy turned to anguish when Sass tabled a set of queens. The lone six in the deck which would have saved Smith remained concealed. Eighth place paid $53,298.

Emad Tahtouh was the next player to exit. The Australian poker player hoped to join his fellow mate Joe Hachem as a gold bracelet winner, but came up short. A little-known fact is that Tahtouh is the sole reason Hachem decided to come and play at last year’s WSOP. Tahtouh had won his entry to play in the main event, and Hachem decided to come to Las Vegas along with his friend. And the rest, as they say – is history. Tahtouh became “history” when his suited king-five failed to make a pair. The Aussie collected $71,064.

Gregg Turk went out next. The investment advisor from suburban-Washington, DC tanked with ace-queen suited to Jason Lester’s pocket eights. All small cards meant a sixth place finish for Turk. He received $88,830 in prize money.

Fifth place went to Michael Tedesco. The second-most famous poker player from Menlo Park, CA (Phil Hellmuth, Jr. lives up the road) went out holding a dominant hand, ace-queen versus ace-eight. Stuart Fox (A-8) caught an eight and eliminated Tedesco. The investment banker who specializes in mergers and acquisitions cashed out for what amounted to $106,596.

Tony Hartmann is another longtime tournament player with a long record of accomplishments, but no WSOP gold bracelets as of yet. “The Big House” went out holding ace-king versus Alan Sass’ pocket nines. The middle pair held up, which meant a fourth-place finish for Hartmann. He was paid $124,362.

Stuart Fox, a.k.a. “Foxy,” got bitten next when Jason Lester (with ace-nine) re-raised all-in after Fox attempted a pre-flop steal with king-three suited. Fox was pretty much pot-committed and was forced to call. Neither player made a pair, which meant the ace-high played. Fox ended up as the third-place finisher – which paid $142,128.

When heads-up play began, Jason Lester enjoyed a sizable chip lead. “I did not want to gamble,” he explained later. “I was not going to give my opponent any chips when I did not have to….and I was not going to make any calls in marginal situations.”

Alan Sass had the backing of a rowdy cheering section of a few dozen friends and supporters. But that was not enough to defeat a very determined Lester. The final hand of the night was deal when Sass tried to make a clever move with six-four suited after the flop came 9-3-2. Sass held an inside-straight draw and moved all of his chips into the pot on a semi-bluff. However, Lester had nine-seven, good for top pair. Sass was all-in and missed on the final two cards giving his opponent the victory.

Alan Sass, a.k.a. “The Usher” was the runner up. The 23-year-old poker pro from Las Vegas collected $284,256.

“I’m so happy, it’s such a relief to win this,” Lester said in a post-tournament interview. “I’ve been playing at the World Series for twenty years and to finally win this it’s such a validation for all those years and all those beats, and all the times where I think I could have won a gold bracelet.”

Lester collected $550,746 in prize money. “My background in game theory is really what got me here,” Lester answered when asked to assess his reasons for victory. “It’s my strategic skills. I play backgammon, chess, and other games and I eventually got into poker because it became so big. My win here really is the summation of all those things that came together – from experience, knowing the math, from my own style.”

“I will be playing the main event next week,” Lester concluded. “Now, when I sit down, I am going to have more confidence and a renewed table presence. That’s what winning (a WSOP gold bracelet) does for you.”

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #33):
Total Entries to Date: 29,338
Total Prize Money Distributed: $62,528,092

Hellmuth alert

Phil Hellmuth is heading into today's final table of the $1,000 no-limit hold'em rebuy as the chip leader, chasing his record-tying 10th bracelet. He was tied with Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan with nine apiece up until last year, when Doyle and Chan each won events.

Hellmuth has already come close to number 10 once this series, making the final table of an Omaha tournament as chip leader and on the verge of a non-hold'em bracelet that he covets so much. A complete meltdown at that final table (sixth place) denied him once again, but he heads into today's match with a dominating lead in the game he plays best. Still, this will be no cakewalk for Phil, who must still contend with Ralph Perry and Juha Helppi, who each have sizable stacks of their own. He must also face legendary bigmouth Tony G., who comes into today as the short-stack, but armed with a trash-talking style that could provide some fireworks in the early going and put Phil in danger of tilt.

Hellmuth has already made history once this year by setting the mark for most cashes in the series by becoming the first player to reach 50, and he's added several since that time.

Should be an interesting one to watch.

WSOP Event 33 - $1,500 razz

James Richburg Wins Razz World Championship

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 409
Total Prize Money: $558,285

Official Results:
1. James Richburg, Long Beach, CA, $139,576
2. Carlos Mortensen, Las Vegas, NV, $94,908
3. Steve Diano, Las Vegas, NV, $61,411
4. Cliff Josephy, Muttontown, NY, $39,080
5. Ron Ritchie, Marietta, GA, $30,706
6. Richie Sklar, Northridge, CA, $25,123
7. "Miami John" Cernuto, Miami, FL, $19,540
8. Jamie Brooks, Phoenix, AZ, $13,957
9. Chad Carpenter, Las Vegas, NV, $7,258
10. Eric Froehlich, Springfield, VA, $7,258
11. Christopher Fargis, Brooklyn, NY, $7,258
12. Robert Turner, Downey, CO, $7,258
13. Randy Haddox, Houston, TX, $7,258
14. Perry Friedman, Las Vegas, NV, $7,258
15. George Rechnitzer, Beverly Hills, CA, $7,258
16. Nick Charman, Nepean, ON, Canada, $7,258
17. Russ Salzer, New York, NY, $4,466
18. Chris Parsons, Deerfield Beach, FL, $4,466
19. Jeffrey Lisandro, Santa Barbara, Italy, $4,466
20. Stanley Lewkowicz, Manchester, CT, $4,466
21. Frank Henderson, Houston, TX, $4,466
22. John Strzemp, Las Vegas, NV, $4,466
23. Peter Costa, Leicester, UK, $4,466
24. Drew Bentley, Tuscaloosa, AL, $4,466
25. Graham Duke, Vancouver, Canada, $2,791
26. Tommy Reynosio, Sacramento, CA, $2,791
27. Hassan Kamoei, Indio, CA, $2,791
28. Richie Ming Waiwong, Las Vegas, NV, $2,791
29. Rod Pardey, Sr. Las Vegas, NV, $2,791
30. Danny Walker, Wasilla, AK, $2,791
31. Sio Nong, Phoenix, AZ, $2,791
32. Chris Bjorin, London, UK, $2,791
33. Eskimo Clark, New Orleans, LA, $2,233
34. Ross Mallor, New York, NY, $2,233
35. Maurice Schwartz, Philadelphia, PA, $2,233
36. Bhupinder Kohli, London, UK, $2,233
37. Thomas Hufnagle, Downey, CA, $2,233
38. Scott Silverman, Lone Pine, CA, $2,233
39. Nick Niergarth, NA, $2,233
40. Ali Eslami, NA, $2,233

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Seven-Card Razz has developed a bad reputation. It’s the proverbial step-child of poker games. While the rest of the poker world is playing Texas Hold’em, Razz is the quirky card game that pops up every now and then at a few major poker tournaments. The game attracts an admittedly older and more traditional crowd.

Razz gets a bad rap, which is unfair. After all, the game is full of subtle nuances and razor-thin margins. Perhaps one reason Razz will never rival Hold’em in terms of popularity is because it lacks excitement and drama. No-limit Hold’em is a test of courage. Razz is a test of patience. No-Limit Hold’em rewards the brave. Razz punishes the daring.

Few spectators were left in the audience to witness James Richburg’s resounding first WSOP victory. He won his first gold bracelet precisely at 4:45 am early on a Monday morning in front of hundreds of empty seats and poker tables which had been filled to capacity only hours earlier. Richburg won the tournament in typical Razz fashion – by simply outlasting everyone else, waiting for the right moments, and pushing small advantages which produced large gains.

The Razz championship at the 2006 World Series of Poker, presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light, attracted 409 entries. The final table consisted of three former WSOP gold bracelet winners – “Miami John” Cernuto (with 3 wins), Carlos Mortensen (with 2 wins), and Cliff Josephy (with one win).

This was the “oldest” final table so far at this year’s WSOP, other than the seniors championship. The youngest player was age 38. In fact, the finalists ranged from 38 up to 62 years – in dramatic contrast to most hold’em final tables which have been dominated by twenty-somethings.

SEAT 1-- Carlos "The Matador" Mortensen, 118,000
SEAT 2 -- James Richburg, 115,000
SEAT 3 -- Ron Ritchie, 80,000
SEAT 4 -- "Miami" John Cernuto, 55,000
SEAT 5 -- Steven Diano, 50,000
SEAT 6 -- Chad Carpenter, 30,000
SEAT 7 -- Richard Sklar, 35,000
SEAT 8 -- Cliff Josephy, 27,000
SEAT 9 -- Jamie Brooks, 22,000

After Chad Carpenter busted out ninth, the eight finalists took seats at the final table upon the Rio poker stage. Soon thereafter, the low-stacked Jamie Brooks went out in eighth place. The table games manager from Phoenix received $13,957.

“Miami John” Cernuto was making his second final-table appearance this year, but once again fell short of winning gold bracelet Number Four. Instead, Cernuto earned $19,540 for seventh place.

Richie Sklar, who hangs out on golf courses and at race tracks as much as poker rooms, failed to either make par or win, place, or show in this event. Sklar, a longtime gambler and golfer went out of bounds when his queen-low was bested by a jack-low. Sklar went to the clubhouse with $25,123 for a sixth-place finish.

Ron Ritchie went out next. The owner of a construction company in Atlanta, Ritchie busted out with several bricks on his final hand, and had to settle for fifth place. Ritchie collected $30,706.

Cliff Josephy, a.k.a. “Johnny Bax” took a hit and was eliminated in fourth place. The pro poker player, who won a gold bracelet in last year’s $1,500 buy-in Seven-Card Stud event, admitted later that he had never played a hand of Razz prior to this tournament. His intuitive poker knowledge allowed him to outlast all but the final three players en route to a $39,080 payday.

Steve Diano, a professional sports bettor from Las Vegas, wasn’t able to cash a winning ticket. But he did come out well financially with a third-place finish. Diano was out stacked by his two opponents when play became three-handed. He finally went out when the limits were raised. Diano received $61,411.

It took a few hours before James Richburg finally defeated his last rival. Carlos Mortensen put up a fight. But he was never able to seriously threaten Richburg for most of his chips. The 2001 world poker champion finally went out, losing to a 9-8 low shown by Richburg. Mortensen’s cards were not seen. Mortensen earned $94,908 as the runner up.

The Razz champion, James Richburg has a long history of play at the World Series of Poker. He finished second in the 1991 Stud Eight-or-Better championship. Little did he know it back then, but that would be his last WSOP final table in 15 years. The past would be forgotten at this early morning hour. After all, it was the beginning of a new day. Richburg collected $139,576 in prize money and his first WSOP gold bracelet as the sun peaked over the horizon.

It’s important to note that this year’s Razz world championship attracted an all-time record of 409 entries. That’s the most players ever in history for a Razz-only poker tournament. Contrast that number with 291 entrants in 2005 and 195 entrants in this same event back in 2004. Considering a 37 percent growth rate for Razz over last year, versus hold’em which is only up 24 percent, could that possibly mean that Razz is emerging as the fastest-growing poker game?

James Richburg certainly hopes so.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #33):
Total Entries to Date: 28,960
Total Prize Money Distributed: $60,193,207

WSOP Event 31 - $2,000 no-limit hold'em

Detroit poker player destroys final table in wire-to-wire victory

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 2,050
Total Prize Money: $3,731,000

Official Results:
1. Justin Scott, Detroit, MI, $842,262
2. Farzad Rouhani, Gaithersburg, MD, $429,065
3. Bob Bright, Las Vegas, NV, $261,170
4. Gregory Glass, Newport Beach, CA, $186,550
5. Nathan Templeton, Chattanooga, TN, $149,240
6. Carl Olson, Seattle, WA, $130,585
7. Joshua Wakeman, Sandwich, IL, $111,930
8. Jason Johnson, Coral Springs, FL, $93,275
9. Bryan Micon, Atlanta, GA, $74,620
10, Paul Spano, Sacramento, CA, $55,965
11, Kendall Fukomoto, Honolulu, HI, $52,234
12, Chad Mizner, Chandler, AZ, $48,503
13, Jacob Stearley, Spring Lake, MI, $44,772
14, Angelo Cordi, Indiana Wells, CA, $41,041
15, Deborah Lavigne, Fairhope, AL, $37,310
16, Tony Bloom, London, UK, $33,579
17, Stephen Jones, Springfield, IL, $29,848
18, Ryan Fair, Coral Springs, FL, $26,117
19, Narimal Parmar, Lomita, CA, $22,386
20, Kayshan Muthy, London, UK, $22,386
21, Angel Garcia, Henderson, NV, $22,386
22, Efrain Lopez, Miami, FL, $18,655
23, Dan Harrington, Santa Monica, CA, $18,655
24, Graham Smith, Bridgenorth, UK, $18,655
25, Adam Marshall, Pittsburgh, PA, $14,924
26, Eduardo Sants, NA, $14,924
27, David Cesiano, Galveston, TX, $14,924
28, Jamys Williams, Phoenix, AZ, $11,193
29, Jose Severino, Panama, $11,193
30, Brandon Adams, Gulf Breeze, FL, $11,193
31, Eric Cloutier, Lafayette, LA, $11,193
32, Kevin Petersen, Plano, TX, $11,193
33, David Cai, Westminster, CA, $11,193
34, Mike Hofeld, Egg Harber, NJ, $11,193
35, Ian Frazer, London, England, $11,193
36, Logan Trinidade, Los Angeles, CA, $11,193
37, Nathan Smith, Haymarket, VA, $9,328
38, Kevin Noel, Coral Springs, FL, $9,328
39, Ylon Schwartz, Brooklyn, NY, $9,328
40, Jeffrey Tahler, W. Hollywood, CA, $9,328
41, Ferit Gabriellson, Horsbore, Sweden, $9,328
42, John Spanavecchia, Lighthouse Point, FL, $9,328
43, Alex Brenes, San Jose, Costa Rica, $9,328
44, Michael McIntyre, Tewersbary, MA, $9,328
45, Marc Karam, Ottawa, Canada, $9,328
46, Joseph Nolan, Henderson, NV, $9,328
47, Ben Armstrong, Tulsa, OK, $9,328
48, George Long, Las Vegas, NV, $9,328
49, Michael Katz, Manalapan, NJ, $9,328
50, Tony Pirone, Boston, MA, $9,328
51, Bobby Poe, Commerce Twp, MI, $9,328
52, Randy Holland, Winnetka, CA, $9,328
53, Ryan Armstrong, Belleive, NE, $9,328
54, Tony Nasr, Whittier, CA, $9,328
55, J.P. Vaughan, Campo, CA, $7,462
56, Mark Hope, Denver, CO, $7,462
57, Joe Myers, Gray's Lake, IL, $7,462
58, Chris Tsiprailidis, Liverpool, NY, $7,462
59, Ryan Moore, Newport Beach, CA, $7,462
60, Michael Odeh, Las Vegas, NV, $7,462
61, Ken Koski, Howell, MI, $7,462
62, T.J. Yurkanin, Seattle, WA, $7,462
63, Hasan Habib, Downey, CA, $7,462
64, Chris Convery, Capetown, South Africa, $7,462
65, Randall Witt, Nashville, TN, $7,462
66, Mickey Mills, Ocean Beach, CA, $7,462
67, Karlo Lopez, Carolina, Puerto Rico, $7,462
68, John Lively, Houston, TX, $7,462
69, Michael Cribb, Rochester Hills, MI, $7,462
70, Uskov Alexander, Moscow, Russia, $7,462
71, Chris Reslock, Atlantic City, NJ, $7,462
72, Claude Marbeleu, Toolouse, France, $7,462
73, Praz Bansi, London, England, $7,462
74, Blake Mason, Atlanta, GA, $7,462
75, Chi Nguyen, Anaheim, CA, $7,462
76, Gary Benson, Sydney, Australia, $7,462
77, Eric Bush, Raleigh, NC, $7,462
78, Jason Levine, Miami, FL, $7,462
79, Patrick Pezzin, Bari, Italy, $7,462
80, Jeff Han, Torrance, CA, $7,462
81, Paul Andrzejewski, Park Ridge, IL, $7,462
82, Derek Lawless, Heartfordshire, UK, $5,597
83, Robert Ohl, Mansfield, OH, $5,597
84, Les Juliano, Austin, TX, $5,597
85, David Crouse, Huber Heights, OH, $5,597
86, Ron Stanley, Austin, TX, $5,597
87, Brian Fields, Huber Heights, OH, $5,597
88, Jamad Rashid, Henderson, NV, $5,597
89, Theo Nerantzinis, Bethpage, NY, $5,597
90, John Esposito, Las Vegas, NV, $5,597
91, Mats Iremark, Sothenburg, Sweeden, $5,597
92, Marcus Collins, Perth, Australia, $5,597
93, Charles Balesteri, Island Park, NY, $5,597
94, Randy McKay, Finley, ND, $5,597
95, James Basar, Burnswick, OH, $5,597
96, Tony Bueti, Mt. Kisco, NY, $5,597
97, Jarrod Ankeniman, Avon, CT, $5,597
98, David Stirling, Wellington, FL, $5,597
99, Jennifer Tilly, Los Angeles, CA, $5,597
100, Steve Karp, Dona, FL, $5,597
101, Robert Blechman, Culver City, CA, $5,597
102, Robert Lendgren, Richland, WA, $5,597
103, Brett Shaffer, Beloit, KS, $5,597
104, David Ross, Los Angeles, CA, $5,597
105, Doris Homonicki, Victoria, Australia, $5,597
106, Richard Marshall, Raleigh, NC, $5,597
107, Jeremy Tutre, Salt Lake City, UT, $5,597
108, Zacharia Butler, Brierley Hill, UK, $5,597
109, Joseph Burkley, Lowell, MA, $3,731
110, Dow Sjolestad, Phoenix, AZ, $3,731
111, John Loisana, Chapel Hill, NC, $3,731
112, Andrew Stirling, Wellington, FL, $3,731
113, Eric Nelson, Sioux City, IA, $3,731
114, Joseph Torres, NA, $3,731
115, Jeff Bryan, Fort Calhoun, NE, $3,731
116, Roy Wilder, Livermore, CA, $3,731
117, David Cussio, El Paso, TX, $3,731
118, Mark Davis, NA, $3,731
119, Ron McMillan, Las Vegas, NV, $3,731
120, Jeff Shulman, Las Vegas, NV, $3,731
121, Claus Vallo, Copenhagen, Denmark, $3,731
122, Harold Cohen, Los Angeles, CA, $3,731
123, Walter Chambers, Baton Rouge, LA, $3,731
124, Kakoun Haim, Paris, France, $3,731
125, Hutson Richarde, Charlotte, NC, $3,731
126, Jason Fleurant, Vancouver, Canada, $3,731
127, James Kilaryian, Moneta, VA, $3,731
128, Johnny Kitchens III, Lake Mary, Fl, $3,731
129, Jeppe Mikkelsen, Aarhus, Denmark, $3,731
130, Greg Hemphill, Galsgow, Sweeden, $3,731
131, Jose Barbero, Buenos Aires, Argentina, $3,731
132, Vegard Nygard, Oslo, Norway, $3,731
133, Zack Stewart, Santa Monica, CA, $3,731
134, Craig Gold, Belmont, CA, $3,731
135, Javier Sarache, Pembrook Farms, FL, $3,731
136, Jeffrey Johnson, West Palm Beach, FL, $3,731
137, James Routos, Kent, WA, $3,731
138, Cong Do, Brigantine, NJ, $3,731
139, Marc Cipriano, Las Vegas, NV, $3,731
140, Sean Willis, Murrell's Inlet, SC, $3,731
141, Tommy Hang, Lynwood, WA, $3,731
142, Richard E. Park, Huntington, CA, $3,731
143, Jeffrey Lambert, Thousand Oaks, CA, $3,731
144, Brian Malcolm, Redmond, WA, $3,731
145, Anthony Consola, Chicago, IL, $3,731
146, John Vincent, NA, $3,731
147, Roger Pape, Fort Morgan, CO, $3,731
148, Orlando Moretti, Ontario, Canada, $3,731
149, Amir Nurant, El Cajon, CA, $3,731
150, Michael Carroll, Torrance, CA, $3,731
151, Alexander Dokunov, Las Vegas, NV, $3,731
152, Ernesto Espino, Las Vegas, NV, $3,731
153, Gregory Vamplew, NA, $3,731
154, John Bonetti, Houston, TX, $2,798
155, Stephen McClean, Dublin, Ireland, $2,798
156, Adam Greens, New York, NY, $2,798
157, Jason Barnett, Oxford, AL, $2,798
158, Jan Selberg, NA, $2,798
159, Peter Longmore, NA, $2,798
160, Thomas Macey, Chicago, IL, $2,798
161, Jess Susi, San Diego, CA, $2,798
162, Richard Predham, NA, $2,798
163, Jeff Samuelson, Doniphan, NE, $2,798
164, Aram Zerounian, Portola Hills, CA, $2,798
165, Craig Hartman , Fort Wayne, IN, $2,798
166, Kevin O'Sullivan, CA, $2,798
167, Jason Ryan, Houston, TX, $2,798
168, Alexander Lieu, Pasadena, CA, $2,798
169, Johan Dunder, Stockholm, Sweden, $2,798
170, Troy Van, Riverside, CA, $2,798
171, Michael Clark, Ludera Ranch, CA, $2,798
172, Keith Taylor, Mancepa, AZ, $2,798
173, Mike Caro, Shell Knob, MO, $2,798
174, Elijah Harrod, Boswell, GA, $2,798
175, Kevin Paulk, Lynn Hoven, FL, $2,798
176, Anahit Coalajian, Glendak, CA, $2,798
177, Paul Quadie, Highland Ranch, CO, $2,798
178, Gino Criscione, Laguna Niguel, CA, $2,798
179, Che Coye, Lake Elsinore, CA, $2,798
180, Brett Marshall, Fresno, CA, $2,798
181, Dan Gatto, Galt, CA, $2,798
182, Saul Prusoff, Alpharetta, GA, $2,798
183, Alan Fidellow, Yorktown Heights, NY, $2,798
184, Ali Zayeu, El Paso, TX, $2,798
185, Farid Vaghefi, San Diego, CA, $2,798
186, Jerome Saunders, Orlando, FL, $2,798
187, Paul Tschernia, Henderson, NV, $2,798
188, Gregory Cartin, Brookline, MA, $2,798
189, Keith Block, Pomona, NY, $2,798
190, Michelle Law, Las Vegas, NV, $2,798
191, Patrick Heneghan, Chicago, IL, $2,798
192, James Bates, NA, $1,632
193, Peter Calvo, NA, $1,632
194, Juan Moranjo, Miami Lakes, FL, $1,632
195, Keith Jacobs, Calabasas, CA, $1,632
196, Broc Segura, New Iberia, LA, $1,632
197, Emanuel Failla, Commach, NY, $1,632
198, Gregory Monaldi, Davie, FL, $1,632
199, Ryan Fronda, Farhem, Hampshire, $1,632
200, Mohammed Shafia, NA, $1,632
201, William Thorson, NA, $1,632
202, Samuel Silverman, Las Vegas, NV, $1,632
203, Romain Feriolo, Marseille, France, $1,632, ,

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Justin Scott flew into Las Vegas and promptly lost his entire bankroll at a baccarat table. This would not be an unusual story, since millions of visitors arrive in the gambling capital of the world each year and then leave town with less money. Scott’s story is unique because out of the ashes of defeat in the pit, the 22-year-old professional poker player from Detroit scratched together a $2,000 buy-in for the No-Limit Hold’em championship and ended up winning $842,262 at the 2006 World Series of Poker, presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light.

Scott steamrolled over a staggering field of 2,050 players – one of the largest tournaments held thus far at the World Series. After 2,041 players had been eliminated over two long days, nine players took their seats at the final table upon the Rio poker stage. The nine finalists comprised largely an unknown group of poker players. None had previously won a WSOP gold bracelet. When play began, Justin Scott enjoyed a decisive chip lead. Nathan Templeton was second, with everyone else far off in the distance. ESPN television was on hand to film the seven-hour finale, which featured perhaps the most dominant victory by any player yet at this year’s WSOP.

Carl Olson, 301,000, 1
Nathan Templeton, 832,000, 2
Bob Bright, 324,000, 3
Jason Johnson, 174,000, 4
Farzad Rouhani, 133,000, 5
Greg Glass, 267,000, 6
Josh Wakeman, 319,000, 7
Justin Scott, 1,500,000, 8
Bryan Micon, 224,000, 9

Bryan Micon, a.k.a. “Neverwinpoker” fulfilled his namesake by being the first player to bust out. Micon took a horrible beat when his pocket kings were trounced by Jason Johnson’s ace-king. Johnson caught two devastating aces on the board to crush Micon. The Atlanta-based poker player took $74,620 for ninth place.

What goes around comes around. After busting-out Micon, Jason Johnson was himself eliminated when his ace-queen lost of Justin Scott’s ace-king. Neither player made a pair, but the king-kicker in Scott’s hand played and Johnson was knocked out. Johnson, a painter from Florida, cashed out for $93,275. Johnson’s elimination would mark the first of seven consecutive players to be eliminated by Scott. His play at this final table was so domineering, that as play progressed spectators could see the growing sense of frustration on the faces of Scott’s powerless opponents.

Dr. Josh Wakeman attended his first WSOP and this was his first-ever final table appearance. The chiropractor from Illinois had his back broken when his ace-jack was upset by Justin Scott’s queen-seven. Two queens flopped, and Dr. Wakeman was discharged in seventh place. In what has been a great year in poker for chiropractors (world champ Joe Hachem’s former profession), Wakeman collected $111,930 in prize money.

The Justin Scott express rolled on. Already ahead in chips by a 3 to 1 count, Scott’s total domination continued. Carl Olson went out next. His pocket sixes were flattened by Scott’s ace-seven. The proverbial toss-up situation with a pair versus two overcards went Scott’s way, when an ace flopped. Olson, a University of Washington graduate who now plays poker professionally, received $130,585 for sixth place.

If there was any thought that Justin Scott might eventually go card dead and take a few hits, it vanished when the chip leader busted out yet another player – this time holding pocket deuces. Scott’s deuce-deuce edged out Nathan Templeton’s queen-ten when the real estate investor from Tennessee failed to connect with a pair. Templeton’s share of the prize poll amounted to $149,240 for fifth place.

By this time, Justin Scott was an immovable force. He amassed the vast majority of the chips still in play, making the spectacle more of a contest for “second place” than any lingering suspense as to who would be the tournament winner. Scott obliterated yet another player when his ace-king broke Greg Glass’ king-ten. Both players flopped top pair when a king came. Drawing slim with two cards still to come, Glass failed to hit a ten. Was Glass half-full or half-empty? It depends on how one views a fourth-place finish. The 40-year-old poker player from California received $186,550 in prize money.

Things were not so bright for Bob Bright. The CEO of a stock trading firm in Las Vegas cashed out as the third-place finisher when his ace-six failed to connect with the board. Justin Scott’s pocket threes held up on the final hand, fizzling out Bright’s chances of a comeback victory. Bright, who won the “Best All-Around” player award at Caesar’s Las Vegas on this year’s WSOP Circuit, had to settle for $261,170 and third place, this time.

Looking at the chip discrepancy going into heads-up play, Farzad Rouhani must have felt like a stalled Hyundai sitting in the middle of the rail road tracks looking up at a roaring freight train. Rouhani was down nearly 13 to 1 – the single-largest lead going into heads-up play at the WSOP in over three years. Scott’s 3,800,000 in chips, festooned in dozens of neat columns looked like the Acropolis compared to Rouhani’s 290,000 shack.

Overlooked in Scott’s extraordinary victory was Rouhani’s remarkable survival skills. Perhaps no player had fewer key cards or bigger hands at this year’s World Series, and yet still managed to win more prize money ($429,065). On the previous day, when play had dwindled down to 35-players, Rouhani had less than 100,000 in chips and made a few key folds holding marginal hands which enabled him to survive longer in the tournament. Rouhani never had many chips in this event, yet still managed to outlast all but the last of 2,050 players.

Rouhani put all of his last chips into the pot as the favorite. His pocket eights were in the lead on the final hand of the tournament. But Scott simply could not be stopped. His queen-six made a pair when a queen landed on board, and Rouhani ended up as the last victim of what can only be described as poker’s closest thing to a massacre.

The new poker champion was interviewed afterward and began with a classic understatement. “I came in with 1.5 million,” Scott said. “I was able to use my chips to run over the table.”

Scott was complimentary toward his opponents, particularly Rouhani. “Maybe I’m going to write a poker book,” he said. “I’m going to put (Rouhani) in it for how to play short-handed in tournaments. He was simply amazing.”

Justin Scott’s trip to Las Vegas may have started off with a wimper. But it certainly ended with a bang. He went from being flat broke to $842,262 richer. “I’m going to pay off the rest of my dad’s home,” Scott said. “Then, I’m going to buy a home for myself.”

A bit of free advice – stay away from the baccarat tables.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #31):
Total Entries to Date: 28,551
Total Prize Money Distributed: $60,193,207

WSOP Event 30 - $5,000 short-handed no-limit hold'em

Jeff Madsen Wins Gold Bracelet Number Two

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 507
Total Prize Money: $2,382,900

Official Results:
1. Jeff Madsen, Los Angeles, CA, $643,381
2. Eric Lindgren, Las Vegas, NV, $357,435
3. Tom Franklin, Gulfport, MS, $214,461
4. Tony Woods, Murrieta, CA, $150,123
5. Jonathan Gaskell, Wigan, UK, $119,145
6. Paul Foltyn, Doncaster, UK, $83,402
7. Cliff Cantor, Hollywood, CA, $69,104
8. Vanessa Rousso, Las Vegas, NV, $61,955
9. Jenny Kang, Portland, OR, $54,807
10. Michael Banducci, Traverse City, MI, $47,658
11. Fredrik Halling, Stockholm, Sweden, $42,892
12. Paul Wasicka, Westminster, CO, $38,126
13. Philippe Boucher, Quebec, Canada, $33,361
14. Joe Awada, Las Vegas, NV, $29,786
15. Martyn Wilson, Wolverhampton, UK, $26,212
16. Peter Fischir, Silkeborg, Denmark, $22,638
17. John Juanda, Las Vegas, NV, $19,063
18. Gregg Merkow, Plano, TX, $15,489
19. Brian Willis, Jersey City, NJ, $11,319
20. Mats Gavatin, NA, $11,319
21. Robert Williamson III, Dallas, TX, $11,319
22. Kenna James, Las Vegas, NV, $11,319
23. Mark Peterson, Aarhus, Denmark, $11,319
24. Don Todd, Davie, FL, $11,319
25. Chris Loveland, Harris, NH, $11,319
26. Marco Traniello, Rome, Italy, $11,319
27. David Pham, Cerritos, CA, $11,319
28. Keith Tilston, Austin, TX, $11,319
29. Omar Khayat, Las Vegas, NV, $11,319
30. Joseph Beevers, London, UK, $11,319
31. Robert Ford, Johnstown, PA, $11,319
32. Ted Lawson, Plantation, FL, $11,319
33. Mike Woo, Desert Hot Springs, CA, $11,319
34. Dustin "Neverwin" Woolf, Los Angeles, CA, $11,319
35. Michael Berra, St. Louis, MO, $11,319
36. James Rumptz, Cordova, TN, $11,319
37. Vincenzo Beatrice, Hollywood, FL, $8,340
38. Harry Cheng, Portola Vally, CA, $8,340
39. Christopher Beil, Raleigh, NC, $8,340
40. Bergren Robin, NA, $8,340
41. Jennifer Tilly, Los Angeles, CA, $8,340
42. Sam Grizzle, Las Vegas, NV, $8,340
43. Dan Pedersen, NA, $8,340
44. Phil Hellmuth, Palo Alto, CA, $8,340
45. David Plastik, Las Vegas, NV, $8,340
46. Mark Gregorich, Las Vegas, NV, $8,340
47. Joseph Tehan, Las Vegas, NV, $8,340
48. Craig Hartman, Fort Wayne, IN, $8,340
49. John Duthie, London, UK, $8,340
50. Steven Seidman, Rancho Santa Fe, CA, $8,340
51. Scott Mayfield, Grants Pass, OR, $8,340
52. David Singer, Las Vegas, NV, $8,340
53. William Gazes, Miami Beach, FL, $8,340
54. Jim Bechtel, Gilbert, AZ, $8,340

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The unthinkable happened on July 22, 2006 when 21-year-old Jeff Madsen won his second gold bracelet within a week. Even more remarkable is the fact that Madsen turned “21” just six weeks ago. This was Madsen’s third final table at this year’s World Series of Poker, presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light. He is one of only two players to hold such a distinction. Madsen now has two firsts and one third-place finish on his WSOP resume.

No player has ever skyrocketed to the top of the poker world so quickly, or so effortlessly. Not Stu Ungar. Not Johnny Chan. Not Phil Hellmuth. At 21, Ungar was still hustling gin games in New York. Chan was washing dishes in his parent’s restaurant. Hellmuth was a University of Wisconsin student, playing in $20 buy-in hold’em games. Contrast those memoirs with Jeff Madsen, who already has two gold bracelets and $1,401,881 in WSOP winnings. And, here’s a notion that should make the poker world shake and shudder – he’s not finished yet.

The $5,000 buy-in Short-Handed No-Limit Hold’em world championship attracted 507 entries. The tournament was played six players to a table. After 498 players had been eliminated over two long days, finalists took the final table on the Rio poker stage.

The six players comprised a tough lineup, most notably two former gold bracelet winners -- “Captain Tom” Franklin and Jeff Madsen. Noted tournament professional Erick Lindgren was also competing for his first WSOP win. When play began, Jonathan Gaskell enjoyed a comfortable chip lead. Jeff Madsen was dead last in the chip count coming into the final table. That would certainly not be the case seven hours later, when the tournament ended and history was made.

Tony Woods, $354,000, 1
Jonathan Gaskell, $727,000, 2
Captain Tom Franklin, $365,000, 3
Erick Lindgren, $448,000, 4
Paul Foltyn, $438,000, 5
Jeff Madsen, $201,000, 6

Paul Foltyn had a rough time at the final table. He was eliminated about two hours into play after taking a number of tough beats that left him severely short-stacked. Foltyn, a 22-year-old college student from England, was forced to play a weak hand and missed completely. He collected $83,402 for sixth place.

Proving that having chips at the start had no bearing on the outcome, the early big stack Jonathan Gaskell was the next player to go bust. Gaskell, another English player, experienced his Waterloo when his pocket kings were cracked by Erick Lindgren’s ace-king. Lindgren certainly didn’t like the view when the cards were tabled. But agony turned into ecstasy when an ace rained down on the river, giving Lindgren a monster-sized pot and the chip lead. Meanwhile, Gaskell was aghast and hit the rail in fifth place, good for a less-than-satisfying payout totaling $119,145.

Tony Woods went out next. The 41-year-old poker pro from California lost with ace-king to Erick Lindgren’s pocket jacks. Woods failed to hit his pair, which meant a fourth-place finish and $150,123 in prize money.

This was “Captain” Tom Franklin’s second final table appearance this year. Franklin, a Vietnam veteran turned poker pro from Gulfport, Mississippi, went card dead at the worst possible time of the tournament. His two opponents -- Madsen and Lindgren -- applied relentless pressure, forcing Franklin into repeated folds when he could not call a large bet or a raise after missing the flop. Franklin’s final hand came when he hit top pair, but was out kicked by Jeff Madsen. Franklin’s queen-ten lost to Madsen’s king ten, after a ten flopped. The Captain was saluted for his third-place finish, which paid $214,461.

Normally, a player in Madsen’s unique position would be a huge crowd favorite, when heads-up play commenced. But this was not the case. Erick Lindgren, described by many of his peers as “the best poker player not to have won a WSOP gold bracelet,” attracted a rowdy cheering section. For a time, it looked like Lindgren would not disappoint his legion of fans. The Vegas poker pro enjoyed the chip lead during most of the duel, but then suffered a horrendous turn of events that left everyone in a stunned state of disbelief.

After taking a few beats and losing coin flip situations (Lindgren’s pocket eights losing to Madsen’s ace-king when an ace flopped completely changed the momentum of the contest), Lindgren lost his final hand of the night holding ace-jack suited versus Madsen’s queen-nine. The final board showed K-Q-2-5-3 – good for a pair of queens for Madsen.

Erick Lindgren could not have been more disappointed with a $357,435 payoff. No amount of consolation could ease the painful sting of defeat. However, like Gentleman John Gale the previous year – who lost a WSOP tournament in the most dramatic way possible, only to come back and win an event this year – Erick Lindgren’s day shall come.

The question everyone is now asking is – what will Jeff Madsen do next? He will be competing for what could be a record-third gold bracelet over the next week. Madsen will also play in the main event, which begins on July 28th. But beyond that, what does a 21-year-old college student do with $1.4 million and two WSOP titles?

Demonstrating maturity and composure far beyond his years, Madsen said he expects to return to college in the fall for his senior year. The Cal State-Santa Barbara film student still wants to pursue a career in movies. Perhaps Jeff Madsen’s first film should be a remake of “Kid Millions.”

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #30):
Total Entries to Date:26,501
Total Prize Money Distributed:$56,462,207

WSOP Event 29 - $2,500 pot-limit hold'em

Gentleman John Gale Wins a WSOP Gold Bracelet

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 562
Total Prize Money: $1,292,600

Official Results:
1. John Gale, Bushey, UK, $374,849
2. Maros Lechman, Columbia Station, OH, $197,768
3. Kevin Ho, Gainesville, FL, $103,408
4. Joe Hachem, Melbourne, Australia, $90,482
5. Alex Jacob, Parkland, FL, $77,556
6. Lee Grove, Superior, NE, $64,630
7. Jeffrey Roberson, Rolla, MO, $51,704
8. Lee Markholt, Eatonville, WA, $38,778
9. Greg Alston, Miami Beach, FL, $25,852
10. Aaron Bartley, Las Vegas, NV, $14,219
11. Theo Tran, Las Vegas, NV, $14,219
12. David John, Las Vegas, NV, $14,219
13. Emanual Santiago, Vega Alta, Puerto Rico, $11,633
14. Nick Guagenti, Westerville, OH, $11,633
15. Joshua Van Duyn, San Diego, CA, $11,633
16. John Hansmeyer, Lethbridge, Canada, $9,048
17. Iwan Jones, Cardiff, Wales, UK, $9,048
18. Thomas Smith, St Cloud, MN, $9,048
19. Alex Brenes, San Jose, Costa Rica, $6,463
20. Zachary Stewart, Santa Monica, CA, $6,463
21. Ernesto Celedon, Grand Prairie, TX, $6,463
22. Gregg Turk, Potomac Falls, VA, $6,463
23. Craig Gray, Portland, OR, $6,463
24. Chris Howard, London, UK, $6,463
25. Jonathan Turner, Las Vegas, NV, $6,463
26. Gary Parsons, Perth, Australia, $6,463
27. Carlo Citrone, Newcastle, UK, $6,463
28. Efrain Lopez, Miami, FL, $4,524
29. Richard Redmond, NA, $4,524
30. Lee Watkinson, Long Branch, WA, $4,524
31. Ariel Schneller, Blacksburg, VA, $4,524
32. Thomas Fuller, Boulder, CO, $4,524
33. Randel Brown, Little Rock, AR, $4,524
34. Matthew Matros, Brooklyn, NY, $4,524
35. Michael Dueloth, Cohasset, CA, $4,524
36. McLadan Ivin, Blackheath, Australia, $4,524
37. Scott Auerback, Holmdel, NJ, $3,878
38. Daniel Negreanu, Las Vegas, NV, $3,878
39. Spiro Mitrokostas, W. Yarmouth, MA, $3,878
40. Robert Neary, Granite Bay, CA, $3,878
41. Gary Rabin, NA, $3,878
42. Eric Tomberlin, Jacksonville, FL, $3,878
43. Ralph Porter, Woodinville, WA, $3,878
44. Jonathan Hewston, NA, $3,878
45. John Shipley, North Ireland, $3,878
46. Kathy Liebert, Las Vegas, NV, $3,232
47. Mke Sexton, Las Vegas, NV, $3,232
48. Karl Mahrenholz, NA, $3,232
49. Laura Fink, New York, NY, $3,232
50. Thieu Phan, NA, $3,232
51. Jeffrey Aebischen, Barngate, NJ, $3,232
52. Jean-Robert Bellande, Hollywood, CA, $3,232
53. Steven Powsner, Brooklyn, NY, $3,232
54. Adam Nilsson, Sweden, $3,232

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The real test of character is not watching someone during a time of celebration. Rather, it is watching someone in a time of despair. Anyone can behave politely when things are going good. But what about during the bad times? What do they do? How do they act? This notion brings about the old saying, “adversity introduces a man to himself.”

The 2006 Pot-Limit Hold’em championship concluded on July 21, 2006. But the story of John Gale and his inspiring gold bracelet-winning victory started more than a year earlier.

At last year’s World Series of Poker, Gale had his last opponent down to the felt and drawing slim. ESPN cameras and the entire poker world were watching as Gale, one of poker’s most gracious gentlemen, was about to win the $5,000 buy-in Pot Limit Hold’em championship. But poker is all about the unpredictable. Gale not only lost the key hand that would have won him a WSOP title, he proceeded to lose several more vicious hands (usually as the favorite). Brian Wilson ended up making a stunning comeback in heads-up play, eventually seized the chip lead, and ended up as the winner. Instead of acting bewildered or angry, Gale extended his hand and then warmly embraced the winner. He smiled and moved off of the stage to allow Wilson his moment of glory.

In what has been a year of retribution at the 2006 World Series of Poker, presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light, John Gale added his name to the illustrious list of tournament winners who had previously been shunned by the poker gods in years past. Sammy Farha and David Williams, who were runners up in the championship event in 2003 and 2004 respectively, each captured a gold bracelet. After decades of unofficially being tagged as “the world’s best all-around poker player,” Chip Reese won the biggest buy-in event in WSOP history and finally validated the designation. Then, there was poker ambassador Mike Sexton, who started this year’s tournament off with a resounding victory in the Tournament of Champions.

John Gale’s victory was all the more pleasing to watch because he so genuinely wanted the gold bracelet – far more than the monetary value of the $374,849 in prize money. It’s often a cliché to mention that a WSOP gold bracelet means more than the money. But in Gale’s case, it’s truthful.

“It’s every poker player’s dream,” Gale said. “It means so much more now because I came so close (last year). I really do feel bad for anyone that gets close and does not win. But, to now come back and enjoy this moment makes it all the sweeter.”

After 553 players had been eliminated over two long days, nine players took the final table on the Rio poker stage. The nine finalists comprised a very tough lineup, most notably Joe Hachem the reigning world poker champion. When play began, John Gale was a distant third in the chip count, trailing by more than 3 to 1 to the chip leader, Alex Jacob.

Lee Markholt, $128,000, 1
Maros Lechman, $101,000, 2
Joe Hachem, $64,000, 3
Jeffrey Roberson, $24,000, 4
John Gale, $134,000, 5
Lee Grove, $66,000, 6
Alex Jacob, $524,000, 7
Kevin Ho, $287,000, 8
Greg Alston, $80,000, 9

Greg Alston was the first player to go out. On his final hand, Alston tried to steal the pot with a pre-flop re-raise holding king-four. But the initial raiser, Kevin Ho, had more than enough chips to make the call, and did so holding king-seven. Ho made two pair to a board of K-10-6-7-9, and Alston was eliminated. Alston, who had been playing tournament poker for nearly a decade, including the last six years at the WSOP, collected $25,852 for ninth place.

Lee Markholt went out next. Once again, Kevin Ho was the hatchet man. The Washington State-based poker player went all-in with ace-seven against Ho’s king-deuce. When the final board showed Q-3-2-8-9, a lowly pair of deuces had eliminated Markholt. Eighth place paid $38,778.

Jeffrey Roberson finished in seventh place when he was severely short-stacked and moved all-in under the gun holding queen-three. Kevin Ho eliminated his third consecutive opponent when he called the raise with pocket aces, which crushed the weaker hand. Roberson, a home builder from Missouri, received $51,704.

Lee Grove was down to his last 20,000 when he moved in with ace-seven. Joe Hachem called the small raise and flipped over king-five. The final board showed J-J-6-K-3, giving Hachem a pair of kings. Grove collected sixth-place prize money totaling $64,630.

Many thought this was Alex Jacob’s tournament to lose. He arrived with a sizable chip lead at this, his second final table this year, but suffered through a horrific final hour which knocked him out a disappointing fifth. After losing most of his chips on a number of crippling hands, Jacob went out with a pair of nines against Joe Hachem’s pocket queens. Jacob, a graduate of Yale University, received $77,556.

Down to four players, there was a hand that was as enlightening as it was dramatic. World champ Hachem was all-in against Kevin Ho and was in serious trouble. He was down to a single card. With his tournament life on the line, the entire room standing and holding their collective breaths, a queen spiked on the river and saved Hachem -- at least temporarily. As the crowd roared, Hachem made what unfortunately an all-too rare revelation of overt sportsmanship. As he heard the cheers around him, Hachem saw his opponent looking down and dejected. With the wave of his arm, Hachem asked for stillness from the crowd. It was a respectful and dignified gesture that reveals more about Hachem as a champion and as a person than any million dollar prize or gold bracelet.

Sadly, Hachem’s good graces did not translate into what could have been his second WSOP victory. He went out a short time later on a horrible beat. On the key hand, Hachem moved all-in holding king-nine after the flop came K-4-3. John Gale had ace-three and called with the small pair. The turn brought a blank, but an ace on the river stunned the crowd, knocked out the champ, and rocketed Gale up into the chip lead.

“Sorry Joe,” John Gale would say later in a post-tournament interview. “I knew I did not have the best of it when I called. But I decided to gamble to have the chance to knock out a great player.” For Hachem, fourth place paid $90,482.

Kevin Ho went out in third place when he was all-in with an outside straight draw holding jack-nine to the flop -- which came A-10-8. John Gale had ace-jack, for top pair. Two blanks sealed Ho’s fate – which paid $103,408.

Heads-up play between John Gale and Maros Lechman lasted 89 hands. The chip lead changed four times. Both players had decisive chip advantages at various points, up 5 to 1 at times. But neither player could hold the lead for long. Finally after three hours and 45 minutes of intense play, Gale caught a rush of cards and had his stubborn opponent down to the felt.

The final hand of the tournament came when Lechman’s ace-six lost to Gale’s king-nine. The final board showed 10-9-7-5-2. Gale’s pair of nines won the pot. Maros Lechman finished the tournament in second place and earned $197,768.

Had he won, Maros “Premier” Lechman would have been the youngest player ever to win at the WSOP. At 21 years and three weeks of age, Lechman would have eclipsed Jeff Madsen’s record (set earlier this week) by 20 days.

Gale was tearful after his well-deserved, crowd-pleasing victory. He hugged many well-wishers in the stands and it took several minutes for Gale to compose himself for the post-tournament festivities. True to his genial nature, Gale complimented his opponents -- especially Lechman in heads-up play.

Poker is a game of peaks and valleys. Many valleys, in fact. Only one player in each tournament can see the winner’s view from the summit. As Gentleman John Gale discovered, wallowing in the World Series valley for a while makes the summit’s view all the more magnificent when it finally comes. Oh, and how magnificent the view is.


Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #29):
Total Entries to Date: 25,994
Total Prize Money Distributed: $54,079,307

WSOP Event 28 - $5,000 seven-card stud

Benjamin Lin Wins His First-Ever WSOP Gold Bracelet

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 182
Total Prize Money: $855,400

Official Results:
1. William Lin, Rockville, MD, $256,620
2. Sean Sheikhan, Las Vegas, NV, $171,080
3. Cyndy Violette, Los Angeles, CA, $102,648
4. Allen Kessler, Huntington Valley, PA, $76,986
5. "Miami" John Cernuto, Miami, FL, $55,601
6. Patrick Bueno, Paris, France, $38,493
7. Lupe Munquia, Odessa, TX, $29,939
8. Mike Caro, Shell Knob, MO, $21,385
9. Russ Salzer, New York, NY, $12,831
10. John Womack, Lauderhill, FL, $12,831
11. Brian Goddard, Huntington Beach, CA, $12,831
12. Kevin Tang, Alhambra, CA, $12,831
13. David Singer, Mamaroneck, NY, $12,831
14. David Grey, Henderson, NV, $12,831
15. Brian Nadell, Las Vegas, NV, $12,831
16. Lonnie Heimowitz, Monticello, NY, $12,831

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – When play at the final table of the $5,000 buy-in Seven-Card Stud championship became three-handed, a few bystanders glanced at the remaining players up on the main stage at the Rio. They had the following exchange:

Spectator 1: Who’s left?
Spectator 2: I see Cyndy Violette up there.
Spectator 1: Who else?
Spectator 2: There’s Sean “Sheik” Sheikhan.
Spectator 1: What about the other guy?
Spectator 2: I don’t know. He’s just some other guy.

Benjamin Lin represents all the “other guys” who play poker. He epitomizes many thousands of mostly-unknown names and faces who plow through huge tournament fields, make final tables, yet are not given the attention and admiration they probably deserve.

While television and media focus mostly on the poker superstars, many “other guys” (and ladies, too) are out there day in and day out fighting for prize money and respect – not necessarily in that order.

Three days ago, Benjamin Lin walked into the Rio Las Vegas as a 31-year-old accountant from suburban Washington-DC, who liked to play poker in his spare time. After winning the Seven-Card Stud championship at the 2006 World Series of Poker, presented by Milwaukee’s best Light, Lin is walking out of the Rio as the latest WSOP gold bracelet winner. He pulverized a highly-competitive field of 182 entrants who each put up five grand in what has become known as the “world championship” of one of poker’s most long-established games.

After 174 players had been eliminated over two days, eight players took the final table on the Rio poker stage. The eight finalists comprised a formidable lineup. Two were former WSOP gold bracelet winners – “Miami John” Cernuto with three wins, and Cyndy Violette with one victory.

This final table was exceptional for at least one reason. Perhaps no single individual has done more for poker during his lifetime than Mike ‘The Mad Genius” Caro. The former hippie used to destroy lowball draw games that were popular in California during the 1970s. Later, he started writing about poker and became one of the game’s top theorists. Caro played against (and beat) a computer, devised numerous strategies that helped thousands of poker players, and appeared on national television numerous times as the game’s top spokesman. In the 1990s, he founded “Mike Caro University,” which held classes at the Hollywood Park Casino in Los Angeles. Books, magazine articles, and seminars turned losers into winners. Yet for all of his contributions to poker science over the years, many newcomers still do not know of Caro’s profound impact on the game.

In the stud event, Caro -- who rarely plays in poker tournaments -- was making his first WSOP final table appearance in twenty years. Unfortunately, “The Mad Genius” was the first player to bust out. He lost holding (Q-10) 10-K-5-2 (X) against (K-10) A-K-3-7 (3) – which made two pair. Caro collected $21,385 for eighth place, which was his third cash at this year’s World Series.

Lupe Munquia went out next. Munquia, who owns a paint and body shop in Odessa, Texas, crashed in seventh place when his split kings were topped by two pair. Munquia had (K-4) K-2-A-10 (3) which lost to Allen Kessler’s (J-3) A-8-3-8 (6). Munquia received $29,939.

Patrick Bueno was the next player to be eliminated. The businessman from Paris, France went out on a diamond draw, which missed. Meanwhile, his opponent Benjamin Lin made a lowly pair of nines which was enough to take down the pot. Bueno was sixth – good for $38,493.

On the very next hand, Benjamin’s chip stack increased even more when he knocked out veteran poker superstar “Miami John” Cernuto. “Miami John,” who once worked as an air traffic controller before becoming a full-time professional, went off the radar screen when his buried tens failed to improve. Cernuto had (10-10) Q-3-J-2 (8) which lost to Lin’s (Q-8) Q-J-A-5 (4). Fifth place paid $76,986.

Allen Kessler has been playing on the tournament circuit for five years. The Temple University graduate has cashed many times and has made it to several final tables, but he has yet to achieve a WSOP win. Kessler’s attempt came up short again when his split tens improved to two pair, losing to Cyndy Violette’s higher-two pair. The final hand showed Kessler with (K-10) 10-3-5-4 (4) against Violette’s (J-6) 2-J-Q-K (Q). Kessler collected $76,986 for fourth place.

When play became three-handed, Cyndy Violette had to like the circumstances. Violette, who has been playing professionally for 15 years and who is one of the East Coast’s top Seven-Card Stud players, was competing for gold bracelet Number Two. This marks the third consecutive year she has made it to a WSOP final table. Violette was the early aggressor but just as it appeared she might run over the table, her two opponents began playing back at her and started taking down big pots. On her final hand, Violette was dealt several high cards and missed a flush draw, which knocked her out of the tournament. Violette’s (Q-9) A-10-7-K (X) with four hearts was cracked by Lin’s (K-K) 8-6-6-3 (X) which made two pair. Cyndy Violette received $102,648 for third place.

Sean “Sheik” Sheikhan has been described as poker’s lightening rod. He certainly electrifies any game he plays in – mostly the world’s highest-limit cash games. Sheikhan did his best to unnerve his opponent with table talk, daring his adversary to call when at a competitive disadvantage and at other times simply making it clear to everyone within listening distance that the “Sheik” was the better poker player. Unfortunately, Sheikhan ran bad in heads-up play, often starting with a solid hand which turned into a loser.

Sheikhan lost the final hand of the night when his (9-6) K-A-K-J (2) was snapped off by Lin when he caught an inside straight on seventh-street. Lin ended up with (9-9) 6-8-10-5 (7) – good for the ten-high straight. Sheikhan, who was born in Iran and now lives in Las Vegas, collected $171,080 for second place.

Benjamin Lin took his place the elite class of 396 players (out of over a 100 million worldwide) who have won a WSOP gold bracelet over the entire 37-year history of the world’s premier poker spectacle. Lin’s winnings amounted to $256,620.

Winning an event at the World Series changes everything. Perhaps the next time he makes it to a final table heads-up, the conversation will now describe Benjamin Lin as a poker champion – playing against the other guy.

Note: “X” denotes unknown card.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #28):
Total Entries to Date: 25,432
Total Prize Money Distributed: $52,786,707

WSOP Event 27 - $1,500 no-limit hold'em

Swedish Poker Pro Mats Rahmn Wins His First WSOP Gold Bracelet

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 2,126
Total Prize Money: $2,901,990

Official Results:
1. Mats Rahmn, Stockholm, Sweden, $655,141
2. Richard Toth, Budapest, Hungary, $333,729
3. Padraig Parkinson, Dublin, Ireland, $203,139
4. Chris Birchby, Hollywood, CA, $145,100
5. James Sileo, Burbank, CA, $116,080
6. Michael Binger, Atherton, CA, $101,570
7. Jordan Morgan, Norman, OK, $87,060
8. Ashwin Sarin, Redmond, WA, $72,550
9. Billy Duarte, Berthoud, CO, $58,040
10. William McKinney, Princeton, WV, $43,530
11. Ben Stanfeneger, Alliance, OH, $40,628
12. John Carver, Hampton, IL, $37,726
13. Jorge Arias, Indianapolis, IN, $34,824
14. Ray Abels, Danville, CA, $31,922
15. Antonio Pane, Las Vegas, NV, $29,020
16. Daniel Smith, Folsom, CA, $26,118
17. Shahryar Eslami, Van Nuys, CA, $23,216
18. Michael Souza, San Diego, CA, $20,314
19. Chris Tsui, Cupertino, CA, $17,412
20. Keith Wintermans, Vancouver, BC, Canada, $17,412
21. Khong Kham Phommaxahans, Arvada, CO, $17,412
22. Wade Woelfel, Mankato, MN, $14,510
23. Robert Vecchio, Sharyland, TX, $14,510
24. Robertus Holink, Groningen, Netherlands, $14,510
25. Eugene Todd, Brooklyn, NY, $11,608
26. Amos Sharpe, Las Vegas, NV, $11,608
27. Jon Musen, Phoenix, AZ, $11,608
28. Dan Bokesch, Lewis Center, OH, $8,706
29. Toben Nelson, Austin, TX, $8,706
30. Hoyt Corkins, Las Vegas, NV, $8,706
31. Alan Engel, Brooklyn, NY, $8,706
32. Chris Bjorin, London, UK, $8,706
33. Thayer Rasmussen, Largo, FL, $8,706
34. Francis Scapula, Bastia, France, $8,706
35. Larry Hicks, Mount Vernon, $8,706
36. Justin Tran, Sacramento, CA, $8,706
37. William Sanford, Bronxville, NY, $7,255
38. Colin Burton, Belowna, $7,255
39. Josh Ronan, Henderson, NV, $7,255
40. Hans Lund, Sparks, NJ, $7,255
41. Michele Whiteside, San Antonio, TX
$7,255, , 42. Eric Mizrachi, Sunny Isles Bch, FL, $7,255
43. Joe Leibman, Fort atkinson, WI, $7,255
44. Jeffrey Larsew, West Jordan, UT, $7,255
45. Philip Gurian, Boca Raton, FL, $7,255
46. Gino Battista, Temecula, CA, $7,255
47. Harry Cheung, Portola Valley, CA, $7,255
48. John Arellano, Whittier, CA, $7,255
49. Jeff Khomari, Turlock, CA, $7,255
50. Matt Smith, Tallahassee, FL, $7,255
51. Duy Hung Le, Los Angeles, CA, $7,255
52. Robert Lewis, Miami Bch, FL, $7,255
53. Stuart Hosen, Addison, TX, $7,255
54. Jeff Fletcher, Danville, CA, $7,255
55. Mandy Calara, Chicago, IL, $5,804
56. Alex Hskou, Brooklyn, NY, $5,804
57. Bhupinder Kohli, Nairobi, $5,804
58. Douglas Holcomb, Roseburg, OR, $5,804
59. Todd Huynh, Morton Grove, IL, $5,804
60. Kevin Jessee, NA, $5,804
61. Tom Macey, Chicago, IL, $5,804
62. Robert Odishoo, Ladera Rch, CA, $5,804
63. Miguel Mateo, NA, $5,804
64. Carlos Fernadez, Sunny Isles Bch, FL, $5,804
65. Brendan Hopps, Bellingham, WA, $5,804
66. Ray Liu, Sunnyville, CA, $5,804
67. Michael Mizrachi, Hollywood, FL, $5,804
68. Perry Friedman, Tiltsville, NV, $5,804
69. James Lee, Buena Park, CA, $5,804
70. Eugene Hanley, Mantucket, MA, $5,804
71. Richard Pace, Louisville, KY, $5,804
72. Eric Arreea, Baldwin Park, CA, $5,804
73. Ray La Pointe, Needham, MA, $5,804
74. David Sklansky, Henderson, NV, $5,804
75. Dennis Otto, Corpus Christi, TX, $5,804
76. Grady Talbot, Carcadia, CA, $5,804
77. Michael Banducci, Traverse City, MI, $5,804
78. Gary Heberman, Fort Lauderdale, FL, $5,804
79. N. Eber, Johannesburg, South Africa, $5,804
80. Carl Olson, Seattle, WA, $5,804
81. Carl Ossbahr, unknown, $5,804
82. Nathan Lang, San Antonio, TX, $4,353
83. Thomas Jean Marc, Paris, France, $4,353
84. Peter Carini, Newark, CA, $4,353
85. John Phan, Stockton, CA, $4,353
86. Donnocha O'Dea, Dublin, Ireland, $4,353
87. Paul Incerto, Norwalk, CT, $4,353
88. Gregory Hurwitz, Sampscott, MA, $4,353
89. Danton Orosz, Ontario, Canada, $4,353
90. Ryan Schultz, St. Louis, MO, $4,353
91. Richard Tehan, NA, $4,353
92. Judson Hinton, Stockbridge, GA, $4,353
93. Tim Le, Portland, OR, $4,353
94. Russell Minobe, Aiea, HI, $4,353
95. John Gaudreault, Elizabeth, Co, $4,353
96. Nick Stanley, Spokane, WA, $4,353
97. Donald Barton, Pahrump, NV, $4,353
98. Paul Freidberg, NA, $4,353
99. Mallory Smith, Aurora, CO, $4,353
100. Mike Baas, Las Vegas, NV, $4,353
101. Dennis Andridla, Hazlet, NJ, $4,353
102. Kevin Slaughter, Las Vegas, NV, $4,353
103. John Johnson, Valencia, CA, $4,353
104. Russell Hudson, Glenwood Springs, CO, $4,353
105. Ernest Plutt, Boise, ID, $4,353
106. Jose Raul, Panama, Panama, $4,353
107. Srinivas Varlagadda, Sarasota, FL, $4,353
108. Marina Baroco, Pensacola, FL, $4,353
109. Tony Nasr, Whittier, CA, $2,902
110. Amir Nurani, El Cajon, CA, $2,902
111. Brian Micon, Atlanta, GA, $2,902
112. Mohammad Azar, Las Vegas, NV, $2,902
113. Karen Kitchen, Grand Blanc, MI, $2,902
114. Mat Gherackal, NA, $2,902
115. Cornell Bowlson, Farmington Hills, MI, $2,902
116. Ryan Larson, Las Vegas, NV, $2,902
117. Manuel Benites, Minneapolis, MN, $2,902
118. Edward Teens, Trion, GA, $2,902
119. Joel Fischbein, Las Vegas, NV, $2,902
120. Nathan Meyvis, Bloomfield Hills, MI, $2,902
121. Martin Henshaw, UK, $2,902
122. Amir Naderi, Santa Monica, CA, $2,902
123. Jason Lilly, Mount Hope, AL, $2,902
124. James Stone, Fairlawn, OH, $2,902
125. Brian Fields, Berkeley, CA, $2,902
126. Tony Davis, Ellijay, GA, $2,902
127. David Franson, Pennsylvania, $2,902
128. Allen Cunningham, Las Vegas, NV, $2,902
129. Wendell Barnes, Charlton, MA, $2,902
130. Alex Santiago, NV, $2,902
131. Joseph Santoro, Orlando, FL, $2,902
132. David Choe, Chicago, IL, $2,902
133. David Plastik, Las Vegas, NV, $2,902
134. Huck Seed, Orlando, FL, $2,902
135. Cory Ward, Titusville, FL, $2,902
136. Canh Phan, Richardson, TX, $2,902
137. David Van Overseem, Manhattan Beach, CA, $2,902
138. Kendell Kim, Corona, CA, $2,902
139. Dennis Seagle, Marion, NC, $2,902
140. Todd Annoni, Los Altos, CA, $2,902
141. Bert Jones, Hermosa Beach, CA, $2,902
142. Zachary Fritz, Las Vegas, NV, $2,902
143. Jeffrey Philips, Bristow, VA, $2,902
144. Wesley Chepler, Huntsville, AL, $2,902
145. Nick Peperone, Vast Amherst, NY, $2,902
146. David King, Hanover, MA, $2,902
147. Brent Bibby, Canada, $2,902
148. Richard Gregory, Bellevue, WA, $2,902
149. Aaron Lasater, Noncross, GA, $2,902
150. Dominick Cantore, Chicago, IL, $2,902
151. Michael Cummings, Grover Beach, CA, $2,902
152. T.J. Cloutier, Richardson, TX, $2,902
153. Orestes Melgarejo, Pembroke Pines, FL, $2,902
154. Matthew Robertson, Lubbock, TX, $2,176
155. Nicholas Schulman, NA, $2,176
156. Kei Tanaka, Tokyo, Japan, $2,176
157. Stephen Duggan, Manhattan, NY, $2,176
158. Mark Gregorich, Las Vegas, NV, $2,176
159. Jason Sy, Houston, TX, $2,176
160. Daniel Becker, Nashville, TN, $2,176
161. Cory Henen, Trumbull, CT, $2,176
162. John Anderson, San Antonio, TX, $2,176
163. John Shetter, Colleyville, TX, $2,176
164. Constantine Moustakis, Danvers, MA, $2,176
165. NA, NA, $2,176
166. W. Douglas Barnum, Columbia, SC, $2,176
167. Bradley heffron, Pickerington, OH, $2,176
168. Michael Hill, Canada, $2,176
169. Peter Jetter, NA, $2,176
170. Peter Nathan, Las Vegas, NV, $2,176
171. Alan Bittikofen, Haywood, CA, $2,176
172. Ronald Toledo, Edmonton, Canada, $2,176
173. Laura Diamond, Evergreen, CO, $2,176
174. Helge Pederson, NA, $2,176
175. Eduardo Santi, Argentina, $2,176
176. Bobby Lee, Sacramento, CA, $2,176
177. Matthew Dunbar, Indianapolis, IN, $2,176
178. Michael Laing, Las Vegas, NV, $2,176
179. Yong Chen, BC, Canada, $2,176
180. Richard Tatalovich, Scottsdale, AZ, $2,176
181. Tian Ma, Chandler, AZ, $2,176
182. Tad Jurgens, Chandler, AZ, $2,176
183. Joseph Torres, Amityville, NY, $2,176
184. Kyle Shigano, Pearl City, HI, $2,176
185. Andrew Bourne, NA, $2,176
186. Gerardo Campos, Weston, FL, $2,176
187. Randy McKay, Finlay, ND, $2,176
188. Steven Cohn, NA, $2,176
189. Jean Harlan, Las Vegas, NV, $2,176
190. Aristomenis Stauropolus, NA, $2,176
191. Mike Friedman, Switzerland, $2,176
192. Aaron Ruppert, Norman, OK, $2,176
193. Nicholas Ronyerz, Goleta, CA, $2,176
194. Paul Fredericks, Winchester, CA, $2,176
195. David Chen, New York, $2,176
196. Paul Wolfe, Apollo Beach, FL, $1,088
197. Dennis Waterman, Myrtle Point, OR, $1,088
198. Anahit Galajian, Glendale, CA, $1,088
199. Nevio Nicolich, NA, $1,088
200. Steve Shkolnik, Woodland Hills, CA, $1,088
201. Adam Meyer, Weston, FL, $1,088

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Many people might be surprised to learn that Scandinavia is one of poker’s hottest new markets. Perhaps it’s the cold dark winters. Perhaps it’s the relatively high income and education levels. Or, perhaps it’s the high-tech sophistication of the region. Scandinavians own more personal computers and cell phones, per capita, than any other population group. Not surprisingly, Swedes, Fins, Danes, and Norwegians also play more online poker than any other region.

Leading the way is Sweden, with a total population nine million. Right behind the US, the UK, and Canada – Sweden sends more players to the World Series of Poker than any other nation. Adjusted for population size, Sweden is second only to the United States in the total number of players who play in the WSOP main event. Sweden’s emergence as a poker hub is also now producing world champions.

Mats Rahmn, a 26-year-old professional poker player from Stockholm, won the $1,500 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em championship at the 2006 World Series of Poker, presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light. More impressive was the fact that Rahmn topped a gigantic field of 2,126 players.

After 2,117 players had been eliminated over two long days, nine players took the final table on the Rio stage. The nine finalists comprised a very tough lineup, although none had previously won a WSOP gold bracelet.

James Sileo, $144,000, 1
Richard Toth, $447,000, 2
Mats Rahmn, $511,000, 3
Billy Duarte, $96,000, 4
Padraig Parkinson, $278,000, 5
Ashwin Sarin, $591,000, 6
Chris Birchby, $497,000, 7
Michael Binger, $325,000, 8
Jordan Morgan, $307,000, 9

“Boston Billy” Duarte was the first player to exit. The longtime poker pro, who plays in big cash games and at major tournaments around the country, was eliminated with ace-queen against ace-king. Duarte failed to catch a queen, putting him out in ninth place, which paid $58,040.

Ashwin Sarin went out next. The software engineer from Redmond, WA arrived at the final table as the chip leader. But Sarin suffered a horrible series of hands and beats over a 90-minute period that melted his stack of chips. Down to his last 200,000 after starting the day off with 591,000, Sarin moved all-in with pocket kings after the flop came J-8-6. His opponent called holding an eight, and then caught a second pair to eliminate Sarin in eighth place. He received $72,550.

Jordan Morgan, a 22-year-old college student from Norman, Okalahoma finished in seventh place when his pocket tens were run down a high pair. Morgan moved all-in with his last 125,000 and was called by a player with a flush draw. Instead of catching the flush however, Morgan’s opponent caught a queen to make a higher pair, resulting in Morgan’s abolition. The Oklahoman collected $87,060 at his first WSOP final table.

Michael Binger had chips for a while, but then went card dead. He tried to take a pot with king-jack by making a 135,000 pre-flop raise. He was called down by an opponent with 10-7 who ended up flopping a seven, good for a pair. That was all it took to knock out the Stanford graduate (PhD). Binger, a physician from California, received sixth-place prize money totaling $101,570.

James Sileo went out next. Hold’em’s most classic confrontation eliminated Sileo, who held ace-king against pocket queens. Board came with all low cards, a disappointment to Sileo, who ended up taking fifth place and $116,080.

Chris Birchby, a.k.a. “Marvin Garden” hit the rail in fourth place when he was desperately low on chips and was forced to play a sub-par hand or risk being blinded off. He moved all-in with his last 100,000 in chips on a steal attempt, but was down called by Mats Rahmn. Birchby had queen-five versus Rahmn’s king-seven. A king flopped, and Birchby – the owner of a sunblock lotion company (“Coola Sunblock”) got burned. Fourth place paid $145,100.

Anyone who still doubts that Europeans can play great poker would be advised to look at the three finalists in this event. After the six Americans had all gone bust, that left an Irishman, a Hungarian, and a Swede to compete for what would be a first WSOP gold bracelet. Padriag Parkinson, who finished third in the WSOP main event back in 1999 (the year fellow Irishman Noel Furlong won it), had to settle for third place again this time around. Parkinson took a horrible beat when his ace-four was cracked by Richard Toth’s ace-three. Both players flopped an ace, but a three fell on the river to make two-pair for Toth. Parkinson, who was cashing for the fourth time at this year’s World Series, collected $203,139 for third place.

When heads-up play began, Richard Toth enjoyed a 2 to 1 chip lead over Mats Rahmn. The two players battled back and forth for nearly an hour before Rahmn won the decisive final hand of the tournament. The final hand came when Rahmn was dealt pocket kings versus Toth’s jack-eight. Toth called a pre-flop raise. After the flop came J-10-9, Rahmn bet out 150,000 and Toth moved all in for 500,000 more. Rahmn called and showed his overpair. Toth had top pair with an outside straight draw. However, two blanks hit the turn and the river, securing the victory for Rahmn.

As the runner up, Richard Toth received $333,729. The Hungarian poker player, who works in high-tech sales, was making his first-ever appearance at the WSOP. Toth will be a force in Europe and in years to come when he plays in North America.

Mats Rahmn had few words to express the jubilation of winning his first-ever WSOP gold bracelet and $655,141. “It feels amazing,” he said.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #27):
Total Entries to Date: 25,250
Total Prize Money Distributed: $51,931,307

WSOP Event 26B - $1,500 pot-limit Omaha rebuy

'E-Fro' Puts on a Show

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 158
Number of Re-Buys: 472
Total Prize Money: $908,100

Note: Event #26 was split into two tournaments. Both are Pot-Limit Omaha events. 26-A is single-elimination. 26-B is with re-buys. Both are official WSOP gold bracelet events. For reporting purposes, they are listed as 26-A and 26-B.

Official Results:
1. Eric “E-Fro” Froehlich, Washington, DC, $299,675
2. Sherkhan Farnood, Kabul, Afghanistan, $165,274
3. Chau Giang, Las Vegas, NV, $90,810
4. Kevin O'Donnell, Scottsdale, AZ, $72,648
5. Bruno Fitoussi, Paris, France, $54,486
6. Matt Overstreet, Henderson, NV, $45,405
7. Richard Freire, Miami, FL, $36,324
8. Rafi Amit, Holon, Israel, $27,243
9. Ayaz Mahmood, Houston, TX, $18,162
10. Robert Wisiak, Queens, NY, $12,713
11. Davood Mehrmand, Frankfurt, Germany, $12,713
12. Daniel Harmetz, Sacro, CA, $12,713
13. Antanas Guoga, Lithuania, $10,897
14. Peter Costa, Leichton, $10,897
15. Jeffrey Lisandro, Santa Barbara, IT, $10,897
16. David Halpern, New Orleans, LA, $9,081
17. Greg Worker, Onsteo, MI, $9,081
18. Galen Kester, Senatobia, MS, $9,081, ,

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Move over Phil Ivey. Move over Daniel Negreanu. Move over Allen Cunningham. There’s a new kid in town. Eric Froehlich, aged 22-years and four months, became the youngest player to ever win two WSOP gold bracelets. Last year, “E-Fro” won his first championship and became the youngest WSOP winner ever. However, earlier this week, an even more youthful Jeff Madsen eclipsed Froehlich as the youngest gold bracelet winner (by two months) – making “E-Fro” the forgotten man, at least for a few days.

Froehlich topped a tough field of 158 players and won $299,675 in the Pot-Limit Omaha championship. A whopping 472 re-buys pushed the total prize pool close to a million dollars. The special re-buy event was added to this year’s schedule at the World Series of Poker, presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light.

After 149 players had been eliminated, nine players took the final table on the Rio stage. The nine finalists comprised a very tough lineup, including three former gold bracelet winners – Chau Giang (3 previous wins), Rafi Amit (1 previous win), and Eric Froehlich (1 previous win). Players were eliminated in the following order:

Ayaz Mahmood, a Pakistani-born poker pro now living in Houston, has been a common sight at final tables in recent years. Mahmood wasn’t able to generate much momentum in this group however, as he went out with A-J-9-6 to his opponent’s 7-7-5-4. The final board showed 9-6-3-Q-5 giving O’Donnell a straight. Mahmood received $18,162 in prize money.

Israeli-born Rafi Amit went out next. His 8-6-5-2 lost to A-7-4-3 when the final board showed J-4-2-4-3. Kevin O’Donnell caught runner-runner to make a full house, putting Amit out in eighth place. This was his second trip to the final table at this year’s WSOP. Amit was paid $27,243.

Richard “Knucklehead” Freire made things interesting for the crowd. By far the most animated player at the table, Freire made it seem he was playing in his weekly home poker game. He repeatedly stood up from the table and jokingly exchanged words with his rivals. But no amount of personality could save Knucklehead when his Q-5-3-2 was hammered by Chau Giang’s Q-Q-6-4. The final board showed 8-4-2-7-Q, giving Giang trip-queens. Seventh place paid $36,324.

Matt Overstreet went out next when his Q-Q-9-3 was dominated by Giang’s K-K-J-5. Giang ended up making trip-jacks this time when the final board showed A-J-2-A-J. Overstreet, a recent University of Mississippi graduate, hit the bricks with $45,405 for sixth place. Overstreet also cashed in the main event last year.

Parisian poker player and club owner Bruno Fitoussi was eliminated when his K-8-7-5 lost to Kevin O’Donnell’s A-J-8-3. The final board showed J-9-5-6-4 with three diamonds to go with the two diamonds in O’Donnell’s hand. Fitoussi, who won the World Heads-Up Poker Championship in 2001 did not get a chance to go one-on-one in this event. However, he did receive $54,486 for fifth place.

Kevin O’Donnell enjoyed the chip lead, but then suffered a devastating serious of blows that knocked him out of the tournament. O’Donnell tried to make a move with a straight and a flush draw when he re-raised all-in on the turn holding K-Q-J-2 (with two clubs). The board showed 10-8-7-4 with two clubs. Sherkhan Farnood called the large raise holding a very vulnerable straight (A-9-6-5), which held up. O’Donnell pocketed $72,648 for fourth place.

Chau Giang has been a master of Pot-Limit Omaha for over a decade. The three-time WSOP gold bracelet winner was shooting for win Number Four, but came up short. The Vietnamese-born poker pro (of Chinese decent) who frequently plays in the highest-limit cash games in the world, was knocked out when his A-8-4-2 was topped by Eric Froehlich’s mediocre 10-7-6-4. Giang did not have many chips left on his last hand, so Froehlich made the right call and then won the hand when the final board showed A-5-4-3-8 – good for a straight. Giang’s take from the event amounted to $90,810.

Eric Froehlich won his second WSOP gold bracelet at 3:17 am in front of a sparse crowd gathered around the final table. Given the late hour and so many other games and tournaments held in recent days, it’s understandable that few people were around to witness his second win. Yet, they may have very well witnessed the second chapter in what could prove to be a very long and highly successful poker career.

Froehlich’s moment of glory came when he was dealt Q-7-7-6 against Sherkhan Farnood’s K-K-6-3. Froehlich flopped a set and then made a full-house when the final board of the night showed 10-7-5-J-J.

Sherkhan Farnood finished as the runner up. Certainly Afghanistan’s most accomplished poker player, Farnood works as a banker. He deposited $165,274 for second place. Meanwhile, Eric Froehlich took center stage for the second time in two years.

When asked which of the two victories is sweeter, Froehlich reminisced back to last year’s win. “The first one is sweeter,” Froehlich admitted. When asked if a second WSOP win puts him into the same class with similar youthful champions such as Ivey, Negreanu, and Cunningham, Froehlich was more modest. “They are all great players,” he said. “Sure, I would like their respect and to be in that class as a player. But I still have a long way to go to earn that.”

Nevertheless, Froehlich says that is determined to make poker history in the years ahead. “I’m looking to pass Johnny (Chan) and Doyle (Brunson) in nine years,” Froehlich said half-jokingly. Chan and Brunson are currently the all-time leaders in most WSOP wins, with ten each.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #26-B):
Total Entries to Date: 23,124
Total Prize Money Distributed: $49,029,317

WSOP Event 26A - $1,500 pot-limit Omaha

Ralph Perry Wins His First WSOP Gold Bracelet

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 525
Total Prize Money: $716,625

Note: Event #26 was split into two tournaments. Both are Pot-Limit Omaha events. 26-A is single-elimination. 26-B is with re-buys. Both are official WSOP gold bracelet events. For reporting purposes, they are listed as 26-A and 26-B.

Official Results:
1. Ralph Perry, Las Vegas, NV, $207,817
2. George Abdallah, Houston, TX, $109,644
3. Brian Kocur, Baltimore, MD, $57,330
4. Luzhe Zhang, Vienna, Austria, $50,164
5. Ray “Rooster” Lynn, Alexandria, VA, $42,998
6. Spiro Mitroksotas, W Yarmouth, MA, $35,831
7. Frank Henderson, Houston, TX, $28,665
8. Jason Newburger, Vernon Hills, IL, $21,499
9. Russell Salzer, Hollywood, FL, $14,333
10. Gary Wooldridge, Houston, TX, $7,883
11. Ryan Hartmann, Mpls, MN, $7,883
12. Daniel Mowczan, Sterling Heights, MI, $7,883
13. Dmitriy Kirin, Holland, PA, $6,450
14. Stephen Mazer, Potomac, MD, $6,450
15. Darryl Dauenhauer, Laughlin, NV, $6,450
16. Mike O'Malley, Upland, CA, $5,016
17. Peter Gould, London, UK, $5,016
18. Steve McBride, Scott Depot, WV, $5,016
19. David Williams, Las Vegas, NV, $3,583
20. Juha Helppi, Hellsen, Finland, $3,583
21. Berry Johnston, Bethnany, OK, $3,583
22. Jacky Chitwood, Celina, TN, $3,583
23. Robert Darrah, Temecula, CA, $3,583
24. Mandy Celara, Chicago, IL, $3,583
25. Jordan Morgan, Norman, OK, $3,583
26. Tonio Scali, New York, NY, $3,583
27. Trung Ong, Albuquerque, NM, $3,583
28. Donnacha O’Dea, Ireland, $2,508
29. Mark Taylor, Colorado Springs, CO, $2,508
30. Stephen Hearst, Manhattan Beach, CA, $2,508
31. Keith Wiener, Hoboken, NJ, $2,508
32. Jonathan Zuchowsky, Jupiter, FL, $2,508
33. Kiu Davis, Plano, TX, $2,508
34. Jason Kook, Fountain Vly, CA, $2,508
35. David "Devil Fish" Ulliott, UK, $2,508
36. Alexander Krarchenko, UK, Hull, $2,508
37. Kirill Gerasimov, Moscow, Russia, $2,150
38. Reginald Simmons, Tampa, FL, $2,150
39. Dennis Benavides, Corpus Christi, TX, $2,150
40. Ronald McMillan, Las Vegas, NV, $2,150
41. Dao Bac, Garden Grove, CA, $2,150
42. Hilbert Shirey, Winter Haven, FL, $2,150
43. Paul Jackson, Birmingham, England, $2,150
44. Michael Chajka, Camillus, NV, $2,150
45. John "Miami John" Cernuto, Las Vegas, NV, $2,150
46. Rogelio Garcia, Tuscon, AZ, $1,792
47. Jonathan Krela, Thunder Bay, ON, $1,792
48. Evan Madery, E. Meadow, NY, $1,792
49. Men "The Master" Nguyen, Bell Gardens, CA, $1,792
50. Ted Lawson, Plantation, FL, $1,792
51. Jan Sorensen, Lemassol, Cyprus, $1,792
52. Tim Frostad, Saskatchewan, CA, $1,792
53. Matthew Rashbrook, Victoria, BC, $1,792
54. Humberto Brenes, Coral Gables, FL, $598
55. Iwan Jones, NA, $597
56. Scott Levy, Frisco, TX, $597, ,

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – “The Butterfly Effect” is common expression which explains the unbreakable connection between all earthly things. It was first coined several years ago as a scientific concept. The question posed was, “Does a butterfly flapping its wings in Kansas create a typhoon in the South Pacific?” Since even a tiny butterfly affects the air current with the flapping of its wings, it then follows that a storm cycle months later and thousands of miles away is a distant by-product of the butterfly’s initial motion.

“The Butterfly Effect” also applies to poker. Unfortunately, many fail to grasp its nuances. For instance, even the most subtle actions affect the outcome of a poker tournament. Consider the fact that any motion whatsoever – a laugh, a sneeze, or even the most ordinary of common distractions – will cause a poker dealer to shuffle a deck of cards in a slightly different way. Just one card out of place at any time, by consequence, changes the entire sequence of cards which follow the rest of the tournament. Since the actions of one table very likely are seen and heard by players at adjoining tables, those secondary tables too, are affected by the initial motion. Then, the next tables are affected also, and so on. Sure, poker is a game of skill. But it’s also quite possible that an innocuous chuckle by the player in Seat Five on Day One at Table 164 at the 2005 World Series of Poker influenced the outcome of the biggest poker tournament in history. Joe Hachem’s victory was a combination of billions of figurative butterfly wings flapping, combined with the talent to make a win possible.

Rafael “Ralph” Perry was born in Russia. During his childhood, Perry’s family immigrated to Israel. At the age of 17, Perry arrived in the United States. Perry’s butterfly effect took place 15 years ago in Brooklyn, New York. The 25-year-old was invited into a pool hall one night and discovered a poker game going on in the back room. Perry decided to sit down in the game, and his life was never the same after that.

“The game was Seven-Card Stud,” Perry remembered fondly. “I decided to play. I played for an hour. I ended up winning like twenty dollars. I played every single hand I loved the game so much.”

After his win, Perry was invited by friends to go to a local card club in Brooklyn, where he quickly became a regular player. When poker was legalized in Atlantic City, Perry started playing there. Then, he heard about a place where there were even more poker games – Las Vegas.

“When I first came to Las Vegas, my intention was to get a job as a blackjack dealer. But, I never had to go out and get a job,” Perry said. “I started playing in low-limit stud games. It was all I knew how to play. From that day forward, I started playing stud.”

One afternoon, Perry was sitting down inside a local cardroom where the action was slow. “I looked over at the next table and saw massive piles of chips in the center of the table. The pots were monsters,” Perry said. “I asked the floorman, ‘what game is that?’ He said, ‘Texas Hold’em.’ I asked, ‘How do you play it?’ They told me and I learned how to play.”

Sure enough, that second butterfly effect created a typhoon a few years later. Perry won his way into the 2002 World Series of Poker’s championship event and ended up finishing third. “I had a horrible WSOP up until the main event that year,” Perry recalled. “Then, I finished third and won half-a-million dollars. That was the most money I ever had.”

Four long years have since passed since Perry was thrust in the spotlight. He has made more than his share of cashes and final tables in tournaments, but for all his financial success, Perry had yet to earn a breakthrough tournament victory. That would all change on July 18, 2006.

Ralph Perry was one 525 players who entered the Pot-Limit Omaha championship at this year’s World Series of Poker, presented by Milwaukee’ Best Light. After an initial 516 players were eliminated, that left nine players to compete at the final table. Players were eliminated, as follows:

Russ Salzer, a.k.a. “The Muscle,” finished in ninth place. Salzer, who enjoyed a marvelous WSOP last year, continues to demonstrate his rock-solid tournament skills. Salzer, from New York City, received $14,333.

Jason Newburger was the next player to exit. The 22-year-old student-athlete who is currently attending Bradley University, was playing Pot-Limit Omaha for the first time. Remarkably, he finished eighth and collected $21,499.

Frank Henderson was the only former WSOP gold bracelet winner at the final table. “Hollywood” Henderson won his poker title back in 1989. His bid for bracelet number two came up well short. Henderson earned $28,665 for seventh place.

Next, Spiro Mitrokostas, a graduate of Tufts University (near Boston) and ardent Red Sox fan, struck out and finished sixth. Mitrokostas collected $35,831.

Ray “Rooster” Lynn did not have much to crow about. Lynn was the next player eliminated. The landscaper who now lives in the Washington, DC area received $42,998 in prize money.

A short time later Zhang Luzhe, from Vienna, Austria, waltzed away from the table in fourth place. Luzhe, who regularly plays in big cash games in Europe, added $50,164 to his poker bankroll.

Down to just three players, Brian Kocur lost his final pot of the tournament to Ralph Perry. Kocur, who is in the mortgage and real estate business, cashed out for $57,330.

George Abdallah has been playing poker for nearly a decade. The Houston restaurant owner has enjoyed several cashes and major tournament wins, including first place in a WSOP Circuit Pot-Limit Omaha event this year, in addition to a fourth-place finish at the WSOP Circuit championship held in New Orleans in May. Abdallah wanted this gold bracelet in the worst way, in order to join his mentors Sammy Farha and John Bonetti – two Houston-based champion poker players who have coached Abdallah. But Abdallah was at a sizable chip disadvantage from the start of heads-up play and was never able to seize control of the table away from his rival.

The final hand of the tournament was dealt out when Ralph Perry started with K-J-10-2 against Abdallah’s Q-10-4-3. The flop came 10-7-3 giving Abdallah two-pair. He moved all-in and was in the lead as Perry called. A nine on the turn gave Perry a straight draw. Then, an eight on the river completed Perry’s jack-high straight. Abdallah was forced to settle for second place, which paid $109,644. Despite one of his biggest cashes ever, there was no satisfaction on Abdallah’s face.

With the well-earned victory, Ralph Perry won his first WSOP gold bracelet. He received $207,817 in prize money. As Perry posed for photographers in front of a massive pile of chips and was interviewed by the press, several poker players who were playing in another poker tournament across the room glanced over at the newest WSOP champion. Dozens of conversations ensued. Shuffles were altered. All of poker history changed.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #26-A):
Total Entries to Date: 22,966
Total Prize Money Distributed: $48,121,217

WSOP Event 25 - $2,000 no-limit hold'em shootout

David “Dragon” Pham Wins His Second WSOP Gold Bracelet

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 600
Total Prize Money: $1,092,000
Defending Champion (2005): None (New Event)

Official Results:
1. David “Dragon” Pham, Cerritos, CA, $240,222
2. Charlie Sewell, Oklahoma City, OK, $124,488
3. Roland DeWolf, London, UK, $65,520
4. Reno Williamson, Mooresville, IN, $49,140
5. Chad Layne, Henderson, NV, $43,680
6. Jason DeWitt, South Bend, IN, $38,220
7. David Bach, Athens, GA, $32,760
8. Dustin "Neverwin" Woolf, Los Angeles, CA, $27,300
9. Adam Kagin, Henderson, NV, $21,840
10. Jeff Heiberg, Buffalo, WY, $16,380
11. Kathy Liebert, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
12. Yosh Nakano, Long Beach, CA, $4,805
13. John Kincaid, Omaha, NE, $4,805
14. William Durkee, Pitssburgh, PA, $4,805
15. Mike Cooper, San Francisco, CA, $4,805
16. Chris Clampitt, Irmo, SC, $4,805
17. David Singer, Momaroneck, NY, $4,805
18. Frank Blumlem, NA, $4,805
19. Robert Goldfarb, Scottsdale, AZ, $4,805
20. Mike Sexton, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
21. James Worth, Oakville, CANADA, $4,805
22. Alan Adler, Bakersfield, CA, $4,805
23. Tom Franklin, Gulfport, MS, $4,805
24. Kevin Phillipson, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
25. Carlo Cintrone, Gafeshead, IRELAND, $4,805
26. William Lin, Denver, CO, $4,805
27. Marek Kolk, NA, $4,805
28. Chris Smith, New York, NY, $4,805
29. Vlad Mezheritsky, Brooklyn, NY, $4,805
30. Blair Rodman, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
31. Aaron Ogus, Redmond, VA, $4,805
32. Ian Woodley, London, UK, $4,805
33. Andreas Krause, Heilbrown, GERMANY, $4,805
34. Terry Ballew, Reno, NV, $4,805
35. Thung Huynh, Westminster, CA, $4,805
36. Gerald Rhoades, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
37. Samuel Korman, NA, $4,805
38. Joseph Neiman, Teaneck, NJ, $4,805
39. Tobias Christensen, Aarhus, DENMARK, $4,805
40. Gary Hammer, San Francisco, CA, $4,805
41. Roy Vandersluis, London, UK, $4,805
42. Joe Pelton, Newport Beach, CA, $4,805
43. Mario Esquerra, Whittier, CA, $4,805
44. Emil Bayan, Fremont, CA, $4,805
45. Sverre K. Sundbo, San Francisco, CA, $4,805
46. Mark Warner, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
47. Tracy Scala, Boca Raton, FL, $4,805
48. Josh Arieh, Atlanta, GA, $4,805
49. Todd Brunson, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
50. Justin Tran, Sacramento, CA, $4,805
51. Jair Beltran, Vancouver, CANADA, $4,805
52. Marcel Luske, Amsterdam, $4,805
53. Michael Davis, Spokane, WA, $4,805
54. Mark Seif, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
55. Gavin Griffin, Shorewood, IL, $4,805
56. James Woods, Beverly Hills, CA, $4,805
57. Mariello Del Grosso, NA, $4,805
58. Jason Fishbein, Chicago, IL, $4,805
59. Christopher Ferguson, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
60. Ramzi Al-Rashid, Austin, TX, $4,805
61. Shane Littlefield, Manchseter, MD, $4,805
62. Layne Flack, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
63. John Pires, San Jose, CA, $4,805
64. Randall Holland, Winnetka, CA, $4,805
65. Antanas Googa, Wilnius, LITHUANIA, $4,805
66. Michelle Lewis, Houston, TX, $4,805
67. Keith Naughton, Erie, PA, $4,805
68. Frederico Barbosa, Kennesaw, GA, $4,805
69. Joe Paigo, Albany, NY, $4,805
70. Robert Turner, Downey, CA, $4,805
71. Brad Anderson, Fresno, CA, $4,805
72. Jeff Cohen, Parkland, FL, $4,805
73. Pat McGuire, Riverside, CA, $4,805
74. Kevin O'Donnell, NA, $4,805
75. Thomas Fuller, Boulder, CO, $4,805
76. Unknown, NA, $4,805
77. Vanessa Selbst, Montclair, NJ, $4,805
78. Francis Scapula, Paris, FRANCE, $4,805
79. Carlos J. Zambrano, Babylon, NY, $4,805
80. Alan P. Sass, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
81. Chau T. Giang, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
82. Michael C. Anderson, Cypress, TX, $4,805
83. Kenneth L. Goldstein, Los Angeles, CA, $4,805
84. Jinyun Lin, San Jose, CA, $4,805
85. Ricky A. Sherrill, Calico Rock, AK, $4,805
86. Richard A. Freire, Miami Lakes, FL, $4,805
87. Jared M. Okon, Tampa, FL, $4,805
88. Steven B. Jacobs, Ardmore, PA, $4,805
89. Daniel C. Alaei, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
90. Columba Duffy, San Rafall, CA, $4,805
91. Michael H. Koegler, New York, NY, $4,805
92. James C. McClendon, Henderson, NV, $4,805
93. John Duthie, London, UK, $4,805
94. Paul Friedberg, Berkeley, CA, $4,805
95. Thomas Bihn, Frankfurt, GERMANY, $4,805
96. Van Marcus, Australia, $4,805
97. Evelyn Ng, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
98. Bruno Fitoussi, Paris, FRANCE, $4,805
99. Jeffrey B. Shulman, Las Vegas, NV, $4,805
100. Arnold G. Spee, Agoura Hills, CA, $4,805

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – If America is the “land of opportunity,” then poker is the amphitheater for fast-track success. The green felt provides equal opportunity for just about everyone to become rich and famous. Things which are important to the rest of society – such as race, religion, age, sex, education, language skills, family ties, personal background, and job title – have absolutely no bearing on who wins or loses at the poker table. Indeed, poker is the most “democratic” of all games. Short, tall, skinny, fat, black, white, male, female – none of these things matter when the cards are dealt.

David “Dragon” Pham arrived in the United States at the age of 17. During the mid-1980s, he was one of many Vietnamese immigrants who left everything behind in search of a better life. They crammed into small lifeboats which floated around the South China Sea for days, before being rescued and brought to the United States. Pham eventually settled down in the Los Angeles area and worked a number of low-wage jobs before being introduced to the game of poker by his cousin. Pham’s cousin had won several major poker tournaments and was quite well-known within the local Vietnamese-American community. He even shared some of his prize money with family members. The cousin’s name was Men “the Master” Nguyen.

Pham started playing poker about ten years ago, and tutored by his mentor “the Master,” he gradually improved his game. Before long, Pham was one of the best tournament players in poker. Pham got so good so fast, that he won Card Player magazine’s “Player of the Year” in 2002. Pham was anointed as “the Dragon,” an odd nickname considering that Pham is one of the calmest and most polite poker players on the tournament circuit. Prior to this year, Pham won his only WSOP gold bracelet back in 2001, in the S.H.O.E. championship, a contest of four different games.

At the 2006 World Series of Poker, presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light, Pham was one of 600 players who paid $2,000 each to enter the No-Limit Hold’em Shootout. It took two days to eliminate 590 competitors. That left ten players to return for the third day to compete for the championship.

Since the finale was a shootout format, this meant every player at the final table arrived with the exact same number of chips. Although there were some tough competitors amongst the final ten, David Pham had to like his chances in this field. He was the only previous WSOP gold bracelet winner of the final ten players.

The bust-outs started fast. Jeff Heiberg went out in tenth place and received $16,380.

Adam Kagin went out next when his ace in the pocket paired on the turn, but lost to two-pair on the river. Ninth place paid $21,840.

Dustin “Neverwin” Wolf was the next player to exit. The Los Angeles-based pro, well-known to many online poker players, went out with queen-jack suited against an ace-king. Wolf, who finished 32nd in the main event last year, took eighth-place on this occasion. He received $27,300.

David “Gunslinger” Bach was eliminated when his pocket queens were shot down by pocket kings. Bach, who holds a college degree in psychology from the University of Georgia, tried to figure out the meaning of a seventh-place finish, which paid $32,760.

Jason DeWitt has been playing poker for only two years. This was his first WSOP appearance. DeWitt went out in sixth place when his pocket fours were steamrolled by a higher pair. DeWitt received $38,220.

Chad Layne was the next player ejected. The insurance broker from Las Vegas cashed out for $43,680 when his ace-ten was topped by pocket jacks. Layne ended up fifth.

Reno Williamson went out next. The manager of a pipe fitting company, Williamson was drilled into a fourth-place finish. Williamson tried to steal from the button on his final hand of the night, got called, and then lost the hand. Fourth place paid $49,140.

Roland De Wolfe was the only non-American to play at the final table. The English writer turned poker pro took a tough beat when his ace-seven was edged out by David Pham’s ace-eight after an ace flopped. The higher kicker played and De Wolfe was sent away to howl about his fate. For third place, De Wolf received $65,520.

When heads-up play began, David Pham enjoyed a dominating 6 to 1 chip lead over Charles Sewell. It didn’t take long for the end to come. The final hand of the tournament was dealt when Sewell moved all-in holding ace-eight. Pham called with pocket jacks. The board didn’t help either player, so Pham’s jacks held up. Pham took the final pot.

As the runner up, Charles Sewell received $124,488. Prior to the event, Sewell joked that his Las Vegas trip had been a complete disaster. First, the resident of Okalahoma City was involved in a serious car wreck. Then, a short time later, Sewell was run over by a taxi cab. Perhaps the hundred grand-plus in prize money he won at the World Series made up for what has been a harrowing experience, thus far.

David “Dragon” Pham has also seen and experienced more than his fair share of personal hardships. Years ago, Pham started off with nothing, and through sheer talent and ambition, he became a highly-successful poker player. By winning, Pham collected $240,222 in prize money and received his second WSOP gold bracelet.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #25):
Total Entries to Date: 22,441
Total Prize Money Distributed: $47,404,592

WSOP Event 24 - $3,000 Omaha high-low

Scott Clements Demolishes All-Star Final Table

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 352
Total Prize Money: $971,520
Defending Champion (2005): None (First-Time Event)

Official Results:
1. Scott Clements, Mt. Vernon, WA, $301,175
2. Thor Hansen, El Segundo, CA, $155,443
3. Brent Carter, Oak Park, IL, $77,722
4. Martin Corpuz, Mountain View, CA, $68,006
5. Ron Matsuura, San Jose, CA, $58,291
6. Phil Hellmuth, Jr. Palo Alto, CA, $48,576
7. Peter Costa, Las Vegas, NV, $38,861
8. Stephen Ladowski, Toronto, ON Canada, $29,146
9. Alex Limjoco, Orange, CA, $19,430
10. Joshua Tieman, Lake Zurich, IL, $11,658
11. Andrew Black, Dublin, Ireland, $11,658
12. Eric Buchman, Valley Stream, NY, $11,658
13. Steve Cowley, Richmond, VA, $9,715
14. Michael Thomas, St Clair Shores, MI, $9,715
15. Richard Tatalovich, Scottsdale, AZ, $9,715
16. Jethro Hordwitz, Sydney, Australia, $7,772
17. Chad Brown, Los Angeles, CA, $7,772
18. Allen Cunningham, Las Vegas, NV, $7,772
19. Thayer Rasmussen, Largo, FL, $5,829
20. John Hoang, Fountain Valley, CA, $5,829
21. Perry Green, Anchorage, AK, $5,829
22. Adam Schwartz, Maple Ridge, BC, $5,829
23. Gary Do, Duluth, GA, $5,829
24. Huck Seed, Las Vegas, NV, $5,829
25. James Bates, Wildomar, CA, $5,829
26. Robert Parise, Novl, MI, $5,829
27. Ender Ozkan, Santa Ana, CA, $5,829
28. Brett Richey, Allston, MA, $3,886
29. Mark Gregoich, Las Vegas, NV, $3,886
30. Spring Cheong, Las Vegas, NV, $3,886
31. Joseph Brodsky, Edina, MN, $3,886
32. Robert Stevanovski, Charlotte, NC, $3,886
33. Michael Kleist, Muscatine, IA, $3,886
34. Kirill Gerasimov, Moscow, Russia, $2,915
35. Eric Dalby, London, England, $2,914
36. Chris Reslock, Atlantic City, NJ, $2,914
37. Rafi Amit, Holon, Israel, $2,914

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Scott Clements understands Las Vegas. He knows of the various vices and distractions the gambling Mecca presents to visitors. When Clements boarded his flight from his home in Washington State to come and play in the 37th annual World Series of Poker presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light, Clements viewed his experience as a business trip.

“I don’t stay on The Strip,” Clements said matter-of-fact, following his win in the latest mega-tournament on the WSOP schedule. “When they are all driving this way, I am driving that way. I come here to play poker….and I expect to win when I sit down at the table.”

Indeed, Clements is “all business” about poker. Which is not to say he does not enjoy the game. He certainly does. But from the unyielding look on Clements’ face immediately after his win, one might have thought he was still sitting down at the table, strategizing, playing for hundreds of thousands of dollars in prize money. The poker face stuck. Perhaps it’s hard to shift one’s focus away from the role as a “player” to being a “champion” within just a few minutes.

The Omaha High-Low Split championship attracted 352 entries. The total prize pool was nearly one million dollars. It took two days to eliminate 343 players.

On Day Three, the nine finalists took the stage at the Rio Las Vegas to play for the championship. The final table included several well-established tournament veterans. Three players were former gold bracelet winners – Phil Hellmuth, Jr. (9), Thor Hansen (2), and Brent Carter (2). But the hottest player at the table had to be Michael Guttman, who was making his third final table appearance so far at this year’s World Series. He is the first player to do so in 2006. Scott Clements, who won an event last month at the Lake Tahoe stop on the WSOP Circuit, enjoyed a decisive chip advantage.

Clements may have enjoyed the chip lead at the start of the final table, but all eyes were on Phil Hellmuth, who was competing for his record-tying tenth WSOP gold bracelet. In his previous final table appearance just one week ago, Hellmuth fell just short of winning bracelet Number Ten, finishing an emotionally-devastating second place. When play began for the Omaha High-Low championship, the gallery was filled to capacity as fans were eager to see if poker history would be made.

Phil Hellmuth, Jr. $158,000, 1
Martin Corpuz, Jr, $76,000, 2
Peter Costa, $108,000, 3
Scott Clements, $244,000, 4
Thor Hansen, $86,000, 5
Alex Limjoco, $116,000, 6
Stephen Ladowsky, $97,000, 7
Brent Carter, $49,000, 8
Ronald Matsuura, $130,000, 9

Alex Limjoco had a short stay at the final table. About half an hour into play, Limjoco went out in ninth place. The civil engineer from southern California received $19,430 in prize money.

Steve Ladowsky was the next player out. He missed on a straight and a low draw on his final hand and was forced to accept an eighth-place finish. Ladowsky, a Canadian businessman who already has achieved two final tables and four cashes in his first two years at the WSOP, earned $29,146.

Peter “The Poet” Costa was born on Cyprus and now resides in Las Vegas. Costa has won several major tournaments around the world over the past decade, but is still seeking his first WSOP title. Costa fell short again this time, losing with a queen-high flush to his opponent’s ace-high flush on the last hand. Costa collected $38,861 for seventh place.

Phil Hellmuth, Jr. spent a miserable two hours at this final table. He was never able to generate any momentum. Each time he was in position to scoop a large pot, a brick would fall and shatter Hellmuth’s aspiration. The 1989 world poker champion and nine-time gold bracelet winner went out when his A-Q-6-5 was cracked by A-K-6-3 to a board of 10-8-8-3-8. Sixth place paid $48,576. With yet another in-the-money finish in 2006, Hellmuth is now distancing himself from the pack as the all-time leader in WSOP cashes (currently with 53).

Ronald Matsuura was the next player to be eliminated. “Ronzo,” who works in the poker industry, went out with A-10-8-3 versus A-9-8-2 to a board of A-Q-5-J-9, Matsuura collected $58,291 for fifth place.

Four-handed play lasted for a while before Martin Corpuz went out in fourth place. Corpuz was dealt A-8-4-3 to his opponent’s Q-3-3-2. The final board showed A-9-8-K-10, with three spades to make a flush. Corpuz’s two pair was flattened. Fourth place paid $68,006.

Brent Carter has been around the gambling scene most of his life. The Chicago native has made money on horse racing, sports betting, and playing poker. Carter has also won two WSOP gold bracelets. His bid for Number Three fell short when his A-10-7-3 lost to Scott Clements’ J-10-5-2. The final board showed 9-8-5-5-Q giving Clements trip-fives. Carter, with 42 lifetime cashes at the WSOP, picked up $77,722 in prize money.

This final table was dominated by Scott Clements. Not one time was his chip lead ever seriously challenged. Thor Hansen had a rowdy cheering section, but no amount of enthusiasm could derail Clements on his quest for his first WSOP win. Hansen survived several all-in situations, but finally went out when the blinds were so high that he was forced to play a speculative hand. The final hand of the tournament came when Hansen was dealt J-5-4-2 versus Clements’ 10-9-6-5. The final board showed 8-4-2-7-3, with three spades. Clements made a flush and also scooped with the better low.

Norwegian-born Thor Hansen, now living in southern California, was the runner up. He received $155,443 in prize money. Scott Clements won $301,175 and his first WSOP gold bracelet.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #24):
Total Entries to Date: 21,841
Total Prize Money Distributed: $46,312,592

WSOP Event 23 - $3,000 limit hold'em

Ian Johns Wins Limit Hold’em WSOP Championship

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 341
Total Prize Money: $941,160
Defending Champion (2005): Andre Boyer

Official Results:
1. Ian Johns, Seattle, WA, $291,755
2. Jerrod Ankenmen, Avon, CT, $150,586
3. Javier Torresola, Tempe, AZ, $75,293
4. Theo Tran, Las Vegas, NV, $65,881
5. Mark Newhouse, Chapel Hill, NC, $56,470
6. Tad Jurgens, Chandler, AZ, $47,058
7. Brendan Taylor, Henderson, NV, $37,646
8. Ben Robinson, Ft Lauderdale, FL, $28,235
9. Fi Tran, Los Angeles, CA, $18,823
10. Joel Gunnarsson, Loderup, Sweden , $11,294
11. John Noble, Las Vegas, NV , $11,294
12. Charlie Ng, Las Vegas, NV , $11,294
13. Gregory D. Alston, Miami Beach, FL , $9,412
14. Melvin Weiner, Los Angeles, CA , $9,412
15. Benjamin C. Johnson, Brooklyn, NY , $9,412
16. Anthony “Tony” Salerno, Howell, NJ , $7,529
17. Carlos Mortenson, Las Vegas, NV , $7,529
18. George Marlowe, Marina Del Ray, CA, $7,529
19. Scott Bohlman, Homer Green, IL, $5,647
20. Gang Huang, Vancouver, Canada , $5,647
21. Barry Greenstein, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA , $5,647
22. Vincenzo M. Beatrice, Hollywood, FL , $5,647
23. Aram L. Zerounian, Portola Hills, CA , $5,647
24. Nicole M. Harris, Oceanside, CA , $5,647
25. Marco Traniello, Las Vegas, NV , $5,647
26. David Vander Poel, Amsterdam, Netherlands , $5,647
27. Mark J. Kim, Torrance, CA , $5,647
28. Jay M. Glazer, Mercer Island, WA , $3,765
29. David Baker, Katy, TX , $3,765
30. Robert Firestone, Santa Barbara, CA , $3,765
31. Scott Lazar, Studio City, CA , $3,765
32. Russell Hendricks, San Diego, CA , $3,765
33. Nancy Nguyen, Denton, TX , $3,765
34. Fred Louie, Los Angeles, CA , $3,765
35. Matt Matros, Brooklyn, NY , $3,765
36. Ronald McFarland, Corona, CA , $1,883
37. Syed Kadrt, Diamond Bar, CA , $1,883, ,

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – One of poker’s classic quips came from “Amarillo Slim” Preston back during the 1970s. Slim was asked what made the World Series of Poker so special. He answered, “It’s where a poker player can turn a toothpick into a lumberyard.”

The latest lumberjack is Ian Johns, a 21-year-old professional poker player from Seattle, Washington. A few years ago, Johns started playing poker for fun. He deposited $50 into an online poker account and began playing in low-stakes games. Within a few days, his bankroll was depleted and down to just $6. Johns told his then-girlfriend (now wife, Mandy) he would quit playing poker if he lost his last six bucks.

Johns studied the game and slowly started to improve. Within a few weeks, his bankroll has swelled to a few hundred, then a few thousand dollars. By the time he was 21-years-old -- and eligible to enter the 2006 World Series of Poker -- John’s bankroll had blossomed into half a million dollars.

Mandy Twiggs-Johns, the wife of the latest WSOP champion admits she was not happy at first about her husband’s line of work. “Then, he started winning, and we took the cash and bought a new house,” she said. “I now see that poker is a game of skill and Ian really enjoys playing, so I have accepted what he does.”

The Johns are now in a quandary. Since so much of the family income depends on his online poker activities, they were shocked to learn about a new Washington State law, which makes it a felony to play poker online. “It’s ridiculous,” Johns said when asked about the new state law which prohibits his livelihood. “I have not played online poker since June 7th (when the new law went into effect). We will probably be forced to move (out of Washington State) because of the law.”

This was the first year that Johns played in the World Series of Poker, presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light. Self-confident in his poker skills, Johns hoped to come to Las Vegas for the first time, play in a few events, and perhaps make a few extra dollars. Little did he know that he would win poker’s most coveted prize – a WSOP gold bracelet.

The 23rd tournament on the WSOP calendar was the $3,000 buy-in Limit Hold’em competition. A total of 341 entries produced a total prize pool of nearly a million dollars. It took two full days to eliminate most of the sizable field. On Day Three, nine finalists returned to the Rio Las Vegas to compete for the championship. The final table was a testament to the recent youth movement in poker. Only two players were aged over 30. This was only the second open event in 2006 not to include at least one former gold bracelet winner.

Tad Jurgens, $60,500, 1
Mark Newhouse, $106,000, 2
Fi Tran, $31,000, 3
Ben Robinson, $103,000, 4
Ian Johns, $207,000, 5
Brendan Taylor, $155,000, 6
Javier Torresola, $132,000, 7
Jerrod Ankenman, $161,000, 8
Theo Tran, $74,000, 9

Fi Tran was the first player to exit. The medical salesman from southern California arrived low on chips from the start. He went out in ninth place. Tran collected $18,823.

Ben Robinson, a.k.a. “Kid Rock” was the senior citizen at this final table, at the advanced age of 49. Robinson, who plays guitar in a Florida rock band called “Top Priority” was cut from the group of eight when his ace-jack was terribly out of tune against ace-queen. Robinson’s royalties for this tournament amounted to $28,235.

Brendan Taylor was the next player out. The Henderson, Nevada poker player was making his first-ever WSOP final table appearance. Taylor’s exit hand was dealt when he flopped top pair with kings but ended up losing to a straight. Taylor locked up seventh place, which paid $37,646.

Tad Jurgens ran into every poker player’s worst nightmare when he was dealt pocket kings, against his opponent’s pocket aces. All the money went in by the turn. The aces held up and Jurgens was softly-handed sixth-place prize money, good for $47,058.

Mark Newhouse went out a short time later. The 22-year-old poker player and student was eliminated in fifth place. Newhouse added $56,470 to his poker bankroll.

Theo Tran is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh. Like many of his peers, Tran found he could make extra money playing poker. On his final hand of the night, Tran’s ace-ten lost to Jerrod Ankenman’s ace-king. Fourth place paid $65,881.

Down to three just players, Javier Torresola was getting low on chips and moved all-in. He lost his remaining chips on his final hand of the night. The M.I.T. graduate who works as an engineer received $75,293 for third place.

Ian Johns enjoyed a sizable chip lead over Jerrod Ankenman during most of their heads-up play. Ankenman tried his best to make things interesting. But he never held the necessary cards or caught a big break that might lead to a comeback. The gold bracelet was clearly on Ankenman’s mind throughout play at the final table. As the co-author of the forthcoming book “The Mathematics of Poker,” Ankenman had been forced to watch from the sidelines as his talented co-author Bill Chen won two gold bracelets at this year’s WSOP. Clearly a win for Ankenman would have boosted book sales and been a great story. Note: The Chen-Ankenman book will likely be successful anyway, but another WSOP gold bracelet couldn’t hurt the promotion.

Ankenman’s final breath came about seven hours into play. The last hand of the tournament was won by Johns, who made two-pair holding ace-three. Ankenman’s final hand was not shown. Jerrod Ankenman, a Pepperdine University graduate now living in Connecticut who is now a professional poker player, received $150,586 as the runner up.

Ian Johns lifted his wife into the air as he celebrated winning his first-ever WSOP gold bracelet. Already outrageously successful from playing poker online, John’s prize money in this tournament amounted to $291,755.

“This is a dream come true for me,” Johns said immediately following his victory. “It really has not quite sunk in yet. All I know is – I hope to be sitting up here again soon. I expect to play many more tournaments over the next year”

Which now begs the question Amarillo Slim would have asked. It may have all started with a toothpick. But can a poker player turn a lumberyard into a forest?

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #23):
Total Entries to Date: 21,489
Total Prize Money Distributed: $45,341,072

Poker Headlines - Wednesday, July 19

There are no friends when you're sitting at the poker table - Detroit News

'American Pie' Actress Shannon Elizabeth: I am addicted to playing poker! - Online Poker News

Bill should end online poker idea - Bismarck Tribune

Absolute Poker Launches AP Lady - An Online Poker Site for Women - PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance

Everest Poker Announces Direct Satellites and Winner's Choice Satellites For Season 3 Of The European Poker Tour - PR Web via Yahoo! News

2006 World Series of Poker Top Moments from Bluff Poker Radio: Inaugural $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. Event an Instant Radio - PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance

UCSB student youngest to win poker event - Los Angeles Daily News

Poker dreams yield a pro, and a con - San Jose Mercury News

L.A. student becomes youngest World Series of Poker winner - The Canton Repository

Poker Players Alliance to Host Rallying Party July 28 in Las Vegas for Poker Players Interested in Protecting Their Rights - PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance

Online gaming company Empire Online very poor quarter with world cup dampening customers'' interest in poker and casino - India Daily

WSOP Event 22 - $2,000 no-limit hold'em

Jeff Madsen Becomes the Youngest Winner in WSOP History

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 1,579
Total Prize Money: $2,873,780
Defending Champion (2005): Erik Seidel

Official Results:
1. Jeff Madsen, Los Angeles, CA, $660,948
2. Paul Sheng, San Francisco, CA, $330,485
3. Julian Gardner, Manchester, UK, $172,427
4. Troy Parkins, Leesburg, VA, $132,194
5. Robert Dylan Cohen, New York, NY, $112,077
6. Robert Bright, Las Vegas, NV, $94,835
7. Michael Chow, Honolulu, HI, $83,340
8. Billy Duarte, Berthold, CO, $71,845
9. John Shipley, Solihull, UK, $60,349
10. Efrain Lopez, Miami, FL, $48,854
11. Mats Gavatin, Sweden, $45,980
12. Anthony Tamborello, Seffner, FL, $43,107
13. Greg Gossard, San Diego, CA, $40,233
14. Michael Odeh, Metairie, LA, $37,359
15. Steve Crockett, Costa Mesa, CA, $34,485
16. Steve Malezentes, Santa Maria, CA, $31,612
17. Anthony Toscano, Huntington Beach, CA, $28,738
18. Ben Armstrong, Tulsa, OK, $25,864
19. Jason Strasser, New York, NY, $22,990
20. Reza Zand, Henderson, NV, $22,990
21. Shane Littlefield, Manchester, MD, $22,990
22. Stuart Moody, Cary, NC, $20,116
23. David Byer, Las Vegas, NV, $20,116
24. Thomas H. Ostrander, Tampa, FL, $20,116
25. Thomas Dykema, Holland, MI, $17,243
26. Cory Ward, Titusville, CA, $17,243
27. Alex Brenes, San Jose, Costa Rica, $17,243
28. Francois Scapula, Bastia, France, $14,369
29. Chang Huang, Fort Myers, FL, $14,369
30. Michael R. Scuza, San Diego, CA, $14,369
31. Jonathan S. Mann, Portland, OR, $11,495
32. Eugene Todd, Brooklyn, NY, $11,495
33. Philip S. Mazen, Syosset, NY, $11,495
34. Gabriel Nassif, Paris, France, $10,058
35. Tyrone Bayne, Paris, France, $10,058
36. Reza Payvar, Tarzana, CA, $10,058
37. Jonathan Little, Pensacola, FL, $8,621
38. Darryl Dauenhauer, Laughlin, NV, $8,621
39. Brian Kelley, Ft. Myers, Fl, $8,621
40. Edward Lundon, Edinburgh, UK, $8,621
41. Thomas L. Franklin, Gulfport, MS, $8,621
42. Kevin D. Whitaker, III, San Francisco, CA, $8,621
43. Daniel MacLean, Highland Ranch, CO, $8,621
44. Parris Holmes, Jr. Palm Desert, CA, $8,621
45. Douglas Gladstone, San Francisco, CA, $8,621
46. Walter Chambers, Baton Rouge, LA, $7,184
47. Andy Davenport, Horsham, PA, $7,184
48. Samir Khoueis, Sydney, Australia, $7,184
49. Delainey Blakeney, Brandon, MS, $7,184
50. Philip Carver, Chandler, AZ, $7,184
51. Ben Staufeneger, Anderson, SC, $7,184
52. Douglas Carli, Alliance, OH, $7,184
53. Jason Stern, San Jose, CA, $7,184
54. Paul Tschernia, Henderson, NV, $7,184
55. Miguel Mateo, San Juan, Puerto Rico, $5,748
56. Marc Schneiderman, Rockaway Park, NY, $5,748
57. Ayad Hussein, Tinley Park, IL, $5,748
58. Richard Sharpe, Henderson, NV, $5,748
59. Rich Pasquini, Newbury Park, CA, $5,748
60. Peter Verey, Victoria, Australia, $5,748
61. Nathan Doodney, Dallas, TX, $5,748
62. Thomas Bradford, JR, Douglasville, GA, $5,748
63. Ronald Weems, Overland Park, KS, $5,748
64. Srivatsa Shankam, Las Vegas, NV, $5,748
65. Jeff Shulman, Las Vegas, NV, $5,748
66. Carl Sciandri, Napa, CA, $5,748
67. Robert Mastrosimone, Islip, NY, $5,748
68. Michael Guadano, San Diego, CA, $5,748
69. Brian Mogelefsky, Huntington, NY, $5,748
70. Courtney Harrington, Mooresville, NC, $5,748
71. Jeremy Scharf, Valley Village, CA, $5,748
72. Shannon Shorr, Birmingham, AL, $5,748
73. Robert Spicuzza, Lexington, KY, $4,311
74. Asher Derei, Sherman Oaks, CA, $4,311
75. Dante Pugliese, North Hollywood, CA, $4,311
76. Peter Lee, Northridge, CA, $4,311
77. Adam Daniels, Ottawa, Canada, $4,311
78. Hung Van La, Manhattan Beach, CA, $4,311
79. Vincent Sokalski, Allentown, PA, $4,311
80. Ernie Scherer, NA, $4,311
81. Baris Yazici, Las Vegas, NV, $4,311
82. Jamin Styers, Ocala, FL, $4,311
83. Bert Boutin, Henderson, NV, $4,311
84. Stephen Well, Milford, NH, $4,311
85. David Brannen, Plymouth, UK, $4,311
86. Douglas Hartman, Dallas, TX, $4,311
87. David Barbet, Royersford, PA, $4,311
88. Jon Karmar, Chorley, UK, $4,311
89. Adam Zinn, Henderson, NV, $4,311
90. Simon Ford, Calbary, Alberta, Canada, $4,311
91. Mark Migdal, Woodland Hills, CA, $4,311
92. Dave Colclough, Birmingham, UK, $4,311
93. Mark Lillge, Kensington, CA, $4,311
94. Steven Friedlander, Reno, NV, $4,311
95. Samuel Mallard, Tampa, FL, $4,311
96. David Hiben, JR, Bloomington, MN, $4,311
97. Steven Rassi, Morton, IL, $4,311
98. Michael Landers, Las Vegas, NV, $4,311
99. Feming Chan, Cranbury, NJ, $4,311
100. Donnie Sitic, Las Vegas, NV, $4,311
101. Christopher Rizzo, Portland, ME, $4,311
102. Young Phan, Garden Grove, CA, $4,311
103. Johan Storakers, Sweden, $4,311
104. Jeffrey Gottesman, Huntingdon Valley, PA, $4,311
105. Tony Fasulo, Ontario, Canada, $4,311
106. Mark Tarich, North Miami Beach, FL, $4,311
107. Gioi Luong, Westminster, CA, $4,311
108. Yeang Kuy, Fresno, CA, $4,311
109. Gregory Fleming, Alberta, Canada, $2,874
110. Ari Konyalian, Glendale, CA, $2,874
111. Joshua Schlein, NA, $2,874
112. Robert Loucks, Redford Township, MI, $2,874
113. Stephen Wilsdon, NA, $2,874
114. Howard Hu, San Diego, CA, $2,874
115. David Shotwell, NA, $2,874
116. Jeremy Burron, NA, $2,874
117. Peter Gould, England, $2,874
118. Jeffrey Rosenblatt, NA, $2,874
119. Brandon Greulich, Del Mar, CA, $2,874
120. Marc McCormick, North Las Vegas, NV, $2,874
121. Dennis Mattingly, Las Vegas, NV, $2,874
122. Robert S, NA, $2,874
123. Michael Ta, Portland, OR, $2,874
124. Gerald DeNicholas, Tampa, FL, $2,874
125. David McGrath, Hermosa Beach, CA, $2,874
126. Joseph Demarco, Seattle, WA, $2,874
127. David Stamm, Granite Bay, CA, $2,874
128. Erik Seidel, Las Vegas, NV, $2,874
129. Eddie Gravalese, Revere, MA, $2,874
130. Yan Chen, Las Vegas, NV, $2,874
131. Dao Bac, Garden Grove, CA, $2,874
132. Andre Ridges, Columbia, SC, $2,874
133. Charles Ambrogi, Dublin, OH, $2,874
134. Paul Hughes, Brownsville, MN, $2,874
135. Mitchell Smith, Winnsboro, SC, $2,874
136. Louis Asmo, Dublin, OH, $2,874
137. Steve Fetterman, Apollo, PA, $2,874
138. Peter Hedlund, Sweden, $2,874
139. Jing Xia, Las Vegas, NV, $2,874
140. Peter Nam, Los Angeles, CA, $2,874
141. Noel Martinez, Gilbert, AZ, $2,874
142. Men "The Master" Nguyen, Bell Gardens, CA, $2,874
143. Nam Le, NA, $2,874
144. Michael Labarbera, San Jose, CA, $2,874
145. George Williams, Concord, CA, $2,874
146. Jason Urchek, Ravenna, OH, $2,874
147. Tony Bloom, London, England, $2,874
148. Shawn Lusher, Kansas City, KS, $2,874
149. Lawrence Lossia, Southfield, MI, $2,874
150. James Godfrey, Killington, VT, $2,874
151. Khenh Chanthamala, East Lyme, CT, $1,437
152. Daniel Gati, New York, NY, $1,437
153. Bradley Berman, Minnetonka, MN, $1,437
154. Matthew Keikoan, Richmond, CA, $1,437
155. Richard Weisman, Las Vegas, NV, $1,437
156. Jean Gaspard, Evanston, IL, $1,437

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – For the third consecutive year, the record for youngest World Series of Poker winner has been broken. Back in 2004, Gavin Griffin became the youngest player in history to win a gold bracelet. Even then, with so many young people turned on to poker, it seemed just a matter of time before a younger star would emerge and eclipse the record. Next came 2005, when Eric Froehlich won the $1,500 buy in Limit Hold'em championship. At 21 years, three months, and three days of age, Froehlich established a new benchmark for the youngest poker champion. Now in 2006, the record has been shattered again.

Jeff Madsen, aged 21 years, one month, and nine days, has likely set a record that will not be broken for quite some time. Madsen defeated a whopping 1,578 players, who each put up $2,000 to enter Event #22 on this year’s World Series of Poker schedule. First place paid $660,948. Not bad for a young college student preparing to return to school next month for his senior year.

It took two long days to eliminate most of the huge field. On Day Three, the nine finalists took the stage at the Rio Las Vegas to play for the championship. The final table included several well-established tournament veterans. However, this was the first open event in 2006 not to include at least one former gold bracelet winner.

Troy Parkins, $451,000, 1
Bob Bright, $365,000, 2
Billy Duarte, $102,000, 3
Jeff Madson, $413,000, 4
Julian Gardner, $628,000, 5
Michael Chow, $125,000, 6
Robert Dylon Cohen, $419,000, 7
John Shipley, $166,000, 8
Paul Sheng, $569,000, 9

John Shipley was the first player out. The British pro was low on chips and was forced to play a sub-par hand in the end, resulting in elimination. Shipley, who won the European Poker Tour championship in London two years ago and also made the final table of the WSOP main event in 2002 (one of two players at this table to do so), received $60,349 for ninth place.

Billy Duarte, who has been playing poker for 60 years and made several final tables at major tournaments in recent years, was the next player to exit. Duarte arrived as the low stack and went out on the tenth hand of play holding ace-eight suited. His opponent had king-jack suited and flopped a jack. Duarte locked up eighth place, which paid $71,845.

Michael Chow followed next with pocket nines, which lost to pocket jacks. Chow, 230th in the main event last year (out of 5,619 entries), took seventh place. The Hawaiian said “aloha” and pocketed $83,340.

Robert Bright went out in sixth place with pocket fours, which were steamrolled by a straight. Bright, the CEO of a stock trading firm, cashed out for $94,835 in prize money.

Robert Dylan Cohen was the next player to exit. The New York actor and comedian turned poker player was low on chips and lost his final hand with jack-ten versus pocket queens. Cohen had to settle for fifth place, which paid $112,077.

A few hands later, Troy Parkins made a very bold move with an all-in bet on a straight draw. Jeff Madsen made a tough call holding top pair. When Parkins missed his draw, it meant a fourth-place finish. Parkins, an information technology specialist from Leesburg, Virginia collected $132,194.

Julian Gardner hoped to become the third main event runner-up to win a gold bracelet this year. So far, Sammy Farha (2003) and David Williams (2004) have won events. Gardner finished second in 2002 to world champion Robert Varkonyi (earning $1.1 million). This time he could do no better than third place. On his final hand, Gardner had top pair but lost to Jeff Madsen’s spade flush. Gardner, one of England’s top poker players, received $172,427 in prize money.

When heads-up play began, Jeff Madsen enjoyed a slightly better than 2 to 1 chip lead versus Paul Sheng. It didn’t take long for the final hand of the tournament to come. Madsen had jack-seven versus Sheng’s ace-seven. Madsen’s hand was completely dominated, normally a bad situation. But all the chips went into the pot on the turn when the board showed 10-9-8-6. Both players had a seven, good for a straight. However, Madsen also had a jack, which meant a higher straight. It was a brutal way for Sheng to lose, but there was not much defense against a higher straight.

As the runner up, Paul Sheng received $330,485. The Taiwanese-born software executive, who now lives in San Francisco, had his best showing ever at the WSOP. This is Sheng’s third year to play on poker’s biggest stage and certainly won’t be his last.

Following his win, Jeff Madsen demonstrated why he has been so successful in poker at such a young age. Madsen displayed none of the bravado that one might expect from someone who had just won $660,948 at the World Series. Remarkably, this was Madsen’s second big cash at this year’s WSOP. He also finished third in the Omaha High-Low championship held two weeks ago – good for $97,552.

Madsen is currently a film student at UC-Santa Barbara. He says he hopes to eventually get into film and perhaps try his hand at directing. “I will definitely finish college,” Madsen said afterward. “College is very important, so it will be part of my life. But the reality is -- I’m still young, so I have some time to figure things out.”

Despite his youth, Madsen has played live casino poker for nearly three years. He played regularly at various California Indian casinos near his home, where the legal gambling age is 18. Due to Nevada state law, this is the first year he was eligible to play at the WSOP.

Madsen expects that his record might stand for quite some time. “It’s going to be tough (to break),” Madsen said. “I’m just lucky that my birthday was so close. It’s going to be hard, since I’m 21 and one month. It will sure be tough to break that record.”

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #22):
Total Entries to Date: 21,148
Total Prize Money Distributed: $44,399,912

WSOP Event 21 - $2,500 short-handed no limit hold'em

Bill Chen Wins Second WSOP Gold Bracelet This Week

by Nolan Dalla

Total Prize Money: $1,702,000
Defending Champion (2005): Isaac Galazan

Official Results:
1. William Chen, Lafayette Hill, PA, $442,511
2. Nath Pizzolatto, Houston, TX, $238,280
3. Michael Guttman, Melbourne, Australia, $139,564
4. Dan Hicks, Valrico, FL, $107,226
5. Alex Bolotin, Brooklyn, NY, $78,292
6. Harry Demetriou, London, UK, $58,719
7. Harold Cohen, Los Angeles, CA, $48,507
8. Peter Jetten, Toronto, ON Canada, $43,401
9. Greg Merkow, Plano, TX, $38,295
10. Donald Mullis, Mooresville, NC, $33,189
11. Bill Lewis, Chicago, IL, $28,083
12. Michael Bickel, Congers, NY, $23,828
13. Terris Preston, Toronto, Canada, $20,424
14. Tai Nguyen, Fremont, CA, $17,871
15. Jordan Morgan, Norman, OK, $16,169
16. Phil Gordon, Las Vegas, NV, $14,467
17. Karlo Lopez, Carolina, Puerto Rico, $12,765
18. Rohit Chopra, Burbank, CA, $11,063
19. Jeremiah Smith, Las Vegas, NV, $8,085
20. Robert Durant, Los Angeles, CA, $8,085
21. Mark Stubbs, NA, $8,085
22. Philip Galeond, Gaithersburg, MD, $8,085
23. Wayne Boich, Las Vegas, NV, $8,085
24. Anthem Ramsden, London, England, $8,085
25. Jason Sagle, NA, $8,085
26. Michael Cribb, Rochester Hills, MI, $8,085
27. Samir Shakhtoor, NA, $8,085
28. Elton Beebe, Austin, TX, $8,085
29. Kenna James, Las Vegas, NV, $8,085
30. Joe Beevers, London, England, $8,085
31. Kristian Liwell, Linkoping, Sweden, $8,085
32. Johan Kretz, Vasteras, Sweden, $8,085
33. Trung Hien Nguyen, Milpitas, CA, $8,085
34. Corey Cheresnick, Coral Springs, FL, $8,085
35. Aleksander Strandli, Oslo, Norway, $8,085
36. Anselmo Villarreal, Greenfield, WI, $8,085
37. Michael Spiegel, Lighthouse Point, FL, $5,957
38. Ralph Levine, Las Vegas, NV, $5,957
39. Robert Fox, Los Gatos, CA, $5,957
40. Soroush Manavi, Santa Monica, CA, $5,957
41. Randall Holland, Winnetka, CA, $5,957
42. Rchard Zisser, Las Vegas, NV, $5,957
43. Trevor Whitenay, Newton Abbot, UK, $5,957
44. Anthony Guadagni, Downey, CA, $5,957
45. James McManus, Kenilworth, IL, $5,957
46. Rami Boukai, Laguna Hills, CA, $5,957
47. Steven Graham, Granite City, IL, $5,957
48. Kevin O'Donnell, Scottsdale, AZ, $5,957
49. William Ihrie, Newton, NC, $5,957
50. Mack Lee, San Jose, CA, $5,957
51. Farzad Bonyadi, Aliso Viejo, CA, $5,957
52. Tony Maehem, NA, $5,957
53. Joseph Grazianu, Tualatin, OR, $5,957
54. David Plastik, Las Vegas, NV, $5,957
55. Steven Friedlander, Reno, NV, $4,255
56. Steven Cowley, Richmond, VA, $4,255
57. Clifford Spiro, Naperville, IL, $4,255
58. Thomas Popday, North Aurora, IL, $4,255
59. Jonathon Gaskell, NA, $4,255
60. Daniel Kaesser, Las Vegas, NV, $4,255
61. Eric Cloutier, Lafayette, LA, $4,255
62. Mark Wilds, Biloxi, MS, $4,255
63. Leibold Imre, Estonia, $4,255
64. Ryan Hughes, Phoenix, AZ, $4,255
65. Francois Safieddine, Denver, CO, $4,255
66. Richard Frazen Ashby, UK, $4,255
67. Kevin Song, Hacienda Hts, CA, $4,255
68. Antanas Guoga, NA, $4,255
69. Richard Tatalovich, Scottsdale, AZ, $4,255
70. Russell Fox, Briarwood, NY, $4,255
71. Daniel Coupal, Saskatchewan, Canada, $2,128
72. Alexander Borteh, Delaware, OH, $2,128
73. Thomas Birmingham, Bristol, UK, $2,127
74. John Pires, Santa Clara, CA, $2,127

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – It’s a peculiar thing that our culture gives far greater attention to the peripheral things than those which are genuine. We bestow our highest adulation on the rich, the famous, and the beautiful. Everywhere you look – be it magazines, newspapers, television, or the Internet – pop idols are the focus. It’s one reason why athletes and movie stars make hundreds of times more money than school teachers.

When surveys are taken and school children are asked who they most admire and respect – it’s usually a celebrity. Not a scientist, or an academic, or a philosopher. Can anyone name any of last year’s Nobel Prize winners? Probably not. But we certainly know all the latest celebrity gossip. Society’s warped sense of what constitutes “value” will almost certainly produce catastrophic consequences down the road. In the meantime, we must do what we can to recognize the real extraordinary talents amongst us who stand out above the rest in the ways that really matter.

If mental endowment was the sole basis for being rich and famous, then Bill Chen would be a combination of Donald Trump and Paris Hilton. The quantitative analyst for Susquehanna (a highly-successful financial services firm founded by poker players) holds a PhD in mathematics from Cal-Berkeley. With all respect to other scholarly powerhouses in the game of poker, such as Chris “Jesus” Ferguson (hold a PhD from UCLA) and Andy Bloch (a graduate of MIT and Harvard Law School), Chen may very well be the most brilliant mind in the game today.

And now, he is experiencing a huge personal breakthrough Most poker players would be thrilled to win a WSOP gold bracelet once in a lifetime. Bill Chen is currently winning two bracelets -- a week. Chen demolished a highly-competitive field of 740 players in the Short-Handed World Poker Championship. It came just seven days after he won his first gold bracelet in the $3,000 buy-in Limit Hold’em championship (good for $343,618).

Played six to a table, short-handed hold’em magnifies strengths and weaknesses. Simply put, there is no opportunity to sit around and wait for big cards and good hands. Short-handed poker forces the player into making more decisions, which are by circumstance tougher decisions. This format naturally favors those players with the best analytical abilities.

After 731 players were eliminated over the first two days of the tournament, Chen walked over the final table in a relatively swift four and a half hours – the quickest final table yet at this year’s World Series of Poker presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light. Chen made it look almost too easy.

Chen’s victory is even more remarkable for the fact that he was at a sizable chip disadvantage from the start – ranked fifth out of six finalists. The chip leader, Michael Guttman arrived fresh off his second-place finish in the Pot-Limit Omaha championship, held three days ago.

Bill Chen, $175,000, 1
Alex Diesel Bolotin, $280,000, 2
Harry Demetriou, $378,000, 3
Mike Guttmann, $587,000, 4
Nath Pizzolatto, $102,000, 5
Dan Hicks, $321,000, 6, ,

The first player of the final six was eliminated when longtime tournament veteran Charidimos “Harry” Demetriou went out on a tough beat. Demetriou was dealt pocket jacks, normally a very strong hand in short-handed play. But not when the opponent holds pocket aces. Demetriou moved all-in after the flop and was quickly called by Alex Bolotin. The two aces held up and Demetriou finished in sixth place, which paid $58,719.

Next, Bolotin got a taste of his own medicine. About an hour after Demetriou’s exit, Bolotin was getting low on chips and lost with ace-queen to Nath Pizzolatto’s pocket eights. Bolotin, originally from Minsk, Belarus and now living in Brooklyn, took home $78,292.

Dan Hicks, who made it to the final table at the WSOP Circuit championship held at Caesar’s Palace earlier this year, could do no better than fourth place in this event. On his final hand of the tournament, Hicks was dealt ace-eight, which was dominated by Mike Guttman’s ace-jack. Neither player made a pair, but the jack played as a high card – putting Hicks out of the event. He received $107,226.

The next player to bust out was Mike Guttman. One of three players at this final table living abroad, the Australian went out holding ace-king against Bill Chen’s pocket jacks. Guttman’s “big slick” failed to pair up, resulting in a third-place finish. Guttman collected $139,564.

The heads-up match between Bill Chen and Nath Pizzolatto lasted just two hands. Chen held a slight chip lead when the astonishing hand that ended the tournament was dealt out. Chen raised pre-flop holding king-queen. Pizzolatto called the standard raise holding eight-six. On the turn, the board showed J-7-5-10 – giving both players had a straight draw. A nine on the river cemented a straight for both players – a dream for Chen and a nightmare for Pizzolatto. After Pizzolatto bet out, Chen raised all-in and Pizzolatto called. Chen tabled his king-high straight which flattened Pizzolatto’s jack-high straight.

The runner-up, Nath Pizzolatto received $238,280. Remarkably, this was the Houston-based poker player’s first time to ever play at the World Series of Poker. Pizzolatto became a serious poker player last year when he was hospitalized after a life-threatening accident. Instead of lying immobile in his hospital bed, Pizzolatto started playing poker online. Eight months later, he was sitting at a WSOP final table and cashing out for nearly a quarter of a million dollars.

For all of his personal and professional success, both at the poker table and away, Bill Chen remains remarkably modest. He does not wear any jewelry. He does not even wear a wristwatch. Friends taunted Chen after he won his first WSOP gold bracelet, nicknaming the understated math wonk “Bling Bling.” There is currently some division as to whether Chen is now to be called “Bling Bling” or “Brains and Bling.”

“Math works,” Chen stated matter-of-factly as he posed for photographs in front of a pile of chips and money. “Math and poker do work. A lot of my play is not about reading my opponents. Sure, when I get a clear read on someone, I act on it. But that is rare. Most of my play in this event and in the limit event has been to balance my play, balance my bets and bluffs, and call with the right frequency. I try to gauge what my opponents range of starting hands is, and then devise my counterstrategy from that. It’s all part of game theory.”

Poker players everywhere will get a chance to learn more about Chen’s poker secrets in his new book, “The Mathematics of Poker,” co-written with Jerrod Ankenman. It’s scheduled to be released soon. If book sales might be helped by Chen’s win last week, they will certainly get an even bigger lift from this second win.

With two weeks still to go at this year’s World Series of Poker, the question everyone will be asking is, “Will Chen win gold bracelet Number Three? If so he would join the exalted ranks of Ted Forrest and Phil Ivey as the only trifecta winners in a single WSOP year.

The Chen Dynasty may have just begun.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #21):
Total Entries to Date: 19,569
Total Prize Money Distributed: $41,526,132

WSOP Event 20 - $50,000 HORSE

A Chip and a Championship
Poker Legend Chip Reese Outlasts the Competition and Wins $1,784,640 in First WSOP Victory in 24-Years

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 143
Total Prize Money: $6,864,000
Defending Champion (2005): None -- First-Time Event

Official Results:
1. Chip Reese, Las Vegas, NV, $1,784,640
2. Andy Bloch, Las Vegas, NV, $1,029,600
3. Phil Ivey, Las Vegas, NV, $617,760
4. Jim Bechtel, Gilbert, AZ, $549,120
5. T.J. Cloutier, Dallas, TX, $480,480
6. David Singer, Momaroneck, NY, $411,840
7. Dewey Tomko, Winter Haven, FL, $343,200
8. Doyle Brunson, Las Vegas, NV, $274,560
9. Patrik Antonius, Las Vegas, NV, $205,920
10. Robert Williamson III, Dallas, TX, $205,920
11. Gavin Smith, Las Vegas, NV, $205,920
12. Barry Greenstein, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, $205,920
13. Joe Cassidy, Cheyenne, WY, $137,280
14. David Levi, Las Vegas, NV, $137,280
15. Rafael Perry, Las Vegas, NV, $137,280
16. Cong Do, Brigantine, NJ, $137,280

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The latest World Series of Poker match was a throwback to an earlier era when poker all was about seemingly endless games, creaky bones, and weary faces. Card after card after card had been tossed and turned and reshuffled again and again. Exhausted spectators who had been standing and cheering hours earlier were now crashed around all sides of the gallery. And in the middle of the darkened poker room, an overhead beam illuminated a green felt table, anchored on each side by two aspiring champions, their faces chiseled with determination.

It all began four long days earlier. The biggest buy-in poker tournament on the planet took place at the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Consider that it cost fifty grand -- more than the list price of a brand new Cadillac just to sit down in the big game. The 20th event on the 2006 World Series of Poker schedule attracted the toughest compilation of poker talent ever assembled inside one arena. While the world championship main event is still two weeks away, a spectacle that will shatter every previous record in poker history, this far more exclusive competition proved to be the ultimate test of overall poker skill.

Players played a rotation of poker’s six most popular games – symbolized in the acronym H.O.R.S.E. – which stands for Hold’em (both limit and no-limit), Omaha High-Low Split, Razz, Seven-Card Stud, and Eight or Better. A field of 143 of the world’s best poker players competed over a grueling four-day marathon, which became as much a test of mental and physical endurance as poker skill. For instance, the first day took 14 hours to complete. The second day was even longer. Day Two began at 12 noon and ended at 9:00 am the next day. After playing 21 straight hours, the nine surviving players got some well-deserved rest and returned for a final table which began at 9:00 pm on Friday night.

The 2006 World Series of Poker presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light offered spectators and an ESPN television audience one of the most extraordinary final tables ever assembled in the history of the game. The nine players in the H.O.R.S.E. championship had previously won a whopping 27 WSOP gold bracelets combined. Present were former world champions, living poker legends, celebrity superstars, and a few aspiring younger champions who hoped for a breakthrough victory.

The nine finalists in the event were as follows:

SEAT 1: Jim Bechtel – 1993 World Series of Poker champion; one WSOP gold bracelet

SEAT 2: Doyle Brunson – Inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame; 1976 and 1977 World Series of Poker champion; ten WSOP gold bracelets

SEAT 3: David “Chip” Reese – Inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame; three WSOP gold bracelets

SEAT 4: Dewey Tomko – High-stakes poker player; runner-up in the main event twice; three WSOP gold bracelets

SEAT 5: Andy Bloch – Formally on the M.I.T. blackjack team immortalized in the book “Breaking Vegas”; Harvard Law School graduate; successful winning poker player for past ten years

SEAT 6: T.J. Cloutier – Former professional football player; top tournament player in lifetime cashes, final table appearances, and wins; six WSOP gold bracelets

SEAT 7: David Singer – Top tournament professional with many cashes and millions won at the poker table

SEAT 8: Patrik Antonius – Top European poker pro; many tournament cashes and wins throughout Europe

SEAT 9: Phil Ivey – Superstar poker icon; five WSOP gold bracelets

The first player to exit was the charismatic European pro, Patrik Antonious. Just three hands into play, the perilously short-stacked Finnish player was eliminated. Ninth place paid $205,920.

The next player out took everyone by surprise. Many hoped, and some even expected poker legend Doyle Brunson to win his record-breaking 11th gold bracelet in this tournament. Those hopes were demolished when “Texas Dolly” went out in eighth place. Brunson, the genial Texan with a million dollar smile and arguably poker’s greatest player ever, collected $274,560.

Dewey Tomko, who finished second in the WSOP main event on two occasions, had to settle for seventh place. Tomko had spent over twenty years traveling in the same tight-knit poker circles with colleagues Brunson and Reese. So, it was fitting that three of poker’s most revered icons were seated side-by-side in this event. The three-time gold bracelet winner from Florida received $343,200.

David Singer, who has recently emerged on the poker tournament scene as one of the game’s top players was hoping for a monstrous career breakthrough in this event. He certainly proved he can compete with the best in the world by making it to the big stage against such fierce competition. But Singer fell short of victory and ended up with a sixth-place finish. Singer earned $411,840.

T.J. Cloutier has won just about everything in poker except the main event of the World Series. Cloutier, who lives in Dallas, has the best overall tournament record of any player alive. However, Cloutier came up short in this event and ended up as the fifth-place finisher. His prize amounted to $480,480.

Jim Bechtel, a no-limit specialist from Arizona was the next victim of elimination. Bechtel, winner of the 1993 World Series of Poker championship, received $549,120 for his fourth-place finish.

When play became three-handed, Phil Ivey was at a competitive disadvantage. Even a supremely-gifted player like Ivey needs chips and good cards to win. He got neither during his final hour at the table and ended up with mixed results – a disappointing third-place showing, but a healthy profit amounting to $617,760

The final contest between Andy Bloch and Chip Reese posed two gladiators of similar styles and character. Reese first arrived in Las Vegas 31-years ago, fresh out of college (Reese is a graduate of Dartmouth University). He was on his way to attend law school in California, but instead found his passion and talent for cards and gambling. Since 1974, Reese has won tens of millions of dollars in high-stakes poker games and earned a well-deserved reputation as the world’s best all-around player.

Bloch arrived in Las Vegas with a shorter, albeit similar story. Bloch graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and later earned his degree from Harvard University Law School. Like Reese before him, Bloch opted to gamble professionally rather than work in a more conventional career. He also shared Reese’s cerebral personality to a large extent – favoring substance over style, tranquility over bravado, and contemplation over haste.

At 1:00 am, as $1.7 million in cash was brought out to the table, no one in the audience nor over the worldwide listening audience on the Bluff Radio Network (carried live by Sirius) could possibly have forecasted the epic match that was to follow. When the sun cracked over the horizon the following morning, the two contenders were still sitting there face to face – thinking, planning, contemplating, strategizing, and searching for the evasive holy poker grail that would pummel the defiant into submission.

Together, they played an astonishing 300-plus hands heads-up, twice as many hands as it took to eliminate the first seven players. At one point, spectators who had left the night before began returning to the poker room again, and saw that neither player had yielded an inch in the battle of endurance and psychology.

At precisely 9:12 am, Chip Reece and Andy Bloch shattered a WSOP-record that many thought might never be broken. In the 1983 main event, Tom McEvoy and Rod Peate battled for seven straight hours. This epic duel clocked in at 7 hours, 6 minutes.
Bloch started the duel with a slight chip lead. In fact, he held the lead during most of the match. At one point, Bloch enjoyed a better than 3 to 1 chip advantage. Bloch had his opponent all-in a few times, but was never able to finish off the resilient Reese. On one occasion, Reese was extremely lucky catching a miracle card to make an inside straight to defy the odds stacked against him. Another time, Reese caught a flush to survive.

The poker game of all poker games finally ended when Reese had seized the chip lead midway through the morning and pushed all-in before the flop with ace-queen. Bloch had taken a few tough beats and was so low on chips he had to call with nine-eight. The final board showed J-7-7-4-4, giving Reese the win with the higher kicker (ace).

As the runner-up, Andy Bloch received $1,029,600. But the money was the last thing that seemed to matter to Bloch, who was so groomed to win his first gold bracelet. Very few people outside the poker world understand that this match was not about money. It was about proving something of incalculable value -- impossible to describe and too foreign to comprehend.

The winner, David “Chip” Reese collected $1,784,640 in prize money and the gold bracelet, presented by World Series of Poker Commissioner, Jeffrey Pollack. It was Reese’s fourth WSOP career win, and his first since 1982. From a historical perspective, the triumph validates the unofficial title Reese has carried throughout his storied poker career, as the world’s best all-around poker player.

“Being the best is not just about winning one day or two days – it’s every day,” Reese said in a post-tournament interview. “Doyle Brunson was once asked who he thought the best poker player was, and Doyle said, ‘I don’t know, come back and ask me again in twenty years.’ Being the best is proving it over the long run.”

Perhaps it is fitting that this championship -- what may very well be the most prestigious poker event to have ever been played – would ultimately evolve to a contest of raw strength and iron willpower. A victory in such an illustrious event should not be easy. It must be hard. It must be difficult. By its very spirit and magnitude, winning must be the end result of toil, trial, and tribulation. In this championship, and indeed over the past 30 years, Chip Reese has stood the test of time.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #20):
Total Entries to Date: 18,829
Total Prize Money Distributed: $39,824,132

WSOP Event 19 - $1,000 seniors no-limit hold'em

77-Year-Old Clare Miller wins Seniors World Poker Championship

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 1,184
Total Prize Money: $1,077,440
Defending Champion (2005): Paul McKinney

Official Results:
1. Clare Miller, Alamogordo, NM, $247,814
2. Mike Nargi, Maumelle, AR, $129,293
3. Jake “Doc” Wells, Cibolo, TX, $74,882
4. Judy Carlson, Blackhawk, CO, $53,872
5. David Claiborne, Twin Falls, ID, 43,098
6. Ron Rose, Dayton, OH, $37,710
7. Doug Schuller, Fresno, CA, $32,323
8. Stan Schirer, Las Vegas, NV, $26,936
9. John “JV” Vorhaus, Monrovia, CA, $24,242
10. Scott McClellan, Henderson, NV, $21,549
11. Louis Adams, Marina Del Rey, CA, $19,933
12. Salah Levy, Las Vegas, NV, $18,316
13. Steven Smith, Wichita Falls, TX, $16,700
14. Dennis Richardson, Louisville, KY, $15,084
15. Thomas Thieneman, Louisville, KY, $13,468
16. Robert McClintock, Las Vegas, NV, $11,852
17. James Colombo, New York, NY, $10,236
18. Timothy Bullard, Houston, TX, $8,620
19. Raymond Abels, Jr., Danville, CA, $7,003
20. James Brown, Bradenton, FL, $7,003
21. Bob Miller, Sioux Falls, SD, $7,003
22. Gary Ship, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, $7,003
23. Richard Chavez, Santa Barbara, CA, $7,003
24. Dennis Horton, Las Vegas, NV, $7,003
25. Kenneth Piez, Kemmerer, WY, $7,003
26. Arthur Molloy, La Jolla, CA, $7,003
27. Bruce Corman, Nottingham, UK, $7,003
28. Richard Bell, New York, NY, $5,387
29. Paul Tassopoulos, Fairhaven, MA, $5,387
30. Robert Toft, Yardley, PA, $5,387
31. Dane Christensen, Whitewood, SD, $5,387
32. B.B. Thompson, Bismark, ND, $5,387
33. Charles Wholers, Duchess, Alberta, Canada, $5,387
34. Steven Rassi, Morton, IL, $5,387
35. Arlan Levitan, Las Vegas, NV, $5,387
36. Robert Bright, Las Vegas, NV, $5,387
37. Thomas Vinas, Houston, TX, $4,310
38. Jay Heimowitz, Bethel, NY, $4,310
39. Jaquim Correia, Tulare, CA, $4,310
40. Shelby Miller, Alamogordo, NM, $4,310
41. Frank Vandal, Bullhead City, AZ, $4,310
42. Louise Rocchio, Culver City, CA, $4,310
43. Max Stern, Las Vegas, NV, $4,310
44. Chris Platt, Las Vegas, NV, $4,310
45. Eric Dalby, Wimbledon, UK, $4,310
46. Denis Ethier, Durham, NC, $3,232
47. Mike Downing, Las Vegas, NV, $3,232
48. Larry Satterwhite, Houston, TX, $3,232
49. Dave Fancher, Eagle Point, OR, $3,232
50. Larry Bass, Tamarac, FL, $3,232
51. Ken Kaltschnee, Las Vegas, NV, $3,232
52. Gordon Rubbo, Salinas, CA, $3,232
53. Joseph Baldwin, Palo Alto, CA, $3,232
54. Terry Myers, Yuma, AZ, $3,232
55. Terry Moore, Yorktown, IN, $2,694
56. Joseph Diperri, Boca Raton, FL, $2,694
57. Rex Parsons, Tillamook, OR, $2,694
58. Dennis Savelkoul, Minot, ND, $2,694
59. John Scibelli, Las Vegas, NV, $2,694
60. Rober Fasting, Las Vegas, NV, $2,694
61. Herald Waite, Wichita, KS, $2,694
62. William Ballew, Pleasanton, CA, $2,694
63. Michael Gwyn, Woodstock, VA, $2,694
64. Edward Pellegrini, NA, $2,155
65. Gregg Goldberg, Orland Park, IL, $2,155
66. Thomas Ralph, Sioux Falls, SD, $2,155
67. Floyd Cohen, Las Vegas, NV, $2,155
68. John Bonetti, Houston, TX, $2,155
69. Toshio Nanad, Las Vegas, NV, $2,155
70. James Hopperstead, Cookeville, TN, $2,155
71. Richard Joel, Conyers, GA, $2,155
72. Joe Pharo, Scottsdale, AZ, $2,155
73. Gary Eirhart, Laughlin, NV, $2,155
74. Charles Barker, Richardson, TX, $2,155
75. Edgar Gardner, Redmond, OR, $2,155
76. Mark Smith, Lafayette, LA, $2,155
77. Randall Holland, Minnetka, CA, $2,155
78. Daniel Stotts, Browns Summit, NC, $2,155
79. Leonard Martino, Las Vegas, NV, $2,155
80. Phillip Wade, Conyers, GA, $2,155
81. Shirley Williams, Fort Worth, TX, $2,155
82. Ron Burke, La Selva Bch, CA, $1,616
83. Charles Lochridge, Laughlin, NV, $1,616
84. Donald Geiger, Boulder City, NV, $1,616
85. Reno Williamson, Mooresville, IN, $1,616
86. Robert Zehnka, Del Ray Beach, FL, $1,616
87. Keith Burt, Midwest City, OK, $1,616
88. Carl Ballard, Mohave Valley, AZ, $1,616
89. William Brown, Henderson, NV, $1,616
90. Jeffery Lowenhar, Las Vegas, NV, $1,616
91. Richie W. Wong, Las Vegas, NV, $1,616
92. David Robinson, Ipswich, UK, $1,616
93. Heda Imani, Layton, UT, $1,616
94. Gene Devore, La Porte, CO, $1,616
95. Emile Couturier, Las Vegas, NV, $1,616
96. William Carlton, Chula Vista, CA, $1,616
97. Jeffery Ridenour, Apache Junction, AZ, $1,616
98. David Feder Tempe, AZ, $538
99. Elaine Schweigert, Laurel, MT, $538
100. Norris Reynolds, Morgan Hill, CA, $538
101. Larry Nerenberg, Henderson, NV, $538
102. Gerald D. Thomas, Windsor, IL, $538
103. Quentin Correll, Sunnydale, CA, $538

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – There was a point very late in the 2006 Seniors World Poker Championship when tournament officials approached the surviving players and offered them the option of calling it a night and returning the next day. The seniors had played two lengthy, grueling days during which more than a thousand players had been eliminated. Amongst the nine exhausted survivors, there were some weary faces. When the tournament director approached 77-year old Clare Miller, her answer was uncompromising and to the point.

“Deal the cards, we’re playin’!” she snapped.

Poker is a natural pastime for all seniors. It very well may be the only competitive game which allows persons 50, 60, 70, or even 80-years and older to compete on an equal playing field with younger players in their 20s and 30s. Where else but a poker table could a 77-year-old grandmother become a “world champion?”

Poker not only affords opportunities for seniors to compete and win. More important, poker brings people of all walks of life together in a friendly social atmosphere. Many friendships are built around poker tables. Kuei Chi Chang, an 80-year-old woman from Las Vegas, who competed in her first-ever poker tournament at the World Series of Poker last week, said it best: “Poker makes me feel young again.”

This year’s Seniors World Poker Championship was the largest such competition ever in poker history. In a World Series which continues to shatter every conceivable record ever posted in poker, 1,184 players flooded into the Rio Las Vegas to compete for over a million dollars in prize money, including first place -- $247,814 in cash.

The event began with a solemn moment. The roll call of names from poker’s glorious past were called out over a silent room packed to full capacity. Poker’s proud pioneers were remembered -- including Benny Binion, Johnny Moss, and Puggy Pearson who passed away only a few months ago. “Oklahoma Johnny” Hale was the perfect host for the proceedings. As the event’s Grand Marshall, Hale inducted two new members into the Seniors Poker Hall of Fame. Mike “the Mad Genius” Caro and Paul McKinney were introduced in a brief ceremony.

With that, the senior’s event began. The competition was open to persons aged 50 and older. The event attracted an eclectic mix of poker players. Paul McKinney, last year’s 82-year-old seniors champion (and the latest inductee into the Seniors Poker Hall of Fame) was on hand to defend his title. Jan Fisher, the popular writer and columnist for Card Player magazine entered, along with her father, Dr. Peter Fisher. The Fishers participation likely marked the first time that a father and daughter played together in the seniors championship. Also, a husband and wife from Alamogordo, New Mexico entered the tournament. Shelby Miller would outlast all but 39 players in this event. His wife, Clare Miller would ultimately fare much better.

The final table began with nine players, including one former winner, Ron Rose. The first player to exit was the well-known poker writer and commentator John Vorhaus, a.k.a. “JV.” The 50-year-old poker celebrity from Los Angeles, author of the highly-acclaimed “Killer Poker” book series, received $24,292 for ninth place.

Stan Schirer went out next. The 70-year-old Las Vegas retiree, originally from Nebraska, was the third-place finisher in the WSOP main event back in 2001. This time he finished eighth, good for $26,936.

Doug Schuller, a concrete dispatcher from Fresno, California cemented a seventh-place finish. The 54-year-old said plays poker as a hobby. Not too many hobbies pay $32,323 in prize money – which is what Schuller took home.

Ron Rose arrived with most impressive poker resume – with several major tournament victories including a win in the Seniors World Poker Championship back in 2003. Rose’s bid to become the first two-time champion in this event’s history was foiled as the former Internet guru from Dayton, Ohio had to settle for a sixth-place finish. Rose earned $37,710.

David Claiborne was the next player to exit. The auto dealer from Twin Falls, Idaho drove off with $43,098 for fifth place. Claiborne also finished in the top five percent in last year’s main event.

Judy Carlson was one of two ladies at the final table. Carlson ended up as the fourth-place finisher. The Blackhawk, Colorado poker pro added $53,872 to her poker brankroll.

Third place went to Jake “Doc” Wells. The horse veterinarian from Texas galloped off the final table with $74,882 in prize money.

Clare Miller had the chip lead most of the way. There had been a point earlier in the night when Miller caught a big break. She won a race with ace-king versus pocket queens, which essentially gave her the chips that would propel her on to victory. “It was luck,” Miller modestly explained in a post-tournament interview. “You have to have a lot of luck to win.”

The final hand of the tournament came when Mike Nargi was dealt pocket threes and moved all-in. Miller, holding queen-eight suited, called. The final board showed 10-4-2-6-8. An eight on the river eliminated Nargi and gave Miller her victory.
The runner up, Mike Nargi is a 53-year-old former craps dealer from Arkansas, who now gambles professionally. Nargi had a nice run at the poker table before he finally sevened-out. Second-place paid $129,293.

Clare Miller was overjoyed with her victory. She broke into tears and her voice quivered as she experienced the thrill of a lifetime. Afterward, Miller told her own personal story that she and her husband had struggled in their earlier years together. Through a lot of hard work and love, the couple built a few businesses and eventually became quite successful. In their retirement years they turned to poker as an activity they could play and enjoy together. The fact that Mr. Shelby Miller finished 40th in the same tournament was clear evidence that this would be the Miller’s day. Fittingly, the happy couple is celebrating their 41st wedding anniversary this week.

Miller put everything into proper perspective when she was presented with the coveted WSOP gold bracelet and prize money totaling nearly a quarter-of-a-million dollars. “We are very lucky and live very comfortably now, so at this stage the bracelet is probably more important,” she said. “But they don’t mean anything compared to my 41-years with Shelby.”

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #18):
Total Entries to Date:18,686
Total Prize Money Distributed: $32,960,132

Now this is a final table!

Wow, I'm already salivating over getting to see the coverage of the $50,000 HORSE tournament going on at the World Series right now. The higher stakes and the higher difficulty game seem to have brought out the best of the very best, as this final table is packed with legendary players. This is truly an all-star event, with not an unfamiliar name in the bunch. Just take a look:

Jim Bechtel, Gilbert, AZ, $841,000, 1
Doyle Brunson, Las Vegas, NV, $1,227,000, 2
Chip Reese, $1,756,000, 3
Dewey Tomko, Winter Haven, FL, $438,000, 4
Andy Bloch, Las Vegas, NV, $934,000, 5
T.J. Cloutier, Richardson, TX, $351,000, 6
David Singer, Momaroneck, NY, $745,000, 7
Patrik Antonius, Las Vegas, NV, $13,000, 8
Phil Ivey, Las Vegas, NV, $885,000, 9

Here's a look at the prize money involved, as well as the other in-the-money finishers:

1. $1,784,640
2. $1,029,600
3. $617,760
4. $549,120
5. $480,480
6. $411,840
7. $343,200
8. $274,560
9. $205,920
10. Robert Williamson III, Dallas, TX, $205,920
11. Gavin Smith, Las Vegas, NV, $205,920
12. Barry Greenstein, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, $205,920
13. Joe Cassidy, Cheyenne, WY, $137,280
14. David Levi, Las Vegas, NV, $137,280
15. Rafael Perry, Las Vegas, NV, $137,280
16. Cong Do, Brigantine, NJ, $137,280

I think the only thing that could make this any better would be a 1-2-3 finish by Doyle, Phil and T.J.

WSOP Event 18 - $2,000 pot-limit hold'em

Eric Kesselman Wins WSOP Pot-Limit Hold’em Championship

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 590
Total Prize Money: $1,073,800
Defending Champion (2005): Edward Moncada

Official Results:
1. Eric Kesselman, New York, NY, $311,403
2. Hyon “Skip” Kim, Seoul, S. Korea, $164,291
3. Christopher Viox, Glen Carbon, IL, $85,904
4. Kevin Ross, Chillicothe, OH, $75,166
5. Jason “Big Bird” Sagle, Sudbury, ON, Canada, $64,428
6. Jim McManus, Chicago, IL, $53,690
7. Dustin Holmes, Atlanta, GA, $42,952
8. Christopher Black, San Diego, CA, $32,214
9. Harry Thomas, Jr. Hamilton, OH, $21,476
10. Jeff Rothstein, New York, NY, $11,812
11. Jair Beltran, Vancouver, Canada, $11,812
12. David Zeitlin, New York, NY, $11,812
13. Marc Scott Sarner, Wildomar, CA, $9,664
14. Kirill Gerasimov, Moscow, Russia, $9,664
15. Joe Hachem, Melbourne, Australia, $9,664
16. Jeff Slayton, Pembroke Pines, FL, $7,517
17. Harley Hall, Orange County, CA, $7,517
18. William Davis, Sarasota, FL, $7,517
19. Kakoun Haim, Casablanca, Morocco, $5,369
20. Kimmo Liukku, Kotka, Finland, $5,369
21. David Pool, Wichita, KS, $5,369
22. Kenny Cruz, Orange, CA, $5,369
23. Chantel McNulty, Lake Dallas, TX, $5,369
24. Peter Jetter, Toronto, ONT, Canada, $5,369
25. Edward Walker, Norfolk, VA, $5,369
26. Neal Gersony, Rocky Hill, CT, $5,369
27. Richard Osborne, Martinez, CA, $5,369
28. Anthony Hartmann, Richfield, MN, $3,758
29. Daniel Alaei, Las Vegas, NV, $3,758
30. David Levi, Las Vegas, NV, $3,758
31. Philip Galfond, Gaithersburg, MD, $3,758
32. Jeffrey Phillips, Greenville, SC, $3,758
33. David Brannan, Plymouth, UK, $3,758
34. James Bullard, Terrell, TX, $3,758
35. David Baker, Katy, TX, $3,758
36. Jason Lester, Adventura, FL, $3,758
37. Amy Young, Las Vegas, NV, $3,221
38. Rimuydas Plenys, Fresno, CA, $3,221
39. Benjamin Robinson, Parkland, FL, $3,221
40. Padraig Parkinson, Dublin, Ireland, $3,221
41. Elmer Lynn, Alexandria, VA, $3,221
42. Gioi Luong, Westminster, CA, $3,221
43. Denise Molloy, La Jolla, CA, $3,221
44. Men "the Master" Nguyen, Bell Gardens, CA, $3,221
45. Keith Hawkins, NA, $3,221
46. Shawn Vanasdale, Reno, NV, $2,685
47. Mikhail Ustinov, Russia, $2,685
48. George Tatalovich, Scottsdale, AZ, $2,685
49. K.U. Davis, McKinney, TX, $2,685
50. David Chiu, Rowland Hts, CA, $2,685
51. John Clark, Dallas, TX, $2,685
52. Dennis Waterman, Myrtle Pt, OR, $2,685
53. Katja Thater, Hamburg, Germany, $2,685
54. Thomas Fuller, Boulder, CO, $2,685, ,

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Life is full of tough decisions. Success depends on the decisions that we make. Those who make wise decisions are typically successful in life. Those who make wrong decisions commonly fail. Of course, “luck” makes some of our decisions irrelevant.

Three years ago, Eric Kesselman faced a very tough decision. He had just turned 30-years old. He had earned his undergraduate degree from Johns Hopkins University and graduated from New York University Law School. He passed the bar exam in New York State and was working as a public defender on Long Island. He enjoyed all of the trappings of a successful life and career. The trouble was – Kesselman wasn’t happy.

“Basically in law, I feel like there are jobs where you can make a lot of money versus jobs where you may have a lot of fun and which provide an opportunity to do something rewarding. In law, very few jobs have both,” Kesselman explained. “When you see the workload and experience the monotony, it is tough. When you see legal cases you have worked hard on, and then the defendants are back two weeks later (charged with crimes again) it gets very depressing. That’s very common in being a public defender.”

At a personal and professional crossroads, Kesselman made a decision. He quit his job. What he decided to do next shocked even those who knew Kesselman best. The ex-attorney decided to become a professional poker player.

“I decided I did not want to practice law anymore,” Kesselman said. “I had some friends who were gamblers and got into poker largely because of them. After losing a bit at first, I started to learn from my mistakes and improved my game. Eventually I started winning, turned professional and have been supporting myself through ( playing mostly online) poker ever since.”

2006 marked the third consecutive year that Kesselman made the annual pilgrimage to the World Series of Poker. Although he made enough money the rest of the year to pay the cost of his buy-ins and expenses, Kesselman’s tournament results up until July 12, 2006 had been a disappointment. Fact was, he had never cashed at the WSOP. That would all change suddenly, in a very big way.

The 18th event at this year’s World Series of Poker presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light was the $2,000 buy-in Pot-Limit Hold’em competition. The event began with 590 entries. After two days of play, the final table included only one former gold bracelet winner – Harry Thomas, Jr. (the $5,000 Seven-Card Stud champion in 1985). Two players had previously cashed in the WSOP main event – writer Jim McManus (5th in 2000) and Jason “Big Bird” Sagle (23rd in 2004). When the first hand was dealt out, Sagle enjoyed a slight chip lead over Kesselman, with the rest of the players back in the pack.

The most experienced player went out first. Harry Thomas, Jr. hoped to steal a round of blinds with ace-five suited but was instead called down by “Big Bird” Sagle, holding pocket threes. Thomas failed to make a pair, and was eliminated. Thomas, hoping to win his first WSOP gold bracelet in 21 years, instead collected $21,476 for ninth place. ,

Christopher Black went out next when his ace-queen was topped by Chris Viox’s pocket eights. The two big cards failed to connect, which expelled the San Diego school teacher in eighth place. Black, aptly nicknamed “Shakespeare” for his English and journalism teaching credentials, received $32,214 in prize money.

Dustin Holmes got the axe next. The poker pro from Los Angeles, who won his way into the event via a free online qualifying tournament, was eliminated when his ace-queen was ripped by Eric Kesselman’s nine-eight suited. Kesselman got out of line a bit early with the hand by making a bold pre-flop raise, and when Holmes re-raised all-in, Kesselman thought he was pot-committed, and called. Kesselman caught three lucky diamonds to make a flush, which knocked out Holmes. Seventh place paid $42,952.

Jim McManus has been immortalized forever with his classic poker and angst-wrought narrative, “Positively Fifth Street,” which chronicled his personal experiences at the 2002 WSOP. McManus hoped to write a bright new chapter in his poker career, but this one did not have a happy ending. On his final hand of the night, McManus had king-queen suited which lost to “Skip” Kim’s ace-ten. An ace flopped, and McManus was forced to accept a sixth-place finish on his poker record. The Chicago writer earned $53,690.

No one was more surprised or disappointed to see the fifth place finisher than the man who took the position. Jason Sagle had started the day in such promising fashion. But he ran bad during his final hour and eventually went out with pocket fives against Eric Kesselman’s pocket sixes. The bigger pair held up and Sagle added $64,428 to his poker bankroll for fifth place.

Things do not get much uglier than what happened next to Kevin Ross. He was dealt pocket kings. He raised to 40,000 before the flop. Kesselman re-raised to 100,000. Then, Ross pushed all-in. Kesselman could not get his chips in fast enough. Wham! Kesselman’s pocket aces were tabled and all of the sudden poor Kevin Ross’ two cowboys looked like they’d been blown off Brokeback Mountain. Ross, an Ohio antiques dealer, collected $75,166.

Christopher Viox was the next player to go out. He decided to gamble on his final hand holding king-ten, which was edged out by “Skip” Kim, with pocket sixes. The small pair held up and Viox was forced to call it a night. Third place paid $85,905.

“Skip” Kim put up a valiant fight before crashing to the felt in second place. On the final hand of the tournament, Kesselman moved all-in with ace-ten, which dominated Kim’s ace-nine. Kim was drawing slim and failed to catch a nine. Kesselman’s higher-kicker played and ended the event.

Hyon “Skip” Kim, an anesthesiologist born in South Korea, felt no pain when he was paid $164,291 for second place.

A historic win at the 2006 World Series of Poker seems to validate the choice Kesselman made back in New York when still unhappily employed as an attorney. “The appeal to me for poker is the ability to work for myself, work at my home, set my own schedule, and to make a very good living,” Kesselman said. “Also, for me the key to success is to play only the poker games I enjoy. I will only play the games I like to sit in, such as short-handed games. I keep myself fresh that way.”

Kesselman turned more philosophical when asked about his future. “I keep asking myself what I will be doing in five to ten years. I really have not answered that yet. As long as the poker craze continues-- which I think it will -- I will be happy to keep playing poker.”

Indeed, life is full of tough decisions. Based on three years spent as a successful pro, a $311,403 win in poker’s most prestigious tournament series, and one gold bracelet – it certainly appears that Eric Kesselman made the right one.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #18):
Total Entries to Date: 17,502
Total Prize Money Distributed: $31,882,692

WSOP Event 17 - $1,000 no-limit hold'em

Jon Friedberg Pulls-Off Stunning Upset Victory

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 2,891
Total Prize Money: $2,630,810
Defending Champion (2005): Jon Heneghan

Official Results:
1. Jon Friedberg, Las Vegas, NV, $526,185
2. John “The Razor” Phan, Los Angeles, CA, $289,389
3. Mike Pomeroy, Detroit, MI, $157,322
4. Tom Hawkingberry, Pittsburgh, PA, $122,596
5. Kevin O'Donnell, Scottsdale, AZ, $105,232
6. Corey Chaston, Thorold, ON, Canada, $88,132
7. Humberto Brenes, San Jose, Costa Rica, $74,715
8. Mike Halford, Memphis, TN, $61,561
9. Thang T. Luu, Las Vegas, NV, $49,722
10. Carlos Mortensen, Las Vegas, NV, $38,936
11. Karen Black, Whittier, CA, $35,516
12. Lowell Kim, Las Vegas, NV, $32,622
13. Terry Trevathan, Lufkin, TX, $29,991
14. Shane McCarrell, Yuma, AZ, $27,360
15. Matthew Palmucci, Nashua, NH, $24,730
16. Nicholas Hill, Phoenix, AZ, $22,099
17. Wei Chan, Chapel Hill, NC, $19,468
18. Boulos Estafanous, Darien, IL, $16,837
19. Tae Baik, Leonia, NJ, $14,206
20. Richard Sparks, Beverly Hills, CA, $14,206
21. Simon Ford, Albenia, Canada, $14,206
22. David Parde, Beverton, OR, $11,576
23. Mark R Wilds, Biloxi, MS, $11,576
24. Steven Connally, Fountain Valley, CA, $11,576
25. Jonathan N. Dull, Fresno, CA, $9,471
26. Jeffrey Rosenblatt, Mont- Royal Quebec, Canada, $9,471
27. Charlie Ng, Las Vegas, NV, $9,471
28. William Kyle Orvis, Longmont, CO, $7,892
29. Joseph Falcone, Hawley, PA, $7,892
30. Zachary W. Shapiro, Los Angeles, CA, $7,892
31. Jason Stern, San Jose, CA, $7,892
32. John Shipley, Solihull, UK, $7,892
33. Frank G. Huntress, Austin, TX, $7,892
34. Nega A. Marucci, III, Las Vegas, NV, $7,892
35. David Walton, Las Vegas, NV, $7,892
36. George A. Auscomb Jr. Frenkenmuth, MI, $7,892
37. Randy A. Haddox, Houston, TX, $6,314
38. Mark Burtenshaw, Idaho Falls, ID, $6,314
39. Anthony Limantzakis, Salt Lake City, UT, $6,314
40. John Bardwell, Haines City, FL, $6,314
41. Marek Kolk, NA, $6,314
42. John Repetti, Henderson, NV, $6,314
43. Michael W. Chow, Honolulu, HI, $6,314
44. Marlis Sawicki, Etobicoke, ON Canada, $6,314
45. Robert Hutchins, Monterey, CA, $6,314
46. Ronald Peterson, Kalispell, MT, $6,314
47. Greg Mueller , Vancourver, CA, $6,314
48. Matthew Rightnour, Clearfield, PA, $6,314
49. Chris W. McCormack, Las Vegas, NV, $6,314
50. Lore Cargile, San Juan Capistrano, CA, $6,314
51. Ed Apodaca, Elizabeth, CO, $6,314
52. Peter Boysen, Aarbus, Denmark, $6,314
53. John Zaheri, Houston, TX, $6,314
54. William P. Durkee V, Pittsburgh, PA, $6,314
55. David Katz, Venice, CA, $5,262
56. Colby Spere, Henderson, NV, $5,262
57. Ashley Young, Pleasanton, CA, $5,262
58. Gary Long, Naples, FL, $5,262
59. Gregg Goldstein , Las Vegas, NV, $5,262
60. James Russell, Arlington, VA, $5,262
61. Daniel Lowe, Las Vegas, NV, $5,262
62. Joseph M. Ebert, Rochester, NY, $5,262
63. Ronnie R. Rogers, Edwardsburg, MI, $5,262
64. Kevin O'Sullivan, Los Angeles, CA, $5,262
65. Macello Del Grosso, Toronto, ON, Canada, $5,262
66. Thomas J. Hayman, Macomb, MI, $5,262
67. Bryan Connole, Palm Springs, CA, $5,262
68. Yakir Retner, Tel Aviv, Israel, $5,262
69. Todd Miskos, La Salle, ON, Canada, $5,262
70. Carlos Lopez, Dallas, TX, $5,262
71. Michael Katz, Manalapan, NJ, $5,262
72. Steven Zoine, Merrick, NY, $5,262
73. Michael Kilgoris, Huntsville, AL, $5,262
74. Richard Spring, Las Vegas, NV, $5,262
75. Samir Zoudo, Modesto, CA, $5,262
76. Annand Ramdin, Bronx, NY, $5,262
77. Sean Cain, San Jose, CA, $5,262
78. Steve Vincent, Henderson, NV, $5,262
79. Satish Vitha, Cerritos, CA, $5,262
80. Michael Sanderson, Odenton, md, $5,262
81. Paul Finn, Pueblo, CO, $5,262
82. William Vosti, Arroyo Grande, CA, $4,209
83. Peter Lawson, Salt Lake City, UT, $4,209
84. Lara Covert, Lawrence, KS, $4,209
85. Thomas Swanson, Duluth, MN, $4,209
86. Isaac Galazan, Sunny Isles Beach, FL, $4,209
87. Colin McDonnell, Studio City, CA, $4,209
88. Justin Title, Austin, TX, $4,209
89. Erik Sorensen, Copenhagen, Denmark, $4,209
90. Gregg Grivas, Las Vegas, NV, $4,209
91. Dennis Wu, Cleveland, OH, $4,209
92. Camillo Calabrese, Las Vegas, NV, $4,209
93. Randolf W. Sears, Victorville, CA, $4,209
94. Corey W. Souther, Seattle, WA, $4,209
95. Motoyuki Mabuchi, Osaka, Japan, $4,209
96. Kevin Westcott, Blue Island, I, $4,209
97. Clayton D. Connelly, Fort Smith, AR, $4,209
98. Brian Hansen, Colorado Springs, CO, $4,209
99. Kevin Song, Rowland Hgts, CA, $4,209
100. Justin C.V. Tran, Sacramento, CA, $4,209
101. Nhan Le, Huntington Beach, CA, $4,209
102. Mike J. Sanchez, Tucson, AZ, $4,209
103. Jared Smith, Reno, NV, $4,209
104. Matthew H. Engel, Allen, TX, $4,209
105. Brittani Simberg, Santa Monica, CA, $4,209
106. William Shanks, Mays Landing, NJ, $4,209
107. Rick Ruffman, Colts Neck, NJ, $4,209
108. David Scheinbart, Woodland Hills, CA, $4,209
109. Jacinto Lopez, Dallas, TX, $3,157
110. Michael "Mickey" Seagle, Marion, NC, $3,157
111. William Jensen, Silver Springs, MD, $3,157
112. Terry Myers, Yuma, AZ, $3,157
113. Paul Ahmed, Springdale, AR, $3,157
114. Kevin Ho, Gainesville, FL, $3,157
115. Steven J. Mitchell, Hillsboro, WI, $3,157
116. Tom Russo, Peyton, CO, $3,157
117. David Lataille, Surprise, AZ, $3,157
118. Edmund Liu, Davis, CA, $3,157
119. Quinn Do, Los Angeles, CA, $3,157
120. Adam Naglich, Las Vegas, NV, $3,157
121. Jeff Rasmussen, Carmel, IN, $3,157
122. Frank Puleo, St. Louis, MO, $3,157
123. Thomas Hover, Blue Diamond, NV, $3,157
124. Stephen Ladowsky, Toronto, ON, Canada, $3,157
125. Tina Bergstrom, Las Vegas, NV, $3,157
126. Gee Way Lee, Houston, TX, $3,157
127. John Hank Sitton III, Greenville, SC, $3,157
128. Peter M. Falkenstein, Ann Arbor, MI, $3,157
129. Jacob Hoffman, Nappanei, IN, $3,157
130. Brad Mahon, Gilbert, AZ, $3,157
131. Jean Gaspard, Evanston, IL, $3,157
132. Kris Fields, Harrison, OH, $3,157
133. Carl A. Davis, Levelland, TX, $3,157
134. Gary N. Lew, Sugar Land, TX, $3,157
135. Jeremy Armstrong, Beverly Hills, CA, $3,157
136. Sheree Bykoesky, New York, NY, $3,157
137. James Fox, Las Vegas, NV, $3,157
138. Glyn Banks, Smithville, TN, $3,157
140. Gary Gosewehr, Port Washington, WI, $3,157
141. Joe Ramos, Tulane, CA, $3,157
142. Joseph Yun, Honolulu, HI, $3,157
143. Christopher Mudd, Kirksville, MO, $3,157
144. James Thomas, Reno, NV, $3,157
145. Craig Brockman, Las Vegas, NV, $3,157
146. Larry Etherington, Phoenix, AZ, $3,157
147. David Williams, San Marcos, CA, $3,157
148. Anthony Renella, Aurora, IL, $3,157
149. Mark Bonsack, Maple Valley, WA, $3,157
150. Charles Lunn, Toccoa, GA, $3,157
151. Gioi Luong, Westminster, CA, $3,157
152. Ylon Schwartz, Brooklyn, N.Y. $3,157
153. John Huston, Helena, MI, $3,157
154. Kevin Miller, Richmond Heights, MO, $3,157
155. Patrick Breno, NA, $2,368
156. Ryan Larson, Las Vegas, NV, $2,368
157. Randolph Spain, Brewer, ME, $2,368
158. Edward Zakaria, Windsor, ON, Canada, $2,368
159. Joseph Holmes, Weston, FL, $2,368
160. Duane Drushella, Albany, OR, $2,368
161. Stephen Waldo, Corinth, TX, $2,368
162. Richard Steinmetz, Ambridge, PA, $2,368
163. Stanley Davis, De Forest, WI, $2,368
164. Tomishau Krizanie, Oakland Park, FL, $2,368
165. Jason Chung, Houston, TX, $2,368
166. Richard Ferro, Dallas, TX, $2,368
167. Gregg Merkow, Dallas, TX, $2,368
168. Billy Cockman, Jacksonville, FL, $2,368
169. Mats Eriksson, Stockholm, Sweden, $2,368
170. Keith Noblett, Plano, TX, $2,368
171. Jonathan Sedaghati, Tarzana, CA, $2,368
172. Stephen Muszkat, Gordon, NSW, $2,368
173. John Salmon, Maricopa, AZ, $2,368
174. Michael Serrano, Hoffman Estates, IL, $2,368
175. Barry Seedman, Henderson, NV, $2,368
176. Leon Walk, Warren, OH, $2,368
177. Lyly McKeany, Santa Barbara, CA, $2,368
178. Grand "Tony" Cantalupo, Chatsworth, CA, $2,368
179. Matthew Flynn, Milwaukee, WI, $2,368
180. Ross Boatman, London, England, $2,368
181. Dustin Carlton, Mantua, OH, $2,368
182. Robin Schoder, Conifer, CO, $2,368
183. Jon Loshbaugh, Denver, CO, $2,368
184. Theo Osborne, U.K. $2,368
185. Brett Smith, Palmer, AK, $2,368
186. Evan Peterson, Irvine, CA, $2,368
187. Mark Green, Shelbyville, IN, $2,368
188. Andrew Barciz, Scottsdale, AZ, $2,368
189. Arthur Bressher, Manalapan, NJ, $2,368
190. Michael Bokan, Sacramento, CA, $2,368
191. Kully Burnet, Kailua, HI, $2,368
192. Mats Millson, Sweden, $2,368
193. Roy Vagderslvis, London, England, $2,368
194. Jeremy Magal, Vancouver, Canada, $2,368
195. Brandon Adams, NA, $2,368
196. Richard Joel, Conyers, GA, $2,368
197. John Helppi, Helsinki, Finland, $2,368
198. Rick Montijo, Bakersfield, CA, $2,368
198B. Mark Entwistle, NA, $2,368
199. Peter Hedlund, NA, $1,578
200. Terry Huggins, Palo Pinto, TX, $1,578
201. Shannon Fadal, Los Angeles, CA, $1,578
202. Jesse Petrake, NA, $1,578
203. Michael Waiter, Phoenix, AZ, $1,578
204. Gregory Eberlein, Surprise, AZ, $1,578
205. Phillip Tague, Denver, CO, $1,578
206. Eric Stanton, Lexington, KY, $1,578
207. Theodore Mullikin, Gatlinburg, TN, $1,578
208. Christoper Guinnup, Saline, MI, $1,578
209. Talia Kahio, NA, $1,578
210. Michael Tham, New York, NY, $1,578
211. Philip Biho, Lahaina, HI, $1,578
212. Art Diaz, Chula Vista, CA, $1,578
213. Vaughn McClelland, Jersey Shore, PA, $1,578
214. Gavin, NA, $1,578
215. Bret McClame, Bristol, IN, $1,578
216. Michael Q. McArdle, Gainesville, FL, $1,578
217. Roger Pitsimmons, NA, $1,578
218. Michael Airharut, Austin, TX, $1,578
219. Phillip Gurian, NA, $1,578
220. Michael Olson, Wauwatosa, WI, $1,578
221. Jonathan Little, Pensacola, FL, $1,578
222. Philip Ariganello, Ohaou, HI, $1,578
223. John Walliser, Phoenix, AZ, $1,578
224. Kevin Currey, Orlando, FL, $1,578
225. Mark Barre, Pearland, TX, $1,578
226. Steven Federspiel, North Liberty, IA, $1,578
227. James Mattox, Kingsland, GA, $1,578
228. William Forrest, Las Vegas, NV, $1,578
229. Kendall Fukumoto, Honolulu, HI, $1,578
230. Gary Braufman, Las Vegas, NV, $1,578
231. Douglas Smith, Lenexa, KS, $1,578
232. Steven Abt, Meadowbrook, PA, $1,578
233. Charles Blankenship, Middle River Ba, MD, $1,578
234. John Pires, Santa Clara, CA, $1,578
235. Donato Bielli, Broken Arrow, OK, $1,578
236. Parris Holmes, San Antonio, TX, $1,578
237. Scott Mele, Lake Hiawatha, NJ, $1,578
238. Justin Patel, Cary, NC, $1,578
239. Terry Breeden, Spotsylvania, VA, $1,578
240. John Saini, Sulmar, CA, $1,578
241. Daniel Eskola, Stockholm, Sweden, $1,578
242. Richard Basso, Saint Clair Shores, MI, $1,578
243. Jonathan Crawford, Las Vegas, NV, $1,578
244. Ronald Delcamp, Seattle, WA, $1,578
245. David Drews, Los Angeles, CA, $1,578
246. Jared Okun, Tampa, FL, $1,578
247. Marc Aubin, Montreal, Canada, $1,578
248. Kristopher Johnson, Loveland, CO, $1,578
249. Richard Seward, Port Orchard, WA, $1,578
250. Bradford Damm, San Diego, CA, $1,578
251. Michael Gwyn, Woodstock, VA, $1,578
252. David Gibbone, Mt. Royal, NJ, $1,578
253. Branden Lee, Aiea, HI, $1,578
254. Michael Vitullo, Woodland Hls, CA, $1,578
255. Fred Finley, Arvada, CO, $1,578
256. Sandro Gebert, Venice, CA, $1,578
257. Glenn Theobald, Pembroke Pines, FL, $1,578
258. Arnold Kirschenmann, Bakersfield, CA, $1,578
259. Stephen Kujubu, Sacramento, CA, $1,578
260. Kim Austin, Beaufort, SC, $1,578
261. Michael Riebe, Mentor, OH, $1,578
262. Michael Carlin, Golden, CO, $1,578
263. John Rusk, Mahomet, IL, $1,578
264. Markus Gonsalves, San Diego, CA, $1,578
265. Mikhail Vaynshteyn, Alberta, Canada, $1,578
266. James Pittman, Yorba Linda, CA, $1,578
267. Steven Lance, Twinsburg, OH, $1,578
268. Bryan Ellenburg, Valley Vlg, CA, $1,578
269. Shawn Mattaro, Phoenix, AZ, $1,578
270. Erik Behling, Wauuatosa, WI, $1,578

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Janis Joplin once sang, “freedom is just another word for – nothing left to lose.” What the 1969 song lyric meant was that it’s far easier to be daring and take chances when there is not so much at stake. Jon Friedberg, winner of the $1,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em championship certainly understands this. He won the second-largest live poker tournament in history at the 2006 World Series of Poker, presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light.

Friedberg overcame a field of 2,891 players to win over half-a-million dollars in prize money. Only the main event of the 2005 WSOP attracted more entries. A whopping 270 players finished in-the-money.

Friedberg, who won his first-ever gold bracelet, is a 31-year-old MBA graduate from Pepperdine University. He is a businessman and investor with a number of ongoing start-up ventures. Freidberg lives in Las Vegas.

It took two very long days to eliminate 2,882 participants. That left the final nine players, who returned for Day Three. When the final table started, Michael Pomeroy looked to be the player to beat. He enjoyed a sizable chip advantage. In fact, Pomeroy possessed one-third of the total chips in play. Only one former gold bracelet winner was present -- two-time champion Humberto Brenes. He won two WSOP titles in 1993, for Pot-Limit Omaha and Limit Hold’em.

John Phan, $747,000, 1
Michael Pomeroy, $1,325,000, 2
Humberto Brenes, $564,000, 3
Tom Hawkingberry, $675,000, 4
Corey Chaston, $229,000, 5
Mike Halford, $89,000, 6
Kevin O'Donnell, $222,000, 7
Jon Friedberg, $189,000, 8
Thang T. Luu, $314,000, 9

About 15 minutes into play, Thang T. Luu lost most of his chips with ace-jack against pocket kings, and then was eliminated a few hands later. Luu, born in Vietnam and now living in Las Vegas, received $49,722.

Mike Halford went out on the very next hand. He was pot-committed with jack-seven when the flop came Q-7-6 and actually had the best hand against John Phan’s flush draw. However, a heart fell on the river making the flush, which busted Halford. The Las Vegas poker pro now has 2nd, 5th, 8th, and 10th-place finishes at the WSOP over the last two decades. He collected $61,561.

Costa Rican superstar Humberto Brenes’ bid for his first gold bracelet in 13 years was dashed when Mike Pomeroy spiked a queen holding ace-queen versus Brenes’ ace-king. Brenes, who owns several businesses in Central America and also has 41 cashes in his illustrious WSOP career, said adios and was paid $74,715 for seventh place.

Next, Canadian poker player Corey Chasten went out in a three-way pot won by Kevin O’Donnell. Chaston received $88,132 as the sixth-place finisher.

When play became five-handed, Mike Pomeroy increased his chip lead to 2 to 1 and had about half of the chips in play. Kevin O’Donnell was not so fortunate. Fresh off winning the big pot which eliminated Chasten, O’Donnell flopped top pair holding ace-jack. But Jon Friedberg hit a third eight on the river to make three-of-a-kind, which broke O’Donnell. He earned $105,232.

Jon Friedberg started making his move when play was at four-handed. He narrowed the gap with the chip-leader Pomeroy, who busted the next player from the tournament. Tom Hawkingberry, who works as a compressed gas plant operator, exploded when his ace-four was dominated by Pomeroy’s ace-jack. Pomeroy made a gratuitous flush, putting Hawkingberry out in fourth place. He earned $122,596.

Which now brings us to singer Janis Joplin’s poker tournament strategy. In a post-tournament interview which occurred two hours later, Friedberg made an acute observation that summarized his reasons for success. He explained that it is sometimes easier to play a small stack than a big one. “I prefer to come into a tournament as a shorter stack than a big stack,” Friedberg said. “As odd as that sounds, when I am a short stack I feel like I have nothing to lose. But when I come in as a tall stack I am scared to lose my chips and it affects my game. To me, there are definite advantages to coming in with the short stack and I know it is uphill from there. I am willing to gamble, take chances, and play my game -- more so than if I have chips.”

Friedberg’s strategy proved effective. He pushed John Phan out of a few big pots and, in at least one sense, became the victim of his own success. Friedberg seized the chip lead and then annihilated the player who had dominated the final table up to that point. Mike Pomeroy lost all of his chips with queen-three against Friedberg’s pocket fives. Pomeroy caught a queen, but Pomeroy caught a five (making a set), which wrecked Pomeroy’s dreams of victory. Michael Pomeroy, an auto worker from Detroit, raced off with $157,322.

When heads-up play began, Friedberg enjoyed a 4 to 1 chip lead. Later, Friedberg reflected back on his feelings when initially faced with the prospect of playing against John Phan heads-up for the gold bracelet. “I think I needed a 4 to 1 chip lead to beat John. He is one of the very best players in the world. I’ll be honest -- I was scared to death to play him heads-up and even at 4 to1, I was scared to play against him.”

The fear certainly did not show. Phan was never seriously able to threaten Friedberg’s chip lead. About 90 minutes into heads-up play, the final hand of the night was dealt when Phan tried to make a pre-flop steal holding the less-than-desirable queen-four suited. Friedberg called the all-in move holding ace-seven suited. The final board showed 10-9-3-2-7, giving Friedberg a pair of sevens and his first WSOP victory.

As the runner up, John “The Razor” Phan received $289,389 in prize money. He was visibly disappointed with the outcome. “I have to try and keep my head up,” Phan said. “There is always tomorrow in poker. I’ll be back tomorrow.”

Friedberg agreed that he had dodged a bullet by not having to confront Phan from a competitive disadvantage. “(Phan) was the single most feared opponent I had at this table,” Friedberg said. “John is not going to be happy when he sees the (ESPN) television footage of me when I pushed him off some key hands. John is a great player and I feel very fortunate to have come out on top tonight.”

“I started off here on the final table eighth (in the chip count) out of nine players. I had a key double-up hand early. Then, I had a couple of very lucky suck outs and got some chips and was able to win. Every poker player’s dream is to win a World Series of Poker gold bracelet. I came here, and now did it. I really can’t believe it.”

Writer’s Note: 1969’s “Me and Bobby McGee” was actually written by Kris Kristofferson, but it was popularized by Janis Jopin.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #17):
Total Entries to Date: 16,912
Total Prize Money Distributed: $30,808,892

Poker Headlines - Friday, July 14

Poker's top trump card: Hole cam - Chicago Tribune

Tips from professional poker players - AskMen

Poker robots not wily enough - The Wichita Eagle

Virgin Games pushes poker sites with new ads - New Media Zero

Poker - Norwalk Advocate

Texas student to enter World Series of Poker - The Daily Texan

Poker machines tap into welfare - Herald Sun

Ultimate bad beat for online players?

Before now, I've not addressed the efforts in Congress to outlaw online gambling, including poker, primarily because I never thought it would get this far.

Now, however, I'm starting to get scared, and the 23 million Americans who enjoy online poker should be, too.

The bill -- HR 4411 -- is truly a shameful piece of legislation that is a perfect example of everything that is wrong with government in this country. This bill is not about online gambling. It is about erasing the legacy of Jack Abramoff before elections in November.

What can be done? Well, for starters, people who enjoy playing poker online but who have been lulled into silence by believing that the bill would never pass or that, even if it did, it would be too difficult to enforce -- people like myself, in other words -- need to speak up. We need to let Congress know that we exist, we care and we are watching. Most importantly, we need to let them know that we will remember how they vote on Election Day.

First things first, if you are not registered to vote, DO IT NOW! If you are not a registered voter, no one is going to take your concerns about this issue seriously. After all, if you can't vote, what leverage do you have? What are you going to do, whine?

So, if you need to register to vote, the simplest way for most people to do so is by using this form. Just click the link to download the form (792K), print it out and follow the instructions for your state. Please note the following exceptions:

New Hampshire town and city clerks will accept this application only as a request for their own mail-in absentee voter registration form.

North Dakota does not have voter registration.

Wyoming cannot accept this form under State law.

Next, you need to make you opinions on this matter known. Now that the bill has passed the House of Representatives, it moves on to the Senate. Although it is a little early, it wouldn't hurt to email your senators (you have two) and let them know your opposition to this bill. In the event you don't know who your senators are, much less how to contact them, you can go to this page and find them by entering your state. It is simple to find both of your senators and send them an email stating your opposition to this measure. It will only take you 10 minutes, so do it now!

If you need ideas on what to write, here is the letter I've sent to my senators:

I am writing to express my opposition to HR 4411, otherwise known as the "Internet Gambling Prohibition and Enforcement Act," which passed the House on Tuesday, July 12, specifically as the act relates to online poker.

Online poker is a pastime enjoyed by 23 million Americans. It is a game that, unlike other forms of gambling, involves a degree of skill that enables some like myself to supplement their income and others to make a living solely from online poker. It is illogical and hypocritical that a skill game such as poker should be outlawed, yet pure gambling pursuits such as horse betting and online lotteries are given special exemptions under the bill.

The online poker industry currently generates $12 billion a year, with half of that coming from the United States, and the industry continues to grow. If online poker were regulated by the U.S., rather than outlawed, the Poker Players Alliance estimates that the federal government could realize over $3 billion a year in new tax revenue, while states could see another $1 billion.

It is my sincere hope that you will keep these facts in mind when considering HR 4411 and make the correct decision to vote against this unfair, irresponsible legislation. I will look forward to hearing your thoughts on this issue, and I will be paying close attention to how this issue is resolved in order to make informed decisions in upcoming elections.

Thank you for your time.

Granted, it's not along the lines of "Give me liberty or give me death," but I think it gets the point across.

Finally, after you've registered to vote and have expressed your opinions to your elected representatives, you might want to consider helping out an organization that is at the forefront in the fight against this bill. The Poker Players Alliance is lobbying against this measure and other threats to both live and online poker. By signing up as a member, you join 25,000 others who are seeking to keep poker legal. They do ask for a contribution to join, with the minimum suggested contribution being $20, but that money is being put to good use to protect a game we love, plus you get a t-shirt out of it. Find out more by visiting their website, www.pokerplayersalliance.org.

But enough reading -- get moving! We all need to act in order to stop this travesty from going one step further.

WSOP Event 16 - $10,000 pot limit Omaha

Watkinson wins first WSOP gold bracelet; chimps win $655,746

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 218
Total Prize Money: $2,049,200
Defending Champion (2005): Rafi Amit

Official Results:
1. Lee Watkinson, Los Angeles, CA, $655,746
2. Mike Guttman, Melbourne, Australia, $360,659
3. Mark Dickstein, New York, NY, $184,428
4. Rafi Amit, Bucks, UK, $143,444
5. Hasan Habib, Downey, CA, $122,952
6. Nicholas Gibson, Windsor, UK, $102,460
7. Jani Vilmunen, Porvoo, Finland, $81,968
8. Thomas Wahlroos, Helsinki, Finland, $61,476
9. Mickey Appleman, Fort Lee, NJ, $40,984
10. Ben Roberts, London, England, $24,590
11. Galen Kester, Senatobia, MS, $24,590
12. Rodeen Talebi, Dallas, TX, $24,590
13. Barry Greenstein, Rancho Palos Verde, CA, $20,492
14. James McManus, Kenilworth, IL, $20,492
15. Patrick Antonius, Helsinki, Finland, $20,492
16. Roland De Wolfe, London, England, $16,394
17. Mikhail Ustinov, Moscow, Russia, $16,394
18. Arul Thillai, NA, $16,394
19. William Chen, Lafayette Hill, PA, $12,295
20. Daniel Negreanu, Las Vegas, NV, $12,295
21. Samuel Grizzle, Las Vegas, NV, $12,295
22. Marc Goodwin, Birmingham, England, $12,295
23. Kirill Gerasimov, Moscow, Russia, $12,295
24. Christopher Gentile, Plainfield, IL, $12,295
25. David "Devil Fish" Ulliott, Hull, UK, $12,295
26. Ayaz Mahmood, Houston, TX, $12,295
27. Gary Benson, Sydney, Australia, $6,148
28. Padraig Parkinson, Dublin, Ireland, $6,147,

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – In spiritual circles, St. Francis of Assisi is best known as the patron saint of all animals. St. Francis was a 13th century friar who rescued, housed, and protected wounded and needy critters who could not care for themselves. If St. Francis has a modern-day disciple, his name is most certainly “Lee Watkinson.” And, if you don’t believe it, just ask a chimpanzee.

On July 12, 2006, Watkinson got a monkey the size of an 800-pound gorilla off of his back. After playing in major poker tournaments throughout North America and cashing dozens of times since 2002, Watkinson finally won his first WSOP gold bracelet. Watkinson prevailed in a blistering field of 218 players – comprised of the very best Pot-Limit Omaha specialists in the world. Each player paid $10,000 to enter the event, which created a total prize pool $2,049,200.

It took two days to play down to the last nine competitors. The final table included three former WSOP gold bracelet winners – Rafi Amit (1 win), Mickey Appleman (4 wins) and Hasan Habib (1 win). However, what was most remarkable was the international composition of the nine finalists. Demonstrating that Pot-Limit Omaha is the most “European” of poker variations, five different countries were represented – including three players from Europe. This competition was also unique because it marked the first time at this year’s World Series that a defending champion made it to the final table. Rafi Amit won this event in 2005.

There was also a greater sense of camaraderie present at this table than seen elsewhere. At one point, the entire table ordered a shot and drank a toast together. All poker games everywhere should be as joyous as this one. ESPN television was on hand to capture it all.

Jani Vilmunen, $485,000, 1
Mark Dickstein, $212,000, 2
Mickey Appleman, $102,000, 3
Mike Guttmann, $283,000, 4
Thomas Wahlroos, $168,000, 5
Hasan Habib, $349,000, 6
Rafi "Refael" Amit, $99,000, 7
Lee Watkinson, $276,000, 8
Nick Gibson, $207,000, 9

Of all finalists, no player brought as much experience to the table as 60-year-old Mickey Appleman. The eclectic ex-social worker turned sports bettor turned hippie poker player arrived as the second-lowest stack and went out with a monster draw that missed everything. On his final hand, Appleman was dealt 9-8-8-7. The final board showed 10-6-3-4-2. Appleman missed it all – the straight, the flush, and the set. A lone pair of jacks scooped the large pot and the four-time WSOP winner Appleman exited in ninth place, paying $40,984.

Thomas Wahlroos went out next. The Finish-born poker pro was down to his last 44,000 (average stack was about 300,000) and moved all-in with K-10-9-4. The final board showed 10-7-4-Q-5. Wahlroos made two pair, but his opponent flipped over a higher two pair, which translated into an eighth-place finish. Wahlroos received $61,476.

Jani Vilmunen had higher expectations than a seventh-place finish. The early chip leader suffered through a brutal final half-hour. Vilmunen’s toughest beat took place when he made a full house (sixes over fives) holding 8-7-6-5 when the final board showed J-6-5-6-Q. Incredibly, Lee Watkinson had A-A-Q-Q. Only a miracle queen on the river saved Watkinson from elimination. Had the queen not tumbled from the deck, the final table outcome would have been completely different. It is perhaps fair to say that the hideous river queen may have cost Vilmunen a gold bracelet. It is most certainly a hand he will not forget. Vilmunen, the second Finn at the table, went out a short time later in disappointing fashion. Seventh place paid $81,968.

At six players, Englishman Nick Gibson was low on chips and committed his last 90,000 on an inside straight draw. Gibson had Q-J-J-10. Gibson was all-in after the flop came with K-9-6. Defending champ Amit had A-K-J-2 and called holding top pair. An ace on the turn gave Amit two pair. Gibson missed his draw on the river and went out in sixth place. He collected $102,460.

Hasan Habib survived several all-in situations before finally succumbing to a fifth-place finish. On his final hand of the night, Habib moved all-in, flopped two-pair and then picked up a straight draw on the turn. But he failed to improve and Rafi Amit showed a higher two-pair. Habib, who has won millions of dollars in tournament poker, including a WSOP title in 2004 for Stud Eight-or-Better, received $122,952.

When play became four-handed, it seemed anyone’s tournament to win. Lee Watkinson enjoyed a slight chip lead, but in a card game as volatile as Pot-Limit Omaha, anything was still possible. Rafi Amit learned this lesson the hard way when he lost a few key pots and many of his chips. Then, Amit went out when he flopped two pair against Watkinson’s flopped straight. Amit still had four outs to make the full house, but came up short. Rafi Amit, from Israel, played brilliantly and had to be proud of yet another final table appearance in this event. The 26-year-old collected $143,444 for fourth place.

Mark Dickstein, a New York City investment manager, made the most out of his $10,000 investment in this event. Try making 17 times the initial outlay in just three days. Dickstein went out when his A-K-J-9 was cracked by Watkinson’s A-Q-J-4. The final board came with three spades to go with Watkinson’s A-J of spades – completing a flush. Dickstein received $184,428 for third place.

Heads-up play started off with Watkinson holding a 3 to 1 chip advantage over Aussie Mike Guttmann. It took over two hours for Watkinson to overcome a very tough fight by the CEO from Melbourne. Midway through the duel, Guttman seized the chip lead momentarily when he rivered a flush against the shell shocked Watkinson. But that would be Guttmann’s high-point of the tournament. The man nicknamed “Sticky Micky” came unglued in the final stages of the tournament, seemingly helpless to stall Watkinson’s aggressive tendencies.

The final hand of the night was deal out when Watkinson held A-Q-6-5 versus Guttmann’s J-J-10-8. All of Guttmann’s chips went into the pot on a pre-flop re-raise. The final board showed 5-4-3-7-K. Watkinson’s 6-5 connected with the 7-4-3 on board to complete the straight. As runner up, Mike “Sticky Micky” Guttmann collected $360,659.

Afterward, Watkinson described the victory as more of a relief than a thrill. He finished second in this same event two years ago, which until tonight was the closest Watkinson had ever come to winning at the World Series.

“When I was playing heads-up and lost (the chip lead), I started thinking it was déjà vu all over again,” Watkinson said in reference to finishing in second-place at a number of majors in recent years. “But then, I just re-focused my game and realized that it takes a different kind of strategy to win a Pot-Limit Omaha tournament. I just played the percentages, wanting to get my money in with the best possible situation.”

Watkinson owns a few businesses, including a record company and a clothing line – which were started exclusively with his poker winnings. The Washington State native holds a degree in economics, which perhaps explains why Watkinson is so astute as an investor and poker professional.

Yet, as excited as Watkinson was to win over half a million dollars and the WSOP gold bracelet, he was quick to shift everyone’s attention to a greater, more humanitarian purpose. Watkins was joined up on the poker stage by his fiancé Timmi DeRosa. Together, they described their plans to constructively use some of the $655,746 in total prize money. Watkinson and DeRosa told of their longtime commitment to rescuing and retiring captive chimpanzees, many of which have been used in everything from major motion pictures to research laboratories.

Watkinson and DeRosa told about how chimpanzees are not as useful as they become older and are commonly discarded. So a few years ago, the couple made a commitment to rescue as many creatures as possible and eventually build an animal sanctuary. “All the animals need our help,” DeRosa said. “But we really try to focus on the chimpanzees.” For this purpose, the Cortland Brandenberg Foundation (www.cortlandbrandenberg.com) was co-founded by Watkinson and DeRosa.

This is certainly the first time ever in history that chimpanzees will benefit directly from a World Series of Poker victory. Following his win, as the arena stage was being cleared, Watkinson said he intended to got out later in the night and buy the chimps some cake and ice cream. Perhaps instead of St. Francis, we should call the latest WSOP poker champion “St. Watkinson.”

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #16):
Total Entries to Date: 16,694
Total Prize Money Distributed: $28,759,692

Poker Headlines - Wednesday, July 12

House Passes Bill to Restrict Internet Poker - Washington Post

State isn't all-in on poker-player betting - Las Vegas Sun

Pub poker boom forces crackdown - BBC News

InterPoker.com to Take Poker to New 'Heights' as Poker Stars Drop From 10,000 Feet Above Las Vegas - PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance

NetSky Launches Poker Content Site - Market Wire via Yahoo! Finance

Guard shot in failed poker robbery did not get wages for 16 months - Saipan Tribune

Online Poker Superstars Making Marks in the 2006 World Series of Poker - PR Web

Home game queen trumps ladies at World Series of Poker - Las Vegas Sun

JSC worker in the money during poker tourney - Galveston County (Texas) Daily News

WSOP Event 15 - Ladies' Poker Championship

Mary Jones Meyer Wins 2006 Ladies World Poker Championship

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 1,128
Total Prize Money: $1,026,480
Defending Champion (2005): Jennifer Tilly

Official Results:
1. Mary Jones Meyer, Henderson, NV, $236,094
2. Shawnee Barton, Chicago, IL, $123,178
3. Beatrice Stranzinger, Vienna, Austria, $71,340
4. Reka Hallgato, W. Hollywood, CA, $51,324
5. Sue Luckenbaugh, Saratoga Springs, NY, $41,059
6. Julie Allen, St. Clair Shores, MI, $35,927
7. Devi Ortega, Tulsa, OK, $30,794
8., Laurie Scott, Antelope, CA, $25,662
9 Ellie Ahlgren, Las Vegas, NV, $23,096
10 Debbie Lynn Talosi, Torrance, CA, $20,530
11 Nan Wang, Las Vegas, NV, $18,990
12 Patricia Abram, Wellington, FL, $17,450
13 Kiersten Kolbu, Aurora, CO, $15,910
14 Debra A. Pechac, Phoenix, AZ, $14,371
15 Donita Fey, Clinton, OK, $12,831
16 Anne Montgomery, Louisville, KY, $11,291
17 Stacy Berinsky, Round Rock, TX, $9,752
18 Lisa Spain, Denver, CO, $8,212
19 Anjela Brunson, Las Vegas, NV, $6,672
20 Irene Kristal, San Ramon, CA, $6,672
21 Elizabeth Madrid, Thornton, CO, $6,672
22. Kimberly Chermock, Apple Valley, CA, $6,672
23. La Sengphet, Carrollton, TX, $6,672
24. Rebecca James, Arlington, TX, $6,672
25. Cynthia Patterson, Chatsworth, GA, $6,672
26. Kelly Snider, Denver, CO, $6,672
27. Patt Beadles, Oakland, CA, $6,672
28. Janice Goodman, Houston, TX, $5,132
29. Maria Sanabria, Orlando, FL, $5,132
30. Casandra Nix, Chatsworth, GA, $5,132
31. Ann Escobedo, Las Vegas, NV, $5,132
32. Natalie Christiansen, Bullfrog, UT, $5,132
33. Mimi Rogers, Los Angeles, CA, $5,132
34. Lindsey Hartley, San Diego, CA, $5,132
35. Ruth Graham, Denver, CO, $5,132
36. Denise Goldsein, Los Angeles, CA, $5,132
37. Mandy Baumgarten, Gilbert, AZ, $4,106
38. Jane Pak, Coral Gables, FL, $4,106
39. Melissa Elavin, Woodstock, IL, $4,106
40. Lora Garnett, Los Angeles, CA, $4,106
41. Gyla Kay, Houston, TX, $4,106
42. Carmela Werth, Taylor, MI, $4,106
43. Kalee Tan, Victoria, B.C. $4,106
44. Jessica Ngan, Las Vegas, NV, $4,106
45. Tracy Galla, Schaumburg, IL, $4,106
46. Monica Champa, Camas, WA, $3,079
47. Susana Maria Maros, San Francisco, CA, $3,079
48. Vickie Morley, Hooper, UT, $3,079
49. Ellen Royston-Ing, Mount Barker, WA, $3,079
50. Emelyne Barnard, Las Vegas, NV, $3,079
51. Sirli Quinn, Chandler, AZ, $3,079
52. Sara Gardner, Cillicothe, MO, $3,079
53. Joann Pham Bene, Oklahoma City, OK, $3,079
54. Heather Escuin, Las Vegas, NV, $3,079
55. Jodi Lynn Cook, Titusville, FL, $2,566
56. Chantel McNulty, Lake Dallas, TX, $2,566
57. Kristi Smith, Palmer, AK, $2,566
58. Patricia Uribe, Mexico City, Mexico, $2,566
59. Kelli Griggs, Folson, CA, $2,566
60. Yueqi Lisa Wang, Chicago, IL, $2,566
61. Victoria Regina, Goteborg, SW, $2,566
62. Kimberly Henderson, Franktown, CO, $2,566
63. Susan Ear, Santa Ana, CA, $2,566
64. karen Ketron Moore, Dallas, TX, $2,053
65. Kazue Kubo, Oxnard, CA, $2,053
66. Christine Miller, Nashua, NH, $2,053
67. Shannon Easton, Scottsdale, AZ, $2,053
68. Sun Young Yoon, Houston, TX, $2,053
69. Lisa Jean Barnes, Salem, OR, $2,053
70. Julie Nhien Thi Dang, Montclair, CA, $2,053
71. Stardust Anne Wunch, Norman, OK, $2,053
72. Victoria Pratt, Los Angeles, CA, $2,053
73. Esther Cora Taylor, Vancouver, WA, $2,053
74. Criselda Turner, Seattle, WA, $2,053
75. Lacey Jones, Las Vegas, NV, $2,053
76. Regelette E. Bechara, Sunrise, FL, $2,053
77. Tana Lenette Washington, Watts, OK, $2,053
78. Su Ya Chen, Salem, OR, $2,053
79. Maria Feterman, Las Vegas, NV, $2,053
80. Janine A. Oneill, New Plila, OH, $2,053
81. Suzanne Thompson, Prescott Valley, AZ, $2,053
82. Connie Louisse Kelsey, Broken Arrow, OK, $1,540
83. Sherri Simpson, Ewa Beach, $1,540
84. Kimiyo Takeya, Long Beach, CA, $1,540
85. Linda Sue Ott, Lonita, CA, $1,540
86. Avelyn Navarro, San Diego, CA, $1,540
87. Kelli Mix, Carrollton, GA, $1,540
88. Randi Calabro, Harmony, FL, $1,540
89. Ngoc Hoang, Westminster, CA, $1,540
90. Rebekah Johnston, Hamilton, Ont. CA, $1,540
91. Genella Benjamin, Lawrence, KS, $1,540
92. Suzanne Mead, Las Vegas, NV, $1,540
93. Malissia Zapata, Greenville, TX, $1,540
94. Barbara Hausman, Delray Beach, FL, $1,540
95. Tara Lynne Mahoney, Colorado Springs, CO, $1,540
96. Jean Harlan, Las Vegas, NV, $1,540
97. Kimberly Kusa, Phoenix, AZ, $924
98. Sharon A Hron, Fountain Hills, AZ, $924
99. Qin Lee, Alhambra, CA, $924
100. Korina Archuleta, Centenial, CO, $924
101. Louise Quintana, Thornton, CO, $924, ,

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – All good people inevitably come to realize that there is more joy in seeing a loved one accomplish something big than succeeding for oneself. When Bob Meyer proudly watched his wife Mary Jones Meyer win the 2006 Ladies World Poker Championship late on a Monday night at the Rio Casino in Las Vegas, it was as though he personally had won poker’s world championship. Meyer rushed to the stage and hugged his wife in a whirlwind dance immediately after witnessing her first major poker tournament win and $236,094 in prize money in the most dramatic fashion.

“I definitely owe this tournament to my husband and his training,” Mary Jones Meyer said immediately following her victory. “He taught me many things about poker and we play together all the time. It was definitely a team win.”

All Mary Jones Meyer did was win the biggest and richest women’s poker tournament in history. A whopping 1,128 players – nearly twice as many participants as last year – competed in the Ladies World Poker Championship at the World Series of Poker. Last year’s ladies event was most memorable having been won by former Academy Award-nominated actress Jennifer Tilly.

Unfortunately, the defending champ and several other major Hollywood and television stars went out earlier in the event, along with 1,119 others. That left a final table of nine players that was no less short on talent or enthusiasm. A huge crowd flooded into the ESPN arena to witness the championship finale, which lasted four very exciting hours.

The final table was comprised of women of all ages and backgrounds. Ages ranged from 24 to 50. Players were from Nevada, Texas, New York, Michigan, Oklahoma, California, Illinois, and Austria. Two of the players admitted to being expectant mothers (very likely a WSOP first).

After blitzing through 18 players in the initial hours of Day Two, play at the final table started-off cautiously, as each player wanted to maximize her stay in the big game.

Then, Elle Ahlgren, a fashion designed from Las Vegas, went out in ninth place and received $23,096.

Next, Laurie Scott went out with pocket threes against ace-seven after an ace hit the board. Scott, a data analyst from Austin, earned $25,662 for eighth place.

Devi Ortega, a Bronx, NY-born professional pool player now living in Oklahoma, could not catch a break when she moved all-in with pocket tens, which was broken by two hearts which completed a flush. Ortega pocketed $30,794 for seventh place.

Julie Allen, who is finishing up a Masters Degree in education, has been playing poker for two years. She went all-in on her final hand with king-queen suited, but the royal couple could not conceive. A set of eights put Allen out in sixth place, which paid $35,927.

Sue Luckenbaugh wasn’t very lucky. The horse trainer from Saratoga, New York was eliminated holding two-pair versus a full-house. Luckenbaugh managed to win her way into the event by paying only $26, and then won a satellite tournament. Fifth place paid $41,059.

Reka Hallgato went out next when her pocket fours were cracked by a straight. Hallgato, originally from Budapest, Hungary and now residing in Hollywood, California – received $51,324.

Just when it seemed that Shawnee Barton might run away with the top prize, she started taking some beats. Barton was up to a 3 to 1 chip lead when play was three handed. But, each time Barton seemed to have the edge in a big hand, disaster would strike. This only added to the tension and excitement of the final table match, which produced countless exciting hands and dramatic moments.

Barton did win one big hand which eliminated the next player. Beatrice Stranzinger was getting low on chips and tried to make a move with a weak ace. But Barton called her opponent’s all-in move with queen-jack suited and then caught a queen. That put the Austrian poker player out in third place, which paid $71,340.

There were four all-in hands which miraculously did not produce a winner (two were split pots) before the final extraordinary ending. Exhausted from playing all day and much of the night, the clock showed 1:00 am when the biggest hand of the tournament was dealt out. Barton started off with king-nine versus Mary Jones Meyer’s ace-ten. After the flop came 9-7-2, May Jones Meyer made a bluff bet of 200,000 (holding nothing but two naked overcards) and Barton raised all-in for 700,000 more with top pair (nines). Incredibly, Mary Jones Meyer called the huge raise and then spiked an ace on the river. The crowd loved every minute of it and roared loudly. Barton could not stand to watch as most of her chips were pushed across the table to her opponent.

A few hands later the Ladies World Poker Championship ended when Barton started off with the best hand once again (holding ace-four) and raised with her last 170,000 in chips before the flop. Mary Jones Meyer had more than enough chips in her huge stack with which to make the call, even holding the less than stellar queen-six. Four blanks were dealt. Then, the captivating card fell from the dealer’s hand, hitting the green felt softly, bringing a bizarre concoction of both elation and grief. A six crushed Shawnee Barton’s dreams of victory and made a poker champion out of Mary Jones Meyer.

As the runner up, Shawnee Barton, an artist from Chicago, collected $123,178 in prize money. Barton could certainly be proud of her performance in this tournament and although she did not win, she had much the best of it in key situations when all of her chips were at risk. For any poker player, that is all one can ask.

Mary Jones Meyer won nearly a quarter of a million dollars for her first place finish. Perhaps more momentous to any serious poker player, she received the coveted WSOP gold bracelet. WSOP sponsor Corum Watches also contributed to making the event memorable by donating a stunning diamond-studded ladies wristwatch, exclusively-designed for this special championship event.

The money, the gold bracelet, and the diamond watch didn’t seem to matter much to Bob Meyer. He was proud of his wife, the champion. “We play together in a home game all the time,” Meyers said later. “Now, when I play against her from now on, I have to remember that I’m playing against a world champion – and when she raises me I’ll have to fold my hand.”

Mary Jones Meyer was even more ecstatic. Visibly shaking and unable to speak in the moments immediately following her stunning victory, the 2006 Ladies World Champion finally caught her breath. “This is the second-happiest moment of my life,” she said.

To know and appreciate what the happiest moment of Mary Jones Meyer’s life has been so far, all one had to do was glance across the arena at a smiling, joyful husband with an unmistakable twinkle in his eye.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #15):
Total Entries to Date: 16,476
Total Prize Money Distributed: $ 26,710,492

Poker Headlines - Tuesday, July 11

Internet poker could net US billions in tax: study - Reuters via Yahoo! News

Poker ad oops a blatant violation - winnipegsun.com

Players Network and Alta Loma to Co-Produce 'Playboy's Women of Poker' TV Series - PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance

Bluff Media Announces Sponsors of World Series of Poker Radio Broadcast - PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance

This Year's World Series of Poker is Expected to be an Estimated $10 Million Prize Pool - PR Web via Yahoo! News

Online Poker Room to Give Away Orange County Choppers bike - Bluff Magazine

Poker face Wayne dealt a dream hand to Las Vegas - Sheffield Today

Borgata Summer Poker Open Is Back on Track - CardPlayer.com

Irish Online Poker Qualifiers Rule the Tables - Big OC News

Robot poker player ups the ante - VNUNet.com

Taking a gamble on the poker craze - The Sunday Times

WSOP Event 14 - $1,000 no-limit hold'em rebuy

Allen Cunningham Wins Fourth Gold Bracelet, Second in Two Years

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 752
Number of Re-Buys: 1,670
Total Prize Money: $2,317,887
Defending Champion (2005): Maciek Gracz

Official Results:
1. Allen Cunningham, Ventura, CA, $625,830
2. David “Chino” Rheem, Los Angeles, CA, $327,981
3. “Captain” Tom Franklin, Gulfport, MS, $185,431
4. Steve Wong, Hoofddorp, Netherlands, $162,252
5. John Q. Hoang, Fountain Valley, CA, $139,073
6. Thien “Tim” Phan, Arcadia, CA, $115,894
7. Everett Carlton, St Paul, MN, $92,715
8. Andy Bloch, Las Vegas, NV, $69,537
9. Alex Jacob, Parkland, FL, $46,358
10. Illya Trincher, New York, NY, $25,497
11. Chris Loveland, Hollis, NH, $25,497
12. Joseph Davis, El Paso, TX, $25,497
13. Adam J. Naglich, Las Vegas, NV, $20,861
14. David Wells, Chicago, IL, $20,861
15. “Miami John” Cernuto, Las Vegas, NV, $20,861
16. Elmer Lynn, Alexandria, VA, $16,225
17. Kenna James, Las Vegas, NV, $16,225
18. Sammy Arzoin, Flushing, NY, $16,225
19. Joe Leibman, NA, $11,589
20. Sean Picquelle, Costa Mesa, CA, $11,589
21. Chip Jett, Las Vegas, NV, $11,589
22. Tong Agouga, NA, $11,589
23. Josh Tieman, Bloomingdale, IL, $11,589
24. Amir Vahedi, Sherman Oaks, CA, $11,589
25. John Juanda, Las Vegas, NV, $11,589
26. Nam Le, Huntington Beach, CA, $11,589
27. Maciek Gracz, Raleigh, NC, $11,589
28. Conor Tate, Manchester, UK, $8,113
29. Roger Barlow, Center Point, AL, $8,113
30. Paul Snead, Kings Park, NY, $8,113
31. Joseph D. Reitman, Los Angeles, CA, $8,113
32. Kyle Wilson, Surrey, British Colombia, Canada, $8,113
33. Daniel Schmaech, Houston, TX, $8,113
34. Kathy Liebert, Las Vegas, NV, $8,113
35. James Mordue, Los Angeles, CA, $8,113
36. Blair Rodman, Las Vegas, NV, $8,113
37. Amy Tsao, Houston, TX, $6,722
38. Ron Long, Fort Wayne, IN, $6,722
39. Sigurd Andreas Eskeland, Oslo, Norway, $6,722
40. Eddie Zakaria, Windsor, ONT, Canada, $6,722
41. Jesse Martin, Shrewsbury, MA, $6,722
42. Huck Seed, Las Vegas, NV, $6,722
43. Ben Armstrong, Tulsa, OK, $6,722
44. Steve Zolotow, Las Vegas, NV, $6,772
45. Sudo Le, San Jose, CA, $6,722
46. Robert A. Cash, Gladstone, MO, $5,447
47. Steven Rosen, Armonk, PA, $5,447
48. Allen Kessler, Huntington Valley, PA, $5,447
49. Mark Scott, Las Vegas, NV, $5,447
50. Michael Wiggins, Brandon, FL, $5,447
51. Steve Duncker, New York, NY, $5,447
52. Paolo Grossi, Reggio Emilia, $5,447
53. Barry Greenstein, NA, $5,447
54. Gioi Luong, Westminster, CA, $5,447
55. Frank Sinopoli, Hollywood, FL, $4,636
56. Philip S. Gordon, Las Vegas, NV, $4,636
57. Tad Jurgens, Chandler, AZ, $4,636
58. Humberto Brenes, Coral Gables, FL, $4,636
59. Behzad Teravle, Los Angeles, CA, $4,636
60. Champie Douglas, Las Vegas, NV, $4,636
61. Stuart Patterson, Boca Raton, FL, $4,636
62. Annand Ramdin, Bronx, NY, $4,636
63. Anders Berg, Oslo, Norway, $4,636
64. Jay Mecklinger, Toronto, NA, Canada, $4,056
65. Brandon Schaefer, Seattle, WA, $4,056
66. Mimi Tran, NA, $4,056
67. Nicholas Niergarth, Elilhorn, WI, $4,056
68. Gary Haglund, Colorado Springs, CO, $4,056
69. William Brooks, South Lake, TX, $4,056
70. Henry Law, El Monte, CA, $4,056
71. Anahit Galajian, Glendale, CA, $2,028
72. Jim Bechtel, Gilbert, AZ, $2,028
73. Scott Lazar, Studio City, Ca, $2,028
74. Scott Manzi, Miami Beach, FL, $2,028

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The loudest poker personalities may get the fame, but the most skilled players get the money. Allen Cunningham is neither loud, nor famous. In fact, he is usually the quietest poker player in the room. But he is most certainly a skilled consummate poker professional, and he sure gets the money. Lots of money.

Cunningham topped a highly-competitive field of 752 players in the $1,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em world championship at the 2006 World Series of Poker. He won a whopping $625,830 in prize money. The victory marked the fourth time the 29-year-old poker professional from southern California has won a WSOP title.

This was the first tournament of this year’s World Series with re-buys. All other tournaments played thus far have been single-elimination freeze outs. The 1,670 re-buys in this event helped to generate a total prize pool of $2,317,887. After two lengthy days of play, the nine finalists took the illuminated stage at the Rio Casino in front of a packed gallery and ESPN television cameras on hand to film the exciting finale.

The final table started off with “Captain” Tom Franklin and Tim Phan sharing a considerable substantial chip lead over the rest of the field. Of the final nine, only Franklin and Cunningham were former gold bracelet winners. Franklin won his WSOP title back in 1999 (Limit Omaha). Cunningham’s WSOP victories came in 2001 (Seven-Card Stud), 2002 (Deuce to Seven Lowball), and 2005 (No-Limit Hold’em).

Alex Jacob, $106,000, 1
Allen Cunningham, $234,000, 2
Tim Phan, $551,000, 3
Everett Carlton, $86,000, 4
John Hoang, $274,000, 5
Captain Tom Franklin, $590,000, 6
Steve Wong, $295,000, 7
David Rheem, $145,000, 8
Andy Bloch, $157,000, 9

Alex Jacob’s stay at the final table was short, and not so sweet. On the seventh hand of play, Jacob was down to his last 30,000 in chips after losing a big pot and called an all-in bet with ten-nine. Andy Bloch had ace-king. The flop came with two aces and Jacob was drawing dead. It was an ugly ten minutes. Alex Jacob, a Yale graduate, pocketed $46,358 as the first player out.

There has been some discussion in recent weeks about the best poker players never to have won a WSOP gold bracelet. Such a short list would certainly include Andy Bloch, both an MIT and Harvard Law School graduate who has used his considerable mental talents to earn money playing poker in recent years. Bloch, who won an event on last year’s WSOP Circuit (which awards gold and diamond rings, by the way – not gold bracelets), was never able to establish any momentum and ended up going out in eighth place. Bloch lost his remaining chips with pocket nines against Allen Cunningham’s ace-queen. An ace flopped, and Bloch failed to improve. Bloch knocked off $67,537.

Allen Cunningham took out another player when his ace-ten whipped out Everett Carlton’s king-jack. Cunningham made two pair, smoking Carlton’s chances of victory. This was Carlton’s second time to cash at the WSOP. Interestingly, Carlton first took up poker seriously when he was recovering from surgery in the hospital and saw it being played on TV. Little did he know back then, that he’d appear at an ESPN final table and make $92,715 in prize money.

Tim Phan went out next when his ace-queen suited was covered by Chino Rheem’s ace-king. Neither player made a pair, so the ace-king played and Vietnamese-born Phan was out. The Westminster, CA-based poker player collected $115,894.

With Allen Cunningham holding the chip lead, John Q. Hoang made a bold move with an all-in raise (his last 240,000) holding seven-six in the small blind. The fearless steal attempt failed when Tom Franklin called instantly and showed ace-queen. Hoang missed completely and was bounced off of the final table. Hoang, who was the runner up in last week’s Seven-Card Stud championship, took fifth place this time, good for $139.073.

Dutch player Steve Wong was eliminated in fourth place when he tried to bluff at a 500,000 pot holding an ace-high and a backdoor flush draw. Chino Rheem wasn’t going anywhere with his flopped set of sixes. He made the easy call and scooped Wong’s last chip. Wong collected $162,252.

“Captain” Tom Franklin set his sights on winning gold bracelet Number Two. He looked to be the early favorite, but lost the chip lead to Allen Cunningham and never fully recovered. Franklin, who holds two college degrees, served with the US armed forces in Vietnam, and also plays the drums was pounded on his final hand of the night when he flopped top pair, but lost when Chino Rheems completed a flush. “Captain” Tom Franklin was honorably discharged in third place, which paid $185,431.

The Cunningham-Rheems heads-up match lasted for nearly three hours. The most decisive hand of play took place early in the bout when Cunningham seized the chip lead. On the key hand, Cunningham raised 50,000 pre-flop, Rheem re-raised to 250,000 and Cunningham moved all-in. Rheem called. When Cunningham flipped over pocket queens against Rheems’ ace-queen, the crowd sensed an immediate momentum shift. An ace would have ended the tournament and crowned Rheems the champion. But alas, the ace did not come and Cunningham won the big pot.

It took another 50 hands or so before Cunningham finally polished off his persistent rival. Rheem was getting low on chips and tried to make a sneaky pre-flop move holding jack-nine. Cunningham called the all-in raise with ace-queen and caught a gratuitous ace on the river to make a pair. David “Chino” Rheem, a 26-year-old poker pro from Miami, Florida received $327,981 in his first WSOP final table appearance.

True to his character, Allen Cunningham’s life story is unpretentious. He was a straight A-student at UCLA when he discovered his hidden talent for poker playing. While pursuing a degree in civil engineering, he started playing the game more seriously and began making money. In 1999, Cunningham enjoyed a breakthrough year in tournament poker – coincidently the same year that emerging rivals Phil Ivey, John Juanda, and Daniel Negreanu invaded the poker scene and began winning millions. In historical retrospect, Cunningham was part of a revolutionary movement in the game of poker, away from older, more traditional players towards younger, inventive new champions.

With this victory, Cunningham moved into elite poker territory. He joins nine players who have also won four WSOP gold bracelets – a list which currently includes Mickey Appleman, Bobby Baldwin, David Chiu, Artie Cobb, Tom McEvoy, Scotty Nguyen, Puggy Pearson, Amarillo Slim Preston, and Huck Seed.

At age 29, Cunningham is one of only four other players to win at least four gold bracelets before turning 30. The others were Stu Ungar, Phil Hellmuth, Jr., Layne Flack, and Phil Ivey.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #14):
Total Entries to Date: 14,596
Total Prize Money Distributed: $23,366,125

WSOP Event 13 - $2,500 no-limit hold'em

Milan poker pro scores for $382,389 on same day Italy wins World Cup

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 1,290
Total Prize Money: $2,967,000
Defending Champion (2005): Farzad Bonyadi

Official Results:
1. Max Pescatori, Milan, Italy, $682,389
2. Anthony Reategui, Chandler, AZ, $356,040
3. Justin Pechie, Thompson, CT, $206,207
4. Michael Scott Lesle, Lake Elsinore, CA, $148,350
5. Corey Cheresnick, Coral Springs, FL, $118,680
6. Tri Ma, Houston, TX, $103,845
7. Mike Matusow, Las Vegas, NV, $89,010
8. Terrence Chan, Vancouver, Canada, $74,175
9. Matt Heintschel, Escondido, CA, $66,758
10. William Lin, Denver, CO, $59,340
11. David Derringer, Louisville, KY, $54,890
12. Sarah Bilney, Canberra, Australia, $50,439
13. Larry Weinberg, Aptos, CA, $45,989
14. Melissa Hayen, Las Vegas, NV, $41,538
15. David Chiu, Rowland Hts, CA, $37,088
16. Jay Fung, Boca Raton, FL, $32,637
17. Ylon Schwartz, Brooklyn, NY, $28,187
18. Richard Osborne, Martinez, CA, $23,736
19. Joe McGowan, La Quinta, CA, $19,286
20. Jerry Denicholas, Tampa, FL, $19,286
21. Jose Torres, Hollywood, FL, $19,286
22. Erick Lindgren, Las Vegas, NV, $19,286
23. Chris Chung, Irvine, CA, $19,286
24. Joe Cassidy, Costa Mesa, CA, $19,286
25. Farzad Rouhani, Gaithensburg, MD, $19,286
26. Mark Bonsack, Maple Valley, WA, $19,286
27. Flex Bolotin, Brooklyn, NY, $19,286
28. Sam Grizzle, Las Vegas, NV, $14,835
29. Michael Berra, St. Louis, MO, $14,835
30. Danny Fuhs, Las Vegas, NV, $14,835
31. Jamie Pickering, Surfers Paradise, Australia, $14,835
32. Nathan Meyvis, Bloomfield Hills, MI, $14,835
33. Jenny Kang, Portland, OR, $14,835
34. Elliot Dornbusch, Aventura, FL, $14,835
35. Steve Numoto, Hayward, CA, $14,835
36. Luzhe Zhang, Vienna, Austria, $14,835
37. Timothy Stearns, Burbank, CA, $11,868
38. Steven C. Hoefs, Avalon, CA, $11,868
39. David Plastik, Las Vegas, NV, $11,868
40. Allen Pock, Fullerton, CA, $11,868
41. Adam Harrington, Albuquerque, NM, $11,868
42. Stephen Gin, North York, Canada, $11,868
43. Joanne Liu, Las Vegas, NV, $11,868
44. Steven Cohn, Friendswood, TX, $11,868
45. Russ Salzer, Hollywood, FL, $11,868
46. Scott Fischman, Las Vegas, NV, $8,901
47. Eric Froehlich, Springfield, VA, $8,901
48. Alex Shin, Los Angeles, CA, $8,901
49. Ricky Green, Austin, TX, $8,901
50. Zack Ballenger, Dallas, TX $8,901
51. Kenneth K. Lee, Oakton, VA, $8,901
52. Mark Wilds, Biloxi, MS, $8,901
53. Roy Thung, White Plains, NY, $8,901
54. Seth Berger, Malbern, PA, $8,901
55. Neil Florin, Miami, FL, $7,418
56. Mike Bradshaw, Eagle, ID, $7,418
57. Fred Goldberg, Hollywood, FL, $7,418
58. Daryn Firicano, Woburn, MA, $7,418
59. Quim Do, Los Angeles, CA, $7,418
60. Frank Digiacomo, Palm City, FL, $7,418
61. Richard Sharpe, Henderson, NV, $7,418
62. Kevin Nathan, Roseville, CA, $7,418
63. Men "The Master" Nguyen, Bell Gardens, CA, $7,418
64. Dustin S. Pattonson, Edinburg, TX, $5,934
65. Joel Criste, San rafael, CA, $5,934
66. Kurt Paseka, Bayside, NY, $5,934
67. Tony Cousineau, Daytona Beach, FL, $5,934
68. Kevin Ho, Gainesville, FL, $5,934
69. Jonathan Friedberg, Las Vegas, NV, $5,934
70. Andrew Kurita, Brooklyn, NY, $5,934
71. Derek Dix, Chico, CA, $5,934
72. Eric Hicks, Scottsdale, AZ, $5,934
73. Salvatore Passariello, Las Vegas, NV, $5,934
74. Matthew Ing, Honolulu, HI, $5,934
75. Ariel Schneller, Blacksburg, VA, $5,934
76. Doug Sanders, Calgary, Canada, $5,934
77. Keith Hawkins, Middleton, UK, $5,934
78. Harry D. Scannell, Dearborn Heights, MI, $5,934
79. Garrett Patrick, Aspen, CO, $5,934
80. Mike Brown, Springdale, AZ, $5,934
81. Davie Minto, Alamogordo, NM, $5,934
82. Marcello Cabrera, Visalia, CA, $4,451
83. Joel Nichols, Marion, OH, $4,451
84. Tyler Herdklotz, San Diego, CA, $4,451
85. Jimmie Smith, Norman, OK, $4,451
86. David Raby, Sweetwater, TX, $4,451
87. Greg Violette, Henderson, NV, $4,451
88. Jay Minor, Indianapolis, IN, $4,451
89. Bao Dong, Allen, TX, $4,451
90. Dan Bates, Nacogdoches, TX, $4,451
91. Steve Day, Edmonds, WA, $4,451
92. Scott Bohlman, Homer Glen, IL, $4,451
93. Brian Hub, San Jose, CA, $4,451
94. Aidiliy Elviro, Miramar, FL, $4,451
95. Minh Ly, Las Vegas, NV, $4,451
96. Brian Wideman, St. Louis, MO, $4,451
97. John Hurst, Dallas, TX, $2,671
98. Leonard Demehak, Streetsboro, OH, $2,671
99. Musa Mustafa, Hickory Hills, IL, $2,671
100. Allie Prescott, Memphis, TN, $2,670
101. Dwight Derringer, Louisville, KY, $2,670

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – When Italian soccer star Fabio Grosso smashed the winning kick past French goalkeeper Fabien Barthez in Berlin’s Olympiastadion to win the 2006 World Cup for Italy, Max Pescatori was half a world away madly celebrating. The Milan-born Pescatori was posted in front of a big-screen television along with dozens of his fellow countrymen in a Las Vegas bar, cheering the Italian national soccer team to victory. Pescatori was so euphoric that he was late for another appointment later that day.

The appointment just so happened to be a seat at the final table in the $2,500 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em championship at the Rio. Never mind that a whopping $689,382 in cash and a gold bracelet was at stake for first place. The World Series of Poker gives away millions of dollars in prize money every single day. But Italy wins the World Cup only once in a generation.
Does karma exist? Some players will swear to it. Max Pescatori certainly believes it – especially now. After seeing his beloved Italy win international sport’s most coveted trophy, Pescatori knew that this was going to be his big day. Nicknamed “The Italian Pirate” for his scruffy bandanna-capped buccaneer-look, Pescatori swash buckled through 1,290 entrants in three days and ended up winning his first-ever WSOP title. For Pescatori, the win was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.
“I have been playing poker for a very long time,” Pescatori said afterward. “I have won other big tournaments including a few on the WSOP Circuit -- but never at the World Series of Poker. To win this bracelet for me is very special, especially on the same day that my Italy won.”

After 1,281 players were eliminated during the first two days of tournament play, Pescatori arrived at the final table ranked third in the chip count. The early chip leader was Anthony Reategui, fittingly one of two former WSOP gold bracelet winners of the final nine. Superstar Internet pro Terrence Chan arrived second. Colorful poker personality Mike “the Mouth” Matusow (with two gold bracelets) started Day Three in the middle of the pack.

Max Pescatori, $464,000, 1
Justin Pechie, $357,000, 2
Tri Ma, $117,000, 3
Mike Matusow, $335,000, 4
Anthony Reategui, $959,000, 5
Matt Heintschel, $116,000, 6
Corey Cheresnick, $249,000, 7
Terrence Chan, $494,000, 8
Michael Lesle, $146,000, 9

Matt Heintschel must not have been Italian. The private contractor from Escondido, California arrived as the lowest stack and went out on a peculiar hand when his ace-eight was topped by his opponent’s identical hand. Four diamonds came on board and Heintschel held two clubs. His opponent had a diamond, which completed the flush. Heintschel’s fate was sealed. Ninth place paid $66,758.

Terrence Chan’s 55-minutes at the final table were a complete nightmare. Competing at his first WSOP final table, Chan barely dragged a chip and went out with ace-king against pocket fours. Chan failed to make a pair and was eliminated. Chan, who regularly plays in the biggest online cash games in the world (and is quite successful at it), received $74,175 for eighth place.

One of poker’s most animated characters went out next. Unusually subdued for a final table, Mike ‘the Mouth” Matusow was silent much of the time and went broke holding top pair (tens) when his opponent flopped two pair (tens and nines). Matusow later complained that he was not feeling well, which perhaps explained the restrained behavior and sub-par finish. Matusow’s prize money amounted to $89,010.

About two hours into play, Anthony Reategui went on a tear. He busted the next three players. Tri “Chico” Ma was eliminated in sixth place when his ace-queen suited was busted by Reategui’s pocket aces. Ma was drawing slim from the start, and drawing dead by the turn. Vietnamese-born Ma, now living in Houston, earned $103,845.
Reategui’s next victim was Corey Cheresnick. The Florida-based poker pro who also holds a Masters in accounting, went out with ace-eight, which lost to a Reategui’s straight. Cheresnick added $118,680 to his poker bankroll.

Michael Scott Lesle was the next player to enter Reategui’s meat grinder. Lesle moved all-in with king-queen suited, and was called down by Reategui holding ace-five. The chip leader flopped a five and Lesle failed to catch a pair. Michael Scott Lesle, who finished fourth at a WSOP final table back in 2003, took fourth place again this time, earning $148,350 in prize money.

Just when it looked like Reategui might end things quick -- the wind blew, the skies opened, and the storms came. Reategui started off three-way play with a 4 to 1 chip lead over Justin Pechie. Max Pescatori’s situation looked even worse. Pescatori was out-chipped by a 7 to 1 margin.

Big comebacks usually start with seemingly benign beginnings. Max Pescatori’s self-confidence was boosted when he made an extraordinary call against Pechie. On a board showing 10-7-2-Q-10, Pechie made a large river bet and Pescatori thought for several minutes before calling with king-nine – no pair (just king high). Pechie mucked his hand, Pescatori raked in the chips, the crowd started cheering, and the tournament ground rumbled, foreshadowing the earthquake that was later to come.

Justin Pechie went all-in about a half hour later holding pocket sixes. Pescatori called with pocket eights. The ground shook when both players flopped a set. But Pechie’s cheering section went silent when it was realized that the flopped six was no good, since the Italian had also hit his pair. When Pescatori spiked a fourth eight on the river – good for quads – the final nail in Pechie’s tournament coffin was pounded. Justin Pechie, a poker pro from Connecticut, received $206,207 for third place.

The final hour of play was a stunning reversal of fortune. Anthony Reategui, just one lone opponent away from winning his second gold bracelet, watched in hopeless frustration as every major pot of the last 30 or so hands went in Pescatori’s favor. Reategui, the champion of last year’s $1000 buy-in No-Limit Shootout, must have felt like the poor French goalkeeper earlier in the day, desperately trying to fend off Pescatori perfectly-placed shots.

The game winner came when Pescatori was dealt jack-eight suited against Reategui’s queen-ten off-suit. The flop came 10-7-6. Reategui moved all-in with the top pair (tens) and Pescatori called with an inside-straight draw. A blank on the turn helped neither player.

Then, the inevitable Italian thing happened. Before the final chapter in Pescatori’s dream day is revealed, it must be divulges that in the Italian language, “PESCATOR” means fisherman. Max Pescatori was certainly fishing for his tournament life, a nine on the river -- which is exactly what he caught, thus making the straight and ending the tournament. Pescatori reeled in a nine on the river, and the blue-shirted gallery rooting on their fellow countryman broke out in wild celebration for the second time in a day. Runner up Anthony Reategui collected $346,040. Max Pescatori won $682,389.

“Nothing can beat this. For me, this is incredible,” Pescatori said. “I told all my friends that they have to watch for Italy to win (the World Cup) and then afterward to cheer for me on the Internet to win here at the World Series. This is the greatest day of my life.”

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #13):
Total Entries to Date: 14,596
Total Prize Money Distributed: $23,366,125

Poker Headlines - Monday, July 10

Normally, I would feel compelled to make some sort of comment on a story about a poker site entering a monkey into the WSOP, but ... yeah ... it pretty much speaks for itself. Actually, though, I'm kind of hoping the monkey wins.

PokerShare's Monkey Business At World Series Of Poker - Online Gambling Insider

Watching poker now all about player's heart - Reno Gazette-Journal

Star-Studded Field Tops 1,100 at World Series of Poker Ladies Tournament - Boursorama

More than 1,100 enter ladies event at World Series of Poker - KESQ

Is poker a game of skill or chance? One pub landlord bets his freedom on skill - Independent

Summer in the city: Poker, strippers, water quality at issue - The Union Leader

A Magic (Johnson!) Night of Poker, Players & Stars - Gambling911.com

Women Only: Hollywood Poker's 'Diamonds' to Debut at WSOP - PokerNews.com

Poker draws new faces - Long Beach Press-Telegram

Unmasking the poker face - Houston Chronicle

World Poker Tour(R) Chosen Sports Brand License of the Year at International Licensing Excellence Awards - PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance

Schwartz earns berth at World Series of Poker - Today's News-Herald

One of the Largest Online Charity Poker Events Ever August 7 - PR Web

WSOP Event 11 - $1,500 limit hold'em

Canadian businessman takes top prize in Limit Hold’em championship, earns $258,344

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 701
Total Prize Money: $956,865
Defending Champion (2005): Reza Payvar

Official Results:
1. Bob “Big Red” Chalmers, Vancouver, BC, $258,344
2. Tam Ho Las, Vegas, NV, $135,396
3. Warren Woolridge, London, UK, $76,549
4. Thanh Nguyen, Kent, WA, $66,981
5. Doug Saab, Trussville, AL, $57,412
6. Jan Sjavik, Oslo, Norway, $47,843
7. Graham Duke, Kitchener, ON, $38,275
8. Bob Bartmann, Stillwater, OK, $28,706
9. David Calla, Farmingville, NY $16,137
10. Michelle Lancaster, Avon, CT, $10,526
11. Adam Smith, Mansfield, TX, $10,526
12. David Baker, Katy, TX, $10,526
13. Zack Fritz, Las Vegas, NV, $8,612
14. Alan Steinberg, Gardena, CA, $8,612
15. Guy Cicconi, Chadds Ford, PA, $8,612
16. Robert Lee Addison, Santa Barbara, CA, $6,698
17. Bobby Law, Chetek, WI, $6,698
18. Sasson E. Eliyaho, Holon, Israel, $6,698
19. Matthew Hilger, Atlanta, GA, $4,784
20. Lawrence Wein, Los Angeles, CA, $4,784
21. Peter Inglis, Erie, CO, $4,784
22. Edwin Bob Roth, Saratoga, CA, $4,784
23. Joseph Sebok, RPV, CA, $4,784
24. Phuong C Nguyen, Auburn, WA, $4,784
25. Jason Eakes, Las Vegas, NV, $4,784
26. Ryan McGuire, Las Vegas, NV, $4,784
27. Richard Joel, Conyers, GA, $4,784
28. Derek Andrew, Henderson, NV, $3,349
29. Richard Okazaki, Honolulu, HI, $3,349
30. Robert Willis, Mallow, Ireland, $3,349
31. Adam Wallace, Edmonton, Canada, $3,349
32. Jeffrey Heiberg, Buffalo, WY, $3,349
33. Gregory Weldon, Toms River, NJ, $3,349
34. Andreas Hagen, Slavanger, Norway, $3,349
35. Donnie Sitic, Las Vegas, NV, $3,349
36. Christopher Ziajka, Naples, FL, $3,349
37. Doug Ikeda, Lavergne, TX, $2,775
38. Steve Del Borrell, Laurel Pg, MD, $2,775
39. Dawson Dvorak, Lincoln, NE, $2,775
40. Tom McCormick, Fargo, ND, $2,775
41. Harold Lockwood, Jr., Weathorford, TX, $2,775
42. Carlo Citrone, UK, $2,775
43. Steven Diano, Las Vegas, NV, $2,775
44. Barbara Candin, Tampa, FL, $2,775
45. Benjamin Williams, San Antonio, TX, $2,775
46. Daniel Anderson, N Pomona, CA, $2,249
47. Kevin Daniel, Newnan, GA, $2,249
48. Anthony Pirone, Watertown, MA, $2,249
49. Alexander Vuong, RPV, CA, $2,249
50. John Hurst, Dallas, TX, $2,249
51. Chris Hartman, Fairbanks, Alaska, $2,249
52. Gary Gosewehn, Port Washington, WI, $2,249
53. Christopher Lamell, Deer Park, TX, $2,249
54. Rory Duncan, Calgary, Canada, $2,249
55. Chris Bell, Raleigh, NC, $1,914
56. Gevin Trung Diep, Gilroy, CA, $1,914
57. Michael Shanahan, Sendia, GA, $1,914
58. Richard Sweetman, Londonberry, NH, $1,914
59. Jeff Mervis, Las Vegas, NV, $1,914
60. Alex Morteh, Las Vegas, NV, $1,914
61. Raul Paez, Barcelona, Spain, $1,914
62. Randy McKay, Finley, ND, $1,914
63. Jose Torres, Hollywood, FL, $1,914
64. Brent Shaw, Langley, BC, Canada, $1,675
65. Tanya Bui, San Jose, CA, $1,675
66. Cliff Flachsenhar, Belgrade, MT, $1,675
67. Michael Schultz, Atascadero, CA, $1,675
68. Paul Taylor, Cathedral City, CA, $1,675
69. Claude Sanders, Houston, TX, $1,675
70. Rovert Gilbert, Laurel, MD, $1,675
71. Emil Gunnarson, Sweden, $1,675
72. Peter Nathan, Las Vegas, NV, $1,675

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Those who have never played poker for big money often fail to appreciate the physical and emotional sacrifice that it takes to win. Winning poker is work, not play. Unfortunately, television frequently portrays poker as an effortless game. There are no clocks which display the drawn-out passage of time. Hundreds of arduous hands are edited out. The players’ mental and physical dexterity is impossible to calculate.

Bob Chalmers embodies the type of player who approaches poker as a test of both will and patience. The 56-year-old business consultant from Vancouver, British Columbia vanquished 700 challengers in the $1,500 buy-in Limit Hold’em world championship. Chalmers, nicknamed “Big Red” for his distinctive auburn-tinged crest, won his first World Series of Poker gold bracelet. Chalmers’ extensive business background served him well at this final table.

“What I realized from playing at this final table is that it takes a lot of work to win,” Chalmers said in a post-tournament interview. “Sure, some luck helps. But, it’s really hard work. There was not a time when I was not thinking of my stay at the final table as like working. It seemed like a long time. The easy thing for me was to understand that (winning) wasn’t going to happen in just a hand or two, but it rather would be a process that took time -- so I looked at it that way.”

Indeed, Chalmers was “all business” on this night. His $1,500 investment paid of handsomely, to the tune of $258,344 as the top cash prize.

Several new faces made it to the final table for the first time. The only former WSOP gold bracelet winner present was Doug Saab, who arrived second in the chip count. Fittingly, the early chip leader was Chalmers, who enjoyed the chip advantage during much of the nine-hour final table.

David Calla, $147,000, 1
Thanh Nguyen, $72,000, 2
Bob Bartmann, $64,000, 3
Jan Sjavik, $37,000, 4
Bob Chalmers, $175,000, 5
Doug Saab, $150,000, 6
Graham Duke, $184,000, 7
Tam Ho, $149,000, 8
Warren Wooldridge, $74,000, 9

David Calla certainly wasn’t intimidated by the pressure of playing at his first-ever WSOP final table. After all, Calla is a New York City police detective, accustomed to some unusual demands. Calla went card-dead from the start. His initial 148,000 stack was blinded down, and at betting limits of 6,000-12,000, Calla moved his remaining chips into the pot holding king-queen suited. Graham Duke called and showed jack-ten suited. A ten flopped and Calla was discharged as the ninth place finisher. He received $16,137.

Bob Bartman was also making his first final table appearance. The Oklahoman went out when he was forced to play a weak hand from the small blind and was beaten by Jan Sjavik’s pair of eights. Bartman collected $28,706.

Just two hands later, Graham Duke was eliminated. Duke went out with queen-seven, good for top pair after the flop came 7-3-2. Doug Saab faded the all-in bet holding an overpair (pocket tens). Duke failed to improve which locked the software developer into seventh place. He earned $38,275.

A top European player, Jan Sjavik holds a poker record which is unlikely ever to be matched. Back in 2002, Sjavik won ten super-satellite entries into the main event of the WSOP. No player on record has ever won more. Sjavik has also won No-Limit championships in London, and elsewhere. However, he could finish no higher than sixth place in this event. Sjavik went out on a draw (holding possibilities to both a straight and a flush), missing everything. His opponent had pocket kings, which held up. The Norwegian collected $47,843.

Doug Saab suffered a brutal final half-hour. His chip stack evaporated until the point came where Saab had to take some risks. He tripled up from a low stack before finally going bust with pocket threes versus Thanh Nguyen’s pocket kings. Threes versus kings produced the expected result and Saab drove off in fifth place. For former gold bracelet winner from Alabama earned $57, 412.

Thanh Nguyen went out in fourth place on a hand where his cards were not revealed. Two players split up Nguyen’s chips holding pairs of aces. Nguyen, the Vietnamese-born engineer and consultant from Washington State, picked up $66,981 in prize money.

The next decisive hand took place when Bob Chalmers scooped a monster-size pot. On a final board showing A-A-4-4-A, Chalmers raised Warren Woolridge on the final round, got called, and flipped over an ace – good for quad aces. Prior to that hand, Woolridge held a brief chip lead. That hand would prove to be the homestretch for Chalmers. He then set his sights on the finish line and outpaced his last two rivals over the next 45 minutes with aggressive play and keenly accurate decisions.

Warren Woolridge broke down in the final stages of the tournament, unable to recover from a series of tough spots and second-best hands. Woolridge was eliminated holding a less-than-satisfactory “ace-high,” which was steamrolled by Chalmers’ full-house. This was Woolridge’s third time to cash at the WSOP. He enjoyed his best finish yet in this tournament, third place – good for $76,549.

With slightly more than 1,000,000 in play and betting limits of 15,000-30,000 Bob Chalmers and Tam Ho started off heads-up play about even. From the onset, Chalmers seized control of the table. It took him only 28 minutes to commandeer every single chip off of Tam Ho’s stack. The final hand of the night came when Ho was all-in with ace-three (good for top pair) versus Chalmers’ queen-three (which made two pair). The final board showed K-Q-4-A-3 sealing Ho’s fate as the runner up and giving the proud Canadian his first WSOP victory. Ho collected $135,396 for second place.

As the new poker champion Chalmers sat down and did an interview carried live on Bluff Radio over the Sirius Satellite Radio Network, it became immediately obvious that winning would not change the man.

“I tell you, the money is fantastic,” Chalmers said. “I have a couple of friends that supported me (to play in this tournament). I will certainly share some of this with them….The gold bracelet is going to mean a lot to me in other areas – I mean nobody can put a bracelet on a WSOP bracelet. But – we do play poker for money.”

Spoken like a true businessman.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #12):
Total Entries to Date: 13,306
Total Prize Money Distributed: $20,399,125

WSOP Event 9 - $5,000 no-limit hold'em

Unknown takes down star-studded final table, denies Poker Brat tenth bracelet

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 622
Total Prize Money: $2,923,400
Defending Champion (2005): T.J. Cloutier

Official Results:
1. Jeff Cabanillas, Los Angeles, CA, $818,546
2. Phil Hellmuth, Jr., Palo Alto, CA, $423,893
3. Eugene Todd, Brooklyn, NY, $233,872
4. Marcel Luske, Amsterdam, Holland, $204,638
5. Isabelle Mercier, Montreal, Quebec, $175,404
6. Thomas Schreiber, Danielson, CT, $146,170
7. Douglas Carli, Alliance, OH, $116,936
8. Vinnie Vinh, Houston, TX, $87,702
9. Danny Smith, Folsom, CA, $58,468
10. Dang Trinh, Toronto, ON, $32,157
11. Thomas Fuller, Boulder, CO, $32,157
12. Keith Tilston, Austin, TX, $32,157
13. Tommy Vedes, Bullhead City, AZ, $26,311
14. Paul Wasicka, Westminster, CO $26,311
15. Conor Cornelius, Manchester, UK, $26,311
16. Robert Hollink, Groningen, Netherlands, $20,464
17. Van La Hung, Manhattan Beach, CA, $20,464
18. Joseph Toth, Sharpsville, PA, $20,464
19. Erik Cajelais, Mascovche, Quebec, $14,617
20. Michael McDonald, Wichita, KS, $14,617
21. Jean-Robert Bellande, Los Angeles, CA, $14,617
22. Michael McNeil, Wheeling, WV, $14,617
23. Stephen Crockett, Costa Mesa, CA, $14,617
24. Galen Kester, Senatobia, MS, $14,617
25. Wayne Boich, Las Vegas, NV, $14,617
26. Matt Wolf, New York, NY, $14,617
27. Danny Fuhs, Scottsdale, AZ, $14,617
28. Casey Kastle, Chicago, IL, $10,232
29. Richard Tatalovich, Scottsdale, AZ, $10,232
30. Dustin "Neverwin" Woolf, Los Angeles, CA, $10,232
31. Joe Monro, Beverly Hills, MI, $10,232
32. Thomas Koo, Burnaby, BC, $10,232
33. Carl Olsen, Seattle, WA, $10,232
34. Chad Brown, Los Angeles, CA, $10,232
35. Gabriel Thaler, NA, $10,232
36. Richard Freire, Miami, FL, $10,232
37. John Esposito, Las Vegas, NV, $8,770
38. Steven Prentky, Las Vegas, NV, $8,770
39. Shawn Chaconas, New York, NY, $8,770
40. Elton Beebe, Austin, TX, $8,770
41. Kostantin Anastasyadis, Amsterdam, Holland, $8,770
42. Scott Numato, Campbell, CA, $8,770
43. Robert Hume, Orlando, FL, $8,770
44. Jeffrey Freedman, Simi Valley, CA, $8,770
45. Nicholas Gibson, Windsor, England, $8,770
46. Marco Traniello, Las Vegas, NV, $7,309
47. Brian Wilson, Fort Myers, FL, $7,309
48. Brian Fleming, Bradenton, FL, $7,309
49. Rene Angelil, Henderson, NV, $7,309
50. Chau Giang, Las Vegas, NV, $7,309
51. Randy Haddox, Houston, TX, $7,309
52. Thomas D. McCormick, Fargo, ND, $7,309
53. Dewey Tomko, Winter Haven, FL, $7,309
54. Tom Roupe, Houston, TX, $7,309
55. Raymond Joll, Pittsburgh, PA, $5,847
56. Feming Chan, Cranbury, NJ, $5,847
57. Richard Mornick, Montclair, NJ, $5,847
58. Stanley Goldstein, Los Angeles, CA, $5,847
59. Scott Bohlman, Homer Glen, IL, $5,847
60. Robert Fox, Jr., Los Gatos, CA, $5,847
61. Brian Lesser, Weston, MA, $4,386
62. Michael Mizrachi, Hollywood, FL, $4,385
63. Eric Ford, Tigarel, OR, $4,385
64. John Roueto, Shellville, GA, $4,385

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – When Jeff Cabanillas first strolled through the doors of the mammoth Rio poker tournament room three days ago, few people recognized him. Few appreciated his talent. Fewer still gave him any chance whatsoever to win one of the toughest competitions in all of tournament poker -- the $5,000 buy-in no-limit hold’em event at the World Series of Poker.

Cabanillas is the epitome of all unknown poker players who walk through doors hoping that on this day, at this moment, this will be the tournament where everything changes. On July 4, 2006 Cabanillas took his seat along with 621 other aspiring champions to compete in an event rich in history and tradition. The list of previous event winners -- in what for years was been the second-toughest test in all of poker -- reveals the prominence of the title – Johnny Chan, Phil Hellmuth, and T.J. Cloutier, just to name a few.

Cabanillas won his way into this event through a single-table satellite. He played the best poker of his life and survived the first day. On Day Two, Cabanillas made it into the money. Then, ten hours later -- he was all set to return for the final table on Day Three. And so, the Cinderella story that started 22-years ago in East Los Angeles now continues.

Cabanillas, who attended Cal-State-Los Angeles and owned a cell phone store before becoming a low-stakes professional poker, was set to take a seat on poker’s grandest stage. When he sat down on the ESPN set in seat number five, few people recognized him. Few appreciated his talent. Fewer still gave him any chance whatsoever to win. But this would be the tournament where everything would change.

It was not just that Cabanillas won, but how he won and who he won it against. Phil Hellmuth – part icon, part bad boy, part poker legend, part egotistical leviathan -- all wrapped up into a towering 6-foot, 5-inch frame just that is just as psychologically as physically intimidating. Hellmuth, poker’s Goliath facing a sea of potential slayers, and one David in the end. Hellmuth enjoyed other advantages, too. It seemed almost everyone sitting in the huge gallery packed inside the Rio Convention Center was rooting for the nine-time WSOP gold bracelet winner. Many of the biggest names in poker sat right at ringside, including Johnny Chan and Doyle Brunson, who both distanced themselves from Hellmuth at last year’s World Series by winning their record-tenth gold bracelets. All were present to bear witness to poker history being made. In the end, the history they witnessed was a much different version that might have been expected.

It’s hard to say how much pressure was on young Cabanillas. In one sense, he may have been on both an emotional and financial freeroll, which allowed him to continue playing daring, but stress-free poker. After all, no one except a few close friends lost in the mob of Hellmuth worshippers expected the kid to win.

Fittingly, Hellmuth sat in the nine seat. It is a seat he has, at least symbolically sat in for three long years. After winning his last WSOP title in 2003, Hellmuth (with nine WSOP titles, currently second on the all-time list) was forced to take a backseat in the gold bracelet chase to longtime legendary rivals Chan and Brunson. Fact is, on this night Hellmuth had the weight of the world upon his shoulders. Every eye was on the captivating 1989 world poker champion – every second or every minute of every hand.

From the onset of play on Day Three, it appeared that chip leader Vinny Vinh would be Hellmuth’s biggest obstacle. Dutchman Marcel Luske, French-Canadian star Isabelle Mercier, and five other formidable opponents would also pose significant challenges.

In a World Series already packed with memorable moments – from Mike Sexton’s crowd-pleasing victory in the Tournament of Champions two weeks ago to Dutch Boyd’s conquest of world champ Joe Hachem a few days ago -- this final table was, quite frankly, as good as it gets. History, colorful personalities, and great poker – it was all there.

Vinny Vinh, $784,000, 1
Isabelle Mercier, $301,000, 2
Eugene Todd, $240,000, 3
Marcel Luske, $458,000, 4
Jeff Cabanillas, $275,000, 5
Douglas "Rico" Carli, $273,000, 6
Danny Smith, $117,000, 7
Thomas Schreiber, $200,000, 8
Phil Hellmuth, Jr., $461,000, 9

Unfortunately, Danny Smith did not get the chance to stay around long enough to witness much of the drama that would later unfold. Smith, a student from northern California was expelled from the final table and finished ninth. He received $58,468.

The next player to go out was a total shock. In a stunning reversal of fortune, the reckless Vinny Vinh, who had arrived with a substantial chip lead, squandered most of his chips off to Marcel Luske. Then, what chips remained went over to Phil Hellmuth. The backbreaker was when Vinh moved all-in with king-queen suited, which was bested by Hellmuth’s ace-ten after an ace flopped. Vinny Vinh, the flamboyant Vietnamese poker pro from Houston, collected $87,702 for a disappointing eighth-place finish.

Next, Douglas Carli went out when he was short-stacked and was forced to play a weaker hand than he would have liked under the circumstances. Jeff Cabanillas made a pair and knocked Carli off the stage. Douglas Carli, a retired stockbroker from Ohio, cashed out for $116,936.

Thomas Schrieber was eliminated in sixth place when his pocket sevens were cracked by the emerging table terminator, Cabanillas. The ultimate victor showed ace-king and made a straight. The retiree from Connecticut received $146,170.

Isabelle “No Mercy” Mercier was making her first-ever WSOP final table appearance after enjoying much success on the European circuit and at several major tournaments in the United States. The former attorney and casino host who formally worked at the Aviation Club in Paris took a few tough beats and ran card-dead during her last hour, resulting in a fifth-place finish. It was a mixed blessing for Mercier, who collected $175,404.

Marcel Luske’s hopes that this would be a breakthrough victory were dashed in what turned into a heartbreaker. Luske, who has won just about everything in poker except a WSOP title, seized the chip lead for a time before taking a number of beats that obliterated his chip castle. The Flying Dutchman few away in fourth place, good for $204,638.

In what would foreshadow an eventual duel of epic proportions, Jeff Cabanillas provided a hint of what was to come later when he bluffed Phil Hellmuth out of a monster-sized pot. After several rounds of cautious play, on the bluff hand the final board showed Q-J-9-7-6. With 400,000 in chips at stake, Cabanillas moved all-in for 600,000 more. Hellmuth thought long and hard before finally mucking his cards. When Cabanillas flipped over ace-king for no pair, the short fuse that is the Phil Hellmuth psyche was instantly lit. Hellmuth stood up and erupted, slamming his chair against the stage in an apparent rage more directed at himself for not following his razor sharp instincts. Hellmuth must have sensed the bluff for how he reacted afterwards, and was angry for not making what would have been a tough but courageous call. He would certainly regret that gaffe much later in the night.

All that stood in the way of a Cabanillas-Hellmuth heads-up match was Eugene Todd, who went out next. Todd moved all-in with top pair on his final hand and lost to an overpair. Todd, who is a stockbroker from Brooklyn, NY had to ‘fuhgetabout’ a victory. Instead, third place paid $233,872.

In what turned out to be the largest live audience in World Series history – hundreds of spectators encircled the stage. They were crammed a dozen deep around the stands. There was, quite simply, not an empty seat or free standing space anywhere within viewing distance of the final table. It was poker’s Times Square on New Years Eve.

Those sitting and standing in the crowd and listening over the global Sirius satellite radio network (Bluff Radio) who were expecting to see the 22-year old unknown crumble under the pressure playing against one of poker’s biggest superstars were in for a very long wait, and ultimately a shocking surprise.

Over the next fours hours, Hellmuth made a number of brilliant plays and took the chip lead several times. But just when it seemed Hellmuth might finish off his opponent, Cabanillas somehow managed to reverse the momentum and frustrate his opponent.

On a night with countless numbers of big hands and exciting moments, the finale was dealt out at just after midnight. Holding more than a 5 to 1 chip lead, Cabanillas called Hellmuth’s all-in move after the flop came 6-4-3 (with two diamonds). Cabanillas revealed five-three of diamonds, for a straight flush draw. Hellmuth showed five-four offsuit, good for a pair with a straight re-draw. Hellmuth caught another four on the turn, which only added to the drama of the final seconds of the tournament. The river card was red, which is exactly what Hellmuth saw when a diamond crashed to the felt. Cabanillas won $818,546 with a flush. Poker’s biggest name had been slain upon poker biggest stage by the least-likely of challengers. The final chapter in the Cinderella story had been written.

It was tough to predict just how many spectators in the crowd were present to see Hellmuth throw a temper tantrum versus making poker history. Many might have expected the nine-time champ to be an emotional basket case following such a crushing defeat. Instead, Hellmuth, who collected $423,983 as the runner-up, was extraordinarily considerate and complimentary. Even Hellmuth, who has seen just about everything in the world of poker, had to admit that Cabanillas had played an exemplary game and – as tough as it was to admit – probably deserved to win.

Tomorrow, when Jeff Cabanillas walks through the very same door, into the poker room at the Rio, with a shiny gold bracelet dangling from his right wrist, he will be perceived in a very different way by friend and foe alike. On July 6, 2006 a new era began for Cabanillas. His old life is now over. His new life has begun. He will be recognized and immortalized as the man who did what few have done, someone who met poker’s biggest test under the most trying of conditions, and won. Henceforth, Jeff Casalla will be remembered as a champion – forever.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #9):
Total Entries to Date: 10,862
Total Prize Money Distributed: $17,544,290

Poker Headlines - Friday, July 7

Pulse Monitors Peel Away at Poker Mystique - ABC News

Computer poker program sets its own Texas Hold'em strategy - PhysOrg

'Stacked' is poker mediocre - Louisville Courier-Journal

Yankees Bar poker comes up trumps - The News and Star

Gambling Commission wants clampdown on illegal poker games - ATE On-line

West willing to bet farm on single hand of poker - Calgary Sun

Todd Brunson Unveils ‘Team Brunson’ at the World Series of Poker 2006 - PR Web via Yahoo! News

Poker champs spitting chips - News Interactive

WSOP Event 8 - $2,000 Omaha high-low

Omaha High-Low Champ Rakes in $341,426

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 670
Total Prize Money: $1,219,400
Defending Champion (2005): Pat Poels

Official Results:
1. Jack Zwerner, Las Vegas, NV, $341,426
2. Florante "Rusty" Mandap, Norwalk, CA, $176,813
3. Jeff Madsen, Los Angeles, CA, $97,552
4. Cong Do, Brigantine, NJ, $85,358
5. Robert "Buzzsaw" Mangino, Schenectady, NY, $73,164
6. Robert Collins, Morgan Hill, CA, $60,970
7. Daniel Negreanu, Las Vegas, NV, $48,776
8. Russ Salzer, New York, NY, $36,582
9. Steve Lustig, San Jose, CA, $24,388
10. Alan Mittelman, Los Angeles, CA, $13,413
11. Huck Seed, Las Vegas, NV, $13,413
12. Niels Rock, Scarborough, ON, Canada, $13,413
13. Robert Turner, Downey, CA, $10,975
14. Jeffrey Green, Fort Myers, FL, $10,975
15. George Adams, Boston, MA, $10,975
16. Hany Sukkary, Carmichael, CA, $8,536
17. James Bates, Wildomar, CA, $8,536
18. Jesse Jones, N Las Vegas, NV, $8,536
19. Joseph Tehan, Las Vegas, NV, $6,097
20. Bob Feduniak, Las Vegas, NV, $6,097
21. Valentino Morella, Riverside, CA, $6,097
22. Joseph Tarabochia, Las Vegas, NV, $6,097
23. Andy Bloch, Las Vegas, NV, $6,097
24. Shane Keeter, Bakersfield, CA, $6,097
25. David Levi, Las Vegas, NV, $6,097
26. Morris Klevansky, Las Vegas, NV, $6,097
27. Rafi Amit, NA, $6,097
28. John Juanda, Las Vegas, NV, $4,268
29. Ron Ware, Tracy, CA, $4,268
30. Brian Nadell, Las Vegas, NV, $4,268
31. Shahram Sheikhan, Las Vegas, NV, $4,268
32. Jay Heimowitz, Bethel, NY, $4,268
33. Vince Oliver, Las Vegas, NV, $4,268
34. Terry Young, Lincoln, NE, $4,268
35. Steve Ontl, Maryville, IL, $4,268
36. Allen Thorpe, Veradale, WA, $4,268
37. Herbert Beck, Littleton, CO, $3,658
38. Farhad Alaaldin, London, England, $3,658
39. Arthur Cobb, Las Vegas, NV, $3,658
40. Brett Jungblut, Hollywood, CA, $3,658
41. Jesse Petrakis, Napa, CA, $3,658
42. Nick Polydoros, Anthem, AZ, $3,658
43. Martin Corpuz, Jr., Mountain View, CA, $3,658
44. W. Mark Mahan, Scottsdale, AZ, $3,658
45. Ralph Porter, Woodingville, WA, $3,658
46. Emilio Porco, Kalamazoo, MI, $3,049
47. Arturo Morgan, Davie, FL, $3,049
48. Richard Toker, Flint, MI, $3,049
49. Keith O'Hara, Carlsbad, CA, $3,049
50. Sheila Gralak, Clearwater, FL, $3,049
51. Richard Joel, Conyers, GA, $3,049
52. Al Morris "The Falcon", Pahrump, NV, $3,049
53. Allen Kessler, Huntington Valley, PA, $3,049
54. Scott Clements, Mount Vernon, WA, $3,049
55. Richard Eikov, Jr., Patchogue, NY, $2,439
56. Kevin Blakey, La Crescenta, CA, $2,439
57. Timmy Cha, La Habra, CA, $2,439
58. "Minneapolis" Jim Meehan, Las Vegas, NV, $2,439
59. Allen Kim, Los Angeles, CA, $2,439
60. Susie Genard, Santa Monica, $2,439
61. Colin Wickersheim, San Diego, $2,439
62. Michael Frey, Rougemont, NC, $1,220
63. Mickey Appleman, Fort Lee, NJ, $1,220
64. Donald Condit, Palms, CA, $1,219
65. Chris Reslock, Atlantic City, NJ, $1,219

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – There aren’t many things that Jack “Action” Zwerner hasn’t seen and done in the world of gambling. He’s the founder of the biggest bingo enterprise in America. He’s worked as a high-level casino executive for the (now imploded) Dunes, Caesar’s Palace, the Golden Nugget, and the Las Vegas Hilton. He’s hung out with everyone from Steve Wynn to Larry Flynt to Stu Ungar. And now, he’s won a World Series of Poker gold bracelet.

Zwerner topped a powerhouse field of 670 players en route to a $341,426 top prize. The $2,000 buy-in Omaha High-Low Split world championship lasted three long days, which concluded with the 58-year-old Las Vegan winning his first WSOP title.
It almost didn’t happen. Just days before the WSOP started, Zwerner admitted that he had no intention to play in the world’s largest and most prestigious poker tournament. Zwerner had not played in the World Series in nearly 15 years. But his 21-year-old son started taking an interest in poker and encouraged the elder Zwerner to enter and play this year. That turned out to be good advice. Immediately following his hard-fought, well-deserved win, Zwerner drove home to show his two grown children the gold bracelet. “My son started crying, he was so happy,” Zwerner said. “When I saw him crying, well I started crying, too.” Indeed, victory at the World Series of Poker brings fame, fortune – and tears of joy.

Zwerner’s victory was neither an upset nor a surprise. After all, he arrived at the final table as one of the largest stacks. The always-dangerous Daniel Negreanu was a close second. For only two brief moments at the final table, Zwerner did not have the chip lead.

Florante "Rusty" Mandap, $156,000, 1
Steve "Shooter" Lustig, $31,000, 2
Cong Do, $99,000, 3
Robert Collins, $156,000, 5
Bob "The Buzzsaw" Mangino, $165,000, 6
Russell "The Muscle" Salzer, $142,000, 7
Daniel Negreanu, $166,000, 8
Jack Zwerner, $189,000, 9

Steve Lustig went out quickly. Short-stacked, Lustig moved all-in with a strong low draw, holding A-2-3-5. The final board showed 9-8-7-7-7, no help to the low draw. Lustig, a casino manager from San Jose, CA (and former Chinese Poker World Champion) earned $24,388 for ninth place.

Russ “The Muscle” Salzer had a fabulous WSOP last year. He cashed several times, was second in the $5,000 buy-in Omaha High-Low event, and finished 29th in the main event. Salzer’s good fortune continued this year, although eighth place must have been less than satisfying. Salzer was eliminated in a three-way pot (hand not shown) and collected $36,582 in prize money.

After finishing in seventh place a few days earlier (six-handed no-limit hold’em), Negreanu hoped this tournament might be the opportunity to pick up a fourth gold bracelet. Instead, it ended with yet another disappointment – seventh place. Negreanu got low on chips and was all-in with two pair. He lost to a straight. “The Kid” collected $48,776.

Robert Collins went out next. This was the first final table appearance for the engineer from Morgan Hill, CA. He received $60,970 for sixth place.

Next, Robert “The Buzzsaw” Mangino was chopped away from the final table. The Buzzsaw was short-stacked and lost on his final (mucked) hand. Mangino, the winner of a big tournament in Tunica, MS last year, received $73,164 for fifth place.
Congo Do lasted for four hours, despite coming in with the second-lowest stack. The Vietnamese-born restaurant owner now living in the Atlantic City area, was all-in holding A-Q-10-10 (good for two pair) after the flop showed A-Q-2. But Jack Zwerner had two queens in his hand for trip queens. The three-of-a-kind held up and Do had to go. Fourth place paid $85,358.

When play became three-handed, Rusty Mandap, Jeff Madsen, and Jack Zwerner were very close in chips. Mandap seized the chip lead for a short time with a couple of big pots, before Zwerner fought back and regained control. Three-handed play lasted for two full hours, during which time Jeff Madsen watched helplessly as his dreams of victory slowly evaporated along with his chips.

Madsen had been the most aggressive player in the tournament during the later stages of Day Two and he arrived on Day Three as the chip leader. But the last few hours were a complete nightmare for the 21-year-old who celebrated his birthday just three weeks ago (thus becoming of legal age to play in the WSOP). Finally, Madsen had to make a move and was all-in on an unseen hand, which lost. Zwerner and Mandap feasted on Madsen’s last chips like hungry wolves, expelling the college student in third place. Madsen could still be proud of his cash prize which amounted to $97,552.

When play became heads-up, Jack Zwerner shifted into overdrive. Sensing that the finish line was just ahead, the gambling guru raced through the last 35-minutes like a man on a mission. All Rusty Mandap could do was watch as pot after pot, and chip after chip, was pushed in the opposite direction.

On what turned out to be the last hand of the tournament, Mandap had high hopes for his A-A-10-3. Instead, the big pair and low-draw was crushed and counterfeited when the final board showed 6-5-3-7-2. Zwerner showed A-8-7-4 with two hearts to match the three hearts on board. Zwerner’s heart flush and better low trounced Mandap’s hand, thus ending the event.

As the runner up, Rusty Mandap earned $176,813. The Philippine-born casino director from Norwalk, CA was disappointed he did not win, but expressed no regrets about the end result. “I didn’t get any cards in the end,” he said.

The mood in Zwerner’s camp was decidedly more upbeat. Zwerner, who first moved to Las Vegas from Miami, Florida back in 1963, received congratulatory handshakes from many in the crowd who recognized the winner as a longtime local. Indeed, Zwerner has seen and done it all in the gambling mecca, working every side of the business. He is someone most deserving of a rare prize afforded to those who helped to build the Las Vegas Strip into the place that it is.

No one appreciated the honor or the significance of this moment more than Jack Zwerner. “You have to get a little bit lucky to win a tournament,” he said. “I was involved in hands at the right place at the right time. I tell you – there’s nothing more satisfying than winning money gambling.”

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #8):
Total Entries to Date: 10,240
Total Prize Money Distributed: $14,620,890

New poker series starts tonight

If you're like me and more than a little weary of the hyperbole of the World Poker Tour, then you might want to tune in to the Travel Channel tonight, as the Professional Poker Tour finally makes its way to TV.

A couple of months back, there was a "sneak preview" of the PPT one Saturday, and I happened to catch it, but I know a lot of people didn't. If you were one who hasn't seen it yet, you're in for something new. This is NOT the WPT sans college kids. Gone are the flashy lights and the screaming announcers. The PPT is much more subtle, and the play -- for the most part -- is much better.

One key difference is that coverage of the PPT events starts at the beginning of the tournament, and each tournament is broadcast over five weeks. They divide the tournament into "quarters," with each week showing one quarter, followed by the traditional final table coverage in the fifth week. By showing all stages of the tournament, you really get a glimpse into how the pros play at each stage.

Tonight's episode is a repeat of the sneak preview. One treat from the first episode is that we finally get to see one of the living legends of the game play. Amarillo Slim, whose exposure on the tube during the poker explosion has been limited to a few cameos at the WSOP (at least as far as I've seen), is a prominent fixture at the featured table tonight. He gets behind early, making what seem to be a few boneheaded plays, but his loose image at the table works to his advantage later in the episode, when he gets paid on a big hand.

Although I've only seen one episode so far, I think I can safely say that the PPT will quickly become my second favorite poker series, trailing only High Stakes Poker.

One word of caution: The contrast between the PPT and the WPT is so stark, it can be a little disorienting. In fact, the first half-hour or so that I watched, I was a little bored by the more subdued tone. However, after adjusting to it, I began to appreciate the ability to concentrate on the poker, rather than the theatrics that are ingrained in the WPT.

WSOP Event 7 - $3,000 limit hold'em

Mathematics whiz/game theorist barges to victory

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 415
Total Prize Money: $1,145,400
Defending Champion (2005): Todd Witteles

Official Results:
1. William Chen, Lafayette Hill, PA, $343,618
2. Yueqi “Rich” Zhu, Rowland Heights, CA, $184,409
3. Henry Nguyen, San Jose, CA, $91,632
4. Karlo Lopez, San Juan, PR, $80,178
5. Danny Ciasamella, Grays Landing, PA, $68,724
6. Larry Thomas, Vacaville, CA, $57,270
7. Allan Puzantyan, Montreal, Canada, $45,816
8. Ernie Scherer III, Torrance, CA, $34,362
9. Jeffrey Lisandro, Salerno, IT, $22,908
10. Jason Mann, Hermitage, AR, $12,599
11. Barry Shulman, Las Vegas, NV, $12,599
12. Brooks Wiley, Oakland, CA, $12,599
13. Phil Hellmuth, Palo Alto, CA, $10,309
14. Greg DeBera, NA, $10,309
15. Matthew Woodward, Waterboro, ME, $10,309
16. Edler William, Las Vegas, NV, $8,018
17. Timothy Drews, Indian Head Park, IL, $8,018
18. Jeffrey Freedman, Simi Valley, CA, $8,018
19. Shane Steffens, Norfolk, NE, $5,727
20. Raymond Dehkharghani, Overland Park, KS, $5,727
21. Darrel Dicken, Waterloo, IA, $5,727
22. Kevin Steede, Plano, TX, $5,727
23. John Phan, Long Beach, CA, $5,727
24. Donald Todd, FL, $5,727
25. Andrew Hallenbeck, Las Vegas, NV, $5,727
26. Michael Wu Ma, Modesto, TX, $5,727
27. Justin Tran, Sacramento, CA, $5,727
28. Robert Tannidu, Denton, WA, $4,582
29. Jason Heidema, Sunnyvale, CA, $4,582
30. Russell Floyd, Dripping Springs, TX, $4,582
31. Patrick Pezzin, Italy, $4,582
32. Alex Jacob, Parkland, FL, $4,582
33. Martin Feijo, NA, $4,582
34. Jeffrey Norman, Encinias, CA, $4,582
35. Jim Bechtel, Gilbert, AZ, $4,582
36. Michael Bittan, Englewood, NJ, $4,582
37. Thithi Tran, Torrance, CA, $3,436
38. Jordan Rich, Portland, OR, $3,436
39. Horwan Young, Ont, Canada, $3,436
40. Andrew Kalsall, Lutz, FL, $3,436
41. Mike Angel, Mesa, AZ, $3,436
42. Kuei Chang, Las Vegas, NV, $3,436
43. Bill Seber, Houston, TX, $3,436
44. Pat White, W. Nyack, NY, $3,436
45. Michele Lewis, Houston, TX, $1,718
46. Sarah Bilnex, Canberra, Australia, $1,718

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – “Mathematics” is properly defined as the study of the measurement, properties, and relationships of quantities and sets, using numbers and symbols. Since the game of poker is primarily a game of numbers, symbols, and measurements – it naturally follows that a poker player with a PhD in mathematics might enjoy a few competitive advantages. Fact is, William Chen is usually the most intelligent man inside any room he enters. Not that he would ever tell you so, nor he would exhibit any of the exterior qualities associated with true genius. That “stealth” character makes Bill Chen an even more dangerous player to play against at the poker table -- an opinion very likely now shared by the collective 414 opponents he vanquished in the $3,000 buy-in limit hold’em event at the 2006 World Series of Poker.

This was the second limit hold’em event of this year’s World Series. No-limit might have eclipsed limit poker as “the game,” but both limit events played so far this year have exceeded last year’s record numbers in attendance. Bill Chen was one of 415 players who each paid $3,000 to enter the tournament.

After two long days, the nine finalists were set for the final table. At the start, Karlo Lopez enjoyed an impressive chip lead. But, nine hours later, all of the chips belonged to Chen. Starting chip counts were as follows:

Allan Puzantyan, $144,000, 1
Danny Ciasamella, $46,000, 2
Jeffrey Lisandro, $153,000, 3
Karlo Lopez, $227,000, 4
Yueqi (Rich) Zhu, $221,000, 5
Larry Thomas, $59,000, 6
Ernie Scherer, $118,000, 7
Bill Chen, $122,000, 8
Henry Nguyen, $189,000, 9

Jeffrey Lisandro was certainly one of the early favorites to prevail. After all, he won the 2005 WSOP Circuit championship event at Harvey’s Lake Tahoe and arrived as the player most accustomed to playing poker for high-stakes. But Lisandro took a tough beat when his set of threes was busted by his opponent’s A-K suited, which completed a flush. This was the third consecutive final table with an Australian finalist present. Joe Hachem (from Melbourne) finished second two days ago, and Mark Vos (from Brisbane) won the previous event. Perth-born Lisnadro could do no better than ninth and collected $22,908.
Southern California poker pro Ernie Scherer busted out next. Yesterday was Scherer’s 28th-birthday and he must have used up all his wishes. In the end, Scherer – the BYU graduate turned pro poker player -- ran out of good cards and chips and collected $34,362 for eighth place.

Allan Puzantyan took seventh place after his two-pair lost to a straight. The Canadian jeweler missed adding one very valuable gold bracelet to his collection, and instead had to settle for a $45,816 prize.

Larry Thomas was the next player to make an unwanted exit. One his final hand of the night, Thomas was dealt two big cards and tried to catch a pair, but was essentially drawing dead when his opponent made a full-house. Thomas, a casino manager at The Oaks Card Club in northern California, was dealt $57,270 for sixth place.

Danny Ciasamella arrived with the lowest stack, but somehow did manage to leap four spots up the money ladder. On his fateful final hand, Ciasamella did not show his cards after Bill Chen revealed two pair. The grocery store owner from Pennsylvania checked out with $68,724.

The four remaining players were very close to even in chips. About an hour later, the early chip leader Karlo Lopez went bankrupt. He encountered a series of horrible cards during his last 40-minutes at the table. Desperately short-stacked, Lopez finally went out when giant-killer Bill Chen flopped two pair. Lopez, appropriately nicknamed “the Wizard” for his background as a magician, finished 33rd in the main event at the 2005 WSOP. He took fourth place this time, good for $80,178.

Vietnamese-born Henry Nguyen was eliminated next when Bill Chen completed a straight. Nguyen played well enough for third place, but never seemed to be in a position to challenge either of his opponents for the chip lead. Nguyen’s prize amounted to $91,632.

The two finalists battled back and forth for three hours during heads-up play. Rich Zhu had the chip lead about midway through play, but failed to maintain the advantage. Repeatedly, Chen was the more aggressive player. He either won the majority of his pots because he sensed that Zhu was sometimes timid – or perhaps it was just that Chen was dealt stronger cards. Whatever the reason and whether it was pure math or not, as tough an obstacle as Zhu proved to be, Chen seemed to make the most of every situation by calling, raising, or folding – and being right most of the time.

The final hand of the tournament provided some excitement as Zhu was dealt 10-5 versus Chen’s A-4. The flop came 7-4-3 giving Chen middle pair and Zhu an inside straight draw. Zhu’s final bet went into the pot on a semi-bluff, but he failed to connect with either a pair or the straight draw.

As the runner up, Yueqi “Rich” Zhu collected $184,409. Bill Chen’s percentage of the pool amounted to $343,618.
Fittingly, Chen is releasing a new poker book this fall, to be titled The Mathematics of Poker. With his co-author Jerrod Ankerman, the two writers are expected to examine brand new territory and divulge playing strategies based on the laws of probability as they apply to poker. Based on his performance on this night, odds are that the World Series of Poker has not seen the last of Bill Chen.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #7):
Total Entries to Date: 9,570
Total Prize Money Distributed: $ 13,401,490

WSOP Event 6 - $2,000 no-limit hold'em

Aussie! Aussie! Aussie! (Redux)

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 1,919
Total Prize Money: $3,492,580
Defending Champion (2005): Erik Seidel

Official Results:
1. Mark Vos, Brisbane, AU, $803,274
2. Nam Le, Huntington Beach, CA, $401,647
3. J.R. Reiss, Omaha, NE, $209,555
4. Thomas Hunt, Las Vegas, NV, $160,659
5. Willard Chang, Honolulu, HI, $136,211
6. Kevin Peterson, Plano, TX, $115,255
7. Vanessa Selbst, Montclair, NJ, $101,285
8. David Wells, Toledo, OH, $87,315
9. Carlos Mortensen, Madrid, Spain, $73,344
10. Alfredo "Toto" Leonidas, Glendale, CA, $59,374
11. Steven Conighiard, San Francisco, CA, $55,881
12. Raymond Millard, Tamarac, FL, $52,389
13. Jack Ward, Gulfport, MA, $48,896
14. Charles Thompson, Santa Cruz, CA, $45,404
15. Raymond Foley, Livonia, MI, $41,911
16. Yarom Limor, Beverly Hills, CA, $38,418
17. Ryan Krall, North Las Vegas, NV, $34,926
18. Jimmy Stoitsiades, Northville, MI, $31,433
19. Garret Allen, Chandler, AZ, $27,941
20. Billy Baxter, Las Vegas, NV, $27,941
21. Massimiliano Pescatorei, Las Vegas, NV, $27,941
22. Diego Garcia, Albuquerque, NM, $24,448
23. Carlos Zambrano, Babylon, NY, $24,448
24. Randall Swope, Lanesville, OH, $24,448
25. Jeffrey Ashton, Phoenix, AZ, $17,463
26. Eng Tay, Chamblee, GA, $17,463
27. Randy Lowery, Macon, GA, $17,463
28. Herbert Cheng, New York, NY, $13,970
29. Keith Witermans, Vancouver, BC, $13,970
30. Roy Thung, White Plains, NY, $13,970
31. Mink Nguyen, Bell Gardens, CA, $12,224
32. Noah Nodine, Norman, OK, $12,224
33. Thomas Kierstead IV, Bainbridge Island, WA, $12,224
34. Pierce Shaad, Valley Glen, CA, $10,478
35. Hieu Ma, S. El Monte, CA, $10,478
36. David Gregory, South Lake, TX, $10,478
37. Bertrand Grospellie, Vandoeuvre, France, $10,478
38. Jason Lefkowitz, Carmel Valley, CA, $10,478
39. Thomas Antanucci, Germantown, MD, $10,478
40. James Gauley, Sunnyside, WA, $10,478
41. Dwayne Boring, Lake Forrest, CA, $10,478
42. Luis Gonzalez, Las Vegas, NV, $10,478
43. Devin Porter, Salt Lake City, UT, $10,478
44. Peter Dalhuissen, Utrecht, Holland, $10,478
45. Norman Lapin, Sherman Oaks, CA, $10,478
46. Brian Lindsay, Coral Springs, FL, $8,731
47. Jennifer Harman, Las Vegas, NV, $8,731
48. Douglas White, Henderson, NV, $8,731
49. Joshua Vanduyn, San Diego, CA, $8,731
50. Takatushi Uei, Osaka, Japan, $8,731
51. Alon Butcher Guttman, Encino, CA, $8,731
52. Sam Kim, Waltham, MA, $8,731
53. Jose Rosenkrantz, Miami, FL, $8,731
54. Mo Socarras, Coconut Grove, FL, $8,731
55. Francois Safieddine, Denver, CO, $8,731
56. Michael Abdoulah, Las Vegas, NV, $6,985
57. Evan Brown, New York, NY, $6,985
58. Cyndy Violette, Los Angeles, CA, $6,985
59. Mike Addy, Albuquerque, NM, $6,985
60. Joshua Sisar, Barnegat, NJ, $6,985
61. Steve Cowley, Richmond, VA, $6,985
62. Moshe Elazar, Las Vegas, NV, $6,985
63. Lonnie Heimowitz, Monticello, NY, $6,985
64. Benjamin Lin, Rockville, MD, $6,985
65. Jason Stern, San Jose, CA, $6,985
66. Hung Doan, Overland Park, KS, $6,985
67. Eric Govelstein, Austin, TX, $6,985
68. Michael Simpson, Middle Viarage, NY, $6,985
69. Ray Blodgett, Riverside, CA, $6,985
70. Jet Taylor, Satellite Beach, FL, $6,985
71. Christopher Roth, Waukesha, WI, $6,985
72. Steve Happas "Dakota", Brain Tree, MA, $6,985
73. Andy Ball, San Diego, CA, $5,239
74. Joseph Nekrasz, Sammamish, WA, $5,239
75. Enberto Soto, Mesa, AZ, $5,239
76. Jonas Johansson, Linkoping, Sweden, $5,239
77. Jean-Robert Bellande, Las Vegas, NV, $5,239
78. Chris Reslock, Atlantic City, NJ, $5,239
79. Marc Durand, Henderson, NV, $5,239
80. Jose Homberto Brenes, Miami Lakes, FL, $5,239
81. Steve Fox, Youngstown, FL, $5,239
82. Darryl Huey, Placentia, CA, $5,239
83. Walter Tiptin, Lexington, KY, $5,239
84. Johnny Chan, Las Vegas, NV, $5,239
85. Diana Eiges, Norco, CA, $5,239
86. Greg Violette, Las Vegas, NV, $5,239
87. Scott Zakheim, Davie, FL, $5,239
88. Jared Woodin, Pittsburg, CA, $5,239
89. Scott Fischman, Las Vegas, NV, $5,239
90. unknown, unknown, $5,239
91. Tim Davis, San Diego, CA, $5,239
92. Mike Kachan, Edina, MN, $5,239
93. Ricci Cesidio, LaSalle, Quebec, $5,239
94. Ken Justin, Cambridge, MA, $5,239
95. Al Horowitz, East Brunswick, NJ, $5,239
96. Brett E. Kell, Lake Elsinore, CA, $5,239
97. Trent Schuler, Springfield, Oh, $5,239
98. Michael Raimon, Bradenton, FL, $5,239
99. John Espisito, Jr., Las Vegas, NV, $5,239
100. Richard Sharpe, Henderson, NV, $5,239
101. Steve L. Rassi, Morton, IL, $5,239
102. James Richburg, Jr., Henderson, NV, $5,239
103. Thomas Sanduski, Las Vegas, NV, $5,239
104. Delainey Blakeney, Brandon, MS, $5,239
105. Aviv Shaham, Scottsdale, AS, $5,239
106. Adan K. Nilsson, Eskilstung, Sweden, $5,239
107. Chad Bradbury, Wichita, KS, $5,239
108. Lucio Procopio, Liverpool, NY, $5,239
109. Joshua McBroom, Las Vegas, NV, $3,493
110. Paul E. Nobles, Jr., Eagan, MN, $3,493
111. Charlie Culp, Mebane, NC, $3,493
112. Dave Morrison, Victoria, BC, $3,493
113. Alon Doitch, Northridge, CA, $3,493
114. Dana Diephouse, Baton Rouge, LA, $3,493
115. Todd E. Kilpatrick, Helotes, TX, $3,493
116. Kent Washington, unknown, $3,493
117. Marcello Cabrera, Los Angeles, CA, $3,493
118. Darius Zolnor, Los Angeles, CA, $3,493
119. John Tucley, Columbus, OH, $3,493
120. Jiji Liv, Las Vegas, NV, $3,493
121. Avi Freedman, Philadelphia, PA, $3,493
122. Mahamoud Mastafa, Los Angeles, CA, $3,493
123. John Tsai, Sigual Hill, CA, $3,493
124. Mark Stinson, Wescosville, PA, $3,493
125. Gary Lent, Riverside, CA, $3,493
126. Assani Fisher, New York, NY, $3,493
127. Jonathan Hart, New York, NY, $3,493
128. Kendall Copp, Ponder, TX, $3,493
129. Jerry Dixon, Guymon, OK, $3,493
130. Gary Benson, Sidney, Australia, $3,493
131. Barry Werthman, Beverly Hills, MI, $3,493
132. Justin Marchand, Las Vegas, NV, $3,493
133. Bruno "Da Butcher" Fiorenza, Philly, $3,493
134. Kenneth Fitzgerald, Roseville, CA, $3,493
135. Michael Bittan, Englewood, NJ, $3,493
136. Jerri Thomas, Hamilton, OH, $3,493
137. Alvin Zendenfeld, Los Angeles, CA, $3,493
138. John Minor, Indianapolis, IN, $3,493
139. Greg Turk, Sterling, VA, $3,493
140. Michael Zimbric, Madison, WI, $3,493
141. Kent Lindblom, Las Vegas, NV, $3,493
142. Samuel Eden, Austin, TX, $3,493
143. Willie Tan, London England, $3,493
144. William Meenhofen, FL, $3,493
145. Blair Rodman, Las Vegas, NV, $3,493
146. Veilli Walbeck, Finland, $2,794
147. David Colclough, England, $2,794
148. Napoleon Ta, Palo Alto, CA, $2,794
149. Jon Lactaoen, Honolulu, HI, $2,794
150. John Dagostino 3rd, Egg Harbor Twp, $2,794
151. Todd Krauss, Tarzana, CA, $2,794
152. Padroag Parkinson, Dublin, Ireland, $2,794
153. Sirous Baghchehsaraie, Long Beach, CA, $2,794
154. Fahrhad Kohani, Los Angeles, CA, $2,794
155. Lee Kimmel, Upland, CA, $2,794

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Mark Vos has a plan. And, despite winning over three-quarters of a million dollars tonight, he’s sticking to it. You see, Vos – at the tender age of 23 – made a personal decision that he will spend the next five years of his life “working” and the five years immediately after that “relaxing.” Vos’ plan is to play poker (which he defines as “work”) and then take the second-half of a decade off. It’s an unconventional career path to say the least.

If “work” means coming to Las Vegas to play in the World Series of Poker, overwhelming a near-record field of 1,919 players, and earning $803,274 in just three days, then – then, there are certainly worse jobs. One has to ask, “Are there any job openings left? Where does one sign up?” Indeed, Vos won the $2,000 buy-in no-limit hold’em championship and earned his very first WSOP gold bracelet. Vos, a college student-turned-poker player from Brisbane became only the third Australian national ever to win an event at the World Series of Poker. He joins former Aussie champs Gary Benson (1996 -- Seven-Card Stud) and Joe Hachem (2005 – championship event) in the trifecta of poker winners from down under.

After two long days of play, the final table on Day Three started with nine players, including 2001 world poker champion Carlos Mortensen. Vos arrived a distant second in the chip count to Kevin Peterson, a poker pro from the Dallas area:

David Wells, $275,000, 1
J.R. Reiss, $222,000, 2
Willard Chang, $214,000, 3
Kevin Peterson, $1,130,000, 4
Nam Le, $323,000, 5
Vanessa Selbst, $492,000, 6
Mark Vos, $528,000, 7
Thomas Hunt III, $468,000, 8
Carlos Mortensen, $215,000, 9

Despite being short-stacked, the first player eliminated was something of a surprise. “The Matador,” Carlos Mortensen didn’t last long. Mortensen’s pocket sevens turned out to be an unlucky number when he was all-in and ran into ace-nine. An ace flopped and Mortensen waved farewell. Ninth-place paid $73,344.

Next, David Wells (no relation to the major league baseball player) struck out when he took a tough beat – king-ten against his opponent’s king-eight. An eight flopped and Wells was yanked from the game. The stock trader from Scottsdale, Arizona collected $87,315 for eighth place.

Vanessa Selbst was the second female player to make a final table appearance at this year’s WSOP. She had enough chips to be a force early, but was caught bluffing at the worst possible time. Selbst tried to move Kevin Peterson off of his hand with an all-in pre-flop re-raise, but she might as well have been standing on the railroad tracks staring at a roaring freight train. Peterson called instantly and flipped over pocket aces. He caught two more aces on the board to make four-of-a-kind, flattening Selbst’s chances to become history’s tenth female WSOP gold bracelet winner (in open events). Vanessa Selbst, a Yale University graduate last year, received $101,285.

The end-result for Kevin Peterson had to be disappointing. The chip-leader at the start, Peterson went through a very rocky two hours and failed to survive. He lost most of his chips holding pocket queens against Nam Le’s ace-king. A king flopped. That was the first serious hatchet chop into Peterson’s stack. Others would follow. The final blow was Peterson’s all-in move with queen-ten suited, losing to J.R. Reiss’ small pocket pair. Peterson picked up $115,255 in prize money.

A short time later, Willard Chang went out with a weaker hand that he would have liked under the circumstances. With blinds and antes escalating, Chang moved in hoping not to get called holding king-three, which was covered by Nam Le’s king-queen. Both players flopped a king, but the queen –kicker played and Chang was eliminated. Willard Chang, am engineer from Hawaii, received $136,211.

Thomas Hunt must have felt like a gang victim when he moved all-in with his few remaining chips in the small blind and was called down by all three opponents. The players checked on each successive round, and when J.R. Reiss revealed an ace to go with an ace on board, everyone mucked their cards – including Hunt, who ended up as the fourth-place finisher. Thomas Hunt, a physician from Las Vegas, billed the prize pool for $160,659.

Down to just three players, J.R. Reiss moved all-in with top-pair, top kicker (ace jacks to the board’s – 10-8-4-J-6) and was called quickly by Nam Le, holding nine-seven, good for a straight. Reiss, a professional gambler from Omaha, Nebraska added $209,555 to his bankroll.

When heads-up play began, Nam Le enjoyed nearly a 3 to 1 chip advantage – 2,775,000 to Vos’ 1,065,000. But great poker players shine in moments of adversity. It took Vos 45-minutes to seize the chip lead, plus another hour to lock down the victory. After Vos made a flush and took the chip lead, Le made one last valiant stab at the top prize, temporarily regaining the chip lead for a short time. He could have broken Vos when he had his opponent all-in with queen-jack to Vos’ pocket sevens. But Le failed to connect with a pair, and that would ultimately spell doom fro the aspiring champ.

Vos picked away chips from Le’s stack and gradually built up a 2 to 1 chip lead. The final hand was somewhat unanticipated as Vos was dealt queen-ten suited against Le’s pocket sixes. After catching a queen on the flop, Vos bet out and Le called. A blank fell on the turn, and Vos bet again. Le called. The river brought a queen, giving Vos trip-queens. Vos moved all-in and Le, suspecting a bluff, called. That was a mistake. The trip queens gave Vos the championship.
Nam Le, the second-place finisher, collected $401,647.

“I prefer to play poker online,” Vos said immediately following his victory. “I still prefer cash games online, but there is nothing like the experience of playing in a live tournament and making it all the way to the final table. Cash games are my day job, but the tournaments are for excitement and fun.”

Vos said he plans to stick with his game plan. “(Winning) does not really change things,” he said. “I mean, it helps. But I still plan to play poker…..then (in five years) I’ll relax, settle down, and find a place to live and decide what I want to do with the rest of my life.”

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #6):
Total Entries to Date: 9,165
Total Prize Money Distributed: $ 12,256,090

What can you say about Joe Hachem?

The boy is proving that he is the real deal.

These days, with the poker explosion burgeoning the crowds of hopefuls at the World Series of Poker, winning a tournament has become not only more lucrative, but also a true test of endurance. On the flip side, however, as every fresh, new face picks up one of the coveted bracelets, there is also a certain stigma. No longer can a person win one tournament and be considered a poker genius, because all too often we see people stumble their way to the top of the mountain, never to be heard from again (see: Robert Varkonyi, Chris Moneymaker).

You can't say that about Joe Hachem, winner of last year's main event. Last year, if I recall correctly, in just his first or second tournament after capturing the championship, he made the final table of a WSOP Circuit event, finishing fifth.

Two tournament final tables within a year is pretty good, and it starts to establish a person as maybe knowing a little bit about the game. It becomes less likely that the first big win was a fluke, the product of a lucky run of cards.

What, then, about three?

Hachem not only made another World Series final table the other day. He came within a whisper, one terrible beat, of taking home his second bracelet in the $2,500 short-handed hold'em event.

Personally, I like seeing these types of stories. It proves that poker is a game that can be won with the right combination of intellect and courage.

What can you say about Joe Hachem? After three final tables in big tournaments, it's still too early to say very much. Champions prove themselves over the long term, and one year is still very, very short term. But you can start to say that last year was no fluke. And maybe, if he continues to prove himself with a few more of these high finishes, you can just maybe start to say that Joe Hachem was not only once just a champion, but also that he was one of the best tournament players of his day.

Time will tell.

WSOP Event 5 - $2,500 short-handed hold'em

Russ “Dutch” Boyd shatters WSOP champ Joe Hachem’s bid for bracelet number two

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 1,068
Total Prize Money: $1,457,820
Defending Champion (2005): Isaac “The General” Galazan

Official Results:
1. Dutch Boyd, Culver City, CA, $475,712
2. Joseph Hachem, Melbourne, Australia, $256,800
3. Jeff Knight, Las Vegas, NV, $153,511
4. Michael Goodman, Scarsdale, NY, $115,607
5. Pete Hassett, Riverside, IL, $91,917
6. David Solomon, Austin, TX, $68,227
7. Mirza Nagji, New York, NY, $42,642
8. Daniel Negreanu, Las Vegas, NV, $38,852
9. Vergard Nygaard, Halden, Norway, $35,061
10. Isaac Sanders, Boulder, CO, $31,271
11. Gioi Duc Luong, Westminster, CA, $27,480
12. Gavin Smith, Las Vegas, NV, $23,690
13. Todd Nichols, Cave Creek, AZ, $19,900
14. Harry Thomas, Hamilton, OH, $18,004
15. Marcus Garza, San Antonio, TX, $16,109
16. Gavin Griffin, Darien, IL, $14,214
17. Takov Nepomniashohig, Moscow, Russia, $12,319
18. David Shallow, Great Britain, $10,424
19. Behzad Teranie, Los Angeles, CA, $9,476
20. Craig Gray, Portland, OR, $9,476
21. Freddy Deeb, Las Vegas, NV, $9,476
22. Russ Floyd, Houston, TX, $9,476
23. Karina Jett, Las Vegas, NV, $9,476
24. Richard Brodie, Kirkland, WA, $9,476
25. Jason Loehde, Minneopolis, MN, $9,476
26. Kathy Liebert, Las Vegas, NV, $9,476
27. Kenny Hsiung, Cincinnati, OH, $9,476
28. Rick Fuller, Monroe, WA, $9,476
29. Chau Nguyen, Dallas, TX, $9,476
30. Paul Kraus, Los Angeles, CA, $9,476
31. Erick Lindgren, Las Vegas, NV, $8,528
32. Ulises Roman, Huntington, WV, $8,528
33. Mike Matusow, Las Vegas, NV, $8,528
34. Robert Arm, Boca Raton, FL, $8,528
35. Jim Herndon El Paso, TX $8,528
36. Ville Wahlbeck Finland $8,528
37. Joe Pharo Scottsdale, AZ $8,528
38. Thor Hansen El Segundo, CA $8,528
39. James Bechtel Gilbert, AZ $8,528
40. Sawant Ajendrakumar Topeka, KS $8,528
41. Brian Peterson Jr. Jupiter, FL $8,528
42. Joseph Tehan Las Vegas, NV $8,528
43. Logan Trindade Los Angeles, CA $6,633
44. Benjamin Roberts London, England $6,633
45. Daniel Alaei Santa Fe Springs, CA $6,633
46. Aaron Lerner Quebec, Canada $6,633
47. Amit Rafi Israel $6,633
48. Patricia Nixson Las Vegas, NV $6,633
49. Matthew Keikoan Richmond, CA $6,633
50. Doucles Lee Calgary, Canada $6,633
51. James Lester Jr. Cinncinati, OH $6,633
52. John Hennigan Las Vegas, NV $6,633
53. Gregory Wynn Phoenix, AZ $6,633
54. Cyndy Violette Los Angeles, CA $6,633
55. Kevin Nathan Roseville, CA $4,738
56. Michael Kobzeff Westminster, CA $4,738
57. Ezra Vdoff Washington D.C. $4,738
58. Wendell Barnes Charlton, MA $4,738
59. Lorne Dubrowsky West Bloomfield, MI $4,738
60. Michael Palizzi Olympia, WA $4,738
61. Paul Smith Minneopolis, MN $4,738
62. Jeffrey Lim Guymon, OK $4,738
63. Vanessa Rousso Las Vegas, NV $4,738
64. William Chen Lafayette Hill, PA $4,738
65. Joshua Vieman Lake Zurich, IL $4,738
66. Mark Hanawi Blue Baltimore, MI $4,738
67. Ian Frazer London, England $3,790
68. Daniel Bokesch Columbus, OH $3,790
69. Michael Williams Orange County, CA $3,790
70. Thomas Macey Chicago, IL $3,790
71. Cormel Petresco Las Vegas, NV $3,790
72. Al Ardebeihi Ashburn, VA $3,790
73. Evan Brown New York, NY $3,790
74. John Roveto Atlanta, GA $3,790
75. Steve Ambrose Waterloo, Ontario $3,790
76. Beth Shak Bryn Mawr, PA $3,790
77. Joseph Sebok San Fransisco, CA $3,790
78. Donald Barton Pahrump, NV $3,790
79. Kyle Brossia Perrysburg, OH $3,790
80. Ali Davaudi Houston, TX $3,790
81. Patrick Antouilus Finland $3,790
82. William Baxter Las Vegas, NV $3,790
83. David Melrose Dallas, TX $3,790
84. Antanas Guogv Lithuania $3,790
85. Charles Jett Las Vegas, NV $3,790
86. Travis Paquette Manchester, NH $3,790
87. Barry Greenstein Rancho Palos Verdes, CA $3,790
88. Terrence Chan Vancouver, B.C. $3,790
89. Anita Perl Coral Springs, FL $3,790
90. Steven Rassi Morton, IL $3,790

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Standing on the upper row of the aluminum rafters looking down upon the expansive poker combat zone that is the 2006 World Series of Poker is normally not a very good vantage point. But at 7:38 pm on Sunday, July 2, 2006 – it very well might have been the best seat in the house.

Russ “Dutch” Boyd had just won $475,712 and his first WSOP gold bracelet in the short-handed hold’em world championship. Bent off to the side with his head bowed in bitter disappointment was the reigning world poker champion -- Joe Hachem. It was a snapshot that said everything one needs to know about the inestimable difference between winning and losing. Boyd’s “crew” screaming in ear-piercing joy, jumping wildly up and down, and finally lifting the 25-year-old wunderkind up in the air as though he had just hit the game-winning homer in the bottom of the ninth. In the meantime, emotionally-wrecked Hachem was curled over in stoned silence with eyes shut, his wife Jeanie’s arm wrapped around her champion. Greg Raymer, the 2004 WSOP champion and Hachem’s pal, was there for comfort and support.

The final hand was as amazing as it was shocking. After fighting off 1,066 challengers over three long days and nights, the heads-up duel between Boyd and Hachem lasted for two full hours. Just when it looked like Hachem might seize the chip lead, Boyd would suppress his rival’s challenge, each time leading more and more credence to the notion that – love him or hate him – Dutch Boyd is a very, very talented poker player.

Hachem pumped his fist in the air when he first saw the hole cards on what would turn out to be the final hand of the largest short-handed poker tournament in history. The trap he had set for hours hoping to entrap Boyd snapped shut, and Boyd was the wounded animal. Replicating the valor and persistence that rocketed Hachem to the forefront of the poker universe nearly a year to the day when he won the 2005 World Series of Poker, Hachem showed ace-queen to Boyd’s ace-five. Hachem’s hand was a huge favorite. If the ace-queen held up and won, Hachem would suddenly enjoy his largest chip lead of the tournament. If he lost, it would all be over. So far, if Hachem was writing a script to win a poker tournament, this is the one he would write.

There has probably never been a larger gallery watching the final moments of a live poker tournament than this one. Packed ten deep around the stands already filled to capacity, everyone was standing -- all eyes in the Rio’s 209-table poker room fixed on ESPN’s giant television monitors. They all gazed upward as the flop came A-K-9 of mixed suits. Hachem’s grin turned into a smile. Boyd’s anxiety turned into distress. A jack on the turn did not help either player, and it all came down to a single card. One card was the difference between a quarter-million in extra prize money, and (certainly more meaningful to these two player) a gold bracelet. Boyd desperately needed a five. When the overhead lights glared off the white face of what would be an earth-shattering 3 by 5 inch two-seat voucher of ecstasy and agony, Hachem knew immediately that he was in trouble. It was a low card, but not too low. It was a middle card with an undetermined number of pixels. Then, as the card was tabled, everything suddenly came into focus. It was – depending on who you were cheering for, a fabulous, agonizing, beautiful, ugly, breathtaking, painful -- five.
Indeed, poker tournaments can be exhilarating and excruciating things.

The final table started hours earlier with six players:

Pete Hassett $148,000 1
Dutch Boyd $909,000 2
David Solomon $93,000 3
Joeseph Hachem $287,000 4
Michael Goodman $575,000 5
Jeff Knight $62,000 6

David Solomon was the first player out. The yoga instructor from Austin, Texas got short-stacked and moved-in with his last 25,000 in chips holding king-six. He lost to Mike Goodman’s king-queen suited. Solomon’s poker wisdom earned him $68,227.

Next, Pete Hassett went out with king-queen against Joe Hachem’s ace-jack. Hachem caught an ace, good for a pair, and Hassett went bust. Peter Hassett, a video game tester from Chicago was unplugged from the final table but did receive $91,917 in prize money.

Mike Goodman was eliminated as the fourth-place finisher. The New York City-based poker player who recently graduated from college was making his first-ever WSOP final table appearance. Goodman arrived at the final table second in the chip count, and ended up falling down a few spots to fourth place, which paid $115,607.

Jeff Knight said “goodnight” a short time later when he was caught bluffing on his final hand and was bankrupted by Dutch Boyd. Knight, a professional gambler (non-poker) from Las Vegas, cashed for $153,511.

That left the blood-match that many, if not most, had been anticipating. In so many ways, this was a complete contrast of style and character. Dutch Boyd – brazen, bold, and some would say “brilliant.” Joe Hachem – gracious, gallant, and good-natured.

There were several notable hands during the final confrontation. But none was more momentous as – the hand with the five.

“You walk into this room, you look around, and everybody is so good,” Dutch Boyd said in a post-tournament interview with ESPN’s Norman Chad. “I have been coming here for four years, and three years I have played in it. This room is so full of great players that I really never knew if I would be able to get one of these (gold bracelets).”

“It’s not like they give these away. I look at the names of players who have won a gold bracelet, players like Doyle (Brunson), T.J. (Cloutier), and Joe (Hachem)….and it’s just amazing to be sitting here. It’s an incredible feeling.”

Back atop of the rafters taking it in and watching it all end -- the picture was perfectly clear. Boyd continued his interview perched in front of bundles of tightly bound hundred-dollar bills, his right tattooed wrist glimmering in wrapped gold from the battle fought and won. There were photographs taken. There were more interviews. There was loud celebration.

On the horizon, just over the massive crowd swarming around the latest WSOP winner, the reigning world poker champion from Australia shuffled away slowly in dead silence, consoled by his wife – most certainly the only person on earth who could share and empathize with the pain of the moment. Hachem tottered passed the scattered tables and players of an ongoing tournament over in the next section looking for an exit. Slowly, they began to stand. They began to clap. They began to cheer. They knew a champion when they saw one.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #5):
Total Entries to Date: 7,246
Total Prize Money Distributed: $ 8,763,510

WSOP Event 4 - $1,500 limit hold'em

Kianoush Abolfathi Wins First WSOP Gold Bracelet

by Nolan Dalla

Number of Entries: 1,068
Total Prize Money: $1,457,820
Defending Champion (2005): Erik Froehlich

Official Results:
1. Kianoush Abolfathi, Marina Del Rey, CA, $335,289
2. Eric Buchman, Valley Stream, NY, $174,938
3. Josh Schlein, Owings Mills, MD, $101,318
4. Michele D. Lewis, Houston, TX, $72,891
5. Vipul Kothari, Edison, NJ, $58,313
6. Hank Sparks, Long Beach, CA, $51,024
7. Patrick Maloney, Las Vegas, NV, $43,735
8. Lars Hansen, Copenhagen, Denmark, $36,446
9. Matt Elsby, Los Angeles, CA, $32,801
10. Brandon Bates, New York, NY, $29,156
11. Sean Luckey, Las Vegas, NV, $26,970
12. Robin Mezhibousky, Holmdel, NJ, $24,783
13. Chad Davis, Greenville, TX, $22,596
14. Kevin Manley, Arlington Heights, IL, $20,409
15. Ron Burke, La Selva Beach, CA, $18,223
16. Gary Margadonna, Granbury, TX, $16,036
17. Stuart Krasney, Tustin, CA, $13,849
18. Aaron Z. Bartley, Cary, NC, $11,663
19. Genki Jinno, Kanagawa, Japan, $9,476
20. Joe Cassidy, Costa Mesa, CA, $9,476
21. Phil Ivey, Las Vegas, NV, $9,476
22. Chris McHugh, Las Vegas, NV, $9,476
23. Troy Tuggle, Brighton, MI, $9,476
24. Chris Tsiprailides, Syracuse, NY, $9,476
25. Steve Wong, Hoofddorf, Holland, $9,476
26. Jonathan Little, Pensacola, FL, $9,476
27. Ryan McGuire, Las Vegas, NV, $9,476
28. Young Phan, Garden Crove, CA, $7,289
29. Jason Gillis, San Clements, $7,289
30. Selma Gluhbegovic, Las Vegas, NV, $7,289
31. Wyley Lynch, Henderson, NV, $7,289
32. Michael Russ, Nutley, NJ, $7,289
33. Greg Mueller, Boamlager, Germany, $7,289
34. Howard Boyd, Westchester, OH, $7,289
35. Peter Dominie, Charlotte, NC, $7,289
36. Julio Rodriguez, Bailey, CO, $7,289
37. Jorge Martinez, Key Largo, FL, $5,831
38. Ed Sass, Wallingford, CT, $5,831
39. Van Nguyen, Bell Gardens, CA, $5,831
40. James Giuffre, Chicago, IL, $5,831
41. Jed Pickerson, Oceanside, CA, $5,831
42. Phil Gordon, Las Vegas, NV, $5,831
43. James Green, Columbia, MO, $5,831
44. Brad Anderson, Fresno, CA, $5,831
45. Mitch Kroll, Solon, OH, $5,831
46. Robert Vollmer, Springboro, OH, $4,373
47. Ed Brodsky, San Diego, CA, $4,373
48. Michael Hill, Wiesbaden, Germany $4,373
49. Aaron Ogus, Kimbland, WA, $4,373
50. Jerry Dunning, Sarasota, FL, $4,373
51. George Billias, E. Lyme, CT, $4,373
52. Kuei Chi Chang, Taiwan, $4,373
53. Bud Lavassani, Burbank, CA, $4,373
54. Alan Schein, N. Miami, FL, $4,373
55. Fi Tran, Los Angeles, CA, $3,645
56. Jim Wavra, Spokane, WA, $3,645
57. Jesse Martin, New York, NY, $3,645
58. Christopher Feeney, Orlando, FL, $3,645
59. Eugene Ji, New York, NY, $3,645
60. Joshua Blanchfield, Boston, MA, $3,645
61. Kendrick Roberts, Houston, TX, $3,645
62. Phuong Nguyen, Auborn, WA, $3,645
63. Paul A. Taylor, Las Vegas, NV, $3,645
64. Victor I. Parashiv, Chicago, IL, $2,916
65. David G. Pincus, Davis, CA, $2,916
66. Gregory S. Wilson, Crystal Lake, IL, $2,916
67. Kyle D. Miaso, Scottsdale, AZ, $2,916
68. Keith N. Sexton, Henderson, NV, $2,916
69. Eric J. Nickelson, San Jose, CA, $2,916
70. Andre Ross, Montreal, Canada, $2,916
71. Unknown, NA, $2,916
72. John Jenkins, Walnut Creek, CA, $2,916
73. Cal Namihino, Honolulu, HI, $2,916
74. Jesse Jamison, Phoenix, AZ, $2,916
75. Donald Sekorky, Medino, OH, $2,916
76. B.I. "T.D." Dong, Palo Alto, CA, $2,916
77. Tom Koral, Skokie, IL, $2,916
78. Claudie Holland, Fayetteville, NC, $2,916
79. Jonathan Aquiar, Boston, MA, $2,916
80. Vanessa Rousso, Las Vegas, NV, $2,916
81. James Richburg, Long Beach, CA, $2,916
82. Salem Valimahomed, Cambridge, MA, $2,187
83. Kenny Chanthamalo, East Lyme, CT, $2,187
84. Mark Jones, Manhattan Beach, CA, $2,187
85. James Browwer, Marysville, WA, $2,187
86. Andrew Wynn, New York, NY, $2,187
87. James Gaill, Appomattox, VA, $2,187
88. Michael Castelli, Ottowa, IL, $2,187
89. Chad Burum, Muvato, CA, $2,187
90. Eric H. Young, Ontario, Canada, $2,187
91. Ernie Scherer III, Los Angeles, CA, $2,187
92. David Stroj, Chula Vista, CA, $2,187
93. Joel Black, Rancho Cucamonga, CA, $2,187
94. Larry Thomas, San Leandro, CA, $2,187
95. Christopher James, Castleton, NY, $2,187
96. Kevin Kim, Los Angeles, CA, $1,749.60
97. Denton Gleaves, North Las Vegas, NV, $1,749.60
98. Allan Cunningham, Las Vegas, NV, $1,749.60
99. Jeff Mervis, Las Vegas, NV, $1,749.60
100. Tim Post, Humcston, IA, $1,749.60

Las Vegas, NV – Once upon a time there was a poker game called “Limit Hold’em.” It was the most popular game in the land. Everywhere you went, in each cardroom and every casino, limit was the game that was played. Then, the earth shook and the poker world changed -- perhaps forever.

When ESPN began showing the 2003 World Series of Poker in prime time, millions of television viewers were exposed to an exciting “new” poker game for the very first time. No-limit hold’em, a game previously tucked away inside smoky backrooms played regularly only by a few dusty old-timers, skyrocketed in popularity and revolutionized poker and the way it is perceived everywhere.

Limit hold’em has since become poker’s step-child. Sure, remains widely-played and is a staple game inside many cardrooms. But, in tournament poker, no-limit is king.

Limit poker requires a very different set of skills and strategies to win. Unlike the reckless “all in” mentality often present at no-limit tables, limit is a game of patience and percentages. For that reason it is not nearly as dramatic to watch, due to its more methodological qualities.

Nevertheless, the first limit hold’em event at this year’s World Series attracted one of the largest “limit” fields in poker history. A whopping 1,068 players put up $1,500 each for the chance to win a gold bracelet. One-thousand, and sixty-eight entries. Ho-hum. Just another day at the 2006 World Series of Poker.

The winner was a 29-year-old Iranian-born student from Los Angeles named Kianoush Abolfathi. He won $335,289 and his first WSOP gold bracelet. Abolfathi’s comeback victory from one of the lowest stacks was as impressive as it was remarkable. He started at the final table eighth in the chip count. It took Abolfathi just under seven hours to obliterate eight would-be champions en route to his first major tournament victory.

After two long days of play, the limit final table was set with the nine survivors. When the first hand was dealt out, seating positions and chips counts were as follows:

Vipul Kothavi, $132,000, 1
Matt Elsby, $51,000, 2
Josh Schlein, $243,000, 3
Michele Lewis, $225,000, 4
Eric Buchman, $213,000, 5
Kianoush Abolfathi, $75,000, 6
Lars Hansen, $156,000, 7
Hank Sparks, $243,000, 8
Patrick Maloney, $259,000, 9

The first player eliminated was the shortest stack. In fact, the hand would set the stage for what would ultimately become “the Kianoush Abolfathi show.” Matthew Elsby was dealt pocket aces and got into a raising war with Abolfathi after making trip kings (holding K-Q) when a third-king fell on the river. The big pot put Abolfathi up to third in the chip count, zooming from pretender to contender. Elsby earned $32,801 as the first player out.

Lars Hansen is one of many talented Scandinavian players who have fared well at the WSOP in recent years. However, he went out next when he lost a series of pots and had to commit his final chips with a dog hand. The dog failed to bark, and Hansen marched away in eighth place. He received $36,446.

Patrick Maloney suffered much the same fate – a few bad hands and then low on chips -- a forced final commitment with a weak hand. Maloney’s 7-6 failed to slay Michele Lewis’ Q-10 and the night was over for the Las Vegas-based poker pro. Seventh place paid $43,735.

Hank Sparks arrived as the co-chip leader at the start, but got a shock on his final hand of the night when his pocket nines lost to Michele Lewis’ pocket tens. Sparks, appropriately enough an electrical engineer by trade, got zapped and had to settle for $51,024 for sixth place.

Vipul Kothari, from Edison, NJ was eliminated next. Kothari left in a disappointing way, losing with A-K suited after the flop brought two cards to his suit. But the flush card of salvation failed to come. All of Kothari’s chips went over to Kianoush Abolfathi. Kothari went to the cage and collected $58,313 for fifth place.

The first female to make a final table appearance at this year’s WSOP was Michele Lewis, a real estate broker and full-time mother of two children. Lewis arrived within striking distance of the chip lead a few times, but suffered a tough beat on her final hand of the tournament. Lewis was dealt pocket aces against Josh Schlein’s Q-10 suited. After the flop came with two of Schlein’s suits, a raising war broke out. A spade on the river completed Schlein’s flush and paved the exit path for Lewis. Part of her $72,891 in winnings, she says, will go to a charity that works to promote and fund cancer research.

Down to three players, just as it looked as though Josh Schlein might start to pull away from his two rivals, he took a number of disappointing beats with the second-best hand and ended up the victim of a complete chip reversal. Schlein finally busted-out with top pair (kings) which lost to Abolfathi’s set of deuces. Third-place paid $101,318.

That big hand gave Abolfathi a 4 to 1 chip lead when heads-up play began. His lone opponent, Eric Buchman would prove to be a tough final blockade. Despite being out-chipped by a large margin throughout the final duel, Buchman won several key hands and did his best to pull off a comeback. He got close a few times, but in the end – the big stack and the more aggressive player who knew how to take advantage of the situation won. After 90 minutes of scratching and clawing, Abolfathi finally delivered the knockout blow with a pair of tens to Buchman’s no-pair, and a new poker champion was crowned at the Rio.

As the runner-up, Eric Buchman received $174,938 in prize money. The winner showed great appreciation for the moment and proudly snapped on the coveted gold bracelet. Abolfathi was the $1,500 Limit Event champion.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #4):
Total Entries to Date: 6,178
Total Prize Money Distributed: $7,305,690

Poker Headlines - Tuesday, July 4

Interest Groups Lining Up to Lobby on Web Gambling - New York Times

More than chips at stake in poker pioneer's best bluff - Baltimore Sun

Illegal Poker Room Operators in Texas Indicted for Engaging in Organized Criminal Activity - Online Poker News

Poker ace Joe Hachem wins $345,000 - Herald Sun

JTB to decide on role in planned poker tournament - The Jamaica Observer

Poker TV Network, Inc. (PKTV) Announces Name and Ticker Change to PC Universe, Inc. (PCUV) - PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance

Poker brat at top of the pack

by WSOP Media Director Nolan Dalla
and WSOP Statistician Rory Shanahan

LAS VEGAS, NV -- Phil Hellmuth, Jr. is the greatest poker player in the world. And if you don’t believe it, just ask him. Hellmuth reached a new milestone today when he became the first player in World Series of Poker history to reach “50” in-the-money finishes. With his 67th-place finish in an colossal field of 2,776 entries in the $1,500 buy-in no-limit hold’em event, Hellmuth eclipsed two longtime poker rivals -- Berry Johnston and Men “the Master” Nguyen, each currently with “49” cashes.

Phil Hellmuth has clearly become an icon in a game full of icons. The 1989 World Series of Poker Champion has won a total of nine gold bracelets in his illustrious 17-year poker career. Incredibly, all of his WSOP wins are in the game of hold’em -- the most of any player. Through Event #3 at the WSOP, rankings are as follows:

MOST WSOP CASHES (LIFETIME)
Phil Hellmuth, Jr., 50
Berry Johnston, 49
Men “the Master” Nguyen, 49
T.J. Cloutier, 47
Chris “Jesus” Ferguson, 43
Erik Seidel, 40
Brent Carter, 40
An Tran, 39
Mike Sexton, 38
Ken “Skyhawk” Flaton, 38

WSOP Event 3 - $1,500 pot-limit hold'em

High-Tech Whiz Rafe Furst Wins First WSOP Gold Bracelet

by Nolan Dalla

Buy-In: $1,500
Number of Entries: 1,102
Total Prize Money: $1,504,230
Defending Champion (2005): Thomas Werthmann

Official Results:
1. Rafe Furst, Los Angeles, CA, $345,984.00
2. Rocky Enciso, Glendale, CA, $180,508.00
3. Eric Lynch, Olathe, KS, $104,544.00
4. George Bronstein, Tampa, FL, $75,252.00
5. Burt Boutin, Henderson, NV, $60,169.00
6. Can Kim Hua, Rosemead, CA, $52,648.00
7. Ricky Chase, Malibu, CA, $45,127.00
8. John Juanda, Las Vegas, NV, $37,606.00
9. Alan Gilbert, Murrieta, CA, $33,854.00
10. Dewey Tomko, Winter Haven, FL, $30,085.00
11. Randy Jensen, Windsor, CO, $27,828.00
12. Benjamin D. Lamb, Tulsa, OK, $25,572.00
13. Webber Lu Kang, Garland, TX, $23,316.00
14. Matthew C. Hilger, Atlanta, GA, $21,059.00
15. Chang Huang, Fort Myers, FL, $18,803.00
16. Thien “Tim” Phan, Westminster, CA, $16,547.00
17. Anselmo Villarreal, Greenfield, WI, $14,290.00
18. Michael E. Davis, Harker Heights, TX, $12,034.00
19. Tri M. Tran, Concord, CA, $9,777.00
20. Annand Ramdin Bronx, NY $9,777.00
21. Grant Lang, Brookfield, CT, $9,777.00
22. Eric Vogelstein, Austin, TX, $9,777.00
23. Luis Velador, Lake Elsinore, $9,777.00
24. Shae Drobushevich, Moline, IL, $9,777.00
25. Glen Hughes, Scottsdale, AZ, $9,777.00
26. Amnon Filippi, New York, NY, $9,777.00
27. Jeffery Lowenhan, Las Vegas, NV, $9,777.00
28. Brian Appebaum, Scottsdale, AZ, $7,521.00
29. Isaac Y. Galazan, Sunny Isles Beach, FL, $7,521.00
30. Scotty D. Brown, Shelby Township, MI, $7,521.00
31. Jason Dickerson, Canton, GA, $7,521.00
32. Daniel L. Alspach, Las Vegas, NV, $7,521.00
33. Davin Phillips, Bournemouth, UK, $7,521.00
34. Martin Green, Brighton, UK, $7,521.00
35. Bryan Kim, Cerritos, CA, $7,521.00
36. Dan Schmiech, Houston, TX, $7,521.00
37. Greg Mascio, Brea, CA, $6,017.00
38. Anthony Hill, Syracuse, NY, $6,017.00
39. Marcello Cabrera, Visalia, CA, $6,017.00
40. Bryan Micon, Atlanta, GA, $6,017.00
41. Brady Shirota, Kahului, HI, $6,017.00
42. Mile Karangelovski, Pickerington, OH, $6,017.00
43. Ryan Presley, Fort Smith, AR, $6,017.00
44. Unknown, NA, $6,017.00
45. Frank Chambers, Littleton, CO, $6,017.00
46. Jason Mellross, Newcomb, Victoria, Australia, $4,513.00
47. Tony Woods, Murrieta, CA, $4,513.00
48. Larry R. Etherington, Phoenix, AZ, $4,513.00
49. Peter Zakhary, Winter Garden, FL, $4,513.00
50. Louie Chagolla, Hemet, CA, $4,513.00
51. Greg Hemphill, Glasgow, Scotland, $4,513.00
52. Aaron P. Donovan, Oak Park, CA, $4,513.00
53. Daniel Dukes, Lake Butler, FL, $4,513.00
54. Michael Mizrachi, Hollywood, FL, $4,513.00
55. Larry Vickers, Winter Garden, FL, $3,761.00
56. Earl Kim, Las Vegas, NV, $3,761.00
57. Keith Wintermans, Vancouver, BC, $3,761.00
58. Wesley Huff, Alameda, CA, $3,761.00
59. Jose Torres, Hollywood, FL, $3,761.00
60. James K Sutherland, Ocala, FL, $3,761.00
61. Chris “Jesus” Ferguson, Las Vegas, NV, $3,761.00
62. Randy Holland, Winnetka, CA, $3,761.00
63. Ron Tourony, Fort Myers, FL, $3,008.00
64. Brandon Schaefer, Seattle, WA, $3,008.00
65. Kirill Gerasimox, Moscow, Russia, $3,008.00
66. Brian Green, Hallandale, FL, $3,008.00
67. Randy Jacobson, Sacramento, CA, $3,008.00
68. Gary Horn, Sugarland, TX, $3,008.00
69. Erica Schoenberg, Las Vegas, NV, $3,008.00
70. Ian Woodley, London, England, $3,008.00
71. Richard Klein, Jr., Colorado Springs, CO, $3,008.00
72. Kully K. Burnet, Kailua, HI, $3,008.00
73. Mark D. Ellerbe, Richmond, TX, $3,008.00
74. John J. Esposito, Jr., Las Vegas, NV, $3,008.00
75. Dick H. Carson, Las Vegas, NV, $3,008.00
76. Chau Giang, Las Vegas, NV, $3,008.00
77. Chen Tam, Bristol, England, $3,008.00
78. M.P. Lichtenstein, Larchmont, NY $3,008.00
79. Hoyt Corkins, Las Vegas, NV, $3,008.00
80. Jeffrey S. Cord, Jr., Shreveport, LA, $3,008.00
81. Marek Kolk, Tallinn, Estonia, $3,008.00
82. Allie J. Prescott, Memphis, TN, $2,256.00
83. Nevio A. Nicolich, New York, NY, $2,256.00
84. John D. Hurst, Dallas, TX, $2,256.00
85. Casey T. Kay, San Antonio, TX, $2,256.00
86. Stanley J. Goldstein, Los Angeles, CA, $2,256.00
87. Mark J. Gregorich, Las Vegas, NV, $2,256.00
88. Aurel N. Dehollan, Vista, CA, $2,256.00
89. Erick Lindgren, Las Vegas, NV, $2,256.00
90. Todd Bleak, Downey, CA, $2,256.00
91. Brian McCann, Reseda, CA, $2,256.00
92. Joseph Reitman, Los Angeles, CA, $2,256.00
93. Douglas Carli, Alliance, OH, $2,256.00
94. Maurice Karno, Metairie, LA, $2,256.00
95. Simon Hawksworth, Nottingham, England, $2,256.00
96. Evan Paushter, Fairfield, CT, $2,256.00
97. Alexandros Nicola, Sheffield, England, $2,256.00
98. Steven Paul, Morton Grove, IL, $902.40
99. David Pool, Wichita, KS, $902.40
100. Andre Ross, Laval (QC), $902.40
101. Thomas Franklin, Gulfport, MS, $902.40
102. Fabrice Soulier, Paris, France, $902.40

Las Vegas, NV – There are exceptionally rare instances when both the poker tournament and the actual winner jointly possess such astonishing depth of character and convolution that words, sentences, paragraphs, and narratives cannot possibly depict the full magnitude of both man and feat. Event #3 at the 2006 World Series of Poker was just such a tournament.

After ten years of toil on the poker tournament trail, after a life span of revelry, after ultimately dedicating much of his energy to a charity and the pursuit of science and research, Rafe Furst, a 37-year-old Chief Technical Officer from Los Angeles, won his first WSOP gold bracelet. It is difficult if not impossible to describe Furst in just a few words: “Tiltboy.” Stanford University grad. High-tech whiz. Book co-author. Charitable philanthropist. Former Roshambo champion. And now – World Series of Poker champion.

This modern-day Renaissance man topped a record-field of 1,102 players in the $1,500 buy-in pot-limit hold’em competition. It was the largest pot-limit hold’em event ever in the 37-year-history of the World Series of Poker, eclipsing last year’s 1,071 record number. Furst’s triumph was not just unforgettable because he won, but more memorable for how he won. The California Tiltboy flat-out played the best poker of his life, surviving ten chip-lead changes at the final table. In fact, Furst defied poker’s grim reaper on at last two occasions, catching miracle, life saving cards on the river both times that made the final outcome not so much a marvel as the fulfillment of righteous destiny.

After two complete days of play, the pot-limit final table was set with the nine survivors. Sports television leader ESPN was on hand to film the spectacle for later broadcast – a show not to be missed. When the first hand was dealt out in front of the standing-room only crowd packed to the rafters inside the Rio Convention Center, including large cheering sections for several of the crowd favorites, seating positions and chips counts were as follows:
Rocky Enciso, $247,000, 1
Eric Lynch, $455,000, 2
Rafe Furst, $222,000, 3
Rick Chase, $95,000, 4
George Bronstein, $15,700, 5
Can Hua, $122,000, 6
Burt Boutin, $140,000, 7
Alan Gilbert, $88,000, 8
John Juanda, $147,000, 9

The first player eliminated was Alan Gilbert, a software engineer from southern California. Gilbert arrived second-lowest in chips. He failed to gain any significant momentum on the final day. On his hand of doom, Gilbert’s pocket tens were flattened by Can Kim Hua’s pocket queens. Ninth place paid $33,845.
John Juanda’s three previous WSOP gold bracelets would normally be a factor at any final table, both in terms of intimidation and self-confidence. But, Juanda’s bid for Number Four never materialized. Juanda’s stay was short and unpleasant, wrecked when his pocket queens were trounced by Hua’s A-K, after a king flopped. The pair of kings held up and Juanda collected a less-than satisfying $37,606 for eighth place.

At the start of play, Rick Chase arrived low on chips but managed to survive a few hours in front of the cameras. The TV producer from Malibu, CA was finally unplugged after running card-cold for an extended period and was ultimately cancelled. Chase ran away with $45,127 for seventh place.

Then, came “the Furst Miracle.” Devine intervention interceded when Furst was dealt A-A and found himself all-in against Can Kim Hua with 7-2. As bizarre a set up as the double-reverse bad beat story sounds, Hua’s 7-2 was actually a heavy favorite when all the chips were pushed to the center of the table. The four board cards showed Q-7-7-3. Hua held trip sevens and Furst (with the power pair) was down to just two outs in the deck for survival. Kaboom! An ace rained down from the heavens and salvaged Furst’s dream of victory.

Hua must have felt like a skydiver without a parachute for the total freefall he took at this final table. In three breakneck hands, he went from chip-leader to the pavement. Can Kim Hua, a poker pro and veteran of many final table battles, was eliminated by Burt Boutin and had to settle for sixth place, which paid $52,648.

Once again, the bully morphed into the bullied. Boutin must have thought there was a mini-trampoline hiding under his stack, for as quickly as he won a big pot, he lost it all back – and more. Boutin, a stockbroker from Las Vegas was dealt poker’s equivalent of a margin call when his two pair (sevens and fours) was bankrupted by Rocky Enciso’s higher two-pair (kings and sevens). Boutin’s dividend paid out sixty grand.

Other than the eventual winner, George Bronstein may very well have enjoyed the most satisfaction at the final table. He arrived with a stack so low (15K compared to the chip leader’s 455K) that he must have felt like a K-Mart shopper trapped inside a Neiman-Marcus. But in the end, Bronstein picked up far most cash than he had bargained for. Had his pocket tens held up against A-K on his final hand (it didn’t – an ace fell instead), Bronstein most certainly would have finished higher and perhaps been in contention for a bracelet. Instead, fourth place paid $75,212.

Then, came “Furst’s Second Miracle.” On the key hand, Furst re-raised all in with A-8 suited and was hanging on for dear life, staring straight ahead at Eric Lynch’s A-K like it was free one-way bus ticket to Pahrump. Amazingly, Furst and Lynch ended up splitting the potentially decisive pot when the final board showed J-10-6-J-6 (both players made two pair with an ace kicker).

Things went from bad to worse, to even worse, to the worst possible fate for Eric Lynch. The chip leader during much of the final table had several opportunities to lock up a victory, but was never quite able to catch the one vital hand that might have brought the ultimate poker triumph. In what was possibly the most exciting moment in a night of exhilarating hands, Rocky Enciso started things off when he made a pre-flop raise holding K-Q. Eric Lynch moved over the top and all-in with A-7. Rafe Furst peaked at A-K and called instantly. Enciso was pot-committed and also called. The flop came K-J-3 and the Furst’s cheering section went wild. With a dominant hand and holding the most in chips, Furst stood on the doorstep of victory. Then, the door slammed shut. When a queen was peeled from the deck giving Enciso two-pair, the rush of emotions within the crowd upturned. Enciso’s family and friends roared. Meanwhile, Furst, Lynch, and a packed gallery of spectators stood in hushed disbelief. A blank on the river sealed Lynch’s fate. Eric Lynch, a well-known online tournament player who plays under the name “Rizen” could rise no higher than third. His prize money amounted to $104,544.

If there was one bright spot to losing the biggest hand of the tournament, it was that Furst still had more chips, which allowed him to use his big stack as a sledgehammer. In the end, Enciso was nailed on the final hand of the tournament, holding J-4. He lost to Furst’s 8-4 when the final board showed 10-8-4-10-2. Furst had two higher-pair (tens and eights versus tens and fours) and was declared the winner.

Rocky Enciso finished as the runner up. The full-time poker player from Glendale, CA -- who also finished 12th in the H.O.R.S.E. event at the 2004 WSOP -- enjoyed his biggest poker payday ever -- $180,508.

Rafe Furst won his first-ever WSOP gold bracelet and collected $345,984 in prize money for winning the biggest pot-limit hold’em tournament in history. But even in the midst of television’s bright lights, creating instant fame and fortune -- Furst remained his unassuming self. Perhaps it was his cerebral temperament. Perhaps it was his peaceful nature. Perhaps it was a tranquil inner sense of satisfaction attained and enjoyed only by the most confident and secure of men who do not need nor value material goods nor notoriety to feel good about themselves.

“I feel like I played very well. I never had my money in with the worst of it in this tournament, at least up until the final table,” Furst said. “There were some unbelievable hands played tonight….four or five times we saw river cards spiked. It just became bizarre after awhile. It was almost like you expected it (to happen).”

Furst is the co-founder of “Put a Bad beat on Cancer,” a collection of poker players who have all pledged to donate one-percent of their WSOP winnings to the charitable foundation which is seeking a cure for the dreaded disease. Four years ago, Furst (along with poker celebrity Phil Gordon) created the project, which first appeared at the 2003 WSOP after a full-year coast-to-coast road trip. During that time, Furst and Gordon dedicated all of their time and energy to the good cause, yet refused any salary or compensation. The foundation is active at the 2006 WSOP and is already attracting many pledges. But as Rafe Furst would be the first to say in hoping that more players will sign up – there are never enough good deeds nor good people to do them.

Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #3):
Total Entries to Date: 5,110
Total Prize Money Distributed: $5,847,870