2002 Jack Binion World Poker Open

The past two years I was unable to attend the Jack Binion World Poker Open, hosted by the Gold Strike Hotel and Casino and the Horseshoe Casino in Tunica, Mississippi. This year I had to go and see what it was all about. I had planned on attending only a few events, but a win in a supersatellite kept me there for a week. The Southern hospitality was great, the players were fed well, and the room rates were only $29 a night. Some players even stayed for free because they put up a deposit for the championship event.

Each time I travel to these poker tournaments, I have the opportunity to meet a few new people and get to know others a little more. In the past, I have had a few conversations with Howard Lederer, but never knew about his knowledge and love for the game of poker. This guy is an incredible player and a great storyteller. Another player I haven't had the privilege of playing with in the past who impressed me was "Houston" Sammy Farha. He is a high-limit player who plays mostly pot-limit Omaha cash games, and he is very witty. The funniest thing about Sammy is that every time he bets and someone folds, he says he has queens. It is nice that nobody lies in poker.

This year, the WPO raised the buy-in of the championship event to $10,000. A total of 140 players entered, and 27 made the money. I made it to the final 40 players, and ran into the wrong person – my father. He had pocket aces and sent me home. Thanks a lot, Dad. The final nine players were Mike Laing, Andy Bloch, Barry Shulman, Chris Bigler, David "Devilfish" Ulliott, Robert Dreyfuss, Alex Papachatzakis, Erik Seidel, and Humberto Brenes. Humberto and Erik were the final two, and Humberto was crowned the 2002 World Poker Open champion. Congratulations, Humberto! He played his large stack as well as I have ever witnessed. By the time they had played down to the final five players for ESPN, he had $771,000 of the $1.4 million in play, and everyone else seemed to be playing for second place. Humberto is one of the most respected players in the industry, and he gave Erik a big hug after the grueling four-day event. One of the tournament's most interesting situations took place when Alex Papachatzakis (a former professional soccer player) thought he had gone broke with two tables left after he lost a big hand, but was left with $2,000 in chips. He parlayed that into $129,000 in real money when he took third place.

Phil Hellmuth has made a change to the Champion of the Year award; any event will qualify, provided it is in the United States, and has a $2,000 buy-in or more and at least 50 players.