The Second Annual World Poker Challenge

The second annual World Poker Challenge was held at the Reno Hilton in January of this year. Attendance for the event was down from last year because of the World Poker Open in Tunica, which was held at the same time. Hopefully, this conflict can be avoided next year so that players don't have to choose between these two great tournaments. Many players, including me, attended at least part of both of them. I attended the first half of the tournament in Reno and the last half of the tournament in Tunica. Players were given great room rates and first-class treatment at both locations. I did much better in the Reno tournaments, making two final-table appearances and finishing fifth both times. I got shut out in Tunica, but my esteemed writing partner, T.J. Cloutier, made three final tables there. His obvious talent for tournament poker manifested itself, as he accomplished this feat in three different games – limit hold'em, pot-limit hold'em, and Omaha high-low split, where he finished second to the red-hot Jim Miller. Miller has done amazingly well in this game in the last few months, with wins at Hollywood Park and Foxwoods in addition to Tunica. Hey, Jim, isn't it time that you quit your day job and go into playing poker full time?

At the Reno Hilton tournament, I finished fifth in stud high-low split. Even though I couldn't win it, I was happy for Carolyn Gardner, who did win the event. She played like the former world champion that she is. I always root for Carolyn because she won the ladies world championship the same year that I won the big one – 1983. It's nice to know that we can both still be competitive at our "advanced" ages. My other fifth-place finish, in the $500 buy-in no-limit hold'em event, was somewhat of a disappointment. I arrived at the final table with the chip lead, and Russ Floyd was not too far behind me. Russ has a lot of gamble and a lot of heart, but he got caught bluffing and bounced out in seventh place. I am sure that he felt even worse than I did. The final table took longer to play than the entire first day of play did. Two British players from across the pond played outstanding poker, with Shar Koumi of Birmingham, England, finally outlasting everyone. Tristan Baum, a recent winner at the Taj Mahal, came in second, and Brit Dave Colclough finished fourth. Dave broke me when I moved my few remaining chips in on the flop with an open-end straight draw that didn't get there. J.J. Bortner of Palo Alto, California, finished ninth when her pocket aces ran into a flopped king that matched the pair in Russ Floyd's hand. It was a tough break for J.J. It was a bit of irony that both J.J. and I made the final table last year in the very same event. I don't know what the odds are of that happening, but it was a first for me.

David Lamb, Billy V., Mike Gainey, and the whole crew did a truly outstanding job of running the tournament and making players feel welcome.

Congratulations also go out to my friend Dennis Horton, who captured the $300 buy-in pot-limit hold'em crown. Dennis finished second in the main event at The Orleans a few years ago. The man who defeated Dennis there is my good friend and advisor Ron McMillan. Dennis and Ron are two of the nicest people in the poker world.

I want to finish this column on both a happy and a sad note. The sad note comes first. Bonnie Damiano, a Card Player Cruises partner and tournament producer of last year's revived Four Queens Classic, recently moved into a new home, and it was gutted by a fire while she and her children were there. The happy note is that they escaped unharmed. Some of Bonnie's friends are going to run a benefit poker tournament for her in the near future. Look for details soon in Card Player. Hopefully, we'll meet in the winner's circle soon – maybe at Bonnie's tournament.