London Legends

The inaugural event of a new European poker circuit, the Showdown Poker Tour, took place at the Gutshot Card Club in London recently.

It was called the London Legends, but the only legends from London who turned up were the Hendon Mob, made up of the Boatman brothers, of FullTilt fame, and Ram Vaswani, a big money winner on the European Poker Tour.

In all, the €5,000 buy-in event attracted only 23 runners, but the organisers insist that as the tour picks up momentum, these numbers will increase dramatically.

The Showdown Poker Tour will consist of eight events in various locations around Europe, culminating in a €3 million first-prize tournament in Hamburg, Germany.

Back at the Gutshot, on a typical drizzly Saturday afternoon in London, former World Series of Poker Tournament Director Matt Savage stood under a sign proclaiming the inauguration of Europe's largest poker room, and rather sadly instructed the dealers at three solitary tables to "shuffle up and deal."

Savage, who has directed 250 televised poker tournaments in the last year alone, and appears in the upcoming poker movie Lucky You, agreed that Europe badly needs a second serious tournament, in the mould of the WPT.

"Poker is so huge in Europe at the moment, and there are so many great young players coming up. There's definitely a need for another tournament circuit," he said.

At the main televised table, raised higher than the others with uncomfortable-looking elongated bar stools for seats, the two biggest names in the tournament, Andy Black and stoic Ram Vaswani, sat side by side laughing and joking.

Things remained friendly for the first blind level as the players tentatively threw around blue €100 chips, avoiding any dangerous confrontations that could endanger their stacks and lead to an early exit.

After two hours of play, with the blinds now at €50-€100, disaster struck at the TV table for Black. He went all in with pocket nines and was called by Vaswani's A-K.

Despite going into the hand as a marginal favourite, Andy's hopes of doubling up where dashed when the flop came out a cruel A-K-8.

The big slick held up, as Andy's two remaining outs failed to come on the turn or the river, and with that, the Northern Irish champion's tournament life was over.

"That was the worst poker I ever played in my life," he said whilst furiously sucking down a Silk Cut cigarette outside the main doors of the Gutshot. "I just can't believe it. I played loose-weak. It was like one stupid move after another," he added, before turning to Tournament Promoter Teddy Venderson and offering to cry some more in front of the cameras, "If it's any help."

Down to 19 players after the first break, but having reached only the third level of €50-€100, Hendon mobster Ross Boatman's fortunes also took a turn for the worse. From the small blind, he called Robin Keston's raise from one off the button. The flop came A-J-J. Ross checked and then called Robin's bet.

The turn brought a rag, which Ross again checked, prompting Robin to go in big. Boatman smiled wryly, acting for all the world delighted about this turn of events, and pushed all of his chips over the line, only to be called instantly by Keston. The caller turned over K-J suited, giving him trips, which eventually beat Boatman's two pair with A-Q.

Down to €4,000, Boatman went out a few hands later with K-10 against American Woody Deck's K-Q.

With play now down to 16 runners on two tables, Woody Deck made a bid for yet another scalp by calling Vaswani's €6,000 all-in raise. Vaswani flipped over pocket sevens and Deck, A-10 suited. The pocket pair nearly held up Deck's avalanche, but the K on the river gave him the nut flush and sent former professional snooker player Vaswani packing in 16th place.

Over on another table, Gavin Simms moved all in on a flop of 9-8-8. Robin Keston, the other player left in this pot, appeared vulnerable, protecting his head with his forearm, as if in anticipation of a vicious blow. Still looking reluctant, he finally edged all of his chips forward to make the call, and then asked his opponent, "Do you have a pair?"
Simms replied, "Yes, fours."

Keston flipped over his A-Q and Simms blushed slightly as he revealed his alleged pair, which by now had somehow morphed into 4-2 offsuit. No deuces or fours on the turn or river meant Keston doubled up.

Out shortly after that, and badly in need of laser surgery, Simms made the walk of shame, as far as the bar, finishing in 11th place and signalling the end of the first day's play.

When play resumed the next day, two shorthanded tables remained and players could be seen exchanging furtive glances as they waited for someone to fall by the wayside to leave eight for the final table.

In the end, it was giant-killer Woody Deck's onslaught that fell short a short while into the €200-€400 level. Holding A-Q, Deck took Bjorn Helander all in, only to find that the Scandinavian had A-K. Nothing came on the board and Woody's stack was reduced right down to the felt.

Moments later, Deck moved all in with cowboys and was called by another Scandinavian, chip leader Tomas Biel, who flipped over the A 5. The flop brought another two diamonds, and the river a third, to complete Biel's flush, and Deck was knocked out.

Hoping to establish his role as the bully at the final table, Biel made a move from middle position, which he probably would have done better to avoid. Everyone folded around to Barny Boatman, who started counting his chips and then called. Biel flipped over K-J, and Boatman, A-Q.

The board came with three clubs, giving Boatman a draw to the nut flush, and when an ace came on the turn, his double-up was guaranteed.

Biel went out dramatically before the bubble, going all in with A-10 suited. He was called quickly by last year's EPT Dublin winner Mats Gavatin, with kings. The flop came Q-J-2 rainbow, and then a deuce on the turn and a king on the river gave Gavatin a full house and Biel a ticket home.

After the dinner break, Gavatin moved all in with A-5 and found himself heads up against Barny Boatman's queens. The flop brought an ace and a 5, and his two pair held up.

Gavatin moved in once again shortly afterward with A-Q suited, and to his evident joy, he found a call from Bjorn Helander with A-J. The board brought no help for the Scandinavian, and the field was down to three players.

His comeback continued only moments later when - again going all in, this time with threes - Gavatin was called by Internet qualifier and Gutshot regular Dan Wicks, who was drawing to a flush that never came.

Wicks was then taken out of the running when he tried to bluff on a ragged flop, only to be called by Barny Boatman with top pair.

Heads up and playing for the title were Mats Gavatin and the remaining Hendon Mobster, Barny Boatman.

Early in the sparring session, Gavatin raised with K-3, only to be reraised all in by Boatman, holding A-4. Gavatin had enough to cover him, and called. When the flop came K-10-2, with nothing to put Boatman ahead on fourth or fifth street, the competition was over. Sweden's Mats Gavatin took his second major title and was presented with a cheque for £39,422. It was not bad for two days' work, but hardly the kind of prize to attract larger fields in the future.

In fact, if the British government has its way, this may be the first and last high-stakes tournament ever played at the Gutshot, or a club of its kind, in the UK. The British Crown Prosecution Service has brought a case against the Gutshot's owners, Derek Kelly and Barry Martin, charging that they are in breach of the 1968 Gambling Act.

"Anyone who organizes poker tournaments with a public element, in premises other than casinos, risks breaching the legislation contained in the 1968 Gaming Act," explained a spokeswoman for the UK gambling commission.

But the real pressure is being brought by the casinos themselves, claimed Kelly. "Since our inauguration, we have been infringing on a monopoly paid for by big casinos since the 1968 Act was first passed," he said.

At least 20 more such clubs have sprung up all over Britain since the Gutshot first opened its doors in 2004, and the new trend is starting to hurt Britain's gambling franchises.

"Until now, poker has been played legally in casinos only alongside games the casino cannot lose in the long run, such as craps. What we want to do is offer a secure environment where people can play their game of choice without going skint and without the pressure of big business," he said.

According to its owners, the Gutshot would be perfectly happy to accept the authority of a third-party regulatory body, but neither such a body nor appropriate legislation for poker clubs currently exists in the UK, or elsewhere on the continent.
"Poker has been run nefariously in Europe for hundreds of years," stated Kelly. "We want to make it legitimate, without compromising the ethos of fair play."

If Kelly and Martin lose their case, they could face a hefty fine and even a jail sentence. Such a precedent would certainly discourage club promoters, and could signal the end of small independent clubs like the Gutshot in Europe.

"But it's more than that. This is attacking our humanitarian right to pursue the activity of our choice in the cultural environment of our choice," said Kelly.