The Master Classics Over the Years

Left) Thomas Middleton with the biggest prize in Master Classics history to date; Center) Winning hand for Erich Kollmann at the 2004 opening event; Right) The strong Ed de Haas gets trapped by Simon Trumper in the 2004 pot-limit Omaha event.

Left) Ace in action; in the background: back-to-back winner in 2003, Swede Johan Storakers; Center) Rob Hollink beats Devilfish in epic battle (2001); Right) Gerard "Karotti" Dresken: first-ever winner of the Master Classics.

Left) Overview of the 2001 MCOP; Center) Robert Mizrachi (Michael's brother) takes home the 2004 main event; Right) No bracelets at the Master Classics – but beautiful white plates for the winners.

Poker in Holland has never been more than just a moderate success. In fact, until the most recent poker boom, Dutch poker was fairly small. There were quite a few good players, but not many players overall. For years, Holland Casinos in Amsterdam at Max Euweplein was the only place in the country that had a legal poker game.



Despite all of this, the Master Classics of Poker (MCOP) has become the biggest and most prestigious annual poker event in Europe. Well … it used to be the biggest, but now massive events like the European Poker Tour (EPT) and the Monte Carlo Millions seem very eager to take over. Yet, the players still love to come to Amsterdam – not just for the Van Gogh Museum, the canals, the coffeeshops, or the Red Light District, but to play poker. The MCOP is famous for its wonderful atmosphere, great sportsmanship, and ever-growing prize pools. The 2005 Master Classics had a record prize pool of almost €2.5 million, and all events were sellouts or close to it – including the €5,000 main event. I recently grabbed a chair and sat down with some of the driving forces behind this success.



I've known the person seated opposite me for years. It is Peter Voolstra, duty manager at Holland Casinos and tournament director for the annual Master Classics. He was there from the beginning.



"In 1991, we left the gaming area in the Hilton to move to our current venue," he explained. "We didn't have poker at the time. It was my boss, Jan Rodrigo, who had heard about the game and thought that it would be a great idea to add it to others we had on offer. We contacted The Mirage in Vegas to find out how to go about it. We went there to talk with the person in charge of poker, Doug Dalton, who's now in charge of the poker room at Bellagio. He explained the best way to start up poker, and he and his wife, Edna, came over to Amsterdam to train our dealers. Within no time, the poker action got started, and for many years we were the only place in Holland where it was legal to play poker. From there, it was just a little step to start up the Master Classics. Frankly, it was not more than just a thought. We decided that we wanted a poker tournament, and we simply went out and did it. The inaugural event took place during the first week of November – for no other reason than the Daltons were here at that time. It has remained in the first week of November ever since."



Lots of Regulars Right From the Start

The tournament started out very small, not at all like the huge events there are now. Peter remembers there being no more than three or four tables, accommodating 40 players at the most.



I didn't know who'd won that first event, and I'm not the only one. I had always heard that it was Gerard Dresken, a high-stakes gambler who is still a regular in our big pot-limit Omaha games. According to Peter, however, it was Surinder Sunar who won the first title. Surinder confirmed this, but then added that the tournament he had won had about 90 entrants or so, much more than the 30 or 40 that Peter talked about. So, it seemed logical to assume that perhaps Surinder won the second one, and indeed Gerard the first. But when I asked Gerard, he knew all the figures by heart: "Back when I won, the main event was still seven-card stud, with a 1,050 guilder buy-in and 96 entrants." All in all, no absolute certainty on the first winner, I guess, even though everyone agrees that Chip Winton from the United States was the first overall winner. As is the case with Surinder, Chip is one of the many players who have not missed any Master Classics. Another regular is one of Peter Voolstra's closest friends in the gaming industry, Bruno Fitoussi.



Bruno was in Amsterdam a long time before the first Master Classics. In 1992, he was a full-time poker pro, specializing in cash games. When he heard that a new poker room had been opened in Amsterdam, he packed his bags and moved there. "Right from the start, I loved everything over here," Bruno recalled. "The casino, the staff, the city – I was equally fond of it all. I was making my living here, playing 30-60 guilders split limit, and averaging about 1,000 guilders a day. I built part of my bankroll here. This was a time when there was still lots of chess and backgammon action over here, and I often played in the Chess Café with people like (the other) Rolf, Evert, and Jeroen. Then, the MCOP started, and I loved that even more. Ever since the start, we have had a large contingent of French players, and even today with all of these young Scandinavians, the biggest crew is still from France.



Large Prize Pools – Big Names
After its inaugural event, the Master Classics continued to grow steadily. I have been with the MCOP myself for about five years now, in my role as tournament reporter, and every year – almost without exception – I could say: "We have yet another record prize pool." An important role in this success is played by the two women behind the Master Classics. First, there's Adèle Bruijn, who for years was responsible for promoting the event abroad. She used to travel to all of the major events in Paris, Vienna, L.A., and Las Vegas to recruit as many players as possible – and she did a terrific job. For a long time, Adèle was the "face" of the Master Classics, and when the players had questions or needed something, she was the one they turned to. In 2003, she was joined by her friend Marie-Louise Overtoom, and the following year, Marie-Louise took over. Their goals have always been simple: take good care of the players, and make them feel welcome.



"Nowadays, we don't have to convince the players to come to Amsterdam," explained Overtoom. "They know all they need to know already. Most of the tournaments will be sold out – yet we travel to the major events, and people appreciate that. In fact, we still keep adding large sums of money to the prize pool, knowing that in many cases we don't need to – as most of the events would be a sellout anyway, and we simply cannot host more than 270 players under the current conditions. But because we are committed to this event and will stay committed, I think we have established an excellent relationship with the players. It's harder nowadays, with all of these young online qualifiers, because there are so many new faces, but we still try to make them feel as welcome as the players who have been with us for years."



"We are proud that we have been able to get so many big names to attend," Adéle said. "It may seem like no big deal to get players like Phil Hellmuth, Mike Sexton, Erik Seidel, T.J. Cloutier, Ted Forrest, and Layne Flack over here, but I can tell you that these people don't like to go outside of the United States – even more so because, in the past, the link between Amsterdam and poker was not automatically clear to them. But these players did come over – and they loved it. Mike Caro has even given a seminar here. And what about John Bonetti? He was well over 70 when he came here for the first time – and his passport showed that he had never been abroad before!"



The Future

Despite all the big names who make the annual trip to Holland, recent changes in worldwide poker have had a considerable influence on the position of the Master Classics. Because of the mission statement of Holland Casinos (regulating rather than actively promoting games of chance like poker – games of chance according to Dutch laws, that is), the MCOP cannot jump on the Internet/sponsorship/TV wagon like other tournaments can. Peter, Adèle, and Marie-Louise have made a tremendous effort in trying to make the MCOP an integral part of the televised European Poker Tour (EPT), but unfortunately, rules and regulations have stood in the way. For the most part, this was because the sponsor of the EPT is an online poker site, and under Dutch laws, Internet gambling is prohibited. There's a genuine danger that rival European events will get bigger and bigger, fueled by the money and publicity brought by television, the Internet, and sponsorship. As long as Dutch law remains unchanged, the Master Classics may not be able to keep up. The MCOP could lose some of the appeal that it has now, especially to the sponsors of some of the most famous players. So, the future of the MCOP is not entirely clear, even though it is clear that the event should be strong enough to survive at least the next five or six years in its current format.



Voolstra said, "We have to acknowledge that we may have reached the maximum that we can achieve. Still, we will try to do whatever we can to continue the growth. Harrah's, the host of the World Series of Poker, could play a crucial role in our future. We are its first license holder in Europe, and we could use this to our benefit in many ways. The fact that we have given Thomas Middleton, the winner of this year's main event, a free seat in the World Series plus $5,000 for expenses is a first sign of our increasing commitment to the World Series – a commitment that in turn should benefit the Master Classics, as well."



Some Final Stories

Now, obviously, when you've been around for so long, as the Master Classics has, there should be lots of interesting or remarkable stories, right? Adèle was the first to bite. She said, "Well, yes, especially if you are around people like Marcel Lüske or Devilfish; those guys will always come up with some new or funny things. This year, Devilfish was walking around with four young and beautiful girls on his arm, all to attract attention to himself and his site. It worked!"



"I guess the most remarkable thing we had happen was last year," added Peter. "Unlike this year when we had no fewer than 264 entrants for the big one, last year we were very eager to get just 191. Coupled with the nine extra spots we would pay ourselves, €45,000 total, this would have added up to a total prize pool of one cool million – the biggest prize money we ever had. But then Adèle got a call from Devilfish, saying: 'Well, I am in Nice now with Freddy Deeb and Harry Demetriou. We are stuck in a plane accident, and won't be able to attend.' Adèle then replied: 'Well yes, Dave, sure you are. Where are you? You are walking up the stairs right now or are standing right behind me as we speak – correct?' As it happened, lightning had struck their plane. One of the pilots had been hit, causing him to lose his consciousness, and a second pilot had been forced to make an emergency landing in Nice. This was the night before the main event, and obviously, having experienced a horrible accident like this, the three players were not all that eager to jump on another plane. What it meant for us, though, was that we ended up a mere two players short of the one million prize pool that we had so much looked forward to!"



Marie-Louise had the final word: "Yeah, that was a horrible, amazing, and funny story, all at the same time. A story that I like is this one: It was a couple of years ago, when Omaha was still very much on the rise. But we could not host it, as – yes, again by law – we are allowed to offer only a limited number of games. Hold'em and Omaha counted as two separate games, even though, obviously, they are both poker. Because so many players loved to play Omaha, our cash-game action was much slower than usual, as lots of players went to some illegal clubs where they could play the game. Peter decided to put a stop to this. He made a couple of phone calls to people in high places, and within a day, he had his permission: The Holland Casinos were now allowed to offer Omaha. But, he didn't announce the news immediately; he waited until all players were seated for the start of another tournament. He began with his usual welcome speech, and then just when everybody was ready to start playing, he said: 'Oh yeah, guys, before I forget, there's one more thing. From today on, we also offer Omaha.' He got rewarded with the biggest cheer we have ever had over here. People stood up applauding, and the poker action that night was unlike anything we had ever witnessed.



Peter said, "Yes, that was a great night. I guess the players simply appreciated the fact that again, we had been listening to their wishes. In my view, this is probably the main reason we have been able to turn the Master Classics into such a spectacular and successful event – not just once or twice, but over such a long period of time."

The Dutch Master Classics of Poker originated in November 1992. The largest buy-in tournament at that time was a 1,050 guilder (€480) freezeout. Nowadays, this event has a €5,000 buy-in. The 2005 Master Classics had a new prize-pool record of €2.44 million total, and the winner of the main event received a check of no less than €528,000 – the biggest single prize ever awarded. As in previous events, the Master Classics added a large sum of money to the prize pool – and it is expected that in the future, it will continue to do so.

THE 2005 MASTERS Michael Eric Holm comes back from way behind in Red- Shirt Battle. €220 no-limit hold'em (unlimited rebuys) Entrants: 297 • Rebuys: 170 • Prize pool: €95,200 Dutch chip leader Daniel Smidt crashed early when he had a couple of big hands cracked. Young Swede Michael Holm came back from just twice the big blind to capture the title. 1. Michael Eric Holm, Sweden, €37,360 2. Kai Domino Poulsen, Norway, €18,680 3. Yngve Olsen, Norway, €9,340 Man from Lebanon takes on strong, experienced Irishman. In the back: Holland Casinos' managing director Leon Burgers €820 no-limit hold'em (one optional rebuy) Entrants: 287 • Rebuys: 171 • Prize pool: €365,600 Heads up, experienced Irishman Alan Betson was a clear favorite to win the title. He was in total control, and had been chipping away successfully at his opponent Abdul Aziz Khodr, who would play back at his opponent only when he had real strength. A dinner break turned things around. Deal negotiations were said to have failed because the Irishman was unwilling to do business. Possibly as a result of this, the man from Lebanon came back to the table fuming, raising and reraising almost every hand – and by doing this, he managed to overcome his 2-to-1 chip deficit. He made an amazing call for all of his money with J-8 suited, outdrew Betson's K-J, and from there went on to win a €143,000 first prize. 1. Abdul Aziz Khodr, Lebanon/Germany, €143,360 2. Alan Betson, Ireland, €71,860 3. Dan Glimne, Sweden, €35,840 Trumper confident about prolonging his title. But in the end, he will lose to Andreas Krause (red shirt). €520 pot-limit Omaha (one optional rebuy) Entrants: 246 • Rebuys: 169 • Prize pool: €212,000 In a strong field, defending champion Simon Trumper came close to keeping his title. He busted out the strong Rob Hollink in a somewhat lucky manner, had aces no less than six times (winning them all), and flopped three sets. But the last set he flopped led to disaster. Holding middle set, he lost the biggest pot of the event against Andreas Krause's top set, and from there the German was able to finish things off. 1. Andreas Krause, Germany, €83,000 2. Simon Trumper, England, €41,500 3. Jean-Bernard Bot, France, €20,750 EPT Grand Final winner Rob Hollink on his way to triumph. In the back: speaker Debby Heus €320 no-limit hold'em (unlimited rebuys) Entrants: 288 • Rebuys: 210 • Prize pool: €152,100 A big name – European Poker Champion Rob Hollink, who was playing his second consecutive final of the day – emerged victorious. As it happened, the Chief had accumulated lots of chips in this event while playing thepot-limit Omaha final simultaneously! He was the best player by far in this final, and booked a well-deserved win. 1. Rob Hollink, Netherlands, €59,760 2. Josef Kollaritz, Austria, €29,880 3. Samuel Lehtonen, Sweden, €14,940 Experienced pros Marcel Lüske and Jan Sörensen in tough battle at main event – but they will lose to young Thomas Middleton. €5,000 no-limit hold'em freezeout (main event) Entrants: 264 • Prize pool: €1,365,000 This was an exciting final that started with Torstein Iversen as the clear chip leader, and then Marcel Luske took total control. But Marcel lost an important pot against the strong Jan Sorensen, who was sitting to his immediate left. Jan then seemed ready to finish things off, but suffered beats in two consecutive monster pots. First, Thomas Middleton made an amazing call for all of his money with A-5 against the Dane's J-J, only to flop an ace. Then, it was Patrick Bueno's turn to outdraw Jan. Bueno called for his entire stack with the Q 10 to outdraw Jan's A-K. With Jan out, the aggressive and opportunistic Middleton was able to clinch things. 1. Thomas Aleksander Middleton, Norway, €528,000 2. Patrick Bueno, France, €264,000 3. Jan Sorensen, Denmark, €132,000 4. Marcel Luske, Netherlands, €85,800 5. Torstein Iversen, Norway, €66,000 Young Dutchman shakes off impressive German. €320 no-limit hold'em (unlimited rebuys) Entrants: 288 • Rebuys: 270 • Prize pool €170,100 In an extremely fast-paced event, Dave Colclough had well over 40 percent of the chips in play at one point, but he didn't reach the final three. The tournament went to Daniel Pastor, who had been very low on chips but managed to fight his way to the title by winning a series of all-in confrontations. 1. Daniel Pastor, Netherlands, €66,960 2. Frank Blumlein, Germany, €33,480 3. Andreas Quadrizus, Germany, €16,740 Former overall winner at Master Classics captures final event. €120 no-limit hold'em (unlimited rebuys) Entrants: 295 • Rebuys: 325 • Prize pool: €62,500 This was another speedy event, in which popular local Kosta Anastasyadis caught lots of good hands and won almost all the showdowns he played. The Netherlands ruled in a final that also contained Rob Hollink's younger sister Clementine. 1. Kosta Anastasyadis, Greece/Netherlands, €24,640 2. Michel Vat, Netherlands, €12,320 3. Clementine Hollink, Netherlands, €6,160