The eighth-annual
World Poker Open returned to the Gold Strike Casino Resort in January. With four tournament events taking place in three different countries over 21 days, this World Poker Tour event was one of several overlapping January tournaments that left circuit participants spending as much time getting from venue to venue as they did at the felt. At the Gold Strike Casino Resort, the hotel and tournament staff turned up the Southern hospitality as weary participants enjoyed a slower pace, much like that of the majestic Mississippi River running behind the venue.
2006
WPO Champion Scotty Nguyen returned to defend his title, along with 293 other entrants. The prize pool totaled $2,521,504, with first place paying $904,574.
Day One
At noon on day one, players took their seats with $20,000 in chips. Steve Wong shuffled in the door about 15 minutes later, just in time to see that he'd been dealt a pair of kings. Unbeknownst to Wong, Kido Pham woke up with pocket aces. Wong was crippled after his first hand of play, and three hands later, he was on the rail.
Mark Seif shot to the top of the leader board when, with a board of 5
4
3
K
, he called an all-in bet by Vanessa Rousso with the K
J
. Rousso was elated as she was holding the A
K
(pair of kings with the better kicker). But, the J♥ on the river marked the end of her WPO participation, and she sadly exited the arena.
Meanwhile, Barry Greenstein was on a methodical run, amassing a small fortune by the end of the day and securing his position as the chip leader with more than $130,000.
Day Two
The next day, 174 players returned at noon to grind it out over five more levels. There were big names and even bigger disappointments, as, one by one, hands unfolded and players faced elimination.
J.C. Tran doubled up in early action, and Barry Greenstein continued to build up his stack. Victor Ramdin chopped down two players at once, making him the new chip leader. And despite playing for nearly $1 million in first-place prize money, Gavin Smith and he found the time and energy to yak it up. Catching Ramdin unaware, Smith rushed over to his table and knocked over his tower of chips. Ramdin returned the favor by snatching Smith's hat off his head, exposing his famous locks and receding hairline.
J.C. Tran increased the size of his stack after eliminating Chau Giang in one of the last eliminations of the day. But it was a hand between Hoyt Corkins and Phil Hellmuth that made day-two headlines. Hellmuth, reeling from his chair as it fell with a thump to the floor, asked Corkins, "How can you possibly play that (expletive)?" after Hellmuth had moved all in preflop with a pair of nines and Corkins had called him with A-6 suited. Corkins spiked an ace and Hellmuth was left to search for transportation out of Tunica.
At the end of the 10th level, Kido Pham, Victor Ramdin, Hoyt Corkins, John Racener, and newcomer Bryan Sumner topped the leader board. But it would take another day before players would reach the money. With 44 competitors returning, 17 would have to invest more of their precious time without results.
Day Three
Day two's chip leaders were finding it difficult to hold on to their positions throughout day three, and others were finding it hard to hold on to a seat for long. The Southern tempo had quickened, as well as the number of eliminations; 44 players had started the day at noon, and within two hours, more than 20 of them were on the rail. "All in," "player down," and "seat open" calls left tournament dealers scrambling.
Barry Greenstein lost his day-one chip lead and was finally eliminated by Robert Mizrachi. Greenstein awarded him an autographed copy of
Ace on the River.
Daniel Negreanu, severely short-stacked, went into three-way all-in action with Kyle Hamlin and Paul "Eskimo" Clark after a flop of 8
7
3
. Clark was the chip leader, but Negreanu had Hamlin covered. Negreanu showed pocket eights (8
8
) for a set. Hamlin and Clark each had ace high. The 7
turn and 10
river sent Hamlin to the rail, crippled Clark, and tripled up Negreanu to around $93,000.
A few hands later, Clark made an unsuccessful all-in attempt, going out on the money bubble in 28th place.
Play On
The day-three plan was for players to reach the money and then pack up their chips and return the next day. But, due to the quick pace of the tournament, the 27 money winners unanimously agreed to continue. Robert Mizrachi was the first to cash, in 27th place for $17,137.
Next to hit the rail, earning $17,137, were, in order of elimination, Sung Joo, Harold Mahaffey, Victor Ramdin, Mark Seif, Hoyt Corkins, Matt Graham, and Michael Schneider.
The elimination that ended the day was ugly. Gavin Smith moved all in preflop with pocket kings, and Young Cho called him with pocket queens. Don Mullis remarked that he'd folded a queen, but the case queen came on the flop and Smith watched helplessly as the turn and river delivered blanks. Smith was the last player of the day to be eliminated, out in 19th place for $17,137.
Normally, that would have been enough to cap off an exciting evening. But, before Tournament Director Johnny Grooms could announce, "Dealers, finish the hand you're on," the chip lead flip-flopped on table No. 31. Chip leader Young Cho lost a huge pot to James "Catfish" Bullard, doubling Bullard up to $860,000.
"There's no known cure for a catfish bite," said Bullard as he packed up his chips.
Day Four
Three minutes into the first level, the last surviving woman was eliminated. Jolyne Thompson raised $28,000 preflop and Kido Pham moved all in. Thompson called, showing the A
Q
, and Pham turned over the J
J
. The board of 8
7
6
7
5
sent her out in 18th place with $22,850.
Next out, in order of elimination, were: Don Mullis ($22,850), Amir Vahedi ($22,850), Adeeb Harb ($28,562), Justin Marsh ($28,562), Edson Putrus ($28,562), John Racener ($34,274), and Brian Gabrielle ($34,274).
After these eliminations, players drew their seats for the final table:
1 - Matt Russell - $123,000
2 - Gary Kainer - $216,000
3 - J.C. Tran - $428,000
4 - Bryan Sumner - $363,000
5 - Robert Thompson - $867,000
6 - James "Catfish" Bullard - $750,000
7 - Kido Pham - $653,000
8 - Jeremy Tinsley - $258,000
9 - Young Cho - $1,455,000
10 - Daniel Negreanu - $679,000
It didn't take long for Negreanu to move up the leader board, as he doubled through Tinsley to have nearly $800,000. Tinsley was crippled, with less than $40,000 going into the next level. Ten minutes later, Tinsley exited the event in 10th place with $34,274.
Bullard, one of the day's chip leaders, steadily lost ground and eventually went out in ninth place with $57,124. But, he pocketed more than just his championship winnings. Earlier in the week, he'd won $113,956 in a preliminary tournament, along with a gold bracelet and a seat in the main event. With an initial investment of only $500, Bullard walked away from the 2007
WPO with more than $170,000.
Matt Russell then went out in eighth place with $85,686. When Robert Thompson went out in seventh place with $114,248, the lineup for the feature final table was established:
1 - Gary Kainer - $514,000
2 - J.C. Tran - $181,000
3 - Bryan Sumner - $596,000
4 - Young Cho - $2,571,000
5 - Kido Pham - $731,000
6 - Daniel Negreanu - $1,296,000
Final Table
Some dispute Mississippian's claims that poker was born on their turf, but the
WPT can officially credit the state for topping two of its circuit records: Daniel Negreanu, previously tied with Barry Greenstein*, set a new record for
WPT consecutive cashes (four), and the 2007
WPO final-table players engaged in the
WPT's longest recorded six-way battle.
It wasn't until the 93rd hand, when the final table was deep into its fourth level, that a player was eliminated. Of those hands, only 16 produced a flop and even fewer made it to the river. There were 60 other hands in which players either gave the big blind a "walk" or forfeited the pot to a raiser before the community cards were dealt. Yet, there was plenty of action, with multiple raises, double-ups, and players trading chip leads.
On the 45th hand, Pham made it $80,000 from late position, and Kainer moved all in with $377,000 more. While Pham was chatting across the table at his opponent, he was overheard saying, "I call that one," but later tried to explain, "I didn't mean this one," and two tournament directors were summoned. It was ruled that Pham's verbal declaration was binding, and that his only option was to call the monster raise. Pham did so reluctantly, turning over the K
7
. Kainer had the A
Q
. The flop came A
6
4
, and although Kainer had paired his ace, Pham was still in the running with a flush draw. The turn was the 6
and the river the 7
. The pot was shipped to Kainer, leaving the good-natured Pham with less than $200,000 going into the next hand. "Sometimes I mean what I don't say," he said smiling, not quite able to articulate his exact thoughts. The audience understood, and laughed along with him.
A few hands later, with Cho on the button, Pham used both hands to sweep his last $170,000 into the middle, and then declared, "I raise one-point-five million," sparking another round of laughter from the crowd. The next to act was the usually stone-faced Cho, who cracked a smile and said, "I call that." Cho turned over the A
7
and Pham showed the K
J
. The crowd cheered for their sentimental favorite, "King, king, king!" Pham made trips on the flop of K
K
9
, and the 5
on the turn left Cho drawing dead, doubling Pham up.
J.C. Tran moved all in from the button for $240,000, and Pham called with pocket deuces (2
2
). Tran turned over the 8
5
, eliciting a groan from the crowd. But when the 9
7
6
gave Tran a straight on the flop, the audience cheered. The 7
on the turn and 6
on the river sealed the win for Tran, doubling him up to nearly $500,000.
Players collected blinds and antes over the next nine hands, with few raises, and no flops. Negreanu described the moment later. "No one wanted to be the first player out," he said. "And with everyone playing so tight, it really changed the dynamics of the game."
Things were about to change, as Negreanu sat behind the button for the 15th time. From the cutoff, Cho raised to $270,000 and the action was folded to Tran, who called. The flop came 10
7
3
and Tran moved all in for $230,000. Cho called with the 9
7
, for middle pair. Tran had the K
J
. The turn, the K
, snatched the advantage away from Cho and brought Tran to his feet. But, the 9
on the river gave Cho a second pair for the win, sending Tran out in sixth place with $142,810.
The marathon run was over, and the pace picked up during five-way action.
Cho maintained the chip lead with around $2 million, while Kainer, Sumner, and Pham hovered around the $1 million mark. Negreanu was far behind with around $400,000.
Kainer later doubled through Pham, crippling him. Soon thereafter, when the blinds reached $60,000-$120,000 with a $15,000 ante, Pham made his move with the 8
6
and called an all-in bet by Sumner, who had the J
9
. The board came K
4
3
9
6
, sending Pham out in fifth place with $171,372.
On the very next hand, Kainer went all in for $630,000 before the flop and Sumner called with pocket nines (9
9
). Kainer had the A
2
. With a board of Q
J
10
5
5
, Sumner eliminated a second player in a row, sending Kainer out in fourth place with $199,934.
Six hands later, Sumner woke up with pocket aces and put a third notch in his belt, sending Cho to the rail in third place with $257,058.
At 8:30 p.m., the prize money was displayed and
WPT staff members prettied up the table for heads-up action. Ten minutes later, it was over. Negreanu pushed from the button with the A
3
and Sumner called with pocket eights (8
8
). The flop gave Sumner a set when it came 8
5
4
, and Negreanu was drawing to a deuce for a straight. But, the 3
on the turn and the Q
on the river gave Sumner the hand and the championship.
Runner-up Daniel Negreanu took home $502,691. When asked if he'd thought that six-way action was ever going to end, he replied, "That was one of the most unique situations I've ever seen, with six guys playing for four hours at a World Poker Tour final table and nobody going broke."
The humble Sumner was presented with the gold and diamond
WPO championship bracelet, $913,986, and a certificate good for the $25,000 buy-in to this year's
WPT Championship.
This was Sumner's first
WPT event, having qualified in the very first $1,000 satellite he entered. After lying low during four days of early competition, the soft-spoken Southern boy admitted that he'd been nervous going to the final table. "I was worried about Daniel Negreanu and the chip leader," referring to Young Cho. "My focus was on just playing the very best game I could."
*
Note: Barry Greenstein also has cashed in four WPT events in a row, although it may not be recognized as "consecutive" cashes by the WPT. Greenstein went deep in a WPT tournament when another one overlapped it, preventing him from entering and possibly cashing in that scheduled event. He then cashed in the very next WPT event that he entered.
