As we go to press, the $25,000
World Poker Tour Championship just concluded, and one of the game's superstars walked away with the title after an epic final-table battle.
Carlos Mortensen, the 2001
World Series of Poker champion, added a
WPT Championship title to his accomplishments. This win, good for just under $4 million, makes Carlos the first player in history to hold both a
WSOP and
WPT Championship title.
Carlos is such a talented player, those who know his game knew that it was just a matter of time before he won another huge event. He and runner-up Kirk Morrison played nearly 100 hands in a seesaw heads-up match. If the blinds and antes hadn't gotten in the way (at the end, there was $3 million in the pot before the flop … out of $30 million in chips in play … the highest blinds and ante - $800,000-$1,600,000 and $300,000, respectively - in the history of the
WPT), the match could have lasted all night. Ultimately, Carlos stayed the aggressor, weathered two brutal river cards that left him short-stacked, and fought his way back.
Morrison pocketed more than $2 million for his second-place finish. Kirk returned to the tournament circuit last year after a five-year break, and is playing some great poker. This was his fourth consecutive
WPT cash, as he finished 23rd in the Bay 101
Shooting Star, ninth in the
World Poker Challenge, and 23rd in the
Foxwoods Poker Classic.
Read all about Mortensen and the event - the largest
WPT Championship yet, attracting 639 players and generating a prize pool of more than $15 million - in the next issue.
In this issue, we focus on another huge event - the
European Poker Tour Grand Final. Gavin Griffin, once the youngest player to win a
WSOP bracelet, won the title and more than $2.4 million. Also, we caught up with online poker legend Cliff "JohnnyBax" Josephy, and, as we approach the start of the
WSOP, take a look at some of the Internet players you should look out for.
Also, I'm excited to report that
Card Player is bringing some of the best features of CardPlayer.com to your cellphone. At the beginning of May, we released Card Player Mobile, which can be accessed from any mobile phone that has a web browser at www.CardPlayerMobile.com. I personally like the mobile odds calculator, which can be downloaded directly to your phone by texting the word ODDS to 752937. In addition, you will be able to access all CardPlayer.com tournament coverage from anywhere that you can get cellphone coverage.
