The eagerly anticipated
Poker in the Pub National Final went off superbly on May 20 at the beautiful Broadway Casino in Birmingham. With 55 attendees, the event was already set to be the best yet. Players arrived from all over the country to be the first
Poker in the Pub National Final winner and earn a trip to Las Vegas. Every player brought his A-game, and the competition was hot from the first hand. With bad beats, glorious wins, and each player's fate in the turn of a card, everyone was ready to conclude the first season of Poker in the Pub.
The Broadway Casino was the perfect venue for this event, as elegance, sophistication, and comfort surrounded the players as they fought their way through each other to the top. A long night was in store, as no one wanted to be the first one out of the event. But, as the story goes, there must be winners and there must be losers. After the first break, three hours into the tournament, we saw our fair share of players dropping out of the contest, with Sian Porter, David Bellamy, and Simon "Sydmonkey" Jones going out in quick succession. The river card really held up to its reputation, as Jonathon Cave had his two pair rivered by a flush, knocking him out of the tournament, and 31 players remained. Just 10 minutes later saw two more players disappear, and our very own Andy Price was the chip leader with 29,000 in chips, with Kay Fahey and Lee Ball snapping at his heels, each with 20,000. Andy really had his work cut out for himself.
Six players later, Andy had lost the chip lead and Steve Rawlings now held the top spot. The evening contained many great wins and bad beats, but few came close to the heads-up all-in battle between Steve Rawlings and Vinny Calam. Both sitting with Q-J and Vinny all in, the flop came J-6-6, one diamond and two clubs. Steve was now more confident, holding the Q
J
, and Vinny went out in 25th place as a club hit the turn. Steve had a comfortable lead now, with 38,000.
With four more players gone, the game really hit a hot spot as Andy regained the lead with 28,300 in chips and Kay chasing with 17,000. Andy had managed to keep himself near the top for most of the evening, and his pocket tens knocked out yet another player holding A-Q.
Dave Cain had lost a lot of chips quite early in the evening, but had managed to outlast most of the players until he went out with Andy's tailgater Kay Fahey in the late stages of the tournament. With the blinds at 600-1,200, players were really beginning to sweat. Players started to slowly drop out, leaving the final 10 to fight it out for the prizes they had worked so hard for over the previous few months and hours.
At the final table, Al Burke was leading with 45,800, and the underdog, P. McKettrick, had 8,500. After one year, 4,500 players, and 2,500 action-packed pub poker nights, we had the final table:
Seat No. 1 - A. Allen 18,000
Seat. No. 2 - T. Newbury 12,000
Seat No. 3 - A. Gandy 13,600
Seat No. 4 - F. Dudley 18,500
Seat No. 5 - P. McKettrick 8,500
Seat No. 6 - S. Rawlings 40,500
Seat No. 7 - A. Burke 45,800
Seat No. 8 - I. Potter 21,200
Seat No. 9 - A. Wallace 42,100
Seat No. 10 - A. Price 35,000
McKettrick hung in there, as Dudley went out in 10th place. Newbury's K-Q was outrun by J-10, and she was out in ninth place, followed just 15 minutes later by McKetterick. Down to seven players, Al Burke was taking no prisoners, taking out Gandy and Potter in one fell swoop.
Five players now remained for four prizes and three Vegas seats. Wallace then went out in fifth place, and the bubble had been burst; all of the players remaining would have something to show for their efforts.
After seven hours of intense poker action, the winners were declared and the battle was done. Allen won a luxurious poker set for fourth place. Rawlings and Price took third and second, respectively, thus securing their Vegas places. They contended that they had played the best poker of their lives, and they earned their seven nights, fully paid, to "Viva Las Vegas," with enough spending money to really get the feel of the high life. Al Burke took the top spot, and he truly deserved it, as he played like a true professional the entire evening. The top three all won seven nights in Las Vegas, including their flights and spending money, with Al and Andy winning an extra seat for a partner or friend.
Congratulations to all of the participants, especially those making it to the final table. All that is left now is the
International Challenge Match between our Poker in the Pub winners and some celebrity U.S. players, including
World Series of Poker bracelet winner Diego Cordovez and resident poker comedian Adam Schoenfeld. Who will win the top prize of a
WSOP seat, an American or a Brit?
The Poker in the Pub League, sponsored by The Rivercard, has been created to give poker players a chance to enjoy a game of cards in pleasant and familiar surroundings with friends and colleagues.
