Danny Kass Poker King of Action Sports Stars

Those crazy action sports stars who get a lot of press because of the X-Games and the growing popularity of their sports have begun competing in a new arena. PartyPoker.net recently held a hold'em series to determine who was the best poker player out of the action sports stars.

After six rounds of play, held at various locations where the athletes compete, the final table consisted of a snowboarder (Danny Kass), a surfer (Pat O'Connell), a BMXer (Dennis McCoy), a skateboarder (Sergie Ventura), a wakeboarder (Josh Sanders), and an FMXer (Jeff Tilton).

Kass ended up winning the PartyPoker.net Big Throwdown tournament and the winner-take-all prize of $30,000. The final table was held at the Rio Aug, 7.

Former world surfing tour veteran O'Connell was the first player knocked out. After 75 minutes of play working with a short chip stack, O'Connell's evening was over and Kass looked to be picking up right where he left off following his victory in Mt. Hood.

Kass then knocked out two players with one hand. First, Kass called Ventura's all-in move and then BMX icon McCoy also moved all in. The rest of the hand brought no luck to either Ventura or McCoy and they were sent packing in fifth and fourth place.

Down to three players, it was wakeboarder Sanders' maniacal play that kept Kass and FMX star Tilton completely off balance. Not sure when he was bluffing, Tilton called Sanders' all in with just a suited 10-7 and sent Sanders out of the game in third place.

After taking all of Sanders' chips, Tilton had a slight lead entering heads-up play with Kass. Tilton's poker experience gave him the edge, but Kass's calm demeanor kept him under control throughout 30 minutes of heads-up play. Kass and Tilton traded chips back and forth until the $2,000-$4,000 blinds forced the action.

Tilton pushed all in with an inside straight draw and Kass called Tilton with just a king high. The turn and river brought no miracles and Kass's king high made him the PartyPoker.net Big Throwdown Champion. Josh Sanders celebrated the win by pouring his drink on Danny's head right before the presentation of the championship belt and the oversized $30,000 check.

Each of the six qualifying events will be featured in 12-minute vignettes on Fusion TV before the end of the year on the Outdoor Life Network (OLN). Each show will focus on one qualifying event and will include highlights of that event along with footage and interviews of each of the six competitors.

The PartyPoker.net Big Throwdown Championship will be made into a one-hour special to air preceding the airing of the six features on Fusion TV sometime this next year.

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