World Poker Tour Championship Final Table Bios

John Roveto

Seat 1

Chips: 2,720,000

Lifetime winnings: $231,203

2008 Player of the Year (POY) points: 320 (534th place)

Hometown: Duluth, GA

Prior WPT experience: Cashes: Season VI Borgata Winter Open (11th, $63,932.00)

Poker accomplishments: John Roveto has made six final-table apperances in his poker career (three of which, he made at the Bellagio Cup III in 2007).

Pivotal World Poker Tour Championship hands (pulled from live updates):

Final Table Hands

Hand #52 - Tommy Le has the button in seat 6, John Roveto raises under the gun to 665,000, Amir Vahedi moves all in from middle position for 2,265,000, and Roveto calls all in with AK. Vahedi shows AQ, and he'll need to improve to bust Roveto here.

The board comes 964A6, and John Roveto wins the pot with his ace kicker, doubling up to about 2.34 million. Amir Vahedi drops down to about 1.11 million.

Hand #50 - Gus Hansen has the button in seat 4, John Roveto raises from middle position to 400,000, Amir Vahedi moves all in from the cutoff to 1.01 million, and Roveto calls with A9. Vahedi shows 88, and he needs his pocket pair to hold to stay alive.

The board comes K62105, and Amir Vahedi doubles up to 2.28 million in chips.

Final Two Table Hands

Hand #5 - Tommy Le has the button in seat 6, Tom Dwan raises under the gun to 165,000, John Roveto calls from middle position, Amir Vahedi calls from middle position, and Gus Hansen reraises from late position to 965,000. Dwan folds, Roveto calls all in for 870,000, and Vahedi folds.

Hansen shows KQ, and Roveto shows JJ -- it's a race situation, and Roveto needs his hand to hold to stay alive.

The flop comes QJ9, and Roveto flops a set of jacks as Hansen picks up a gutshot straight draw (he needs a ten).

The turn is the A, the river is the Q, and John Roveto wins the pot with a full house, jacks full of queens, doubling up to more than 2.1 million. Hansen rivers trip queens, but it's not enough.

Hand #54 - Tommy Le has the button in seat 5, Tom Dwan raises under the gun to 175,000, Kenny Tran reraises from early position to 550,000, John Roveto calls all in from the big blind for about 500,000, and Dwan folds.

Roveto shows KK, and he dominates Tran's Q8. The board comes J7398, and Roveto's pocket jacks hold up to win the pot, doubling his stack to more than 1 million.

Hand #19 - Amir Vahedi has the button in seat 2, Tommy Le raises under the gun to 110,000, John Roveto moves all in from middle position for 370,000, and Le calls with AQ. Roveto shows AK, and he's a favorite to double up here.

The board comes 8636K, and Roveto wins the pot with two pair, kings and sixes, doubling up to about 840,000 in chips.

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Gus Hansen

Seat 2

Chips: 8,570,000

Lifetime winnings: $3,974,967

2008 POY points: 0

Hometown: Copenhagen, Denmark

Prior WPT experience: Titles: Season I Five Diamond World Poker Classic, Season 1 L.A. Poker Classic, Season II PokerStars.com Caribbean Adventure, Bad Boys of Poker Special. Final Tables: Season II Five Diamond World Poker Classic (third place), Season III Bay 101 Shooting Star (third place), Season VI Spanish Championship (fifth place). Cashes: 8 total ($2,336,982).

Card Player Bio: Gus Hansen is hardly a forgettable player. Known as “The Great Dane,” his statuesque image, super-aggressive style, and self-professed gambling tendencies make him dangerous at the poker table.

Born in 1974 just outside Copenhagen, Denmark, Hansen grew up learning to compete. He was a youth tennis champion, as well as a world-class backgammon player. He began playing poker in 1993 while attending school at the University of California Santa Cruz as an exchange student.

Hansen was inducted into the World Poker Tour Walk of Fame. He has won four WPT titles, including the Five-Diamond World Poker Classic, the L.A. Poker Classic, the Bad Boys of Poker tournament, and the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure main event. He showed no signs of slowing down after taking down the Aussie Millions main event, winning $1.2 million, because he made a run at another WPT title when he made the final table at the Spanish Championship as chip leader. He did not win but finished in fifth place. Hansen is a member of Team Full Tilt.

Hansen currently writes a blog on CardPlayer.com and ThePlayr.com. On ThePlayr.com, he also does videos for "Gus TV," hosts the Gus Hansen Poker Academy to teach his poker strategies and philosophies, and has an "Ask Gus" section where he responds to viewer questions.

Pivotal World Poker Tour Championship hands (pulled from live updates):

Final Table Hands

Hand #62 - Jeff King has the button in seat 10, Gus Hansen min-raises under the gun to 240,000, and Amir Vahedi calls from the big blind. The flop comes AQ4, Vahedi checks, Hansen bets 240,000, and Vahedi calls. The turn card is the 3, Vahedi moves all in for 480,000, and Hansen calls with A7 for a pair of aces. Vahedi shows Q8 for a pair of queens, and he'll need to improve to stay alive.

The river card is the 7, and Gus Hansen wins the pot with two pair, aces and sevens.

Amir Vahedi is eliminated in seventh place, earning $237,435.

Hand #58 - Gus Hansen has the button in seat 4, Karga Holt raises from late position to 450,000, Hansen reraises from the button to 1,065,000, Holt moves all in, and Hansen calls with AK. Holt shows JJ, and he'll need his pocket pair to hold up to stay alive.

The flop comes A74, and Hansen pairs his ace to take a dominating lead. Holt needs a jack to survive.

The turn is the 9, the river is the K, and Gus Hansen wins the pot with two pair, aces and kings.

Karga Holt is eliminated in eighth place, earning $211,050.

Final Two Table Hands

Hand #80 - David Chiu has the button in seat 2, Michael Gracz raises from middle position to 180,000, and Gus Hansen calls from the big blind. The flop comes 832, Hansen checks, Gracz bets 400,000, Hansen moves all in, and Gracz calls with 22 for a set of deuces. Hansen shows A5 for a gutshot straight draw with a club flush draw, and he'll need to hit one or the other to bust Gracz here.

The turn card is the A, giving Hansen a meaningless pair. He needs a four or any club (except the three of clubs, which would pair the board) on the river.

The river card is -- the 10! Gus Hansen rivers a club flush to win the pot, and Michael Gracz is eliminated in 11th place, earning $131,910.

Hand #68 - Bryan Devonshire has the button in seat 3, Gus Hansen completes from the small blind for 60,000, and David Tran checks his option in the big blind. The flop comes 432, Hansen checks, Tran bets 200,000, Hansen check-raises to 1.1 million, Tran moves all in, and Hansen calls with AA for a pair of aces with a gutshot straight draw. Tran shows Q4 for a pair of fours, and he'll need to improve to survive.

The turn is the K, the river is the J, and Gus Hansen wins the pot with his pocket aces.

David Tran is eliminated in 14th place, earning $131,910.

Hand #64 - Robert Mizrachi has the button in seat 8, Gus Hansen raises from early position to 165,000, Nick Binger moves all in from the cutoff to 655,000, and Hansen calls with A3. Binger shows AQ, and he's a favorite to double up here.

But the board comes 976610, and Gus Hansen rivers a diamond flush to win the pot, building his stack to about 4.65 million.

Nick Binger is eliminated in 15th place, earning $131,910.

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David Chiu

Seat 3

Chips: 6,050,000

Hand #42 - Gus Hansen has the button in seat 4, Cory Carroll raises under the gun to 350,000, Amir Vahedi moves all in from the cutoff for 1,195,000, Tommy Le calls all in from the big blind for 720,000, and Carroll folds.

Vahedi shows AQ, and Tommy Le shows KK. Le needs his pocket pair to hold to stay alive.

The door card is an ace, and Le and his friends on the rail groan -- until the flop is revealed to be AK8. Tommy Le flops a set of kings to take a huge lead in the hand.

The turn is the 4, the river is the 3, and Tommy Le wins the pot with his set of kings, doubling up to about 2.1 million. Amir Vahedi drops down to about 450,000.

Hand #40 - Karga Holt has the button in seat 2, Cory Carroll raises from middle position to 350,000, and Gus Hansen calls from the big blind. The flop comes 863, Hansen checks, Carroll bets 450,000, and Hansen calls. The turn is the A, and both players check. The river is the Q, Hansen bets 1,365,000, and Carroll calls. Hansen says, "You win," and Cory Carroll shows AJ to win the pot with a pair of aces. Hansen mucks.
Hand #38 - Jeff King has the button in seat 10, Cory Carroll raises from late position to 350,000, Tom Dwan moves all in from the cutoff, and Carroll calls with AJ. Dwan shows KK, and he's a favorite to double up here.

The flop comes J86, and Carroll flops a pair of jacks to pick up additional outs.

The turn card is -- the A. Carroll turns two pair to take the lead, and Dwan needs a king on the river to stay alive.

The river card is the Q, and the paint forces everyone to pause a moment before they realize that it changes nothing. Cory Carroll wins the pot with his two pair, aces and jacks.

Tom "Durrrr" Dwan is eliminated in ninth place, earning $184,670.
Hand #20 - John Roveto has the button in seat 1, Gus Hansen limps under the gun for 80,000, Cory Carroll limps from middle position, and Amir Vahedi checks his option in the big blind. The flop comes A52, Vahedi checks, Hansen bets 180,000, Carroll calls, and Vahedi folds.

The turn card is the K, and both players check. The river card is the 6, Hansen bets 525,000, and Carroll calls with A7 for a pair of aces. Hansen shows 75 for a pair of fives. Cory Carroll wins the pot.

Final Two Table Hands

Hand #25 - Tom "Durrrr" Dwan has the button in seat 8, Cory Carroll raises from late position to 115,000, and Amir Vahedi calls from the big blind. The flop comes 975, and both players check. The turn is the J, Vahedi bets 220,000, and Carroll calls. The river is the 8, Vahedi checks, Carroll bets 365,000, and Vahedi calls with 66 for a rivered nine-high straight. But Carroll shows A10 for a rivered jack-high straight to win the pot, building his stack to about 2.34 million. Vahedi drops down to about 3.12 million.

Jeff King

Hand #60 - Tommy Le has the button in seat 6, Cory Carroll raises from the small blind to 650,000, and Jeff King calls all in from the big blind with QJ. Carroll shows 75, and he'll need to improve to bust King here.

The board comes J10265, and Jeff King wins the pot with a pair of jacks, doubling up.

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