| [Report kindly submitted by Max Shapiro]
STUDENT IN FIRST TOURNEY GETS 'A' GRADE IN POT-LIMIT
Tonie Hur is a 24-year-old, recently graduated sociology major unsure what to do next. Poker might be an option because he played his first-ever tournament and immediately went to the head of the class by winning the fourth event of Hustler Casino's Poker Challenge Cup, $200 pot-limit hold'em. Moreover, it was the first time he had ever played pot-limit anywhere, his usual game being $15-$30 hold'em. He decided to play on a last-minute whim when he read about the tournament in Card Player magazine. He was down to $625 in early going, but made a good investment with a rebuy.
Hur immediately got off to a spectacular start at the final table when he busted Paul Kroh in two absolutely odds-defying deals. Blinds had started at $300-$600, with 2:28 remaining. On the first hand, Kroh raised to $2,100 with K-Q. Tonie re-raised to $7,200 and Paul, after long thought, called. The flop was 10-2-7. Hur went all in with the remainder of his $11,000 and turned over pocket kings after Kroh called. He was an 11-1 favorite and won easily.
On the second hand, Kroh again raised, again with K-Q, and Hur again re-raised. "Same damn thing," Krohmuttered, going all in. Even more "same" than he thought, because, Incredibly, Hur once again held pocket kings. Paul, winner of numerous tournaments, cashed out for $500.
Six hands later, with $400-$800 blinds, plumbing contractor Paul Javier suffered a stoppage. He had those same pocket kings, which this time didn't go through. In three-way action, he went all in before the flop. Sam Sanusi, winner of the Challenge Cub's opening event, held A-8 of spades and made a runner-runner flush to leave Javier in ninth place with a $585 payout. Sam, who started as chip leader, now had increased his lead with about $56,000 of the $146,000 in play.
On hand 14, Web designer Garrett Moran moved in for $3,200 with pocket jacks. The man called "Mickey Mouse," making his second consecutive final table, called with A-5 and took the cheese when an ace flopped. Garrett walked out with $835.
Four hands later, the mouse took the big blind with K-6. When a flop of 7-6-4 gave him a pair, he bet $4,000. Hur, with A-5, called on an open-end straight draw. He called again when Mickey bet all in on a turn-card 9, then stepped on the mouse's tail when a river 8 completed his straight. MM's seventh-place finish was worth $1,000.
Blinds were now $800-$1,600. Jimmy Tran looked at A-K and bet his last $4,500. Retired off-road race car driver Mike Lesle called with a supercharged hand of pocket aces. A 14-1 favorite, he left Tran in the dust with $1,335 for sixth place. Tran, who formerly managed a gby his wife, has been a tournament pro for four years. His wins include a victory in pot-limit hold'em at the 2001 Legends of Poker. Lesle has a pot-limit win in the Commerce's California State Poker Championship to his credit.
As play continued, Eddie Yade, a housing developer, was getting short-chipped and decided to move in with pocket sixes. He got three-way action, and won the pot when all rags came. Now tripled up to about $28,000, Yates began to move steadily up. A housing developer, his major tournament cash-out came when he chopped a $500 no-limit hold'em event at Commerce.
Paul Javier was next to go all in. He held A-Q and also got two callers, but Yates, with A-9, outran him when a 9 flopped. Fifth spot paid $1,670.
At this point, the four finalists agreed to take $5,000 each and play for the rest. It was a good deal for Sam Sanusi, who was next to go out. Limits had gone to $1,000 and $2,000 when Sanusi flamed out by stubbornly trying to bluff a pot. On a flop of 10-9-2 and two spades, he bet the $15,000 pot and Tonie called. Both players checked a jack turn card. When a river queen produced a scary 9-10-J-Q, Sam tried an all-in move for $12,800. After thinking long and hard, Tonie called. "Good call, no pair," Sanusi said, tossing in his cards as Tonie turned up a queen and 10 for two pair. Sam earned $2,005 for fourth and Tonie took over the lead again with more than $60,000.
The three remaining players now hunkered down as play dragged on for another 25 hands. At one point, Hur had increased his lead to about $75,000, more than half the chips on the table, but then his two opponents began to chip away at his stacks.
Finally, at 4 a.m. the weary combatants decided to end it and go home. Tonie still owned the lead with $62,000, but Eddie was close behind with $59,200 while the ex-race car driver was a lap or two behind with $35,800.
A showdown hand was dealt. Tonie got deuces, Eddie was dealt 9-3 and Mike had to play 6-3. The flop came K-8-8-A-5, no one helped, the deuces won and the student passed his first test with flying colors. --Max Shapiro
|
