Event
#14
Another "Masterful" Performance
Popular tournament pro Men "the Master"
Nguyen won the $1,000 buy-in Pot-Limit
Texas Hold'em event at the 2003 World
Poker Open. "The Master" sat down with
a slight chip advantage over his subjects.
In an intense 4-hour finale, he consistently
increased his stack and knocked out 6
of his 8 opponents until he finally had
every single chip on the table. For first
place, Nguyen received $54,710.
Play
was extremely cautious in the early stages.
After several small pots that kept most
of the stacks stable in the opening rounds,
the first significant hand of the night
occurred when Bill Lester moved all-in
from the blind on K-5. Nguyen's K-J put
Lester at a huge mathematical disadvantage.
When Lester failed to catch a 5, that
put the popular local player from nearby
Nesbit, Mississippi out in 9th place with
$2,188. This was Lester's third time to
make it into the money this year.
Dr.
Max Stern was one of the few players on
this night to deal a setback to Nguyen.
About 30 minutes into the final table,
Stern moved all-in with 10-9 after the
flop came 10-10-4. Nguyen called with
J-J. A jack failed to come for Nguyen,
which gave Stern the $18K pot. At the
time, it appeared that Stern might pose
the most serious threat to the chip leader.
Bill
Eichel was unable to generate any momentum
at the final table. He arrived with an
average sized stack but was gradually
blinded down to the point where he had
to make a move. Eichel tried to take the
pot with a pre-flop raise, holding A-7.
Nguyen was delighted to call the raise
with Q-Q. When the final board showed
Q-7-5-8-10, Nguyen ended up with trip
queens and Eichel was knocked out in 8th
place. Eichel, a South Dakota farmer,
received $2,735.
Next,
Men the Master's hammer fell on George
Paravoliasakis. After the flop came K-J-2,
Paravoliasakis (with K-J) made a pot-sized
bet with top two pair. Nguyen (holding
Q-10) called with an outside straight
draw. A nine fell on the turn giving Nguyen
the straight, leaving Paravoliasakis down
to just four outs. He failed to catch
a miracle on the final card and went out
in 7th place. Paravoliasakis, a retired
tourism executive from Athens, Greece,
collected $3,419. He also received high
praise from Tournament Coordinator Jack
McCelland, who remarked, "Paravoliasakis
is one of the most improved players on
the poker tournament circuit."
After
Nguyen eliminated the first three players,
next it was Gary "Hog" Haubelt's turn.
On the very next hand, Paul Wolfe made
an $8K pre-flop raise. Max Stern re-raised
to $16K. Then, Hog re-raised for another
$6K and moved all-in. Wolfe called and
Stern folded. For Wolfe, it was a nightmare
scenario. He showed Q-Q versus Hog's K-K.
Incredibly, the flop came K-Q-4, giving
both players a set. But Wolfe was down
to a single out (the case queen), which
didn't come. Wolfe's bad beat was certainly
something to howl about, but instead,
the self-employed Floridian shrugged his
shoulders and said, "That's poker." Wolfe,
who kept a picture of his daughter, Kaley,
next to his chips for inspiration, received
$4,787 for 6th place.
Jimmy
Tran has been a dedicated tournament pro
for several years. He's cashed in several
major events and seemed poised to make
a move in this event when he was dealt
10-10. Unfortunately, the pocket tens
came at the worst possible moment. After
the flop came 7-7-4, Nguyen raised Tran
all-in. Tran called and was left staring
at an ugly sight -- Nguyen's K-K. The
pocket kings held up and Tran ended up
in 5th place with $6,155.
Then,
it was Hog's turn to eject a player from
the felt. Hog went to war with Dr. Max
Stern after a flop of 8-7-4. Stern was
all-in with K-7 versus Hog's Q-Q. The
pocket queens survived and put the good
Costa Rican doctor out in 4th place. Stern
has won innumerable major events in the
last decade -- including the Seven-Card
Stud event at the World Poker Open a few
years ago. He collected $8,206.
With
Nguyen holding a 2-1 chip advantage over
his last two opponents, the next key hand
of the night came when An Tran was caught
trying to steal before the flop with Q-9
suited. Nguyen made a pre-flop raise and
Tran reraised, hoping desperately that
Nguyen would fold his hand. But instead,
Nguyen called and won the pot when the
final board showed K-6-5-K-3. An Tran,
a former bracelet winner at the World
Series of Poker, took $13,677 for his
3rd-place finish.
That
gave Nguyen a 3-1 chip lead over Hog.
The heads-up duel lasted only 10 minutes,
enough time for both players to order
and guzzle down a full Corona. The popular
Mexican beer is Nguyen's trademark brand.
Hog, who was guaranteed a big payday,
was happy to join the brew-fest. As he
took his last sip from the bottle in the
midst of what turned out to be the final
hand of the night, Nguyen must have known
this was a premature �victory toast.�
With
$15K already in the pot, both players
looked at the final board, which showed
J-6-3-Q-6. Hog made a small bet and Nguyen
raised the size of the pot -- enough to
put Hog all-in. Hog called. Then, Hog
showed A-J for second pair, top kicker.
Nguyen smiled and flipped over A-6 which
amounted to trip 6s. Men "the Master"
Nguyen was the winner.
Second-place finisher Gary "Hog" Haubelt
has been on the poker tournament trail
for several years, since retiring as a
businessman in his hometown Pittsburgh.
This marked Hog's second final table at
this year's WPO. Hog collected $27,354.
Men
"the Master" Nguyen is no stranger to
anyone who has followed poker over the
past decade. The four-time bracelet winner
at the World Series of Poker is consistently
at the top of tournament rankings and
has won more money and more events than
any other player (with the possible exception
of fellow-tournament pro, T.J. Cloutier).
This was Nguyen's second gold and diamond
bracelet at the World Poker Open. It was��pure
mastery.
-- by Nolan Dalla
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