IT'S
GOOD TO BE THE KING
When
one player is dealt a super abundance
of huge starting hands, the proceedings
take on the formality of a coronation.
No offense intended. This is not to say
our winner isn't a great player, but objectively
it can be stated categorically that he
was "run over by the deck." Unusual for
a WSOP Final Table, this event had all
the drama of a Royal Tea at the Palace.
But then how does one know what's truly
exciting without its opposite sometimes?
There
were 339 entrants in the $1,500 Omaha
Hi-Lo for a total prize pool of $477,990.
Three tables were paid, a total of 27
players.
There
was high drama in this event prior to
the Final Table, however. It came during
the prolonged battle to get into the money.
28 players for 27 spots. Multiple all-ins
by several players. Breathtaking survival
stories. On rushing blinds. Critical errors.
This battle had it all. Lenny St. Germain
had three miracles to move on with his
all-ins for the blinds. Ken Flaton would
have been gone but for a bet by Lindy
Chambers that forced Steve Hohn to muck
the best low. John Juanda throwing away
hand after hand until he had only a chip
and a prayer. Oddly it was none of these
players, all hanging on by a thread, that
finished out of the money. Jim Bucci put
out the 28th player who had plenty of
chips but thought that a pair of Kings
was a good high. Jim made a straight and
a low on the turn and six guys could take
a breath for the first time in an hour.
Co-Tournament
Director Steve Morrow thought that a little
overtime Sunday night could get us to
a Final Table. The new structure this
year at the World Series is to play until
the 12th level or 2 am. Then return the
next afternoon at 2 pm for the completion
of the event. Simply put, this is one
of the great ideas of the 21st Century.
The wear and tear saved on players and
staff by avoiding those numbing all night
marathons has been tremendous. Sunday
night, however, there was only one player
to eliminate at 2 pm. Steve said, "play
on." Three short stakes were endangered.
Ken Cui and Phil Ivey survived. Ralph
Perry did not. Now everyone could go to
bed.
THE
FINAL TABLE:
62
mins left of 75.
The blinds were $1,500/$3,000.
Playing $3,000/$6,000
Player
Hometown Chip
Count
Seat
1 Greg Mascio Fullerton CA $113,500
Seat 2 Jim Bucci Hollywood MD $ 44,500
Seat 3 Chad Brown New York, NY $ 86,000
Seat 4 Dan Heimiller Las Vegas NV $ 94,500
Seat 5 Ken Cui San Jose CA $ 7,000
Seat 6 Perry Friedman Monterey CA $ 66,500
Seat 7 Hans Pfister Zurich, Switzerland
$ 40,500
Seat 8 Paul Rowe Coronado CA $ 26,500
Seat 9 Paul Ivey Atlantic City NJ $ 3,500
Seat 10 Dan Kim Laguna Niguel CA $ 26,500
Phil
Ivey may have made an extra $1,790 by
where the initial button was placed. With
the button in the two seat, Ken Cui was
under the gun on the first hand. He picked
up A 2 6 8 and logically raised to go
all-in. Dan Heimiller was in the big blind
and called the $3,000 raise with K Q 6
6 heads up. Cui got all his chips in on
a low draw that didn't come. Dan won with
7's and 6's. Ken was out in 10th before
Phil Ivey could play a hand.
Turning
down a chance for some equity in his big
blind hand, Ivey now had one chip for
his small blind. Phil may not have had
high expectations for this Final Table
for when Chad Brown made a flush, Phil
went back to the No Limit tournament he'd
entered at 12 noon.
Jim
Bucci was a printer at the Washington
Post during the Watergate scandal. When
asked about what was memorable about that
time, ever the joker, Jim answered "Lots
of overtime." There was nothing funny
about Bucci's cards, though. Three times
he was scooped as he couldn't even turn
his hand over on the river. That's how
bad he was running. All-in on the button
with his last $4k and A 2 7 8, Jim could
only laugh derisively as his day was ended
in 8th by Paul Rowe's K's and 5's and
no low.
As
bad as Jim Bucci was running, Dan Heimiller's
luck was even worse. Nobody has made more
WSOP Final Tables over the last four years
than Dan Heimiller. He's gotten here in
every game, under every circumstance.
It can only be said that Dan is one of
the greatest all-around players in WSOP
history. That is, until he reaches the
Final Table. Then, inexplicably, something
awful always happens to Heimiller. Today
that something awful was Perry Friedman.
Dan does have a slight red tint to his
hair. Maybe he is Perry's step-child,
because Friedman sure gave him a beating.
Dan started the day 2nd in chips with
$94,000. In less than 90 minutes, most
of those chips had moved into Perry Friedman's
stack. As the players say, Perry showed
Dan "the World's Fair." Perry Friedman
was just starting a day of saying, "Nut,
nut." Dan Heimiller threw in his last
chip from the big blind on the hand that
Jim Bucci went all-in on. With that one
chip, Dan was guaranteed the higher place
over Jim if they both went out together.
Paul Rowe's K's and 5's also put Dan Heimiller
out of his misery in 7th.
Dr.
Dan Kim's nemesis wasn't Perry Friedman,
it was Chad Brown. The good doctor had
his Final Table practice terminated in
two hands with Brown. Dan lost most of
his chips on the first hand when the flop
came 5 5 3. Kim had A 2 5 10. He raised
and was reraised by Chad Brown. It was
too late to slow down. Kim had to pay
Brown off even though two bricks, Jack
and 9, came on the turn and river to deny
Dan a nut low. Brown turned over 5 3 for
a full house. Kim soon went all-in from
the small blind with A Q 4 4. It was Chad
Brown who finished Kim off in 6th with
A K 4 4 and a King on the flop.
Chad
Brown continued on a heater and smoked
Paul Rowe in the process. Paul was the
only Omaha Hi-Lo bracelet holder at the
table, but was shown no respect for it.
First Paul's stack was decimated by a
nut nut from Greg Mascio. Then with 15k
left Paul raised on the button with only
an A 2 4 5. Chopped Liver it turned out.
Chad Brown made Paul Rowe is boat out
to sea in 5th with 10's and 5's and no
low.
Of
the many European players that come every
year to the WSOP, Hans Pfister has been
on of the most consistent winners. With
mechanics as precise as a Swiss watch,
Hans knows where everyone's at and what
his chances are. But even great players
need some cards. And all the cards were
going to the Golden Trio of Perry Friedman,
Greg Mascio and Chad Brown. Meanwhile,
Pfister's nut nut draws were going Pfist!
All-in on the blind with Q 10 5 4, Hans
couldn't even beat a pair of 7's by Chad
Brown and knifed his way through the crowd
in 4th.
With
the last three stacks fairly close, Perry
Friedman may have made the costliest mistake
of the day by allowing a save off 1st
place money. For immediately after the
deal, he went on another of his insane
rushes where he has every card in the
deck. In only a few minutes it was obvious
that Greg Mascio and Chad Brown were playing
for 2nd place. Not a bad thing! $90,000.
Greg Mascio won that race when Chad Brown
went out to yet another nut hand by Perry
Friedman.
With
over a 4-1 chip lead, Perry Friedman soon
made it 10-1 then 100-1. It was awesome.
You've never seen so many magnificent
Omaha Hi-Lo hands. The last hand was like
so many others. Friedman had A 3 4 5,
Mascio had K K 7 6. The flop was 3 3 2.
When no King arrives on the turn or river,
it's good to be the King.
Mike Paulle
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