1st James Vogl London, UK $400,000 2nd Shawn Rice Lubbock, TX $213,000 3rd David Chiu Rowland Heights, CA $122,640 4th Tuan Nguyen San Pablo, CA $105,420 5th Carl Frommer Canyon Country, CA $92,080 6th Charles Shoten Glendale, CA $76,720 7th Anthony Lelluoche Paris, France $61,380 8th JC Tran Sacramento, CA $46,040 9th Brian Haveson Newton, PA $30,700 10th Erick Lindgren Martinez, CA $16,880 11th Chip Reese Las Vegas, NV $16,880 12th Alexander Dietrich Voelklingen, Germany $16,880 13th Tim Sweeton Long Beach, CA $13,820 14th Phillip Ivey Atlantic City, NJ $13,820 15th Richard Noll Las Vegas, NV $13,820 16th O'Neil Longson Las Vegas, NV $10,740 17th Jerry Stensrud Long Beach, CA $10,740 18th Kenny Tran Alhambra, CA $10,740 19th Tim Stearns Burbank, CA $7,680 20th Vinnie Vihn Houston, TX $7,680 21st Scott Downes Spokane, WA $7,680 22nd Tony Popejoy Logansport, IN $7,680 23rd Frank Sinopoli Hollywood, FL $7,680 24th Dominik Baud Bern, Germany $7,680 25th Rungrueng Laohathai Texarkana, TX $7,680 26th Robin Keston London, UK $7,680 27th Chau Chuong Lakewood, CO $7,680 28th Irene Kristal Sherman Oaks, CA $5,380 29th Yariv Levi Van Nuys, CA $5,380 30th Surinder Sunar Wolverhampton, UK $5,380 31st Michael Minetti Las Vegas, NV $5,380 32nd Peter Costa Unknown $5,380 33rd Wendeen Eolis New York, NY $5,380 34th Ron Faltinsky Montebello, CA $5,380 35th Stanley Chao Rancho Palos Verdes, CA $5,380 36th Keith Hawkins Darlington, UK $5,380 37th Peter Vilandos Houston, TX $4,440 38th Johan Storakers Stockholm, Sweden $4,440 39th Arturo Garcia Miami, FL $4,440 40th Gerard Drehobl Spokane, WA $4,440 41st Robert Toft Yardley, PA $4,440 42nd Bruce Librock St Catharines, ON $4,440 43rd Daniel Negreanu Las Vegas, NV $4,440 44th Joseph Mignano Las Vegas, NV $4,440 45th Bradley Edmonds Elizabethtown, PA $4,440 46th Brent Carter Oak Park, IL $3,600 47th Nicholas Dileo Melrose, MA $3,600 48th Frederic Hwang N Richland Hills, TX $3,600 49th Lance Kawamura Lake Elsinore, CA $3,600 50th Harry Demetriou London, UK $3,600 51st Karl Norbert Essen, Germany $3,600 52nd Gregory Carelli Boulder, CO $3,600 53rd Michael Kimbrell Yamhill, OR $3,600 54th Kevin Salinger Welland, ON $3,600 55th John Pires Santa Clara, CA $3,060 56th Paul Kroh Battle Mountain, NV $3,060 57th Gene Liebel New York, NY $3,060 58th Stanley Ho Novato, CA $3,060 59th Toya McCleod Canyon, TX $3,060 60th John Sheasby Gahanna, OH $3,060 61st Marc Durand Henderson, NV $3,060 62nd Steve Shkolnik Woodland Hills, CA $3,060 63rd Hung La Manhattan Beach, CA $3,060 64th Albert Roper Galveston, TX $2,680 65th Jim Ward Anchorage, AK $2,680 66th Douglas Traverso Stockton, CA $2,680 67th Jan Heitmann Finnentrop, Germany $2,680 68th James Kahn Telluride, CO $2,680 69th Can Hua Rosemead, CA $2,680 70th Lucio Procopio Liverpool, NY $2,680 71st John Myung Rockville, MD $2,680 72nd Asher Derei Sherman Oaks, CA $2,680 73rd Gary Margadonna Somerset, NJ $2,300 74th Herman Everett Del Rio, TX $2,300 75th John White Houston, TX $2,300 76th James Allen Glendale, CA $2,300 77th Jason Writer Littleton, CO $2,300 78th Patrick Nichols Kent, WA $2,300 79th Josh Arieh Atlanta, GA $2,300 80th Nani Dollison Hernando, MS $2,300 81st Raymond Miller Henderson, NV $2,300

LONDON POKER PRO JAMES VOGL CRUSHES NEAR-RECORD FIELD AT WORLD SERIES OF POKER, WINS $400,000

The truth is – the cards played themselves.
-- James Vogl (poker champion)

The second event at the 2004 World Series of Poker attracted a near-record 834 poker players. In the 35-year history of the world's biggest and most prestigious poker tournament, only the main event last year attracted a higher number (839). Play at the final table of nine players began with 90-minute levels -- a $1K ante and blinds at $3K-6K. JAMES VOGL, a poker pro from London came in with a slight chip lead, with BRIAN HAVESON and SHAWN RICE closely behind.

Unfortunately, HAVESON � a Philadelphia-area poker professional who has enjoyed tremendous success the previous year on the tournament trail -- experienced every poker player's worst nightmare. About 30 minutes into the finale, HAVESON picked up pocket kings and ran into a virtual atomic bomb -- pocket aces. To make matters worse, the player holding the �pocket rockets� was the chip leader, JAMES VOGL. The final board showed 10-3-2-4-2, which meant HAVESON missed his two-outer (drawing to a king).

�It was the worst possible thing that could happen,� HAVESON said afterward about the kings losing to aces. �There�s just no way I could have played the hand any differently.� HAVESON took $30,700 for 9th place.

Moments later, JC TRAN found himself severely short-stacked and made his final stand with K-10. CARL FROMMER was delighted to call with his own nuclear weapon, A-A. The pocket rockets held up again when the final board showed K-4-4-9-10. TRAN made things interesting with his two top pair, but FROMMER's two-pair (aces and fours) busted the Vietnamese-born TRAN.

�I had to make a move because I (was low on chips),� TRAN explained. I caught a king on the flop and had a chance, but came up short.� TRAN, who has made final tables at other major tournaments, but was playing in his first-ever WSOP final, took $46,040 for 8th place.

Exactly one hour into the final table, another classic hold'em confrontation took place when JAMES VOGL was dealt A-K versus TONY LELLOUCHE's Q-Q. LELLOUCHE announced "all in" and was horrified to see an ace flop. The final board showed A-9-5-7-9. VOGL's two-pair took the huge pot. LEELOUCHE, from France said "au revoir" to the final table. LELLOUCHE, making his first-ever visit to the WSOP, received $61,380 for 7th place.

CHARLIE SHOTEN started Day Two with $79K was down to his last $20K. He desperately committed his last chips with K-10. SHAWN RICE faded the SHOTEN's action with A-J. RICE caught an ace on the flop and when the final board showed A-7-3-Q-3, RICE's two-pair had eliminated another player. �I never had any cards to play,� SHOTEN said following his 6th-place finish. �The best hand I saw at the final table was K-Q. But I did make nearly 80-grand. So, that�s not too bad. �

DAVID CHIU's encounter at the final table was a roller coaster of enormous chip swings. He started the day low on chips ($79K) and was "all in" four times within the first two hours. CHIU played his short-stack brilliantly, and by the time of the first break -- he had soared from a low of $35K at one point, up to $400K.

Antes increased to $2K. Blinds went up to $6K-12K.

The next major confrontation occurred when SHAWN RICE flopped a monster hand -- quad nines. The final board showed 9-9-7-3-A and RICE bet out $105K on the end, which was called after some serious thought by DAVID CHIU. A loud �gasp� was heard from the crowd, and RICE (now with $820K) hurdled over the previous chip leader (VOGL -- second with $560K). "I knew he didn't have an ace or a seven," CHIU said afterward. "I thought he bet too much (on the end), so I believed he might be bluffing. I'm wrong sometimes," the three-time WSOP bracelet winner added.

CARL FROMMER, a CEO now living in Los Angeles, went out next in 5th place when he was dealt pocket jacks and ran into SHAWN RICE's A-Q. FROMMER went from being a slight favorite to a huge underdog, after the flop came Q-5-4, giving RICE top pair. The queens held up, and the Spanish-born FROMMER was sent packing and traveled across the rail with.$92,080.

FROMMER said later: �I think my strategy backfired. I tried to play a patient game, waiting for the right cards. When the right cards came, I didn�t get (callers). I made some big laydowns�.when I did make some bluffs, they backfired. My timing was off on my bluffs.�

Soon thereafter, TUAN NGUYEN tried to take a $150,000 pot on a flush draw, after the flop came A-8-6, with two clubs. NGUYEN had J-9 of clubs and moved "all in." JAMES VOGL who out-chipped NGUYEN about 3 to 1, made a bold call with 5-5 and ended up winning the pot when NGUYEN missed his club draw, with two overcards.

�I think my family will be very happy,� Nguyen said of his 4th place finish. He collected $105,420.

DAVID CHIU failed to benefit from the depth of his colossal poker skill and experience, largely because he was severely short-stacked against his two final opponents. Playing in his eighth straight WSOP, CHIU has won three gold bracelets � his last victory coming in 2002. He is clearly due for another win, but on this night it wasn�t to be. When play became three-handed, CHIU was down to just $160K -- versus RICE's $900K and VOGL's $600K. CHIU's last hand was A-J against RICE's 4-4. CHIU was "all in" with the two big cards, but failed to connect with a pair when the final board showed 9-8-5-9-10. CHIU, one of the most respected and feared poker players in the world, received $122,640 for 3rd place.

"The money is nice, but it's always disappointing when you don't win," the former champion said afterward.

When heads-up play began, the chip counts stood as follows:

RICE: $955K
VOGL: $717K

The battle between the two finalists lasted for 27 minutes. After the stakes increased again -- this time with a $2K ante and blinds at $8K-16K -- it meant that every two hands cost $30K to play.

The key hand of the tournament occurred when both players were �pot committed� with less than spectacular hands. RICE (dealt 4-4) opened with a pre-flop raise, and VOGL (dealt 7-7) announced �all-in.� RICE didn�t take more than a few seconds to call with 4-4, and VOGL suspected he might have taken the worst of it. However, when both hands were shown, VOGL�s pocket sevens was the dominant hand, and RICE was in desperate need of a four. The suspense of the moment was shattered when VOGL flopped a set, and then made a full-house on the turn. The final board showed 10-8-7-8-9, and in one stunning hand, VOGL had seized the chip lead. VOGL now had a 7 to 1 chip advantage with about $1,400,000 to RICE�s $250,000.

The final hand was dealt a few minutes before midnight:

RICE: K-Q
VOGL: A-Q

RICE raised with his remaining chips, and VOGL called instantly. The final board showed 9-8-4-8-Q, with four spades. VOGL didn�t need the flush, but won anyway with his queen of spades as the fifth card.

SHAWN RICE, a business owner from Lubbock, TX was the runner up. He made the final table in a WSOP event back in 1992 and was making his second final table appearance. �He deserves to win,� RICE said about his opponent. �He�s a great player.�

�I have a lot of friends out here, it�s a lot of fun, it�s a blast,� RICE said of his WSOP experience. �Tons of money to be won � it�s the best place in the world to be.�

The winner was JAMES VOGL, a 24-year-old Londoner. In addition to excelling in poker, he is also a serious backgammon player. VOGL is single and holds a degree in economics. His best prior finish had been a 2nd-place showing at the Master Classics in Amsterdam, Holland � netting $100,000. Now, the English economist will add $400,000 to his poker budget and will certainly be a player to watch the remainder of the World Series.

�It�s a miracle really,� said VOGL during his post-victory interview, as ESPN television cameras rolled and captured the moment. �I managed to get lucky early in the tournament when I had (9-9 versus J-J) and doubled up when I caught a nine. At the final table, I came in with the most chips, but I made some really horrible plays�.somehow I managed to stay relaxed and come back and win.�

�The truth is � the cards played themselves. It�s no (challenge) to pick up aces and find someone with kings and double up with a huge stack against one of the other chip leaders. I had so many big hands tonight � I had pocket aces (and) ace-king suited against the pocket queens (and won). It�s a strange feeling because, I don�t think I�m good enough to be a �world champion,� it just all happened so quickly.�

Final Table Started at: 7:40 pm PST
Final Table Ended at: 11:55 pm PST

-- by Nolan Dalla

2004 World Series of Poker