Mar
30
by Chad Holloway
In my last blog I talked about the first half of my trip to Los Angeles for The Big Event at the Bicycle Casino, which you can find somewhere on here. This time I’m going to continue with Part II and the Bounty Shootout (BSO) that took place at the same venue, the Bicycle Casino. It started with nine tables of nine players each, for a total field of 81 players. Each table played down to a winner, which comprised the final table that was filmed for broadcast on ESPN. Some of the players who played, but failed to make the final table, were Chris Moneymaker, Orel Hershiser, Richard Lyndaker, Daniel Negreanu, Vanessa Rousso, Allen Kessler, Shaun Deeb, and many more. The final table ended up being pretty stacked, including an appearance by Victor Ramdin, who was the winner of The Big Event Main Event just two days prior. Talk about a heater.
Aside from Ramdin, the final table also included John Smith, Shane Schleger, Matt Woodward, Alex Keating, Pat Walsh, Ali Eslami, Joe Tehan, and Jonathan Duhamel, the reigning World Series of Poker Main Event Champion. Unfortunately, Ramdin was the first player eliminated after he ran middle set into Smith’s top set just twenty minutes into play. Any BSO tends to be long, boring, and tedious, at least until the blinds pick up. This one was no different. It took 16 hours before the final table wrapped at 6:30 in the morning. Here is how the final table of that event ended up:
|
Place
|
Player
|
Bounties
|
Prize
|
|
1st
|
Pat Walsh
|
5
|
$241,700
|
|
2nd
|
Ali Eslami
|
4
|
$56,000
|
|
3rd
|
Alex Keating
|
3
|
$62,000
|
|
4th
|
Joe Tehan
|
4
|
$56,000
|
|
5th
|
John Smith
|
5
|
$58,000
|
|
6th
|
Jonathan Duhamel
|
5
|
$58,000
|
|
7th
|
Matt Woodward
|
1
|
$42,000
|
|
8th
|
Shane Schleger
|
3
|
$46,000
|
|
9th
|
Victor Ramdin
|
4
|
$48,000
|
So while I was in L.A., the NBC National Heads-Up Championship was being held in Vegas. One of my favorite things to do is fill out a bracket with predictions prior to the event, much like filling out a March Madness bracket for the NCAA. Many others do the same and it has turned into a friendly competition in the poker community. As the reigning ESPN Fantasy Poker League Champion, and an expert in fantasy poker, I was looking forward to putting my knowledge to use and constructing some successful predictions. Unfortunately things didn’t quite turn out as I planned. Here is how my bracket looked:
If you compared this with the actual results, you’ll see I went a pathetic 18-45! Not the magnificent run I was hoping for; in fact, I didn’t have either Chris Moneymaker or Erik Seidel, the eventual finalists, making it out of the first round. It didn’t help that I picked Eric Baldwin to win and he was eliminated in the first round; likewise, Laak, who I also had in the finals, exited in the second round. At least I did a little better in my March Madness bracket.
My next stop is going to be the World Series of Poker Circuit in St. Louis between April 6th-13th. Not only will I be covering the Main Event for PokerNews, but I’m going down early to play a few rings events. Who knows, maybe I’ll capture one and have to hit the circuit trying to qualify for this $1 million National Championship Freeroll. That would sure be nice, but it’ll be fun either way. In the meantime, be sure to follow me on Twitter @ChadAHolloway and check out my daily articles on PokerNews.com.
Mar
14
by Chad Holloway
My latest adventure for PokerNews.com was a jaunt back out to Los Angeles for The Big Event at the Bicycle Casino. I wasn’t particularly excited considering I was just in L.A. back in November for the NAPT stop, but the trip ended up being one of my favorites thus far. I stayed at the Millennium Biltmore, the same place as last time, and was joined by members of Team PokerNews Donnie Peters, Eric Ramsey, Kristy Arnett, and Will Thomas, as well as Garry Gates of the NAPT. They’re some great people and it is hard not to have a good time when they’re around.
The Big Event was held at the Bicycle Casino in Bell Gardens and they treated us great. Their tournament structure was the best I’ve covered as far as getting the media out at a decent hour. I managed to have some free time which is a rarity on these trips. In addition, Kelley O’Hara, the Director of Marketing, treated us like VIPs, comping our food (which is fantastic by the way . . . try the chicken kabob) and often arranging for transportation back to our hotel.
The Big Event Main Event was a trip in and of itself. It drew 417-players including some pretty big names. Jennifer Tilly was there, although she busted on Day 1, but unfortunately Phil “The Unabomber” Laak couldn’t attend due to prior commitments in Chicago. Others in attendance included Tom McEvoy, Kathy Liebert, Matt Affleck, Nacho Barbero, Barry Greenstein, Jerry Yang, just to name a few. What was really special was that two poker superstars managed to make it all the way to the final table in former World Poker Tour winner Victor Ramdin and 2005 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion Joe Hachem.
The final table was broadcast live on the Bicycle Casino’s popular Live at the Bike webcast. The program allowed viewers to see the player’s hole cards, which is quite revolutionary for a live broadcast. In actuality, it aired with a slight delay in order to ensure the security of the game. Nonetheless, the program, which was the brainchild of O’Hara and her crew, was a big success and highly entertaining. Live at the Bike also airs live cash games throughout the week, which you can watch at LiveattheBike.com.
The final table was one of the best I’ve seen and ended with Ramdin defeating Hachem in heads-up play. Here are the results of that final table:
|
Finish
|
Player
|
Winnings
|
|
1st
|
Victor Ramdin
|
$500,000
|
|
2nd
|
Joe Hachem
|
$300,000
|
|
3rd
|
Jeremy Ausmas
|
$190,000
|
|
4th
|
Taylor von Kriegenbergh
|
$140,000
|
|
5th
|
Bryan Leskowitz
|
$100,000
|
|
6th
|
Govert Metaal
|
$75,000
|
|
7th
|
Jose De Noronha
|
$55,000
|
|
8th
|
Santiago Nadal
|
$35,327
|
It is also worth noting that during the final table we were all informed of the earthquake that struck Japan as well as the subsequent tsunami. It is rare to see a poker room to grow quiet and come to a halt, but that is exactly what happened. Disbelief, empathy, and shock are words that can be used to describe the atmosphere as all eyes were glued to the television. Ramdin and Hachem even stopped their heads-up match during this time and even discussed breaking until the following day. I thought that even contemplating such a move was an amazingly generous gesture.
On a lighter note, I actually had the opportunity to do some tourist stuff on Wednesday, March 9, 2011 when our tournament ended in the early evening. I really wanted to go down to Hollywood Boulevard and was fortunate enough to have Will volunteer to go with me. He lives in L.A. and it was nice to have a sort of guide show me around. I took my first subway ride ever, saw the Grauman’s Chinese Theater, the Walk of Fame, and all kinds of movie-related things. From there we went to Little Tokyo were I enjoyed my first Mochi balls, which were awesome. If you don’t know what they are, look them up and try them the first chance you get. I was really glad I got the chance to see some of L.A., however limited it turned out to be, and it ended up being one of my favorite days of the trip.
In my next blog, I will talk about the Bounty Shootout event as well as some other fun things that happened in Los Angeles, so be sure to check back in the near future. In the meantime, be sure to follow me on Twitter @ChadAHolloway.
Feb
28
by Jake
At 7:04am on June 7, 2010 Phil “The Unabomber” Laak, set a new world record for the most hours of poker played in a single sitting after 115 hours. Setting a world record and having a record officially verified by the Guinness Book of World Records are two different things however and Unabomber Poker is proud to announce that Phil Laak has now been officially named the new and current holder for the record of 'Longest marathon playing poker by an individual'.
Attaining the Guinness World Record required meeting stringent standards and providing proof and verification of certain facts that included: witnesses, media coverage following the event, video evidence, drug tests administered by a doctor on site, log books detailing dealer’s names and times, Guinness Book of World Records log books detailing the record breaker’s activity and rest times among other things.
Taking place at the luxurious Bellagio Poker Room in Las Vegas, Laak started playing at 12:04pm on June 2, 2010 and broke the previous world record by 36 hours and 15 minutes when he stopped at 7:04am on June 7, 2010.
"I was shooting for 80 hours all along and eventually it came. The obvious next step was to honor the moment by making the most of it. A gambling degenerate by trade this was a once in a lifetime opportunity to see what my inner vampire was really made of,” stated Laak. “Well we sure found out! It was loads of fun and of course impossible without my crew. This has been one of the most wonderful journeys I’ve ever taken, touchingly human and beautiful on so many levels. Thanks to everyone who shared in this amazing ride.”
Since breaking the record Laak has continued his storied and colorful career by winning a World Series of Poker Europe bracelet for the ₤2,500 buy-in Six-Handed No-Limit Hold’em championship. Laak’s first WSOP bracelet followed a serious all-terrain vehicle accident that left Laak hospitalized with a broken elbow and other injuries and saw him win the tournament while wearing a cast.
You can check out a video recap of Phil Laak breaking the poker endurance record, or check out all the poker endurance challenge blogs on Unabomber for a complete review of how the momunmental event went down.
Feb
22
by Chad Holloway
I recently returned from a visit to Tunica, Mississippi for the World Series of Poker Circuit stop being held at Harrah’s. As usual, the trip was on poker news business, but really they always turn out to be working vacations. This was my first time in Tunica and I must say I was pretty impressed. The shuttle from the Memphis airport was pleasant and the customer service made a positive impression on me. I could tell right away that I was going to enjoy myself.
The first thing I did when I got there was check-in, put my bags down, and then headed to the poker room. It was a Saturday night, so Harrah’s Tunica poker room was in full swing. I only played a short two-hour session at a $2-$5 hold’em game before my PokerNews colleague, Mickey Doft, arrived. I left the game with my buy-in plus an extra $1 chip as a souvenir (something I take from every casino I play at). It was lights out early that night to be prepared for the start of the WSOP-C $1,500 Main Event in the morning. Unfortunately, I wasn’t playing but rather live reporting the tournament action for PokerNews.com (which powers the WSOP.com updates as well).
The Main Event drew 480 entrants and created a prize pool of $698,400. The biggest name in the field was Dwyte Pilgrim, who I find to always be friendly and upbeat whenever I see him on the circuit. Also in the field were regulars Kevin Calenzo, Chris Tryba, Maurice Hawkins, Stephen Kats, and many more. Day 1 was grueling and by the time it was done at around 2 AM, I was beat. No poker for me on Sunday night.
Monday’s Day 2 was much better. The field was smaller and more manageable, making my job a hell of a lot easier. Plus, I had the best tournament reporter in the business, talking of course about Doft, working alongside me. By midnight, the field had reduced itself to a final table and action came to a halt. That meant it was time for some poker. I hit up the poker room at Harrah’s yet again for a little $2-$5 action and I wasn’t disappointed. There was a maniac at my table who threw around money like a Saudi prince in Vegas. I mean this guy would raise $70 under the gun without looking at his cards. He’d follow that up with a blind bet in the dark for anyone who called him, sometimes for as much as $300. I was licking my chops and decided to pick my spots carefully. Unfortunately, those spots did not come often. The one time I picked up aces and limped from early position, no one raised behind and I won a small pot. I managed to win a little, which was nice, but I still felt I missed out on a lot of value. I ended up leaving the game a little after five in the morning in order to get a little rest.
The next day the final table commenced and took around seven hours to complete. During that time, I witnessed the biggest meltdown I’ve ever seen in poker. Kurt Jewell, who won the Main Event of the WSOP-C Hammond stop, entered the final table as one of the big stacks. After clashing with the chip leader, Jewell amassed 4.7 million in chips, about 50% of the chips in play. This was when there were still nine players left. Ninety minutes later, or a little over one level, Jewell was out in eighth place. No one could believe it. His downfall was a mix of lost coinflips, tilt, and frustration. If you want more specifics on what exactly happened, check out the PokerNews live reporting blog. In the end, here is how the final table played out:
Place - Player - Hometown - Winnings
1st - Sam Barnhart - Little Rock, AR - $148,612
2nd - Jesse White - Billings, MT - $91,881
3rd - Mary Harden - Ooltewah, TN - $67,122
4th - Brian Burney - Branson, MO - $49,759
5th - Marco Palacios - Austin, TX - $37,422
6th - John Nguyen - Fairview Heights, IL - $28,547
7th - Preston Derden - Houston, TX - $22,084
8th - Kurt Jewell - Frankfurt, KY - $17,328
9th - John Holley - Destin, FL - $13,789
Once the final table was done, Doft and I decided to catch a shuttle to the Horseshoe Casino to check out their poker room. I always enjoy the Horseshoe properties and this was no different. Outside was a bad-ass, old-school, bright-red limousine that caught my eye (Pictured below).
When we got to the poker room, I must say that I was impressed. They had a $1-$5 Stud game going, which surprised me. I usually don’t play games that small, but I hadn’t played Stud in years and was looking to have a fun, relaxing night. A cheap game and free drinks was the perfect combination. After getting taken for $55 in the Stud game, while throwing a few back, I changed to a $1-$3 no-limit hold’em game and promptly won my money back plus $100. Then, on my very last hand as I was racking up, I looked down at pocket kings and won a nice pot against a played with a missed flush draw and another with pocket queens. Tripling my profit before I left was a nice parting gift. I’ll definitely hit up the Horseshoe the next time I’m in Tunica. Lisa Crompton is the poker room manager there and she is doing a heck of a job. The players are well taken care of, the dealers are friendly, and there was a variety of games and tournaments to be had. They even had an announcement of Barnhart’s Main Event win since he is a regular in the room. I thought that was a classy thing to do in recognition of his achievement.
The next day I flew back home, or at least halfway home. My flight got cancelled in Chicago due to fog, so I had to get a ride from Chicago back home to south-central Wisconsin, about a three hour drive. Aside from the ending, the trip was fun. Good tournament, good people, and I came home with more than I left with. I hope I can do that in April when I head to the WSOP-C St. Louis stop where I will not only be reporting on the Main Event for PokerNews, but also playing some of the event, including my first WSOP-C ring events.