MIAMI
JOHN WINS MARATHON
OMAHA 8 OR BETTER EVENT
Experience was a big factor tonight
as seasoned pro "Miami" John Cernuto came
out on top in a $500 Omaha 8 or better
tournament that stretched on until 3:30
a.m. Cernuto, holder of three WSOP bracelets,
picked his spots, read his opponents and
made good laydowns to take a big lead
late in the session. Then poker player
Brian Nadell surged, and when the two
got heads-up, Nadell trailed by only $12,000
and the two made a tournament-ending deal.
The final table started with 10 players
and worked down to the nine in-the-money
finishers. Alaska contractor Tim Lyons
was frozen out on the bubble. Shortest-chipped,
he hung around for 25 hands, finally raising
all in with A-A-J-9. "I don't have much
but I have no choice," said Nadell, throwing
in a couple of extra chips from the big
blind. He had K-Q-J-5 and filled on a
board of Q-9-3-K-K.
Chip
Position, Final Table
Seat
Player Chip
Count
1.
Eddie Fishman $11,900
2. Allen Kessler $7,200
3. Tim Lyons $3,200
4. Young Phan $27,100
5. Paul Honas $10,200
6. John Robertson $6,400
7. Brian Nadell $5,100
8. Vince Oliver $11,000
9. John Cernuto $11,800
10. Scotty Nguyen $3,300
The final nine went to limits of $1,000-$2,000
after two minutes of play. Gaming industry
consultant Vince Oliver was left with
$1,000 on hand 34 when he went in with
A-3-7-J, flopped a nut straight when K-Q-10
came, then lost when Nadell again made
kings-full. Two hands later Oliver busted
out in the small blind with Q-9-8-3 when
Miami John turned 2-4-5-6 into a 6-high
straight.
The evening's survival specialist was
John Robertson, who turned pro after retiring
from the printing business. He went all
in and escaped for the first of five times
with a flush on hand 37.
Scotty Nguyen retired from the competition
10 hands later. He went all in with A-3-5
in his hand. When the board came 10-8-3-6-3,
he was chopped up by Young Phan, with
an A-2 nut low, and Allen Kessler, who
made a straight with A-4-7-9.
As the next level approached, Phan, an
Orange County pro, led with about $19,000.
Cernuto and Kessler, in the advertising
business in Pennsylvania, were not far
behind, while Robertson was in peril with
$4,000. Nadell wasn't keen on having the
limits jump to $2,000 and $4,000 when
the average chip count was under $14,000,
and suggested a more moderate increase
to $1,500-$3,000. The players seemed agreeable,
but tournament director David Lamb took
a secret ballot vote in case one player
didn't want to be known the bad guy who
vetoed. No one did, and $1,500-$3,000
it was.
As play continued, Nadell complained that
first two cards he looked at always seemed
to be two treys. He went all in a couple
of times, first splitting with New York
pro Eddie Fishman, then betting his last
$1,500 when the board showed J-5-2-J-Q
with three diamonds. Phan, with trip jacks,
made a good laydown because Nadell had
made a small diamond flush. On hand 65,
Kessler, on the button, start with A-2-10-10
and went all in. A low didn't come and
Paul Honas, another Vegas pro, put him
away with another diamond flush.
Phan was left with one chip when he flopped
a wraparound wheel draw to his 3-4-5 and
missed. He posted it the following hand
in the small blind (he jokingly tried
to add some live chips, which for some
reason wasn't allowed). Miami John raised
"to give protection" to Phan. Some protection.
Phan had hopeless junk cards and Cernuto
made yet another diamond flush, king-
high, to knock out Phan and also beat
Honas, whose flush was queen-high.
Still going all in, Robertson meanwhile
saved his neck for the fifth time by making
quad jacks.
When limits rose to the postponed $2,000-$4,000
level, Fishman led with $31,000. Miami
John had $23,000, Honas had $19,000, Nadell
had dipped to $9,000 and Robertson had
built his chips up to $15,000. But on
hand 103 his luck ran out. Holding Q-J-10-7,
he went all in after flopping a straight
draw, losing to Nadell's aces-full and
Honas' 8-low.
After
scooping a pot against Honas with a starting
hand of K-K-Q-Q, Miami John had taken
a sizeable lead with about $45,000. Fishman
then lost a couple of pots and finally
busted out against Nadell. Eddie had a
great starting hand of A-2-3-7 while Nadell,
in the big blind, had A-5-8-6. Fishman
went all in, and when the board came A-J-J-4-Q,
Brian's two aces with an 8 edged Eddie's
two aces with a 7.
On
the final hand, Honas started with best
high and best low: J-J-3-5 vs. Nadell's
A-Q-9-8. But a flop of Q-10-9 gave Nadell
two pair. He put Honas in, his hand held
up and now two were left. Cernuto had
$54,000 to Nadell's $42,500. They agreed
on a deal and called it a night.
Max Shapiro
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