2002 Bellagio Five Diamond
World Poker Classic
Wednesday,
December 4, 2002
Event #3
Pot Limit Hold'em
BUY-IN:
$1,000 + $60
Players: 138
Prize Pool: $133,860
1
Brian Green San Jose, Costa
Rica $53,544
2 Dennis
Waterman Myrtle Point, OR
$26,772
3 Phil Helmuth Palo Alto,
CA $13,386
4 Tony Sin Las Vegas, NV $8,032
5 Nmaurice Atlani Paris, FL
$6,024
6 Daniel Negreanu Las Vegas,
NV $4,685
7 Howard Lederer Las Vegas,
NV $3,347
8 Jeff Shulman Las Vegas,
NV $2,677
9 Kent Washington Oakland,
CA $2,142
10 Derek Gale London, England
$1,606
11 Eddie Scharf Cologne, Germany
$1,606
12 Christoph Walters Kassell,
Germany $1,606
13 TOM McEvoy Las Vegas, NV
$1,472
14 Dave Dodgion Park City,
UT $1,472
15 Brad Mills Las Vegas, NV
$1,472
16 Alan Green Anchorage, AK
$1,339
17 Scotty Warbucks Glendale,
CA $1,339
18 Mike Svobodny Las Vegas,
NV $1,339
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TOURNAMENT
REPORT
Cost
Rican resident Brian Green
kept finding a way to stay
alive as he battled a top-notch
player lineup at the final
table to take the title
for the $1,000 buy-in Pot
Limit Hold'em event of the
Bellagio Five Diamond World
Poker Classic.
�My
good friend Humberto Brenes
pulled me off to the side
during a short break when
I was down to a very short
stack of chips, and told
me not to give up,� said
Green. �That really helped
me find enough adrenaline
to keep fighting,� he added.
And fight he did.
After
saving his �life� once more
with AK against runner-up
Dennis Waterman of Myrtle
Point, OR, and third-place
finisher Phil Helmuth of
Palo Alto, CA, Green found
that Jacks were his best
friends. He had pocket Jacks
when he knocked out Helmuth
and again when he eliminated
Waterman.
�This
was a very big step for
me,� Green explained. �I�ve
only been playing for three
years, and I have never
made it to a final table
in a pot limit or no limit
game before now.� His strongest
performances previously
had been in Limit Hold�em
events, including a win
in the $1,000 buy-in event
at the 2001 World Poker
Open in Tunica, a third
place finish in the 2001
WSOP $5,000 buy-in event,
and second place in the
same WSOP event in 2002.
Earlier this week, he finished
sixth in the Bellagio�s
tournament opening Limit
Hold'em event.
Green
was raised in Las Vegas,
but moved to Costa Rica
11 years ago, where he owns
a telecommunications business.
�The Bellagio has a great
poker room, and I will travel
almost anywhere that (Bellagio
Poker Host) Jack McClelland
is running a tournament.
He always does an outstanding
job,� said Green.
A
total of 138 entries made
up the field for the third
event of the Bellagio tournament.
Play at the final table
was exhausting, which was
evidenced by a 3-1/2 hour
time period between elimination
of the eighth player and
the seventh player. The
final hand was played in
the middle of the night.
From
the total prize pool of
$133,860, Green won $53,544
for his first place prize,
followed by Waterman with
$26,772 and Helmuth with
$13,386.
Finishing
fourth was Tony Sin of Las
Vegas, while fifth went
to Nmaurice Atlani of Paris,
FL, sixth to Daniel Negreanu
of Las Vegas, seventh to
Howard Lederer of Las Vegas,
eighth to Jeff Shulman of
Las Vegas, ninth to Kent
Washington of Oakland, CA,
and tenth to Derek Gale
of London, England. Two
German players, Eddie Scharf
of Cologne and Christoph
Walters of Kassel, just
missed the final table.
��
Jim Sherwood
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