"I'M
NOT INTIMIDATED"
Our
eventual winner said, during a break in
heads up play. Maybe, maybe not.
There
were 111 entrants in the $500 Buy-In,
Limit Hold'em for a total prize pool of
$52,170. Two tables were paid, a total
of 18 players.
Former
World Champion Tom McEvoy redistributed
the wealth a little bit when he caught
a six-out river card. Tom called the turn
bet with his underpair 6's to Nick Liuzza's
pocket Queens. Tom needed either a six
for trips or a gutshot 7 for a straight.
The 7 arrived to knock Liuzza and the
previously all-in Gary Braufman out on
the same hand. That river card gave Gary
half of Nick's 18th place money. That's
poker, as they say, whomever they are.
To
setup the Final Table, Anthony Lazar caught
perfect perfect on poor Eli Bajayo. Eli
had just been jolted by Jack Duncan, the
hand before, when Duncan hit a 4 on the
turn for trip 4's to Eli's pocket 7's.
Now in the big blind with only $700 left,
Eli lobbed his last two chips into the
pot with K 7 when Anthony Lazar raised
him. With a King on the flop, Eli had
brief hopes for justice. Nope! When a
Jack came on the turn, Eli was still leading.
Then an Ace rivered Eli into 11th place.
They got to say it again… That's
poker.
The
Final Table was setup Sunday afternoon
when Henry Nguyen took two ladies up against
two gentlemen held by Huck Seed. Henry
had pocket Queens and Huck, pocket Kings.
THE FINAL TABLE:
35 mins. left of 45.
The blinds were $300/$500,
playing $500/$1,000
Player
Hometown Chip
Count
Seat 1 Tom McEvoy Las Vegas NV $3,000
Seat 2 Jack Duncan Las Vegas NV $6,400
Seat 3 Eskimo Clark New Orleans LA $9,600
Seat 4 Bob Willowby Uvalde TX $5,300
Seat 5 Anthony Lazar Las Vegas NV $3,100
Seat 6 Caesar Como Las Vegas NV $6,100
Seat 7 Kevin Crockett Spokane WA $3,400
Seat 8 Larry Wright McQueeny TX $3,300
Seat 9 Mitch Mitchener Bonner Springs
KS $9,200
Seat 10 Minh Nguyen Bell Gardens CA $6,100
How
does he know? Watching Eskimo Clark over
the years, one is constantly amazed by
his play. Larry Wright got the latest
lesson from Eskimo on how to fly to the
finish of a poker tournament. Clark raised
from middle position. Wright reraised
from the small blind. The flop came Q
6 4. Wright checkraised Clark on both
the flop and on the turn, when a 2 came.
Wright was all-in on the river and turned
over A K. Eskimo Clark had taken all that
heat with only an A 4 for a pair of 4's
on the flop. A stunned Larry Wright could
only say 'oh, brother' in 10th.
Presto
(pocket 5's) was dead on the flop for
Caesar Como in 9th. He was all-in before
the flop drawing against two players with
overpairs. Minh Nguyen had pocket 7's
and flopped top set. Anthony Lazar called
Minh's all-in post-flop bet with pocket
Queens and a flush draw. Nguyen is now
two for two for two. Minh's made two Final
Tables in the first two Hall of Fame events
and finished 8th in both of them. Anthony
Lazar spiked a Queen on the turn for set
over set.
Jack
Duncan is a certified poker character
and a hero to elderly men everywhere.
Jack has fathered two children with his
young wife after he turned 70. Then he
won his first WSOP title this year. Duncan's
stack was decimated by Tom McEvoy on his
last two hands. Heads up with Tom when
two Kings flopped, McEvoy checkraised
Duncan on the turn. "Are you sandbagging
a King?" Jack asked Tom. McEvoy pimpled
Duncan with pocket 9's to pocket 8's.
Duncan was all-in on the next hand with
K J. The woods came to Dunsindane for
Duncan in 7th when McEvoy turned over
A Q for Ace high.
Since
he's a poker dealer for a living, Kevin
Crockett knows about dead seats. Kevin
lasted as long as he could with no hands,
but eventually he was forced all-in for
his big blind with 10 2. Crockett's Alamo
was 6th place when Mitch Mitchener flopped
trip 3's.
Being
a former World Champ was only good for
5th at this table. Taking all of Duncan's
chips didn't help Tom McEvoy enough against
the escalating blinds. McEvoy called all-in
under the gun with his last $700 and A
4. Mitch Mitchener in the big blind didn't
need the Jack that came on the river with
his A J. His kicker was good.
The
blinds were doing their job. It cost Bob
Willowby his last $1,600 to call Mitch
Mitchener's raise from the small blind
and he couldn't beat Tony Lazar's rivered
Queens to finish 4th.
With
three players left, most of the money
was chopped up. Tony Lazar made a couple
extra grand by accepting the deal, as
he was the next one out in 3rd. Lazar's
A Q of Spades in the small blind flopped
a Queen, but Mitch Mitchener's pocket
Jacks in the big blind turned a Jack for
suck resuck.
Heads
up, wizened pro Eskimo Clark had a slight
chip lead on Mitch Mitchener. This was
only Mitch's second tournament and the
first time he'd ever been heads up. On
paper this was no contest. Clark has more
moves than a snake at a chess match. Mitch
said he wasn't intimidated by the great
Eskimo, but understandably his hands were
trembling on every bet. Mitch was playing
for a major title against someone he'd
only read about. Eskimo Clark doesn't
need cards to win. His betting is that
good. Mitchener needed cards and got them.
Mitch made almost all the hands down the
stretch and won the Hall of Fame watch
with an A Q better kicker to Eskimo's
A 2 on the last hand. Mitch deserved the
win. He played well and courageously all
day.
Mitchener
can tell his grandkids he wasn't intimidated,
however. Maybe they will believe him.
Mike Paulle
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