The Final Table Championship Event Seat 1: DANIEL NEGREANU (Las Vegas, NV) Chip Count -- $357,000 The second-chip leader coming into the final table is Daniel Negreanu, age 29, from Las Vegas. The son of Romanian-born parents, Negreanu grew up in the Toronto (Canada) area. He started playing poker as a teenager in local underground games, and eventually turned "pro" by the age of 18 -- supporting himself in low and middle limit poker games in and around Toronto. In 1998, Negreanu became the youngest player ever to win a gold bracelet at the World Series of Poker at age 23 -- in the ($2,000 buy-in) Pot-Limit Omaha event. Since that time, he has won several major tournaments, including the United States Poker Championship in 1999. Today, he can regularly be found playing at most major poker events and in the highest-limit cash games in Las Vegas. Negreanu is also a columnist for Card Player magazine. He enjoys watching hockey, reading, writing, and collecting fine wine. Negreanu says he wants to use the million dollar top prize to "help people who need it more than I do." Seat 2: ALAN SCHEIN (Aventura, FL) Chip Count -- $51,000 Schein is a 57-year-old poker player from Florida. Schein is relatively new to the tournament poker scene, as this is his first final table at a televised event. Not much is known about Schein or his style of play – although he did make it into the money at this year’s Limit Hold’em event at the “Showdown at the Sands,” which was played just a week ago. Schein has a tough task ahead of him today, since he comes in with the lowest chip count of the nine finalists. He is married and has two grown children. Seat 3: BRIAN HAVESON (Newtown, PA) Chip Count -- $274,000 Brian Haveson, age 39, is from Pennsylvania. He is a professional poker player who lists legends -- Doyle Brunson, "Amarillo Slim" Preston, and T.J. Cloutier -- as the players he admires most. Interestingly, Cloutier will be sitting two seats to Haveson's left at today's final table. Furthermore, Haveson played against and nearly defeated Doyle Brunson heads-up in the H.O.R.S.E. (a mix of all common poker games) event at the 2003 World Series of Poker. Haveson ended up finishing second in that event. To date, his biggest win came at the 2002 World Poker Finals, at Foxwoods. In this tournament, Haveson had the most chips of all the remaining players after Day One, and going into Day Three is in prime position to go for the win in the big finale. He is married and has three children. Haveson says that if he wins, he will give much of the prize money to charity. Seat 4: PAUL WOLFE (Apollo Beach, FL) Chip Count -- $378,000 Today's chip leader coming into the final table is Paul Wolfe, from Florida. Wolfe is a self-employed professional poker player with a daughter, named Kaley, age 11. Wolfe says his favorite activity when not playing, is to spend time with his daughter. He lists his most admired poker adversaries as Chip Jett, Layne Flack, Harley Hall, and T.J. Cloutier, who is, interestingly enough -- the player who will be sitting to Wolfe's immediate left at today’s final table. Wolfe has played outstanding poker in the two-days leading up to the final day. He has several cashes and final table appearances in recent years and earned his biggest win at the Casino Europa Invitational Tournament (Paris, France) in 2002. He says he will "enjoy life a little better" if he wins the million-dollar top prize. Seat 5: T. J. Cloutier (Dallas, TX) Chip Count -- $123,000 T.J. Cloutier needs no introduction to serious poker players or fans of the game. One of the greatest tournament players of all-time, Cloutier's record over the last twenty years is unsurpassed. Cloutier, now age 64, attended University of California-Berkely on a college football scholarship (he played in the 1959 Rose Bowl) and was drafted into the Canadian Football League during the 1960s. After his retirement from football, Cloutier turned to poker to satisfy his competitive instincts. He is one of the last of the "rounders," who learned his trade in the famous high-limit underground games around Dallas, and throughout Texas and Louisiana. To date, Cloutier has won over 50 major poker tournaments during his lifetime. He has also finished second in the main event twice, at the World Series of Poker. Cloutier has won over three million dollars at the World Series alone, in addition to the phenomenal success he has enjoyed elsewhere. He has also authored or co-authored three books on poker strategy. He lives in the sprawling North Dallas suburb of Richardson, and is married to his wife Joy, and has five children. Cloutier suffered a heart attack five months ago, and has recovered at least to the extent he is now playing outstanding poker. Always one to keep things in perspective, Cloutier says that if he wins the million-dollar top prize, "It will not change my life in any way." Seat 6: MIKE MATUSOW (Las Vegas, NV) Chip Count -- $285,000 Matusow comes into the final table third in chips. He is affectionately known as "Motor Mouth" amongst his peers, because of his incessant chatter during play. Matusow, who started out as a poker dealer several years ago, is now a winning high-limit player, in addition to being a successful on the tournament trail. Matusow has two World Series of Poker gold bracelets to his name, in addition to a win at the United States Poker Championship a few years ago, here in Atlantic City. In his spare time, "Motor Mouth" enjoys playing poker online and watching sports on television. He lists "Phil Ivey" as his most respected adversary at the poker table. A fierce competitor, Matusow says that the prize money he wins today will enable him to live and play, "with the pressure finally off of his shoulders." Seat 7: THOR HANSEN (Oslo, Norway) Chip Count -- $78,000 No one plays a short-stack better and is more disciplined than Thor Hansen, a 56-year-old poker pro who now spends much of his time in Southern California (he actually lives in El Segundo, CA). Hansen -- who is one of four non-US born players at today's final table -- is originally from Norway's capital, Oslo. Hansen has won numerous poker tournaments, including events at the Four Queens Classic, Larry Flynt’s Poker Challenge Cup, and many other titles. He has won two gold bracelets at the World Series of Poker – in stud and lowball. Seat 8: ANNAND "VICTOR" RAMDIN (Bronx, NY) Chip Count -- $277,000 Victor Ramdin is a very close fourth in chips, coming into the final day. Ramdin, now age 35, was born in Georgetown, Guyana (South America) and immigrated to the United States. He now earns his living as a store owner, and also invests in real estate. Ramdin has several in-the-money finishes to his credit, although he is still seeking his first major victory. If he wins, he says that he will donate some of the top prize to charity and will also pay off his parents' mortgage. Ramdin adds, that he will "take his wife and kids to Disneyland." Seat 9: JOHN MYUNG (Rockville, MD) Chip Count -- $145,000 Myung is from the Washington, DC suburb of Rockville, MD. He is a 29-year-old accountant. Myung won a hold’em event at the 2002 World Poker Finals. In his spare time, Myung enjoys dining out and playing golf. He says that if he wins the million-dollar first place, he will invest most of the money and also take a long, well-deserved vacation. -- Final table player profiles compiled by Nolan Dalla

2003 Showdown at the Sands