John
Juanda Wins Stunning Victory
at Final Table in Pot-Limit Omaha
To
say that John Juanda is a great tournament
player would be an understatement. Juanda
has consistently been at the top of the
player rankings over the past five years
and has arguably been the most successful
tournament poker player in recent memory.
But even John Juanda would likely admit
that he was very lucky to win this event
-- the pot-limit Omaha championship --
culminating in his second gold bracelet
at this year's World Series of Poker.
Juanda certainly plays terrific poker
and is one of the most talented tournament
strategists in poker. But one key hand
at the end of the tournament was all it
took for Juanda to chalk up gold bracelet
number three in his stellar poker career.
The hand will most certainly be talked
about for years to come and will go down
as one of the most bizarre finishes of
all-time. We'll get to "the hand" later.
The
final table began with ten players. Tony
Cousineau came to the final table lowest
in chips and had the prefect opportunity
to jump into the chip lead when he flopped
a monster, but was ultimately knocked
out when he was drawn-out on by his two
opponents. Cousineau, with Q-Q-x-x was
delighted to see the flop come Q-10-2,
giving him top set. He moved "all-in"
but Robert Williamson and Phil Ivey both
had A-K-J-x and when a 9 fell on the turn,
that gave the Williamson-Ivey duo all
of Cousineau's chips in a split pot.
The next significant hand took place an
hour later when Phil Ivey, Don Mosley
and O'Neil Longson got involved in a $140K
pot. Ivey moved over the top with an "all-in"
bet when he held 9-9-x-x and saw the flop
come 9-7-2. But top set did not hold up
as Don Mosley called the large bet with
A-Q of clubs -- which amounted to a club
draw. Longson was not pleased with the
betting action but found himself pot-committed
with top two pair -- 10s and 7s. A club
fell on the turn, giving Mosley the main
pot. Then, Longson caught a backdoor straight
on the river as the final board showed
9-7-2-J-8, taking down the side pot between
he and Ivey. Longson and Mosley carved
up Ivey's chips like two hungry wolves,
leaving the four-time bracelet winner
with just $15K remaining. Then, the vultures
started to circle. Ivey went out a short
time later and collected $10,720 for 9th
place.
Rob
Hollink went out next when he was low
on chips and missed a flush draw. His
K-Q-10-8 was bested by Daniel Studer's
A-Q-8-7 when the final board showed J-7-6-Q-7.
Studer's full house (7s over Qs) put Hollink
out with $13,420 for 8th place.
Next, Robert Williamson III made his exit
when he missed both a straight and a flash
draw. Williamson was dealt K-Q-6-4 (with
diamonds) against John Juanda's A-K-5-3
(bigger diamonds). The final board showed
10-5-3-8-4 (the diamond draw failed to
get there for both players), but Juanda's
two small pair -- 5s and 3s held up. Williamson,
who won this event two years ago, collected
$16,100 for 7th place.
Down
to six players, the finalists played for
90 minutes before the next elimination.
Chris "Jesus" Ferguson has made the money
an amazing eight times at this year's
World Series of Poker (setting an all-time
record), including five final table appearances.
However, he was low on chips when he moved
"all-in" with 8-6-5-4 against Daniel Studer's
A-A-8-5. Studer's pockets aces held up,
knocking Ferguson out in 6th place, for
an $18,780 paycheck.
John
Juanda ripped into Daniel Studer's stack
when both players flopped sets. Juanda
flopped trip aces against Studer's trip
queens, jolting up into the chip lead
with the bulk of Studer's chips. After
the hand, Studer -- who once flirted with
the chip lead -- was left with $35K. Meanwhile,
Juanda was up over $200K for the first
time in the tournament.
Then, an amazing hand developed between
Daniel Studer and Don Mosley when Studer
was dealt 6-7-7-8 to Mosely's 10-10-8-5.
The flop came 10-9-7, giving both players
a set (Mosley had 10s). Studer also had
a straight draw, but hammered Mosley when
he made four 7s, as the case seven fell
on the river. Mosley's tens-full-of-sevens
was toasted, and the Houstonian went home
in 5th place with $21,460. If that hand
was a turning point, then what to come
amounted to a complete detour.
With four players remaining, F. Batie
Mansour went "all-in" with Q-Q-4-4 but
ran into O'Niel Longson's K-K-J-10. When
a king fell on the turn, that ended the
night for Mansour, who went out in 4th
place, good for $32,180.
Longson
and Juanda shared the chip lead as the
blinds increased to $3K-6K. Then, what
as arguably the most stunning hand of
the entire 2003 World Series of Poker
took place. Here's how "the hand" developed.
Neither
player started with much of an Omaha hand,
but the betting got fast and furious very
quickly. Juanda was dealt J-9-5-3. Longson
was dealt 8-7-5-3. The flop came 7-6-4,
giving Longson the nut high (a straight
to the 8). Longson bet out $30K and was
promptly raised $100K more by Juanda with
the second-highest straight and a few
outs to a higher straight. Longson pushed
his entire stack into the pot with the
best hand, and it looked as though Juanda
would take second place.
But
pot-limit Omaha can be a very cruel game,
a painful lesson which was soon discovered
by O'Neil Longson. Juanda watched as a
4 came on the turn, pairing the board.
Not to worry -- Longson still have the
best hand, and Juanda was down to three
cards in the deck which could win the
pot (one of the remaining 8s). Incredibly,
an eight fell on the river, giving Juanda
a 5-6-7-8-9 straight. Longson, in characteristic
fashion, barely blinked -- hiding the
fact that he was one card away from gold
bracelet number three and $200,000 for
first place. Meanwhile, Juanda sat with
the rest of the gallery in stunned silence,
not believing what had just happened.
Essentially, Juanda caught a three-outer
to win the tournament.
Longson
was "all-in" with his remaining chips,
about $35K, a short time later. The final
hand came with Longson holding 10-10-J-9.
He had the lead when the board came Q-Q-4.
However, Juanda had 9-9-x-x and caught
a 9 on the turn, making a full-house --
9s full of queens. Longson, who had been
drawn out on not once, but twice, was
drawing dead and went out gracefully in
second place. Longson received $101,920.
At
the conclusion of the event, a stunned
crowd stood and watched in eerie silence.
They knew they had seen poker history
re-written with the turn of a single card.
No doubt, the ending of this final table
was a bizarre final chapter in what has
been a World Series of Poker with just
about everything. For sheer shock value,
it would be tough to top this final table.
-- by Nolan Dalla
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