Antonio
The Magician Esfandiari
Makes
Rivals Chips Disappear in
Final Table Magic Show
--Bay-Area
Poker Pro Wins Pot-Limit Holdem
WSOP Event
My
first bracelet! This means more to me
than the money. I mean the money is nice,
but this is what I really wanted - the
gold bracelet.
-- Antonio Esfandiari
Antonio
Esfandiari used to be a professional magician.
He peformed magic tricks and wowed audiences
of all ages. But his greatest performance
might have been on this night, as Esfandiari,
a.k.a. �The Magician,� reached deep into
his bag of card tricks in the $2,000 buy-in
Pot-Limit Hold�em event at this year�s
World Series of Poker. He topped a world-class
field of 324 players - the highest ever
to enter this event in the 35-year history
of the tournament. It wasn�t so amazing
that Esfandiari won. What was amazing
was how he earned his first gold bracelet
and WSOP victory. To call it �magical�
would be a gross understatement.
Many of the hands at the final table electrified
the standing room only crowd cramped inside
the Horseshoe second floor ballroom. Although
this was one of the non-televised events
of this years WSOP (ESPN is showing nearly
half of all events), this was positively
the most exciting final table of the year.
It also attracted the biggest crowd, to
date. There were numerous bad beats, chip
lead changes, and tense moments during
the five-hour finale.
After
the 315 players were eliminated on the
first day, the nine finalists returned
for day two. Many eyes were focused on
the two former world champions sitting
at the final table - Chris �JESUS� Ferguson,
the 2000 winner, and Phil Hellmuth, Jr.,
the 1989 champ. Lots of excitement was
expected, and the players did not disappoint.
Although skill is compulsory, every poker
tournament requires some luck in order
to win. After all, the best hand does
not always take down the pot. No one knows
this better than the players at the final
table, who squared off against Esfandiari.
One by one, they went from favorites to
dogs at the turn of a single stunning
card - that might as well have been a
printed ticket out of the casino directly
to valet parking. �The Magician�s� ultimate
destiny -- a victory at the World Series
- was brought to mind the old poker adage
about �putting yourself in a position
to win.�
Consider
Esfandiari�s good fortune.
- Early
at the final table, Esfandiari won with
2-2 versus 8-8, after a deuce came on
the turn.
- Esfandiari�s
most critical hand came when he took
Q-Q against Phil Hellmuth�s K-K and
won (see report below)
- A
short time later, Esfandiari eliminated
Hellmuth with K-9 versus A-8.
- Esfandiari�s
A-6 topped Phi Nguyen�s A-9 on the final
hand of the tournament.
Indeed,
it was a real magic act. Players were
eliminated in the following order:
9th
- VEGARD NYGAARD - Norwegian poker players
have become a viable force on the European
circuit, and at the World Series of Poker.
This relatively small, but very talented
group of players includes Thor Hansen,
and others. Nygaard, is also from Norway�s
capital, Oslo. He came to the final table
as the shortest stack and was the first
player to exit. He received $11,920.
8th
- TONY COUSINEAU - The touring pro from
Florida is one of the best players in
the game at lasting deep into major tournaments.
Cousineau often jokes that he has more
�bubble� finishes than anyone in poker
(the notoriously worst place to finish
-- because it�s in the top percentile
of finishers, but pays absolutely nothing).
Cousineau went beyond the bubble in this
tournament, and in the process was making
his 19th lifetime �cash� at the WSOP.
However, Cousineau fell short of winning
when he ran into pocket rockets - Ivo
Donev�s A-A versus his A-K. An ace came
on the flop - and all the money went into
the pot. Cousineau was out as the 8th
place finisher. He collected $17,880.
7th - CHRIS COMPTON - Compton experienced
a roller coaster of emotions during his
final hand of the tournament. He started
with A-10 against Mark O�Bryan�s Q-Q.
Jubilation came when an ace flopped and
Compton looked like he might double up.
But those hopes were shattered when a
queen fell on the river. Compton was ripped
away from the final table with $23,840
for 7th place.
6th - PHIL HELLMUTH - The 1989 world champion
and nine-time gold bracelet winner took
some tough beats. The worst hand for Hellmuth
occurred when his K-K lost to Esfandiari�s
Q-Q. It was arguably the most important
hand of the final table and merits greater
detail. Here�s what happened:
HELLMUTH: K-K
ESFANDIARI: Q-Q
Both players got into a raising war before
the flop. Esfandiari was �all in� and
Hellmuth had just enough chips to cover
his opponent�s stack. The flop helped
neither player, but three clubs on board
made Hellmuth�s kings an even stronger
favorite - since he had the lone club
in his hand. Then, disaster struck for
the former world champion. The queen of
clubs fell on the turn, which brought
the audience to its feet. Esfandiari had
hit his two-outer. But the fourth club
had also made a flush for Hellmuth. Esfandiari
now had extra outs - and could win the
huge pot if the board paired. That�s exactly
what happened on the river when a second
nine rained down from the poker gods above,
giving Esfandiari a full-house against
Hellmuth�s club flush. It was a brutal
beat.
The
self-described �poker brat� was remarkably
self-controlled in defeat, when he went
out with A-8 and lost to Esfiari�s K-9
when the final board showed 5-4-3-10-K.
Hellmuth�s bid to become the first player
in WSOP history to win ten gold bracelets
fell short. He received $29,800 for 6th
place. With this appearance, Hellmuth�s
45 lifetime cashes ranks as a new WSOP
record.
5th
- MARCUS O�BRYAN - The final hand of the
night for O�Bryan took place when his
A-Q lost to Ivo Donev�s Q-Q. An ace failed
to rescue the native of Kokomo, IN, resulting
in a 5th place finish worth $35,760.
4th
- CHRIS �JESUS FERGUSON - The 2000 world
poker champion survived a few �all ins�
before his fate was finally sealed. Getting
low on chips, �Jesus� went �all in� with
K-Q and lost to Esfandiari, when an ace
fell on the river - good for top pair.
Jesus� �passion� to win was not enough.
He went out 4th with $41,740. Ferguson
now has a second-place and a fourth-place
finish within the past week at this year�s
WSOP - worth about 200 grand in prize
money.
3rd
- IVO DONEV - Without doubt one of the
most interesting personalities at the
final table was Donev, from Austria. Like
Ferguson, Donev was making his second
final table within the past week. It was
pocket kings that proved to be a killer.
Donev took a horrible beat when his K-K
lost to A-Q - making a straight when the
board showed 2-3-4-5-x. Donev couldn�t
bear to watch and was standing on the
rail when the final card was dealt. He
fell to his knees when the crowd exploded
upon seeing the straight. Donev walked
away in a daze and received $47,700.
When
heads up play began, Esfandiari enjoyed
about a 6 to 1 chip lead. The exact chip
counts were as follows:
THE
MAGICIAN : $564
PHI NGUYEN: $84K
Nguyen
managed to double up a few times, but
on each occasion he was worn down by the
Magician�s relentless aggression. Nguyen
did draw close to even at one point, but
that lasted no more than a few hands.
Most of the heads-up match had the Magician
holding the cards, with better than a
2-1 chip disadvantage.
Nguyen�s
most devastating blow came when he was
dealt 10-9 and saw the flop come with
a nine. Nguyen committed his chips to
the pot, but Esfandiari was slowplaying
K-K and won the biggest pot of the night.
That hand gave Esfandiari a 15 to 1 chip
lead and left Nguyen close to the felt.
The final hand was dealt when Nguyen raised
�all in� with A-9 and was called by Esfandiari
with A-6. Down essentially to three outs
(6s), those are normally tough odds to
overcome. But once again, the Magician
justified his nickname when - abra cadabra
-- the flop came A-6-x, which gave Esfandiari
two pair. That was enough, and Esfandiari
was declared the winner.
�The
gold bracelet is about having respect,�
Esfandiari said afterward. �It�s like
when you on a team, you want to win the
Super Bowl. That�s all you want to do.
So being a professional poker player,
you want the bracelet and the title.�
�It
was weird. When there were about 45 people
left in the tournament, I just decided
I was going to win,� Esfandiari added.
�I had the same feeling (when I won $1
million at the Commerce)�and in this tournament
I had the same feeling, too.�
Call
it what you want - premonition, magic,
luck or skill. Antonio �The Magician�
Esfandiari is the new $2,000 buy-in Pot-Limit
Hold�em world champion.
-- Official Report
by Nolan Dalla, Media Director -- 2004
World Series of Poker
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