|
WORLD POKER TOUR'S
BATTLE OF CHAMPIONS
The Bellagio in Las Vegas. No, Andy Garcia doesn't own it. No,
George Clooney and Matt Damon didn't steal from it. But it is the jewel of
the World Poker Tour. It was the home of the first-ever event of the Tour
last year and is the home of the WPT Championship. But today, it hosts the
11 champions from the Tour last year, playing a freeroll tournament on NBC for $250,000
in cash and, as always, the $25,000 buy-in to the WPT Championship at the end of
this season!
Each champ started with $500,000 worth of chips. Five of them - Devilfish
Ulliot, Layne Flack, Alan Goehring, Chris Johanson and Paul Darden - were
knocked out. Now it's down top six people, champions all. And the champs
at the Final Table are:
| PLAYER |
CHIP COUNT |
Ron Rose
Winner of World Poker
Challenge III |
$1,458,000 |
Juha Helppi
Winner of UltimateBet Challenge as an amateur |
$1,396,000 |
Howard Lederer
Winner of World Poker Finals & Party Poker Million II |
$1,334,000 |
Jose Rosenkrantz
Winner of Costa Rica
Classic |
$663,000 |
Gus Hansen
Winner of Five Diamond World
Poker Classic & L.A. Poker Classic |
$383,000 |
Chris Karagulleyan
Winner of the Bicycle Legends of Poker |
$266,000 |
For this special tournament, something
new has been added: the 60-second "action clock". The players
have 60 seconds to make a call or the table will glow red
and their hand is dead.
Mike Sexton and Vince Van Patton
are ready for the call, seeing the hole cards with the WPT Cams...and tournament
director Jack McClelland tells them to SHUFFLE UP AND DEAL!
Initial ante is $3,000 and blinds (automatic bets
made by the two to the left of the Dealer Button) are $10,000
(SB) and $20,000 (BB). The Dealer Button (D) starts on Jose.
| Gus |
Ron |
Chris |
Jose (D) |
Juha (SB) |
Howard (BB) |
| 5♦
4♥ |
K♣ 5♠ |
9♠
4♣ |
A♦
7♥ |
Q♠ 2♥ |
J♥
7♦
|
| FOLD |
FOLD |
FOLD |
Raises to $70,000 |
FOLD |
FOLD |
|
WIN $108,000 |
|
| A fair number of
hands are won even before the flop. Only reason this one was shown on TV
is because it was the first hand of the Final Table. |
| Ron |
Chris |
Jose |
Juha (D) |
Howard (SB) |
Gus (BB) |
| 9♥
8♥ |
Q♠ 2♦ |
7♠ 2♥ |
A♦ 9♦ |
8♥ 8♦ |
K♥ Q♥ |
| FOLD |
FOLD |
FOLD |
Raises
to $70,000 |
FOLD |
ALL-IN
$377,000 |
|
Calls $307,000 |
|
Ron had and Gus has
"suited connectors", cards of consecutive rank in the same
suit. These are good for straight and flush draws. Jose had the
"beer hand", a 7-2 off-suit. It is the WORST starting hand in
Hold 'Em.
In No-Limit Texas Hold 'Em, anyone can declare themselves "all-in"
and bet everything they have. But if they lose the hand, they're out of
the tournament. Gus is a very slight favorite (57%) to win. |
| FLOP: A♠ 2♣
Q♠ |
| This gives Juha a pair
of Aces (one in his hole, one on the Board). Juha is now a 4-1 fave,
even though Gus has a pair of Queens. |
| TURN: 8♠ |
| Howard WOULD have had
a "nut flush", the best flush possible, had he stayed in. Gus
needs a King or a Queen to stay alive. He is an 8-1 underdog now. |
| RIVER: 3♥ |
|
A♠ A♦
Q♠ 9♦ 8♠ |
|
Q♥ Q♠
A♠
K♥ 8♠ |
|
WIN $782,000 |
|
OUT - 6th
Place |
| Chris |
Jose |
Juha (D) |
Howard (SB) |
Ron (BB) |
| J♣ 10♠ |
A♦
J♦
|
9♠ 4♠ |
7♥
5♠
|
A♠ Q♦ |
| Raises to $65,000 |
Raises to $200,000 |
FOLD |
FOLD |
FOLD |
ALL-IN
$187,000 |
|
| They're playing
"table stakes", meaning that you can't win more than what your
opponent(s) have. Jose's bet is lowered to match Chris' all-in.
Jose is an 8-to-1 favorite with his "Ajax". |
FLOP: Q♣ 7♠
4♣
TURN: K♠ |
| The
only things that can save Chris are an Ace or 9 to make a straight. A 10
would give Jose "Broadway", or an Ace-high straight. |
|
RIVER: 5♠ |
| K♠ J♣ Q♣ 10♠
7♠ |
A♦ K♠
Q♣ J♦
7♠ |
|
| OUT
- 5th Place |
WIN $439,000 |
|
| Three hands, two
eliminations. Such is the nature of No-Limit Texas Hold 'Em. |
| CURRENT CHIP
COUNT |
| Juhu Helppi |
$1,884,000 |
| Ron Rose |
$1,305,000 |
| Howard Lederer |
$1,242,000 |
| Jose Rosenkrantz |
$1,069,000 |
| Juha |
Howard (D) |
Ron (SB) |
Jose (BB) |
| 9♦
3♦ |
9♥ 8♦ |
K♣ 6♥
|
7♠ 7♣ |
| FOLD |
Raises $60,000 |
FOLD |
Calls $40,000 |
| Jose already had
$20,000 in the pot on the Big Blind, so he only needs to add $40,000 to call
Howard's raise. |
| FLOP: 5♣ 9♠ J♥ |
| Howard has a pair of
9s, Jose just his pair of sevens. Howard's a 9-to-1 favorite. |
|
CHECK |
|
Bets $80,000 |
|
Calls $80,000 |
| TURN: 5♦ |
| Now they both have
TWO pair. Howard still has the lead, though, with "Dolly Partons":
9s to 5s (get it?) |
|
CHECK |
|
Bets $160,000 |
|
FOLD |
|
WIN $462,000 |
|
| Ron |
Jose (D) |
Juha (SB) |
Howard (BB) |
| 9♥
4♠ |
8♣ 7♠ |
A♦ 6♥ |
Q♦ 3♠ |
| FOLD |
FOLD |
Calls $10,000 |
CHECK |
| Juha's Small Blind is
half Howard's Big Blind. To call, Juha only had to put in $10,000.
Howard didn't have to put ANY more money in since nobody raised his $20,000
"bet". |
| FLOP: J♥
6♦ Q♠ |
| Howard's flopped the
top pair, matching his Queen with the highest-ranked card on the flop.
Juha flopped "bottom pair", matching his 6 with the lowest-ranked
card. |
|
Bets $60,000 |
Calls $60,000 |
| TURN: 4♦ |
|
Bets $80,000 |
Calls $80,000 |
RIVER: 10♣
COMMUNITY: Q♠ J♥
10♣
6♦ 4♦ |
|
CHECK |
CHECK |
|
6♥
6♦ A♦
Q♠ J♥ |
Q♦ Q♠
J♥ 10♣
6♦ |
|
WIN $332,000 |
| CURRENT CHIP
COUNT |
| Juha Helppi |
$1,734,000 |
| Howard Lederer |
$1,617,000 |
| Ron Rose |
$1,242,000 |
| Jose Rosenkrantz |
$907,000 |
| Juha | Howard (D) | Ron (SB) | Jose (BB) |
| K♣ 5♣ |
9♣ 5♦ |
K♦ J♦ |
J♥ 4♠ |
| Raises to $70,000 |
FOLD |
Calls $60,000 |
FOLD |
| FLOP: K♠ 6♣ 3♦ |
| They both
flop top pair, but Ron's Jack "kicker" (tie-breaking card) makes
him a 76% favorite. |
|
|
CHECK |
|
| CHECK |
|
|
| TURN: J♠ |
|
|
CHECK |
|
| Bets $100,000 |
|
Raises to $200,000 |
|
| FOLD |
|
|
|
|
|
WIN
$472,000 |
|
| Ron performed a
"check-raise". He checked to feign weakness and make Juha bet,
then raises the bet. Had Ron bet first, chances are he would've won the
hand, but with $100,000 less in the pot. |
| CURRENT CHIP COUNT |
| Howard Lederer | $2,170,000 |
| Juha Helppi | $1,405,000 |
| Ron Rose | $1,075,000 |
| Jose Rosenkrantz | $850,000 |
Antes have gone up to $5,000 and blinds are now $15,000 (SB) and
$30,000 (BB).
| Jose | Juha (D) | Howard (SB) | Ron (BB) |
| K♦ 10♦ |
10♣ 6♥ |
4♠ 3♥ |
J♥ 8♠ |
| Raises to $70,000 |
FOLD |
FOLD |
Calls $40,000 |
| FLOP: 2♠ K♥ 5♦ |
|
|
|
CHECK |
| CHECK |
|
|
| TURN: 3♠ |
|
|
|
CHECK |
| Bets $50,000 |
|
|
Raises to $150,000 |
| Calls $100,000 |
|
|
RIVER: J♦
COMMUNITY: 2♠ K♥ 5♦ 3♠ J♦ |
|
|
|
Bets $200,000 |
| FOLD |
|
|
|
|
|
|
WIN
$675,000 |
| Jose folded with only three
seconds on the clock. It was probably the pressure of the clock that
caused him to fold. Given more time, he might have figured out that Ron
couldn't beat his Kings. |
| Juha | Howard (D) | Ron (SB) | Jose (BB) |
| 8♦ 8♠ |
6♠ 3♥ |
4♠ 4♥ |
A♠ 10♣ |
| Raises to $90,000 |
FOLD |
Calls $75,000 |
ALL-IN
$450,000 |
| DEAD
HAND |
|
FOLD |
|
|
|
|
WIN
$650,000 |
| Juha suffers the first "action clock" penalty in WPT history. Shame...he was a
45%
favorite. Ron, on the other hand, was RIGHT to fold his
"sailboats"; between the three of them, he had only an 18% chance to
win. It was almost a coin flip between just him and Jose. |
| CURRENT CHIP COUNT |
| Howard Lederer | $2,320,000 |
| Juha Helppi | $1,430,000 |
| Ron Rose | $1,195,000 |
| Jose Rosenkrantz | $555,000 |
| Juha | Howard (D) | Ron (SB) | Jose (BB) |
| 9♦ 6♥ |
K♣ 3♣ |
7♠ 7♦ |
K♠ 9♥ |
| FOLD |
Raises to $90,000 |
Raises to $240,000 |
FOLD |
|
Calls $150,000 |
|
| Ron is a 2-to-1 favorite to
win right now. |
| FLOP: J♣ 10♦ 8♦ |
| Ron has an inside straight draw,
needing a 9. Juha and Jose would have BOTH had straight draws has they
stayed in. |
|
|
Bets $200,000 |
|
|
FOLD |
|
|
|
|
WIN
$730,000 |
|
| Juha | Howard (D) | Ron (SB) | Jose (BB) |
| J♠ 6♥ |
A♣ K♣ |
A♠ J♦ |
8♥ 8♣ |
| FOLD |
Raises to $90,000 |
Calls $75,000 |
ALL-IN
$780,000 |
|
ALL-IN
$1,915,000 |
FOLD |
|
| Howard's
bet is lowered to match Jose's all-in. Had Ron called, a "side
pot" would have been created that only Howard and Dean could have bet
into and win. Jose is a slight favorite with "snowmen".
against Howard's suited "Big
Slick". |
| FLOP: 5♦ 10♣ K♦
|
| Howard
scores a pair of Kings. Jose needs an 8 to stay alive...and there are
only two left in the 38 cards left in the deck. |
TURN: A♦
RIVER: 8♠ |
|
A♣ A♦
K♣ K♦
10♣ |
|
8♥ 8♣ 8♠
A♦ K♦ |
|
|
|
WIN
$1,670,000 |
| Jose has
"doubled-up", winning on an all-in bet and effectively doubling
his chip amount. He is also the new chip leader at this point, as the
chart below attests to... |
| CURRENT CHIP COUNT |
| Jose Rosenkrantz | $1,670,000 |
| Juha Helppi | $1,515,000 |
| Ron Rose | $1,180,000 |
| Howard Lederer | $1,135,000 |
| Howard | Ron (D) | Jose (SB) | Juha (BB) |
| 6♦ 5♠ |
K♥ 8♥ |
2♠ 2♣ |
10♣ 9♥ |
| FOLD |
Calls $30,000 |
Calls $15,000 |
CHECK |
|
|
|
| FLOP: 8♠ 7♥ 10♥ |
| Ron gets a pair of
8s and a flush draw, Juha has a pair of 10s and an open-ended STRAIGHT draw,
while Jose only has his "ducks". |
|
|
CHECK |
Bets $100,000 |
|
Raises to $300,000 |
FOLD |
ALL-IN
$1,065,000 |
|
Calls $765,000 |
|
| When Ron first
raised Juha, he was "on the come", betting a weak-looking hand
with strong potential. Ron has a lot of "outs", or cards
that can win the hand for him. He can catch an 8 to make three of a
kind, a King to make two pair...or any of the eight remaining hearts for a
flush. |
TURN: 4♦
RIVER: 4♥ |
|
K♥ 10♥
8♥ 7♥ 4♥ |
|
10♣ 10♥
4♦ 4♥ 9♥ |
|
WIN
$2,240,000 |
|
OUT
- 4th Place |
| CURRENT CHIP COUNT |
| Howard Lederer | $2,770,000 |
| Jose Rosenkrantz | $1,750,000 |
| Ron Rose | $980,000 |
Antes are still $5,000 but blinds are now $25,000 (SB) and
$50,000 (BB).
| Ron (D) | Jose (SB) | Howard (BB) |
| A♦ J♣ |
8♠ 6♥ |
9♥ 7♥ |
| Raises to $100,000 |
FOLD |
Calls $50,000 |
| FLOP: J♥ J♦ 2♣ |
| Ron has flopped
three Jacks, or a "set" of "hooks". Howard isn't
dead yet, though; running hearts can win it for him. |
|
|
CHECK |
| CHECK |
|
| TURN: K♥ |
| There's one
heart. Howard needs one of eight remaining hearts to win. |
|
|
Raises to $100,000 |
| Calls $100,000 |
|
RIVER: K♣
COMMUNITY: J♥ J♦ 2♣ K♥ K♣ |
| BOAT! Ron has a
full house, or "full boat". He has "Jacks full of
Kings". |
|
|
CHECK |
| CHECK |
|
| J♣ J♥ J♦ K♥
K♣ |
|
K♥ K♣
J♥ J♦ 9♥ |
| WIN
$440,000 |
|
|
| CURRENT CHIP COUNT |
| Ron Rose | $3,005,000 |
| Jose Rosenkrantz | $1,720,000 |
| Howard Lederer | $775,000 |
| Jose (D) | Howard (SB) | Ron (BB) |
| 7♣ 7♦ |
6♣ 3♦ |
10♠ 7♠ |
| Raises to $150,000 |
ALL-IN
$770,000 |
FOLD |
| Calls $620,000 |
|
| Even three-handed, 6-3
off-suit is NOT a good hand. Still, unconfident his "mullets"
would hold up, Jose waits until the "action clock" is down to ONE
SECOND before calling. |
FLOP: K♣ 5♣ 2♠
TURN: 6♥ |
| Howard gets a straight draw on
the flop and a pair of his own on the turn. He needs a 4 to make a
straight, a 6 to make "trips" or a 3 to make two pair. |
| RIVER: A♦ |
| CHECK |
|
|
| 7♣ 7♦ A♦
K♣ 6♥ |
6♣ 6♥ A♦
K♣ 5♣ |
|
| WIN
$1,605,000 |
OUT
- 3rd Place |
|
So we're down to two players, the champs of Reno and Costa
Rica. And you know what THAT means: "HEADS-UP!" Jose
Rosenkrantz and Ron Rose fight for the $250,000 grand prize, the WPT
Championship seat...and the title "WPT Champion of Champions"!
Let's SHUFFLE UP AND DEAL!
| CURRENT CHIP COUNT |
| Ron Rose | $3,045,000 |
| Jose Rosenkrantz | $2,455,000 |
| Jose (D) (SB) | Ron (BB) |
| K♣ 5♥ |
K♠ 10♣ |
| Raises to $100,000 |
Calls $50,000 |
| Even in heads-up,
blinds are put out. The dealer bets the Small Blind and the other the
Big Blind. |
| FLOP: Q♥ 2♣ J♣ |
| Ron has an
open-ended straight draw. |
|
Raises to $100,000 |
| Raises to $300,000 |
Calls $200,000 |
| TURN: 6♣ |
| Jose now has a
flush draw. |
|
CHECK |
ALL-IN
$2,050,000 |
FOLD |
| WIN
$2,860,000 |
|
| CURRENT CHIP COUNT |
| Jose Rosenkrantz | $2,860,000 |
| Ron Rose | $2,640,000 |
| Ron (D) (SB) | Jose (BB) |
| Q♣ 6♥ |
K♣ 3♠ |
| Calls $25,000 |
CHECK |
| Jose is
a 60-40 favorite. |
| FLOP: J♠ 3♣ 8♠ |
| Jose is NOW a 7-to-2 favorite
with his small pair of "crabs". |
|
CHECK |
| Raises to $100,000 |
Calls $100,000 |
| TURN: 2♦ |
|
CHECK |
| CHECK |
RIVER: 5♠
COMMUNITY: J♠ 8♠ 5♠
3♣ 2♦ |
|
CHECK |
| Raises to $200,000 |
Calls $200,000 |
| Q♣ J♠ 8♠
6♥ 5♠ |
3♠ 3♣ K♣
J♠ 8♠ |
|
WIN
$710,000 |
| It's not very common, but
small hands DO win from time to time. Ron was on a stone-cold bluff,
but Jose managed to talk himself into staying in, even with a fairly weak
hand. |
Antes have gone up to $10,000 and blinds are now $40,000 (SB) and
$80,000 (BB).
| Ron (D) (SB) | Jose (BB) |
| 8♥ 4♥ |
J♥ 7♠ |
| Calls $40,000 |
CHECK |
| FLOP: 2♥ K♥ 7♥ |
| Ron has flopped a
flush! But with ten hearts left, his odds of getting that were just
over 1-out-of-4. Still Jose has a flush DRAW and, if ANOTHER heart
comes off, HE'LL win with a King-Jack-high flush to Ron's King-8-high flush. |
|
CHECK |
| Raises to $150,000 |
Calls $150,000 |
| TURN: 7♣ |
| Jose now has a
"slot machine": 7-7-7. He can win with a 7 (four of a kind),
a 2, a King (full house for both) or any heart (a higher flush), a total of
14 outs out of 32 cards remaining. |
|
CHECK |
| Raises to $200,000 |
Calls $200,000 |
RIVER: 6♠
COMMUNITY: 2♥ K♥ 7♥ 7♣ 6♠ |
|
Raises to $300,000 |
| Calls $300,000 |
| K♥ 8♥ 7♥ 4♥ 2♥ |
7♥
7♣ 7♠ K♥ J♥ |
| WIN
$1,480,000 |
|
| Ron (D) (SB) | Jose (BB) |
| J♥ 7♣ |
10♠ 5♣ |
| Calls $40,000 |
CHECK |
| FLOP: 5♠ 8♦ 3♣ |
| Jose is a 76%
favorite with his 5s. |
|
CHECK |
| CHECK |
| TURN: 9♥ |
| Ron has a
gut-buster straight draw, needing a 10. |
|
CHECK |
| CHECK |
RIVER: 10♣
COMMUNITY: 5♠ 8♦ 3♣ 9♥ 10♣ |
| Ron makes his
straight, but Jose has two pair, which is still a strong hand heads-up.
So... |
|
Raises to $120,000 |
| Raises to $420,000 |
Calls $300,000 |
| J♥ 10♣
9♥ 8♦ 7♣ |
10♠ 10♣
5♣ 5♠ 9♥ |
| WIN
$1,020,000 |
|
| CURRENT CHIP COUNT |
| Ron Rose | $3,790,000 |
| Jose Rosenkrantz | $1,710,000 |
Some hands later...
| Jose (D) (SB) | Ron (BB) |
| K♥ Q♦ |
J♦ 7♦ |
| Calls $40,000 |
CHECK |
| FLOP: J♣ 10♦ 7♠ |
| Ron has flopped
two pair, but Jose has an open-ended straight draw. |
|
CHECK |
| Raises to $200,000 |
Raises to $400,000 |
ALL-IN
$1,620,000 |
Calls $1,220,000 |
| TURN: Q♣ |
| Jose still has
plenty of outs. An Ace or a nine will give him a
winning straight, a Queen gets him three of a kind, and a King would give him a better two pair. |
| RIVER: 4♥ |
| Q♦
Q♥ K♥
J♣ 10♦ |
J♦ J♣
7♦ 7♠
Q♦ |
| OUT
- 2nd Place |
TOURNAMENT
WINNER! |
So Ron Rose, who turned his sixth place in the first-ever
tournament here into a win in Reno, is the WPT "Champion of
Champions"! He gets a quarter-of-a-million dollars, a spot at the WPT
Championship...and a toasting of...beer? Well, I guess that, when you get
a lot from a beer sponsor, some time without champagne isn't so bad.
|
