| Henson Wins 10-Way Chop
For the second time in six events, a final table of Winnin' o' the Green 2005 ended in an immediate chop before a shot could be fired, a hand played or a single bad beat complaint uttered. Once again this writer's ability will now be tested in finding a way to create an exciting report filled with, as Shakespeare put it, 'Much Ado About Nothing.' Well, I've been there before, so let's proceed.
This was an agreeable chop, with none of the players haggling for extra money. The only delay came when one of the players phoned to get an OK from his backer. The event was $200 pot-limit hold'em, and the winner was veteran pro Bill Henson, one of the most familiar faces on the local tournament circuit. Listing all of Henson's poker accomplishments would alone suffice to fill this report. Henson had been struggling recently, and his return to the winner's circle will be good news to the likeable player's many friends.
Had the final table gotten underway, it would have been with blinds of 1k/2k, with 21:17 until the next level. Since the average chip count was 14.5k, and an opening raise in pot limit with those blinds could have been anywhere from 4-7k, there obviously wouldn't have been much room for strategy. That was a big factor in everyone's agreeing to the chip-count deal.
Henson had a small lead of 25,500, sufficient for him to be declared the winner. Official payout for first place was $14,560.
Finishing second, and close behind in chips with 22,500, was Dino Medina. Medina gave his occupation as card player. Second place paid $6,910.
Third was Johan Yha, a business major student. He had 17,000 chips. Yha has had several cash-ins in weekend Bike tournaments. Third place paid $3,460.
Fourth place was a tie, with both Paul Rowe and Luis Concha arriving with 14,500. Rowe is a Las Vegas pro with numerous wins and cash-outs. He has a World Series bracelet for Omaha hi-lo, and has made final tables in the WSOP in Omaha/8, pot-limit hold'em and pot-limit Omaha. He also made final tables in the $10,000 championship event in 1984 and 1999. He was also ranked number 2 by Card Player in no-limit hold'em for 1999. Concha finished fourth in the opening WOG event, $100 no-limit hold'em. Fourth place paid an official $2,185.
Coming in sixth was Ut Nguyen, younger brother of Men 'The Master' Nguyen, who brought his sibling to this country a few months ago and has been tutoring him in the game. The younger Nguyen still speaks very little English but has been learning poker pretty quickly, because he already has four or five final tables to his credit. Sixth place paid $1,275.
Seventh was Jeffrey Stein, a TV/film writer, with credits for many programs such as Mr. Belvedere. Stein is mainly an online player, explaining that his wife lets him out only once a week. Seventh paid $910.
Robert Markham, an ironworker from Illinois here on vacation, decided to try this tournament and came in eighth, which paid $730. He has a cash-in at Tunica, where he finished 14th in a 2002 event.
Michael Mercardo, a Los Angeles deputy sheriff, finished ninth, which was worth $635. He's had a second and a third in other tournaments.
And finally, Sabino Quintero, a carpenter, took 10th place, which paid $545. Quintero plays mainly at Club Caribe, a small local card casino, where he's won several tournaments. -Max Shapiro
BIOGRAPHY
Bill Henson has been playing poker since 1966 and tournaments since 1987. He plays all games and has won tournaments at every local casino. These include lowball and stud hi-lo at Commerce, several wins at the Bike's Big Poker Oktober, Winnin' o' the Green and the Mini Series of Poker, no-limit at the Normandie and a second-place all-around at Hollywood Park's Sport of Kings. He also a second and a fourth overall at the now-defunct National Tournament Players Assn. His son John is also no slouch at poker, having won back-to-back no-limit events at the Bicycle Casino's Ho Ho Hold'em
Henson admits that the new crop of young players makes him crazy. 'They'll play any ace to the river,' he says. 'I threw aces away all night long.' Henson has been known as a loose and aggressive player, but has had to tighten up in recent months to deal with the change in play in hold'em.
|
