Expertly maneuvering his pocket aces, Mike Laing trapped his final opponent, hauled in an $830,000 pot and finished him on the next hand to win the inaugural $5,000 no-limit championship of the Reno Hilton’s smashingly successful World Poker Challenge.
The $829,352 prize pool brought the tournament’s total to over $2.5 million, well beyond all projections.
“Where else can you go when you’re broke and end up with more money than most people ever have?” commented the 48-year-old Laing, who turned pro in 1986 and has had his ups and downs since then.
Mike, making his biggest cash-out ever, said it was the toughest final two tables he’d ever had to face, a tribute to Tex Morgan’s TEARS structure with 70-minute rounds which put a premium on skill.
World Series champ Phil Hellmuth Jr. hosted this final event. The final table was studded with such household names as Scotty Nguyen, Daniel Negreanu, Randy Holland, Hasan Habib, Dewey Weum, Gary Lent (the only American at the Poker Million finals) and famed poker ambassador Amarillo Slim Preston. Interestingly, Scotty, Daniel, Randy and Gary all began at the same table.
Mike’s final opponent was the very tough Bill Eichel, with a win and a second at the Gold Coast Open. The two were a study in contrasts. Mike was chatting, wisecracking and playing to the crowd all the way while the soybean farmer from Parker, South Dakota, was as quiet as the Sphinx. But Mike’s distracting chatter was deceptive. He was at the top of his game and aware of everything.
On the fourth hand, Scotty raised to $25,000 and Amarillo Slim moved in. Slim then talked him off his hand by warning, “If he calls, there’ll be a seat open where he’s sitting.” A few hands later, he bets $95,000 against Gary and Scotty on a flop of A-K-4. “You’ll never miss it,” he drawls, and they believe him and fold. A few hands later, Eichel, who started tied with Habib for the lowest chip count, dips down to $30,000 but doubles up when he calls Scotty’s all in A-6 bet with K-2 of spades and outruns the 1999 WSOP champ by pairing a king on the flop.
On hand 13, right after blinds increase to $5,000-$10,000 with $2,000 antes, Hasan raises to $64,000 with 9-9. Daniel calls with J-J, and then Randy calls all in with Q-Q. The board comes 8-4-3-8-K. Randy gets the main pot, Daniel gets the $20,000 side pot and Hasan gets the boot.
Two hands later, Gary pushes in his last $40,000 with 10-9. Daniel calls with jacks again. They hold up and Gary finishes eighth. One hand later, it’s Slim’s turn to double Bill up. When he raises all in for $64,000, Slim makes a “silly” call. “I’m not half-way there yet,” he says, showing A-7 of spades. He’s way behind Bill, who has A-K and ices it with a river king. Three hands later, Scotty, down to his last $10,000, calls all in with Q-7 of spades. Bill has 10-8 of clubs and busts him when three clubs are dealt. Suddenly, the once short-chipped Eichel leads with about $200,000.
One hour into the final table, Amarillo Slim plays his last hand. When Bill, now using his chips as weapons, bets $50,000, Slim calls all in with very slim prosects, Q-2 versus A-Q. No help from the board and five are left. Ten minute later, Daniel makes it $40,000 to go with A-5 and Dewey comes over the top all in for $71,000. The board comes A-7-6-Q-2 and Dewey disappears.
The four finalists are now roughly even. Mike suggests they all take $20 and play one hand for the rest, but Randy says his wife would kill him if he came home with only $20. Well, he does come home with fourth place money of $49,761. On the next hand he bets $16,000 on a flop of K-10-8, all diamonds. Bill calls. When a five of spades turns, Randy fires $31,000, then folds when Bill, holding J-9 of diamonds, raises $100,000. On the next hand, the 31st, Randy, on the button, raises all in with A-9. Bill calls in the small blind with 6-6 and it holds up. After relieving Daniel of $50,000 in the next hand, Bill’s chip count touches the $500,000 mark.
Soon after, Daniel, wearing the same lucky Toronto Maple Leafs shirt he wore the day before, finally runs out of luck when he goes all in with K-7. Bill has 9-8 and flops an 8 to get heads-up with Mike. He has $542,000 to Mike’s $313,000, and they retire to talk deal.
Soon after play resumes, the blinds go to $7,000 and $15,000 with a $3,000 ante. Mike, complaining about a succession of bad hands, keeps losing chips until he finally connects. He raises with A-K and Bill puts him in for his last $187,000 with A-7. The board comes J-J-8-Q-5 and Mike, with over $400,000, suddenly draws up almost even. On the 63rd hand, the 17th heads up, Mike raises to $60,000, calls when Bill makes it $160,000 and then folds when Bill pushes in a quarter million on a flop of A-8-7. After three more uncalled raises from farmer Bill, Mike drops under $200,000. “I feel like I’m playing like a little girl,” Mike wails.
Then the “little girl” begins to fight back. Bill bets $107,000 pre-flop. Mike raises all in, forces him to fold. and shows J-2. Three hands later Bill bets $100,000 into a flop of J-7-4. Mike forces him out with another all-in raise and this time shows a taunting 9-4. And yet a third time, Bill bets another $107,000 and again Mike moves in and he folds. Now, when Mike is dealt aces one hand later, Bill is set up. Bill raises with A-J, and Mike re-raises only $120,000. Bill moves in and is left with only about $25,000 when blanks come. Mike picks that up on the next hand. He has K-4 of hearts to Bill’s Q-2. The board comes blanks and Mike Laing becomes the first World Poker Challenge champion. —Max Shapiro
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