KEVIN SONG RUNS OVER TABLE, THEN FINALLY BEATS LADY PRO
Kevin Song, a well-known local pro who now spends most of his time running
his fitness center business, had a tremendous run in the ninth event of 2006
LAPC, $1,000 limit hold'em. He took the chip lead in the first hour of the tournament,
kept it until he made the final table and just kept building from there. His
final opponent was Tina Tateossian, a $40-$80 cash game pro who plays an occasional
tournament. Their heads-up match lasted over 50 hands, but Song's eventual victory
seemed inevitable.
"It was an unbelievable run," Song said. "I was very lucky."
Song's biggest win was in a World Series limit hold'em tournament, the first
to reach a prize pool of $1 million.
There were 11 players left when play ended on day one. The next day, it took
only a few minutes to get to 10 when Chris McMcClung's K-J lost to Q-9. The
final table started with blinds of 1,000-2,000, 2,000-4,000 limits, 38 minutes
left. Song had 102,000 of the 441,000 in play.
There was one all-in at this level. Karen Manfrede, the second woman pro at
the table, starting short-chipped, survived, A-K versus A-J. Song, meanwhile,
was catching great cards, browbeating the table with frequent raises and steadily
increasing his lead.
A few hands after limits went to 3,000-6,000, Manfrede went broke. She had A-K
again and paired on a flop of Ac-8c-6c. But Luis Velador, winner of event #2,
limit hold'em, had Kc-10c and flopped a nut flush.
On hand 35, a flop of 10d-6d-5d was three-bet. When a Kd turned, Aryan Ansari
bet, Song raised, and when Ansari folded, Song showed Ad for a nut flush. Song
now had about 165,000, while Ansari was down to 3,000.
As Song's stacks mounted, Jim Pittman cracked that, rather than try to count
them, it would be easier to add up everyone else's chips and subtract them from
his. Song's count rose higher when Sayed Kadri, an engineer, bet into a board
of K-J-J-K-2. After some deliberation, Song called with ace-high and won.
On hand 42, Ansari was all in from the big blind with 8-3. Pittman, a developer,
and Eric Arreca, a young pro, also were in the hand. On a flop of Qh-3d-2d,
Pittman bet with an Ad-9d flush draw. He paired his 9 on the river and went
all in. Arreca had A-Q, beating and knocking out both players.
As play proceeded, Chris Overgard survived an all in with pocket kings, but
two hands later, when his chips were in with A-6, it was Arreca who had the
kings. The board came 9-7-4-3-3, and we were now down to six. Tateossian was
next to go all in after raising pre-flop with Ac-Kc A third club came on fourth
street, and she became one of the few players to beat Song thus far. On the
next hand she raked more chips, again with A-K. (Let's see, A-K was also Manfrede's
hand in two key pots. Is A-K the only hand women play?)
Luis Sanchez, making another final table, was next to depart. He was all in
with pocket 4s and lost to Kadri's J-8 when the board came 8-7-3-5-10.
When the level ended, Song had 233,000. He pointed out that when there was action
to the river at the table, he had so far never lost a hand.
We were now playing with 1,500-3,000 blinds, limits of 3,000-6,000. There were
still five left when the round ended, though Velador had a close call. He had
pocket 6s and managed to win with a straight when the board came 9-8-7-7-5.
But as soon as limits went to 4,000,8,000, Velador departed. He had Arreca dominated,
A-K to K-Q, until Arreca filled on a board of K-Q-6-2-Q. A few hands later,
Arreca was down to 5,000 after losing to Song's river flush. On the button,
he made a desperation call with J-6, losing to Tateossian's 10-9 when a 10 rivered.
Three-handed, Song had over 300,000. "Don't ask for a deal," Kadri
warned him. As play continued, Song finally lost a hand that went to the river
when he tried a bluff bet into a board of K-4-6-4-7, then mucked when Tateossian
called.
Short-chipped, Kadri survived once against Song with pocket treys against 8-6.
A few hands later, Kadri raised with his last chip. "Are you leaving it
up to me again?" Song asked, as he stared at 3c-2c. He of course called
for the one chip, and when the board came A-2-8-K-A, the match was heads-up.
Tateossian was heavily out-chipped
and 15 hands into the match-up, after Song raised on the river after making
a straight on fourth street, she was down to 80,000. Still, she kept fighting
back to give the much more experienced pro a run for his money.
After blinds went to 3,000-6,000, with limits of 6,000-12,000, Tateossian raised
and check-raised on the flop and river a few times, forcing Song to cautiously
fold as she built her chips up to put her back in contention..
But Song, not to be denied tonight, gradually wore her down again. Finally,
a big pot developed, and when Song bet out on a board of 10-7-4-K-6, Tateossian
folded, left with only 16,000.
On the final hand, she raised with K-7 and he re-raised her all in with Ks-Qs.
All rags hit the board, and Song had a convincing win. -Max Shapiro
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