Barbieri Captures Another Stud Tourney
Event #16 of the Legends of Poker was the $500 + $50 No 7-Card Stud event. The 95-person field was filled with WSOP 7-Card Stud champions including Mel Judah, 2-time WSOP bracelet winner in 7-Card Stud, Vince Burgio, WSOP Bracelet winner in Stud Hi/Lo, and Kirk Morrison, WSOP Bracelet winner in Stud. I'm sure there were others, but they weren't wearing their bracelets or making themselves obvious to me.
The final table was set and a disappointed Kirk Morrison, 1998 WSOP 7-Card Stud champion was eliminated close to the bubble. He received an unfortunate penalty for a card accidentally sliding off the table and missed out on 20 minutes of crucial bubble play. The 8-handed table began just one hour after the completion of the 2-day $1,500 No Limit Hold'em event.
The first elimination wasn't until hand #20 when Susan Lee got all her chips in on 5th street and ran into Dave Lewis' full boat (Jacks full of 9s). Susan's pair of 10s got her eliminated in 8th place for $1,425.
The next key hand occurred after the 1st break when Steve Hearst was all-in with his split Kings but ran into Chris Tryba's King high flush. Steve Hearst finished in 7th place and took home $1,900.
On hand #43, Dave Lewis is all-in against Al Barbieri on the river. Al showed his set of 5s and Dave did not catch his draw. Dave was eliminated in 6th place and received $2,375.
Play continued with 2 and 3-way action for most hands without much fanfare until hand #50 when Matthew Mortensen, a pro player from Tempe, AZ and the short stack, was all-in on fourth street against Al Barbieri. Al showed a pair of Jacks and Matthew having an Ace and King up, mucks without showing his down cards. Matthew finished in 5th place and earned $2,850.
Four hands later, Freddy Legaspi, in his 3rd final table of the Legends, was getting short stacked and was waiting for the right spot. He went all in with split 6s and ran into Chris Tryba's wired Queens. No improvement for Freddy on later streets and he is eliminated in 4th place and adds another $3,325 to his Legends bankroll.
Playing 3-handed and no one interested in discussing a chip count deal, Chris Tryba, a Boston native, is heads-up with Philly Al. Let the east coast table talk continue as they discuss a variety of topics including: geography, a joke with the punch line "Toe Truck” and massage techniques. OK, back to poker. Chris made two pair (7s & 2s) on fourth street just in time for Al made his 7-high straight. Chris finished in 3rd place and received $5,700.
Heads-up play lasted for 15 hands. Al slowly chipped away at Barrett Heins' stack. Barrett tended to play tight and conservative. Al typically raised and took down his share of antes and blinds. On the final hand of the final table, Barrett was all-in on the river and showed his two pair (Ks & 5s) but Al was hit with a river Ace to make a bigger two pair (As & Qs). Al Barbieri took down the final pot of the evening (early morning) and Barrtett Heins finished in 2nd place and earned $10,925 for his play. Al Barbieri wins his second Stud tournament at the Legends and earned $19,000 for this win. His first win was Event #7 Stud Hi-Low last week.
-Jay "Bugsy" Siegel
BIOGRAPHY
Al Barbieri, a protégé of the legendary pro John Bonetti, lost a big pot in the later stages of the tournament and won 3 consecutive pots by raising at every available opportunity with his short stack. He joked that he's going to have to win it all now because he's got nothing to lose. Well that joke turned into reality as Al bullied and raised his way into 1st place. This was Al's second Stud win in the Legends this year. Al won this event in the 1999 Legends of Poker (Stud $1,000 buy-in) when he defeated Daniel Negreanu heads-up for the title. Al attributes this win to his aggressive play and a few good hands at the right time. Al bulldozed his opponent heads-up when he sensed he was up against a conservative player. Congrats to Al as he makes his 3rd final table, his 2nd win, and is now holding the All-Around Points lead.
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