ZOLOTOW WINS POT-LIMIT EVENT AT ALL-PRO TABLE
Steve Zolotow, who over the years has supported himself with a variety of gambling activities from backgammon to sports betting to poker, captured the 20th event of World Series of Poker 2001, pot-limit hold’em, by beating a tough, all-pro table that included three Brits playing their road game. Zolotow has one bracelet for Chinese poker, but he dismissed that game as mere hand selection. “This is real poker,” he said. He also praised Tex Morgan’s TEARS structure which allowed him to recover when he was short-chipped.
He won after a lengthy battle with final opponent Mike McGee, who has won some 220 European tournaments. McGee often seemed uncertain and confused deciding what to do in critical situations. He said this was because he was suffering jet lag after flying in from Europe on Monday. “I’m a poor traveler. At times I was not here.”
Zolotow is not your run-of-the-mill gambler. He has master’s degrees in business and English, studied poetry and worked as a financial consultant. He also took acting classes, but then decided to take up gambling because he decided it was more stable than acting.
Blinds at the final table started at $1,500 and $3,000 and soon went to $2,000-$4,000. There was almost no action at the outset. Of the first 15 hands, only two hands went to the flop or turn. On the 16th hand, though, after John Juanda raised to $16,000, Ben Roberts moved in for $40,000 more with K-6 of hearts. Juanda called with A-K. Two hearts flopped, but John’s ace kicker held up and the first player was out. Zolotow, who started with the lowest chip count, later went all in for the first of several times. He made it $14,000 to go with a suited A-9 and Ian Dobson put him in with a $31,000 raise holding two jacks. Zolotow made two pair and was very much alive.
Paul Rowe did not fare as well with his A-9. All in against Erik Seidel’s A-K, he finished in eighth place when one king flopped and another turned. Later, John Juanda tried to break “Syracuse” Chris Tsiprailidis, who bet all in for his last $10,000 with A-8 when the flop came 7-5-2. John held Q-Q, but Chris was saved by an ace on the turn.
Juanda, down to $28,000 after losing a $75,000 pot to Zolotow, played his last hand against McGee. Holding that same A-9, he raised with half his chips.
McGee, with pocket aces, requested he put in the other half, and John was gone.
Ian Dobson later found himself left with a single $1,000 chip after he lost a pot with just ace-high against McGee. That went in on his small blind on the next hand. Chris raised $13,000. “Don’t do it!” Chris yelled as Mike was considering a call. He didn’t, and Chris, with A-K, was left alone with Ian, who had just 10-5. Chris crushed him by making aces and kings. But Syracuse Chris had barely stacked his chips when he too was knocked out. He had queens and Goldstein, with A-K, put him all in for $20,000, winning with a paired king.
Players continued to go all in. Seidel survived when his A-Q held up after McGee missed his flush. Then Zolotow got healthy against McGee. He raised to $18,000, McGee popped it another $54,000 and Zolotow added his last $11,000. Steve flopped a set of jacks and hauled in a $184,000 pot.
After the four players came back from a break, they agreed to a jump in the blinds to $5,000 and $10,000, but with longer rounds of 90 minutes. Erik lost $55,000 after he called Mike’s $15,000 raise, bet $30,000 on a flop of 6-6-Q, then mucked it when Mike played re-raised $30,000. A few hands later, Seidel, with A-5, tried betting $30,000 into a board of 8-3-2. Zolotow, who had played very cautiously when he started out low on chips, now was in a position to gamble. With just Q-J, he raised and put Seidel in for his last $15,000. A queen turned, and Eric was turned loose.
Three-handed, Mike, who had been aggressively picking up pots from the outset, led with $310,000. Steve had $225,000 and Ken’s count was $145,000. On a board of 7-7-5-7, Steve bet $50,000. Showing his weariness, Mike held his head in his hands trying to figure out what to do. Finally, he folded. At this point, Hustler Casino owner Larry Flynt was wheeled into the final table area to check out the action. “Deal me in,” he joked.
Right after that, Steve pulled into the lead when he bet $35,000 into a $190,000 pot and Mike called. The board showed 10-8-7-9-Q. Steve, holding 9-7, had missed his open-end straight draw, but won with two pair.
Then Goldstein, after raising with 8-7 of clubs, completely missed a flop of Q-9-4, but bet all in trying to take the pot. Mike picked him off with a Q-6, and now the tournament was heads-up.
Mike made a big hit when Steve, with two pair, bet $25,000 into a board of A-Q-9-6-4 with three clubs. Mike raised it $100,000 and hauled in a $300,000 pot with a flush. It turned around a few hands later when Mike held pocket jacks to Steve’s 9-4 offsuit. Mike raised $20,000 before the flop. When a miracle 9-7-4 flopped, Steve bet a relatively small $25,000, Mike came over the top and Steve moved in. Mike called and Steve won a huge pot of about $380,000. Mike made a comeback, winning a $200,000 pot when he flopped a straight against Steve’s two pair. The crusher came when Steve bet a $189,000 pot on a board of Q-10-6-7-3, winning with a Q-9 and leaving Mike with just $10,000. He doubled up on the next hand, and did a little comedy routine by yelling “Yes!” and trying on the bracelet.
A hand later it was over. The cards were turned up. Steve had K-10 and Mike had K-4. The board came Q-J-6-A-4 and Steve Zolotow nailed his victory with a straight.
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