22-Year-Old Pro Jonathan Westra Wins
Sixth Event After 58 Hands Heads-Up
Four Pros Make Final Table in First
Short-Handed Event at Tunica Circuit
Tunica, MS.—Yesterday, two seniors got heads-up. Today things got back to normal when yet another youngster, 22-year-old Jonathan Westra, won the sixth Circuit event at Grand Casino Tunica, $500 short-handed no-limit hold’em. Westra is a pro from Gainesville, Florida, who’s already had three top-two cashes at various Bellagio events, the biggest being a $223,000 chop at the Five Diamond World Poker Classic in 2006, along with a $65,275 win at Bellagio Cup III last year. He's entered numerous Circuits, and this was his fourth final table in these events.
And let’s give credit to Brooks Turk, announcing and running today’s final table, for helping to bring it to a close. After more than 50 interminable hands had gone by heads-up, with mostly little bets and raises in the 40,000-60,000 range, Turk made an announcement inviting spectators to come over and watch "two of the best small-pot players in the world." Suddenly there were two all-in bets, and in three hands the tournament was over.
Westra was a University of Florida business administration student who also worked at Circuit City installing car audio systems before deciding to turn pro. He learned poker with friends four years ago. He describes himself as a "tight/aggressive player, and said he felt very confident heads-up, and was just "waiting out" his final opponent.
Final-table action got underway with 4,000-8,000 blinds and 1,000 antes, 19:16 remaining. Well ahead with 722,000 chips was Matt Brady. Westra had held the chip lead for much of day one until Brady put a beat on him on the bubble to take over.
Here were the starting chip counts:
Seat 1. Ron Picou 228,000
Seat 2. Jim Sears 221,000
Seat 3. Nick Woolworth 166,000
Seat 4. Jonathan Westra 419,000
Seat 5. Matt Brady 722,000
Seat 6. Doug Taylor 288,000
This was the first short-handed tournament at Grand Casino, and four of the six finalists were pros, perhaps because of the extra skill factor involved in short-handed play.
In early action, Nick "Fish" Woolworth moved in after making aces-up when the board came 8-5-3-6-A. Ron Picou turned up 9-7 for a straight, and Woolworth was left with 5,000. It went in on his small blind the next hand, and he was dealt only a trey and deuce to defend himself with. He had two callers, and Jim Sears, with Qs-7s, caught a queen on the flop to leave Woolworth in sixth place, which paid $4,428.
Woolworth, 22, is a professional poker player from Plainfield, Illinois. Before turning pro he was a student. He learned poker with friends five years ago. This is his fifth Circuit, and his poker high point was making a TV final table at the Heartland Poker Tour last month, taking home $40,000 for sixth. He also enjoys traveling.
A few hands later, Doug "Doogle" Taylor took a big hit when his pocket queens were crushed by Jim Sears' pocket aces. He later recovered somewhat in a 5,000-10,000 round when he moved in for 140,000 with Qs-Jh and beat Westra's Q-9 when five hearts hit the board, giving him a bigger flush.
As the round ended, so did Ron "Rockin' Ron" Picou. He moved in for 170,000 with Qh-Jh. Westra called with 10h-10s. Nothing changed when the board came A-6-4-5-6, except the number of empty seats. Picou got $5,412 for fifth.
Picou, 46, from Chester, Illinois, is in the saloon business. The elegantly named "Hawg Mamas Saloon" to be precise. He has four children and started playing in family home games 30 years ago. His other hobby is Harleys, and this is his 10th Circuit.
Right after that, on the 35th hand, Sears pulled in a pot of nearly a half-million when he moved in on a board of Q-9-6-K-9, and Brady folded. With about 800,000 chips, he was now the leader.
Blinds now were 6,000-12,000. Three hands into the new level, the flop came 5-5-2. Taylor decided to make a move and pushed in with Qs-10s. Westra called with pocket 6s. Two running 4s couldn't rescue Taylor, and he cashed fourth for $6,459.
Taylor, 36, was a car salesman and now is a full-time player. He is from Manchester, Tennessee and learned poker from his father 15 years ago. This tournament is his poker highlight, and he also enjoys golf.
On the last hand of the 6-12k level, the board showed Q-4-3-J-K. Brady bet 40,000 and Sears check-raised him for 160,000 more. Brady, down to 20,000, had a tough decision and he thought and pondered and analyzed for several minutes. Then folded.
Players returned from break, and Brady promptly went broke. With blinds now 8,000-16,000 and 2,000 antes, Brady, in the big blind, went all in. All he had was 8h-3h, but that was still better than Sears' 5-4. Brady moved farther ahead when a flop of A-8-6 paired him. But then Sears tripped him up when two running 5s gave him trips. Brady, finishing third, picked up $8,130.
Brady, 47, is from Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. He's been playing professionally for three years and tournaments the last year and a half, with more than 30 cashes during that time, including 15 final tables, including a fifth in a $1,500 WSOP no-limit event last year that paid $92,523.
Heads-up, Sears and Westra were just about dead even. One hand later the flop brought 8-7-6, giving Sears, with 8-7, two pair and Westra, with 9-5, a straight. Westra smooth-called when Sears bet 100,000, and again when Sears bet 200,000 after a 9 turned. Sears checked when another 9 came on the river, and Westra bet to extract another 200,000. The pot was about 1.1 million, and Westra , with around 1.5 million, now owned about 75 per cent of the chips.
Play went on...and on...and on until, coincidentally or not, the "small pot" announcement. Then, on hand 110, after Sears raised to 90,000, Westra moved in and he folded. On the next hand, Westra, still with a big chip lead, movd in with Qc-6c, and Sears called with Jh-8h. The board came Ad-Kc-4d-10h-10s, the queen-high was good, and the 22-year-old had another triumph.
Sears, 30, is from Dayton, Ohio where he works as a fright handler. He said he's playing home-game poker all his life, and hold'em for only four years. --Max Shapiro
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