Dominic Terreri Outlasts Lance Oliver in Six-Hour Final Table
Sacramento-Based Building Contractor Hits Straight on the River of Final Hand
to Win First Major Tournament
Stateline, NV (Nov. 13) - The World Series of Poker Circuit continued today
at Harvey's Lake Tahoe as the tenth of 13 events on the annual schedule was
completed. The $500 No-Limit Hold'em tournament attracted 125 players, which
created a prize pool totaling $60,625.
The winner was Dominic Terreri, from Sacramento, CA. He collected a payout
totaling $18,218. Terreri is a building contractor who also serves as a gaming
consultant. He plays poker regularly at the Lucky Derby Casino in Sacramento.
The tournament was a two-day competition. After 117 players were eliminated
on day one during 12-hours of play, eight finalists returned for a second day
and a coveted seat at the final table. Terreri started out play with an overwhelming
chip lead. He had 366,700 in chips, while his closest rivals Shawn Fakhimi and
Lance Oliver both had less than 115,000. The other six players were all relatively
low-stacked with less than 80,000 each. It was fitting that those three players
would winds up in the top three spots.
About 30 minutes into play, Bobby Moore was eliminated by a straight. The former
U.S. Navy Seal who spent 16 years in military service - including extended campaigns
in both Iraq and Afghanistan - had to settle for eighth place. The part-time
poker player from Reno collected $1,758 in prize money.
Seventh place went to Scott Moskalik. The owner of a company that manufactures
poker tables took a tough beat when his pocket queens lost to ace-nine, after
an ace flopped. Moskalik, who lives in San Jose, CA accepted a payout of $2,364.
He also cashed in a WSOP Circuit event here at Harvey's last year.
Neal Cooke was the next to go out, in sixth place. He moved all-win with pocket
tens, which lost to pocket jacks. Cooke, a 39-year-old saltwater fishing guide
has now made two final tables in a row. He hooked ninth place in the previous
$500 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em tournament. Cooke mentioned that he wanted to dedicate
making this final table to his late father, who passed away last month.
Fifth place was taken by Texan Andy Duke. The 52-year-old oil producer came
up dry when his ace-jack lost to ace-king. Duke earned $3,850 for his impressive
two-day performance.
After a lengthy four-handed battle lasting about 90 minutes, Kyle Orvis was
eliminated in fourth place. He tried to make a move with jack-ten, but was called
down by Lance Oliver with pocket eights. Orvis failed to improve. The poker
pro from Colorado, who finished as the runner up at a Heartland Poker Tour event
recently, collected $5,093.
When play became three-handed, Gholam (Shawn) Fakhimi took a few beats and
ultimately busted out in third place. The luxury car dealer from Arkansas drove
away with $7,336 in prize money. Fakhimi had previously made WSOP Circuit final
tables at Caesars Las Vegas and the Grand Casino in Tunica.
Heads-up play lasted 55 hands. The final table finally ended six hours after
it began when Lance Oliver flopped three nines. However, Dominic Terreri was
the aggressor and made an all-in move with an open-ended straight draw. Down
to eight outs with one card to come, Terreri spiked a straight on the river
and scooped the final pot of the tournament.
After leading during much of heads-up play, Lance Oliver was disappointed to
finish as the runner up. He was paid $10,670. Oliver plays poker most of the
time and also runs a charity for children in his hometown of Roseville, CA.
This was the first major tournament victory for Dominic Terreri. The 36-year-old
father of three children warned his opponents not to bluff him when the final
table began. "You can't bluff me, so don't try it," he barked. But
in the end it was a semi-bluff that paid off for Terreri, resulting in his best
poker win ever. | 
