VEGAS PRO PRESSLY SCORES HIS FIRST TOURNAMENT WIN
North Las Vegas pro Knox Pressly, who has played poker full time for 35 years but tournaments for only four, came to the final table tonight with a slight chip lead and was never in trouble as he scored his first-ever tournament win in the fourth event of 4 Queens Poker Classic 2002, pot-limit hold'em. Previously, he had made final tables at Binion's, the Rio and 4 Queens.
Juan Holub finished 10th. All in with 9-8, he flopped an open-end straight draw but missed and lost when Mike O'Hare, with A-K suited, paired his ace.
The final table started with 31:09 remaining and blinds at $500-$1,000, meaning that initial raises could be anywhere from $2,000 to $3,500. This being pot limit, it was not surprising to find two Europeans at the final table, but they ended up being the first two players eliminated.
Until the 27th hand, only five flops had been seen. Then, right after blinds went to $800-$1,600, Richard Carpenter, a fitness instructor from Birmingham, England, opened with a $4,000 raise holding pocket queens. David Velke, holding pocket kings, re-raised and put him all in, then flopped a set and filled on the river. Paul Milk then went all in a couple of times, but stayed around, the first time when his pocket 6s held up, the second time when he flopped an ace to his A-K to beat Paul Pirrone's pocket 9s. Alan Betson of Dublin, Ireland, with victories in the Irish Open, the British Open and the European Championship, was next out.
He arrived with the fewest chips, $4,100, but had built up his stacks by being the most aggressive raiser at the table. Earlier, the Texas-born Pressly had warned him that "You keep raising my blind, then you and me are gonna play a real big pot." That's what happened. When Betson, in the small blind, moved in with K-10, Pressly made a good call from the big blindwith A-7 to cover him and win when the board came J-3-2-Q-5.
Right after that, railroad worker Mike O'Hare went off the tracks. He raised to $5,000 with pocket 9s, and Milk, holding K-K, promptly put him in for $1,000 more and broke him. And only a couple of hands later, electronics salesman Dan Williams had his circuits blown. He re-raised all in with pocket 7s after Velke had raised with A-Q. A queen flopped, and now five players were left.
By hand 60, Randy Holland, retired attorney and personal assistant to wife Laurene, who finished third in the no-limit event two days earlier, had pulled into the lead with about $45,000. With that much ammunition, he was able to make a dubious call and break the next player five hands later. When Milk button-raised all in for $4,000 holding J-10 of diamonds, Knox didn't like his hand and told Holland, "I'll let you have him." Randy, in the big blind, didn't much like his own hand either, though he finally made a reluctant call with 10-5 offsuit. But then a 5 came on the river and he got Milk.
Five hands later, at 11 p.m., blinds went to $1,000-$2,000, allowing raises between $4,000 and $7,000, and the rounds were increased to an hour. At this point, Holland was still chip leader with $48,000. Knox had $32,000, poker player Pirrone had $18,000 and retiree Velke, making his second final table, trailed with $7,500.
On the first hand after the break, Velke raised with A-7 and Pirrone came over the top with A-J to put him in and break him when the board came A-10-3-2-9. Fifteen hands later, the tournament became a heads-up match. On hand 86, Pirrone raised to $6,000 pre-flop with pocket 8s. Pressly called with K-J. Now down to $13,500, Pirrone had little choice but to press on, and bet $12,000 into a flop of J-5-3. Knox put him for his last $1,500 with his paired jack and won when a 3 and a 9 came.
Pressly now had the chip lead and needed only three hands to claim victory. On the first hand heads-up, he moved into a bigger lead by picking off a bluff by Randy with a paired 10. He won the second hand as well to pull into a 2-1 chip lead.
The final hand saw a flop of K-Q-2, all hearts. Randy bet and Knox raised to put him all in. "I may have the worst hand," Pressly said, turning over a K-J. He found he had the best hand when Holland turned over a K-10. A queen and then a 3 were dealt, and the transplanted Texan had his first tournament win and a $15,240 payday, his largest ever. -- Max Shapiro
Chip Position, Final Table
Seat Player Chip Count
1 Randall Holland $13,400
2. David Velke $13,300
3. Paul Pirrone $18,700
4. Mike O'Hare $11,300
5. Richard Carpenter $8,500
6. Paul Milk $7,400
7. Dan Williams $7,200
8. Alan Betson $4,100
9. Knox Pressly $22,500
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