| "Lucky 7s for the Lady in Spain"
Cecilia De Mortenson became the first female player in two years to win an open event at the World Poker Open. Mortenson, the wife of 2001 World Series of Poker champion (Carlos Mortenson), outlasted 219 opponents and captured her first American tournament victory. As her husband watched proudly from the audience, Mrs. Mortenson was awarded her first gold and diamond bracelet and $58,036 for first place.
The final table started with ten players. Mary Craft was the first of the finalists to make an exit when she was dealt Q-Q, which lost to Ben Durham's A-K. The final board of 9-4-3-A-J put Craft out in 9th place with $1,882 for a full day's work.
Next, "Cowboy" Roy Dudley was bucked off the final table when he took J-J up against Durham's A-Q. Exactly as before, Durham paired his overcard and eliminated a player when the final board showed 4-3-2-4-Q.
Limits increased to $3K-$6K. In what turned out to be one of the most critical hands of the night, Cecilia De Mortenson got into a big pot with Mark Wilds, who would eventually end up as the 2nd place finisher in this tournament. Both players got into a raising war on the turn when the board showed A-Q-4-K. Mortenson had 4-4, for trip fours. Wilds had A-K, for top two pair. A blank fell on the river which gave Mortenseon a momentary chip lead.
Frenchman Paul Testud took the chip lead a short time later when he broke Cal Dykes. Testud called a raise with 9-9 against Dykes' A-Q. By the turn, Dykes as all-in. The final board showed 8-7-2-5-5 giving Testud the pot with two pair. Dykes, a Las Vegas dentist, was extracted from the final table in 8th place, which paid $3,137.
Bonnie "The Producer" Damiano came to the final table lowest in chips, but outlasted three of the finalists. It looked as if Damiano would be a force when she moved all-in with A-8 as the flop came A-8-2. But Paul Testud had been dealt a sledgehammer. He crushed Damiano's hopes when he rolled over 2-2, for trip deuces. Damiano, the host of the Four Queens Poker Classic and other major international tournaments, went out with grace in 7th place. She received $3,921.
Jay Weatherford won an early pot with three 7s, but was never able to generate any momentum at the final table after that. Desperately low on chips, Weatherford moved all-in with K-8 suited. Unfortunately, Charles Bullard's A-K had Weatherford completely dominated. An 8 failed to come from the deck and save Weatherford, who went out in 6th place with $5,490.
Bullard would soon feel the same sting of defeat. A few hands later when the board showed A-6-5, Bullard went back and forth with Cecilia De Mortenson a few times, with both players raising with paired aces. However, Bullard's A-7 was out-kicked by Mortenson's A-10. The end result was a 5th-place finish for Bullard, a retired military man. Bullard, who plays poker regularly in the Tunica area, collected $7,058 in prize money.
Another big hand came when Mortenson took the chip lead back from Paul Testud with a king-high straight. In fact, Testud's closing moments at the final table were a disaster, as he went from being the chip leader to the short-stack following a series of beats and bad cards. The final blow came when Testud went all-in with A-K versus Ben Durham's 8-8. Testud failed to pair up, which meant a 4th place finish for the Parisian. Paul Testud received what amounts to about 9,411 euros for his fine performance.
After the three finalists played for about 15 minutes, Mortenson, Durham, and Wilds were locked into a virtual three-way tie for the chip lead. It was anyone's tournament to win. Then, lightning struck.
Cecilia De Mortenson went on the roll of a lifetime that absolutely crushed the two stacks of her opponents. In fact, if this poker game had been a prize fight, it might have been stopped at some point. The bigget hand of the night came when Mortenson made quad-sevens against Ben Durham. Best of all, she got massive action on the hand. Mortenson raked in a $65K pot with the monster hand.
The sevens continued to be very lucky for the lady from Spain. Durham had been totally devastated by the previous hand, and went all-in on the big blind with K-6. Mortenson had 8-7. The final board showed A-A-7-8-3. Mortenson's pair of 7s won the pot and Durham was out in 3rd place. Ben Durham, who won this event in 2001, collected $14,901 in prize money.
Mortenson started heads-up play with a 2-1 chip advantage. Up to this point, her opponent Mark Wilds had played relatively few hands, choosing (wisely) to stay out of the way as Mortenson ran over the table. Now playing heads-up, it was time to shift gears.
He did exactly that on the 9th hand of the Mortenson-Wilds duel when he tried to take a pot with an unexpected raise, which Mortenson reluctantly called. Wilds did not show his hand (which suggests a bluff). Mortenson turned over K-10 as the board showed J-10-9-6-5, good for a pair of 10s. That hand essentially ended Wilds' hopes of making a comeback. With Mortenson holding a 21-1 chip advantage the final hand of the night was dealt:
Mortenson: J-3
Wilds: 9-9
The final board showed 10-3-3-8-10, giving Mortenson a full house.
Mark Wilds, making his second final table of this year's World Poker Open, is from Biloxi, Mississippi. He has made numerous final tables at major poker events. He added $29,801 to his tournament winnings for second place.
Cecilia De Mortenson was a delight to watch at the final table. Remarkably uncharateristic for most poker players, she clapped for herself when she won a big hand, and seemed to genuinely enjoy herself while playing in the finale. She proved once and for all that "enjoying the experience" is what tournament poker should be all about.
-- by Nolan Dalla
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