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Bellagio Five Diamond World Poker Classic

Event #5 - No Limit Hold'em

December 6, 2002 at 12:00 PM
Bellagio
Tournament Schedule

Buy-In	$1,000 + $60
Prize Pool	$224,070
Entries	231
Report Available

Hon Le

Place	Name	Prize
1	Hon Le (Los Angeles, CA, USA)	$89,628
2	Aidan Bennett (County Mayo, Ireland)	$44,814
3	Surinder Sunar (Wolverhampton, UK)	$22,407
4	Jason Lane (Chandler, AZ, USA)	$13,444
5	Peter Vilandos (Houston, TX, USA)	$10,084
6	Jack Duncan (Newport, WA, USA)	$7,842
7	Harley Hall (San Juan Capistrano, CA, USA)	$5,602
8	Brian Green (San Jose, Costa Rica)	$4,482
9	Jesus Caampueed (Las Vegas, NV)	$3,585
10	David Chesnoff (Las Vegas, NV, USA)	$2,689
11	David Levi (Las Vegas, NV, USA)	$2,689
12	David White (Midland, TX, USA)	$2,689
13	Jeff Shulman (Las Vegas, NV, USA)	$2,465
14	Marc Magazu (Las Vegas, NV, USA)	$2,465
15	Reza Payvar (Los Angeles, CA, USA)	$2,465
16	Humberto Brenes (San Jose, CA, USA)	$2,240
17	Brad Daugherty (Las Vegas, NV, USA)	$2,240
18	Daniel Barnett (San Clemente, CA, USA)	$2,240

Tournament Report

Some of the 231 players in the field must have felt like they had been hit by one of those fierce winter storms in the Bellagio poker room during the No Limit Hold'em event of the Bellagio Five Diamond World Poker Classic, but it turned out to be Hon "Kamikaze" Le, who was aggressively firing away chips on his way to the title and first place prize money of $89,268.
Le, a professional player from Bell Gardens, CA, demonstrated how he has earned his "Kamikaze" nickname by almost recklessly shoving his chips into the middle of the table time and again, even when he still needed must-have hit cards.
A long-time student of world-class player Men "The Master" Nguyen, Le played very well but also seemed to had some key hits when he needed it. It became very evident early in tournament play for the 44-year-old former construction worker when he raised all-in on a flush draw that hit, giving him nearly $90,000 in chips. He never looked back.
Le moved to the U.S. in 1982 from Vietnam but didn’t start playing poker until 1989. It was in 1996 that his stepfather asked The Master to help Le refine his playing skills. Although at times his hard-hitting betting style worries his coach, Le has become a formidable tournament competitor. His 2002 tournament credits include second in the Bicycle Casino's Legends of Poker No Limit Hold'em championship event, first in the Northern California Classic's Limit Hold'em event and eight other top 8 finishes in events at major tournaments.
Two Europeans got the next two spots in the Bellagio No Limit Hold'em event, with Aidan Bennett of Dublin, Ireland, winning second place money of $44,814, and Surinder Sunar of Wolverhampton, England, taking third place and $22,407. Jason Lane of Chandler, AZ, was fourth ($13,444), and Peter Vilandos of Houston, TX, fifth ($10,084).
Finishing out the top 10 were 6-Jack Duncan of Las Vegas, NV; 7-Harley Hall of San Juan Capistrano, CA; 8-Brian Green of San Jose, Costa Rica (who won Wednesday's Pot Limit Hold'em event); 9-Jesus Caampueed of Las Vegas, NV; and 10-David Chesnoff of Las Vegas, NV.
A total prize pool of $224,070 was generated by the 231 entries for this $1,000 buy-in event.
- JIM SHERWOOD