| SENIOR WINNER DONALDSON
ADDS 7-STUD TO HIS RESUME
Johnny Donaldson, winner of the evening Seniors charity event, went on a late rush and coasted to another victory in event nine of the 2003 Four Queens Poker Classic, $300 7-card stud. Two hidden flushes were key hands for him. When he got heads up with realtor Anthony Markese, he had a 2-1 chip lead and they made a tournament-ending deal.
Donaldson is an Arkansas building contractor who had given up playing tournaments for 30 years. Returning to action last November, he won the first small event he entered, and this past January came in third in the Jack Binion World Poker Open main event. No-limit hold'em is his game of choice and he describes his playing style as "selectively aggressive."
There was a lot of similarity in this tournament to the first event where Gus Weiss, an 81-year-old retired accountant, started with a huge chip lead and looked like a sure winner until he blew off a lot of chips with overly loose play and finished third. Here again, Weiss started with a tremendous lead of $32,100, three times his nearest competitor, wouldn't slow down and again finished third.
The final table assembled after the bubble boy, who left without leaving his name, had two kings outrun by two pair. There were 42 minutes left, with $100 antes, a $200 low-card bring-in and $600-$1,200 limits. Poorest in chips was Walt Baronick of Phoenix. He sat down with just $2,000, and it was gone in one hand. He looked at (Qc-8c)5c, raised, got re-raised by Weiss with pocket jacks, and went all in. Baronick's clubs never came, and the best he could do was pair his eight.
Veteran player Artie Cobb, for all his poker accomplishments, is perhaps best known for the outlandish headgear that once was his trademark. The funny hats are long gone, and the best he could accomplish in this event was seventh place. On the 12th hand he bet all in on sixth street with pocket 10s. Donaldson showed A-5-6-K and had a king and six in the hole. Cobb didn't get his two-outer 10 and left.
The next level went to $200 antes, $300 low card and $800-$1,600 limits. Octogenarian Weiss was still chip leader, even though he had been playing (and losing) more than his share of pots and was down to about 21k. He had a chance to pick up a lot more chips, in four-way action, when he caught a seven to his pocket sevens on fourth street, but everyone folded when he bet. "You guys read me like a book," he complained.
With limits now at $1,000-$2,000, with $200 antes and a $400 low card, the approximate count was: Weiss, $22,400; Donaldson, $11,500; Pat Nixon, $16,700; Anthony Markese, $12,400; Mike Rabinowitz, $10,100; and Bob Gammon, $3,900. Soon after these limits kicked in, Weiss became involved in a big pot with Nixon, made a king-high straight and climbed back to 35k.
After Rabinowitz beat him with a flush, Bob Gammon, an optometrist, was down to a small handful of chips. Twice Weiss took him on but couldn’t put him away. Instead, it was Nixon, a Las Vegas builder, who had been going steadily downhill, who was next out. He threw in his last chips with just (A-8)3-5 halfway through the level.. He ended up with just ace-high and Weiss eliminated him by pairing a five on the river. Finally, with new limits approaching, Gammon went in for the last time. With only two deuces, he lost to Donaldson's sevens-up.
Immediately after that, Rabinowitz went all in with split aces. Markese, a realtor, had split nines and caught a third nine to leave Rabinowitz in fourth place. A turning point came after limits moved up to $1,500-$3,000, with $200 antes and $500 low card. On the river, Donaldson bet holding 10s and nines. Showing Q-J-7-K, Weiss had a completely busted hand, and the only way he could win was with a bluff, so he raised. Donaldson picked him off, and suddenly he had about 38k while Weiss had plummeted to around 17k.
Ten hands later, Weiss made queens and 10s, only to have Donaldson turn up three spades for a flush. The one-time chip leader was now down to only 7k. Three hands later, Donaldson polished him off. Once again Weiss made two pair and once again Donaldson made a flush, with two hearts in the hole.
Donaldson now led with about 51k to 27k. He and Markese played a few hands, then agreed to a deal and this event was in the books. --Max Shapiro
|
