Third-Time’s a Charm: Daniel Negreanu Wins His
Third World Series of Poker Gold Bracelet and $169,100
-- In third final table appearance of 2004, Negreanu dominates play and earns victory
Last year has been the best year of my life, in many ways. Poker and life mirror themselves in that if you are going well in your personal life, and you’re happy, your poker results and concentration are going to be raised, as well. All that other stuff that some might think is insignificant, is so much more important than people realize.
-- Daniel Negreanu
Daniel Negreanu burst onto the poker scene like a meteor back in 1998, when he won one of the first World Series of Poker tournaments he ever entered – the $2,000 buy-in Pot-Limit Hold’em event. That victory thrust Negreanu into the spotlight. He soon began writing a column for Card Player magazine. He moved from Canada to Las Vegas and began playing in the big cash games. He became one of poker’s most eloquent young voices, and was an inspiration to other members of his generation to take up poker.
But meteors have short lives. They shine brilliantly for all-too brief moments, then fade and are eventually forgotten. Negreanu went through his own cosmic clashes, enduring all the ups and downs that life as a poker player can doll out. Negreanu was in and out of money for a period that lasted years. Negreanu struggled to find his own sense of equilibrium, an inner peace that would allow him to enjoy his success. But, he went through growing pains that were obvious to everyone in the poker world who knew him, his biography played out and scribed across the green felt for all to scrutinize.
Negreanu is the second-generation son of Romanian-born parents who immigrated to Toronto, Canada. He demonstrated a prodigal talent for cards at an early age. Negreanu was so committed to poker, he eventually quit school and played cards for a living as a teenager – beating the underground games around Toronto (don’t try this at home, folks). Negreanu later got his high school diploma, but by then – it was all acedemic. His career path had been set.
Negreanu turned 21 and set his sights on Las Vegas. He found the transition difficult at first, but eventually beat the game through a single-minded sense of determination that was unequalled by anyone of his generation (notwithstanding Phil Ivey, who would emerge on his own a few years later).
If anything provided a barometer for Negreanu’s personal life, it was and has been the World Series of Poker. After winning in 1998, he made it into the money only once in 1999, and followed that with a horrible year in 2000, failing to make it into the money even once that year in the world’s most prestigious tournament. By his own admission, partying and many late nights took a toll on Negreanu’s bankroll and confidence. Then, he finished 11th in the main event in 2001, and seemed to turn things around. Negreanu brought his mother, now widowed, from Canada to Las Vegas and built a home life.
Five years after the first victory that caught the poker world by surprise, it took Negreanu another five years to win his second gold bracelet. That came in 2003, when he topped the $2,000 S.H.O.E. event and won over $100,000. In fact, he had 1st, 2nd, 6th, and 15th-place finishes last year – netting over $325,000 in winnings. Negreanu’s success at the poker tables reflected his personal life. He found a new girlfriend and cut back on the late night partying that had hurt his game in previous years.
Negreanu came into this year’s World Series with a clear purpose – to win another gold bracelet. In the first two weeks of competition, he came close a few times. Negreanu took 7th place in the $2,500 Limit Hold’em event and 3rd in the $1,000 No-Limit Hold’em event. He also made the money in the $2,000 No-Limit Hold’em event.
The 15th tournament of this year’s World Series was the $2,000 Limit Hold’em competition, which attracted 287 entries. At the end of day one, there were nine finalists. One of the survivors was Daniel Negreanu.
From the onset of play on day two, it seemed Minh Nguyen would provide the biggest obstacle to Negreanu’s chances for victory. Minh was making his third final appearance also, having won $155,000 in the Pot-Limit Hold’em event last week. Minh started the day with a slight chip advantage -- $100K to Negreanu’s $91K.
Players were eliminated, as follows:
9th – DIEGO CORDOVEZ – The ex-Stanford Cardinal saw red when he lost with a straight and was the first player to exit. Cordovez, a.k.a. “The D Train,” flopped the nut straight, but lost when his opponent’s set turned into a full house on the river. This was Cordovez’ 9th time in the money at the WSOP. He won a gold bracelet in 2000 in the $2,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em event. Cordovez received $10,560 – which now gives him $441,115 in lifetime WSOP winnings.
8th – JEFF PHILLIPS – The attorney from South Carolina was making his first final table appearance. This was only the third poker tournament Phillips had entered, to date. It’s a remarkable testament to his ability to quickly adapt to the pressure of playing at the WSOP that he topped 279 other players and finished 8th. Phillips went out on a tough beat, when he flopped top pair with K-Q and lost to a straight. Phillips collected $15,840.
7th – JAIME PEREZ – The 36-year-old poker player from Los Angeles came in with low chips. He flopped two pair, but lost to a three-of-a-kind. Perez was making his first final table appearance in this event. He took home $21,120.
6th – JENNIFER GENTRY – The only female finalist of the group, Gentry was in good chip position, but went on a terrible run during her last hour at the final table. Gentry made her final stand with K-10, and failed to make a pair, losing to pocket 8s. Gentry, a real estate agent from the Dallas suburb of Rockwall (TX), went out in 7th-place with $26,400.
5th – “MINNEAPOLIS JIM” MEEHAN – Meehan made a nice run on day two, as he started lowest on chips with just $11K. He rocketed up close to the chip lead at one point, with over $100K. But Meehan was finally knocked out when he made a move with A-8 and was called by Negreanu, holding 2-2. Meehan failed to connect and went out in 5th place and $31,680. Meehan won a gold bracelet in the $2,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em event last year, and now has made seven final tables since his first appearance in 1999 ($506,740 in lifetime WSOP winnings).
4th – TED PARK – Another first timer was Ted Park, an English tudor from San Francisco. His bid to win the gold bracelet was lost in translation when, after surviving several “all ins,” he hung his hopes on Q-10. Negreanu had 3-3 and flopped a three, making the task virtually impossible. Park was given a lessen of his own, and promises to be someone to watch in the future for his perseverance. Fourth place paid $36,960.
3rd – MINH NGUYEN – The heads-up match that many were predicting never materialized. Nguyen battled his two opponents for a while, but eventually was worn down by a run of bad cards and missed flops. Nguyen went out on a draw and lost to pocket 8s. Nguyen now has two gold bracelets – for $1,500 Seven-Card Stud in 2003, and $1,500 Pot-Limit Hold’em this year. This was his 10th cash, and 4th this year alone. With $47,520 in this event, Nguyen now has $467,990 in lifetime WSOP earnings.
When heads-up play began, the chip counts stood as follows:
DANIEL NEGREANU: $320K
CHRIS HINCHCLIFFE: $260K
Limits increased to $8K-16K, then $10K-20K. Negreanu steadily increased his stack size. It took about two hours for Negreanu to finish off his opponent.
NEGREANU: K-2
HINCHCLIFFE: K-4 (of hearts)
Negreanu was in the big blind and called a raise. The flop came 7-3-2 -- with two hearts. When a king fell on the turn, Negreanu had made two pair and Hinchcliff had top pair with a heart-flush draw. With limits so high, Hinchcliff was all in when the dust settled, and hoped to catch one of 18 outs to win the huge pot. A black ace rained down on the river, crushing the dreams of one player and making the dream of another come true.
Chris Hinchcliff played marvelously during the two-day event, and even earned high praise from Negreanu. “He’s got such raw talent,” Negreanu said afterward. “When he gets some of the kinks out of his game, he’s going to be an awesome talent – an absolute monster.” Hinchcliff, who works in the construction trade in Olympia, WA, has now cashed three times at this year’s tournament. Not bad for a player who is attending the WSOP for the first time. He received $92,940 as the runner up.
Hinchcliff had a few words of his own. “Daniel is an excellent player,” Hinchcliff said afterward. “My goal was to get heads-up with him….He’s very aggressive and very intimidating. He’s very good at what he does. It sure went his way tonight.”
There was at least one humorous moment at the final table, which played out as Negreanu was being mobbed by well wishers following his win. Negreanu’s mother, who admittedly understands little about poker, got tired of watching the “action” and decided to check out the Horseshoe buffet instead. Of course, while she was away, Negreanu won. Hearing the commotion, “Mama Negreanu” barreled into the tournament room, waddled through the crowd gathered around the final table, and gave her son a kiss.
“I can’t believe it. I finally get heads-up, and then my mother chooses to run off to the buffet,” he said jokingly. “But seriously, it’s nice to have her here with me. I wish my father (who died in 1996) could be here as well, because he never got to see me win at the World Series. That’s one thing I regret, but having Mom here, is at least half as good.”
Negreanu also discussed his recent troubles in closing tournament with a win. “Coming in second and third at the final table like (I’ve been doing recently) is frustrating. So, this is a relief,” Negreanu said afterward. “I think I’m going to win at least one more this year.”
Negreanu is now 29-years-old. He lives in Las Vegas. His lifetime winnings at the World Series of Poker are now just shy of one-million dollars, at $980,000. He is expected to become the next entrant into the elite WSOP “millionaires club.”
-- Official Report by Nolan Dalla, Media Director -- 2004 World Series of Poker
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