Enciso Wins After 6 Finals!
Making his sixth final table in Winnin’ o’ the Green 2004, pro player Rocky Enciso finally locked up a win in event 19, 1/2 Omaha hi-lo and 1/2 stud hi-lo. He came to the final table low chipped, survived a couple of all-ins, played patiently and then went on a late rush. After knocking out the fifth and the fourth-place finishers, he had nearly half the chips on the table and the three finalists made a deal.
This victory, coupled with his prior second, third, fifth and sixth-place finishes, gave him an enormous lead in the best all around points race (251 to 126 for John Hoang’s second slot) virtually assuring him of the points win.
Tonight’s bubble boy was film producer Raymond “Iceberg” Sitra. He started with 3-5-6-7 and needed a 4 for a wheel when the flop came A-2-3. He didn’t get there, but Hasan Habib was there already, and the final eight took their seats.
Habib was the leader with 14,400 in chips as action got underway in an Omaha round with $800-$1,600 limits and 41 minutes left. With only 1,300 in chips, Hawaiian Gardens tournament director Rusty Mandap didn’t have enough for even one big bet. Going all in three times in the first three hands, he managed to stick around until hand 10 when he went all in again with four picture cards. No pictures came and he was out of the picture. A board of 6-6-5-4-7 brought 3/4 of the pot to software manager Tianxiong “Tim” Fu, who had A-2-6-J, and the rest to truck driver Michael Longo, also with a nut low.
Gary Mallette, who is in the textile business, got a shock when he busted on the next hand. All in pre-flop, he made 4s-full when the board came Q-Q-4. Longo had a third queen, and a 10 on the river gave him a bigger boat. Fu next picked up a lot of chips in three-way action when he made a very loose call with K-J-7-4 and won with two pair on a board of Q-J-2-K-10. “Unbelievable,” Habib exclaimed.
On hand 15, Bicycle Casino host Robert Turner went all in on the flop. Turner, winner of an earlier Omaha/8 event, had 2-4-5-Q, giving him draws to a straight and a weak low when the flop came 9-7-6. Longo, with A-2-7-8, had him covered for low with A-2 and for high with a bigger straight draw, which he hit with a 10 on the turn.
The game reverted to stud hi-lo, with $200 antes, a $300 bring-in and $1,000-$2,000 limits. Enciso, unable to do much in the Omaha round, was quickly all in after starting with (A-3)6. A couple of queens didn’t help his low, but he got lucky when the ladies gave him a scoop. He picked up more chips a few hands later when he raised Gebrehiwet Goiton on sixth street and made him fold. Then, on hand 32, he took the lead with about 19k when he eliminated Goiton, a driver. Goiton, chasing a low, went all in on sixth street with (2-3)8-6-K-J. He was drawing dead when Enciso, showing 7-5-6-3, turned up 4-5 for a seven-high straight.
On a roll now, Enciso left Fu with just 2k on hand 36 when he scooped with aces and 8s to run his chip count to close to 30k. “The Terminator,” Habib dubbed him. After Fu survived a couple of all ins, he went broke on hand 44. Fu had the lead with kings against Enciso’s jacks, but then Rocky delivered the knock-out punch by catching a third jack. Enciso now had about 30k to around 19 for Longo and 17 for Habib, and they divvied the money up.
–Max Shapiro
BIOGRAPHY
Filipino-born Domingo “Rocky” Enciso Jr., who came to this country in 1988, was a Baker’s Square restaurant manager before turning pro three years ago after playing recreationally since 1995. He’s had a couple of prior wins at the Bike and the Hustler, but his biggest cash-out came when he placed second in a Legends event. He plays $20-$40 stud hi-lo in side action, but concentrates on tournaments. While he plays all games, he prefers mixed games because he feels he can adjust easily when the game switches.
Tonight, he said, he was very, very patient. At one point, about halfway through, he didn’t play a single hand for more than an hour. Another thing he likes about mixed games is that he finds your luck can change when the game changes. That happened tonight when he had bad luck in the Omaha round. He just froze, and got moving again when stud kicked in.
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