RUSTY MANDAP STORMS TO WIN
IN LAPC EMPLOYEE FIRST EVENT
After getting his bluff picked off, Rusty Mandap was down to a mere $2,700 in the Casino Employees $300 limit hold'em opening event of L.A. Poker Classic XIII. But the Hawaiian Gardens tournament director immediately went on a ferocious tear to run off with a victory worth $11,160, along with the impressive Remington "Bronco Busters" statuette trophy.
With seven players left, Mandap began raising virtually non-stop, and in 10 hands knocked out two players and zoomed up to about $22,000. He soon moved into the chip lead, kept up the pressure, personally eliminated the next three players and had 56,500 of the 74,000 chips in play when he got heads-up with Tamir "The Mad Egyptian" Ilcafass. The two then quickly agreed to a deal which ended the non-points event.
Mandap's numerous tournament cash-outs include two Omaha hi-lo victories at the Legends of Poker. Ilcafass, a poker dealer at Canterbury Park in Minnesota, has a second place in the Iowa State Championship along with about seven local tournament wins. Mandap paid tribute to his final opponent as a "great" player. "Every time he made a move I respected him."
This was the second year for the all-employees event. The final table started with limits of $400-$800, with 4:19 remaining. Sue Liu, a blackjack dealer at Pechanga, arrived with a chip lead of 13,900, closely followed by Mandap with 11,700. Rusty said he picked up a lot of chips when he was dealt pocket aces twice at the fourth table. Lowest-chipped, with only 1,800, was a Players Club poker dealer going by just his first name, Jim. He was to prove a survival specialist, however, going all in and escaping six times while making it all the way to fourth place.
With limits at $300-$600, Howard Liu, an assistant casino manager at Commerce, was first out. He had to put in his last chips in the big blind with just J-6 offsuit, and lost to Marc Adreani's pocket 9s when the board came Q-8-3-8-10. Adreani is a poker dealer at Casino Arizona. He later handed the chips over to Mandap, who made a great call with just ace-high after Adreani made a stone bluff.
Limits now went to $1,000-$2,000.
Three hands into the new level, Sokunthear "Tear" Khin, a banker at Hustler Casino, raised and was called from the small blind by Michelle Zhang, a Commerce chip runner. With only $900 left, James Luong, an Asian games dealer at Commerce, called blind. "If I look, I cannot play," he said. On a flop of Qc4d-4s, Zhang bet holding Ad-Qd, and was raised by Khin. Two running diamonds gave Zang the top flush. Luong then turned up a puny J-5 and departed in eighth place. The sizeable pot gave Zhang the lead with about 24k. Eleven hands later, Rusty got in trouble. Holding K-10, he raised, then bet out each time as the board came Q-7-7-7-A. "Good call," Mandap said, as Zhang turned up a winning A-K. "OK, we're playing for second place now," the "Mad Egyptian" cracked as Zhang stacked up more than 30k in chips.
He spoke too soon. Mandap, with less than a tenth Zhang's chips, now lived up to his reputation for final-table aggressive play. First he took three straight pots with uncalled raises. On his fourth consecutive raise, Khin called. After trip 6s flopped, she made a desperation, all-in bet with just 9-8, but Mandap had an easy call with pocket 10s, and she finished seventh.
A few hands later Mandap claimed his second victim. He called from the big blind with K-J after Adreani raised all in with A-8. Rusty outran his opponent when a jack turned, and the Arizona dealer was turned loose in sixth place.
Mandap continued to pick up pots, and soon after limits went to $1,600-$3,200 he was about tied with Zhang for the lead. Rusty then hit one of the few roadblocks in his rush when Ilcafass raised all in for $5,200, and Mandap abandoned an 18k pot.
He regained his momentum when he blackjacked the blackjack dealer Sue Liu with a bad beat. Holding 10-9, she flopped two pair, called all in when Mandap raised on the turn, then lost to his pocket deuces when a deuce hit the river.
The chip count now was: Mandap, 35,100; Zhang, 19,000; Ilcafass, 15,600; and Jim, 4,800.
Jim, meanwhile, was continuing his escape artist act, winning a sixth time all in when his J-7 held up against Mandap's 8-5. Mandap then picked up a big pot when he bet a board of K-10-3-K-K, showing 9-8 when Zhang folded. "I know your style -- too tight," he ribbed her.
Jim finally said good night when he raised all in with A-J on a board of K-J-6 and lost to Mandap's K-10.
After limits rose to $2,000-$4,000, Zhang went out in third place. Earlier, she had gotten low on chips when she folded the river after Mandap bet into a board of 9-7-4-5-Q. Now, with a board of Q-8-3-Q, she bet her last chips holding A-3. "You're a very brave lady," Mandap quipped, calling and turning over Q-J and leaving her drawing dead.
The two finalists now agreed to a deal, and event No. 1 of LAPC XIII was in the books. Max Shapiro
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