| ANOTHER GREAT DANE
For pictures of this event, please check out Mark Napolitano's videos on the homepage.
There were 135 entries and 225 rebuys for a total prize pool of $328,829. 9 were paid.
FINAL TABLE
Seat/Player/Hometown/Chip Count
1 Raul Paez Barcelona, Spain 51,000
2 Mads Andersen Copenhagen, Denmark 31,500
3 Dale Morrow Tunica MS 62,000
4 Larry Kozlove Louisville KY 26,500
5 Sherkhan Farnood Kabul, Afghanistan 28,500
6 Robert Williamson III Dallas TX 63,000
7 Karl Limbert Margate England 28,500
8 Ayaz Mahmood Houston TX 32,500
9 Tony Lay Oklahoma City OK 36,500
46:41 remained in the 500/1,000 level.
In no event this year had the chips been this close at the outset. The leader had just over twice the beginning ninth place amount. That coupled with the nature of the game, Pot Limit Omaha, allowed for a Great Dane to win the coveted Best of Show.
All contestants had at least 26 big blind bets to start. That's unheard of in the speedy WPO structure. It was obvious we were in for a long night when it took 35 hands to lose our fist puppy.
Oddly, it took a previous bracelet winner to be the lead dog. Raul Paez already won an event last week. He was third in chips coming in. He was a big dog to be the first one out. The glacial pace of Pot Limit Omaha allowed the blinds to go up on hand 29 to 500/1,500. This forced the issue or Pot Limit Omaha players would still be waiting for pocket Aces and we'd never get to leave the arena.
The shorter stacks kept winning so, eventually, it was Paez who was the shortest all-in. Tunica resident Dale Morrow lives a scant seven miles from the Gold Strike's front door. Early on, Dale was treating this event like he had a home field advantage. When Morrow flopped trip 8's on hand 35, even Raul's WPO bracelet--which he was wearing--couldn't save Paez from the basement in 9th. See you to Morrow, Raul.
Two hands later, the dam was broken and Ayaz Mahmood spilled out. Waiting for Aces didn't work for Ayaz. Mahmood's preflop raise didn't deter Robert Williamson from calling with 10 8 7 4 in the big blind. The effervescent Williamson put Mahmood all-in with his flopped two pair of 10's and 8's. To seal the deal, another 8 came on the turn. Lot's of eights in this hand, the last being Ayaz Mahmood in 8th place.
You would have had to Lay 2-1 Tony would finish higher than 7th. Tony Lay was second in this same event last year to garner $75,000. This year he got $16,000 when his pocket Aces got crushed by Dane Mads Andersen's A K Q J wrap. Tony was all-in for 14,500 and watched with the rest of us as the two Kings flopped. I'll Lay 3-1 Tony is back some day.
Afghanistan is supposed to have only two poker players. Half that contingent was represented here today by Afghani Investment Banker Sherkhan Farnood. If this table is any indication, the country has a future in poker. Farnood can play. Struggle is not new to Sherkhan. He fought and beat the Russians, but he couldn't overcome a dwindling stack for dozens of hands.
Finally, on hand 67, Farnood was forced to give up in 6th place when he flopped the bottom end of a straight. The board came Q J 10. Sherkhan reluctantly parted with his precious case 5,500 when the chip leader Dale Morrow bet out on him. What can you do? Morrow had A K and flopped the nuts.
Incredibly tight play won the beginning chip dog, Larry Kozlove, 5th in show. It was worth an extra $13,153 over what 9th paid. Good show for Kozlove. Larry did what Pot Limit Omaha players are supposed to do. He raised all-in with his last 31k with pocket Aces. Wild man Karl Limbert would punt a raindrop's course down a window pane. He's an English bookie. Gambling is his life. When the flop came with two Clubs, Limbert called the Kozlove all-in with the nut flush draw. The deuce of Clubs that splashed on the river didn't Kozlove for Limbert by Larry.
This was going to turn into a real snooze four handed, but Nolan Dalla had the inspiration to turn the mike over to 'the dealer's friend' John Bonetti. Thankfully reports of John's severe illness were overstated. He looked and sounded like the Johnny Bono of old. Suddenly an audience formed out of this air. Before, we'd only had a few watching.
There was, as always, the traveling Dallas beauty pageant cheerleaders for Robert Williamson. With Robert's wife of four months, his sister and now agent, fellow Dallas-ite Clonie Gowen and new friend Melissa Stigall cheering Robert on, a dull day was revived. If the players weren't lovely, the stands were.
We needed something else and that was provided for by the Ring Master, Williamson. He ordered his favorite Final Table drink for the players, the Woo Woo. 'After you drink it you say, Woo Woo,' Robert told us. It's Vodka, Pink Schnapps and Cranberry Juice. Williamson was especially interested in getting the Dane, Mads Andersen, to have a few. Mads is a former world champion Backgammon player and he's very intense to say the least.
With the help of our friends, we got through the next tedious 42 hands to get to our next exit. Every dog has his day, and it this wasn't Dale Morrow's. Dale pooped on this crew for the first few hours as he took a commanding chip lead, but then something changed and he couldn't win a hand. From almost half the chips four handed, Dale was out in 4th in a startling reversal.
The home field advantage disappeared in a heartbeat. Dale went all-in for 20,500 on the flop with top two pair, 5's and 4's. Mads Andersen called with a wheel wrap and got there with an Ace on the turn. Dale Morrow made two final tables that I covered at the Five-Diamond event at the Bellagio in December. He's certified, as far as I'm concerned, as a top tournament player.
After 27 rebuys, Robert Williamson was finally in the money. He had to get to third to cash. Fourth would have been a losing proposition. Everyone had been waiting for Robert to kick it into high gear, now he could gamble.
I'm still waiting to see what four cards Karl Limbert doesn't like. He's unconventional to say the least. Maybe that's why he wins, it's impossible to put him on a hand. This was Karl's second Final Table of this year's WPO. Three handed it started fairly even, but Karl was about to change that by going our in 3rd. He fought valiantly for 26 hands against two terrific Pot Limit Omaha players. When he picked up a real hand, Karl was in trouble. Limbert shipped all 24,500 with A K 7 7. Mads Andersen called with A Q 10 9 and Mads flopped the nuts, K J 9.
Ever the punter, Limbert came back after being paid and tossed two $5,000 chips on the table in support of Andersen against Williamson heads up. At the time Andersen had only a slight chip lead. It was basically an even bet. Before the chips could hit the table, Robert accepted the bet. This was going to get fun. Drinking and gambling. 'He inspired me,' Robert said of the Limbert bet.
Robert Williamson went on a rush after accepting the bet and took a better than 2-1 chip lead. It looked so over that Limbert was willing to give up $2,000 to get his two chips back.
The crowd was going crazy in a Pot Limit Omaha game. Unheard of. Mr. Excitement, Robert Williamson, was on a roll to the expected title.
Then like Dale Morrow, Robert Williamson crashed and burned. It started, in my opinion, when the bored Williamson put in a straddle (a blind raise) from the button on hand 181. This doesn't happen in tournaments because it's not usually allowed, but this is Tunica where rules are words on a piece of paper.
In real life, let's boogie. When the flop came 6 3 3, Robert may have thought that Mads would believe the random hand got there. Robert reraised Mads raise another 30k. Andersen went all-in for about 100k. Williamson had to muck, and the shoe suddenly was on the other foot.
Oddly, when his horse, Andersen, took a 2-1 chip lead a little later, an obviously relieved Karl Limbert took his $10,000 back without a penalty. You might want to find this guy's betting shop.
Now it was the stoic, non-drinking Andersen who won most of the pots. Robert tried to get Mads to talk, he wouldn't. 'I'm doing all the talking here,' Robert said in frustration. On hand 198, the flop came K 7 5 with two Hearts. Robert bet 24k and Mads came over the top. 'Why'd I bet,' Robert asked himself after several minutes of contemplation. With only 80k left Williamson folded.
Three hands later it was over. Williamson flopped top set with pocket Queens. Andersen turned the cube on him with a flopped Club flush. What was fun afterward was getting fellow Great Dane Gus Hansen to do his first on air interview of his friend Mads Andersen. You can see the video by Mark Napolitano on the homepage.
What usually is a game gone to the dogs, Pot Limit Omaha, turned into a howling success because to the antics of Robert Williamson and John Bonetti. So it was natural that a Great Dane won.
Mike Paulle
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