TV Commercial Salesman Kelly
Corbin Wins 13-Hand No-Limit
Doesn’t anyone want to play poker any more? Event number one of Grand Slam of Poker Tournament III ended in a deal after only 20 hands, with seven players still left. Tonight’s second event, $200 no-limit, ended after only 13 hands were dealt, again with seven players left. If this pattern continues, look for event three to end after a mere six hands.
In order to fill the allotted space in this report, it may be necessary to use either very big words or a very big type face.
In any event, the winner was Kelly Corbin, a salesman for a company that produces television commercials for attorneys. Or the winner of record, in any event. When the seven finalists began discussing a chip count deal, Corbin wouldn’t agree until he had regained the chip lead which he had when the final table started. Nutritional doctor Frank Rite at that point was the leader, and Corbin was only in third position. However, he wasn’t that far off the pace, so everyone agreed to let him have the title and trophy so that they all could go home.
Still, Corbin might very well have taken the lead if play had continued. While this is his first win, he has a tremendous batting average. Though he’s played poker for five years, he’s been playing tournaments for only three months. So far he’s entered seven events and made four final tables. The other three were at Lucky Chances, the Battle of the Bay in San Francisco and Muckleshoot in Seattle.
Corbin now plays tournaments almost exclusively. He plays only no-limit, which he prefers because it allows you to make bets relative to the size of your hand. “But in limit, you could hold aces or kings, but you still have to make the same size bet.”
Tonight he won almost in spite of himself. “I’ve played a tournament every day this week,” explained Corbin, whose job entails a lot of travel. “I came here at noon, played four satellites, and was tired as hell. I just wanted to go home.” Short-stacked, he was about to go home, but decided to rebuy, doubled up with K-J, tripled up on the next hand and suddenly found himself on his way.
Action at the final table began at level 13, with blinds of $1,200 and $2,400 with $400 antes and 23:40 left on the clock.
It took one hand to lose a player. Bryan Chan, a loan officer, moved in for $20,400 with pocket 4s and poker player Mike Husa called for $18,900 with A-K. All rags came and Husa finished 10th, which paid $725.
Very short-chipped poker dealer Jan Somchub moved all in a few hands later with Kd-Qd. Corbin, in the small blind, had only 9-5 but had to call for the few more chips. “Thank you, thank you,” Somchub exclaimed when she won after catching two more queens.
Chan, described by one of his opponents as an “up and coming player,” was up and coming in chips in the next couple of hands when he opened for $15,000 the first time, and then moved in on the next deal, both times without calls.
Mark Ketteringham is a salesman and self-described rookie poker player. “What’s ninth place pay?” he asked when he moved in on hand number 10 for $7,700. He was in the cut-off seat and was trying to pick up the antes and blinds holding only 10-4. Freddy Legaspi picked him off with Q-J and won when the board came K-J-9-6-5. To answer Ketteringham’s question, ninth place paid him $840.
Joe Joucar, a florist, echoed Ketteringham’s doomsday remark on the next hand. “Send me home,” he said when he moved in for $22,000. But poker player Daniel Alnei was the one who went home. Joucar had pocket 9s and Alnei, calling for about $6,000, had Ah-6h. The board came J-5-3-5-7 and Alnei cashed in eighth for $1,210.
Two hands later, with blinds now at $1,500-$3,000, the last hand came down. Once again Somchub had cause to say “Thank you, thank you,” but this time she had a lot more to be thankful for. She was all in again with As-6s against Legaspi’s Ad-9d. The flop came K-3-2 with one spade. Legaspi was better than a 3-1 favorite until two running spades saved Somchub with a flush.
A deal was now proposed, and the chips were counted down. Rite had $47,500; Chan had $45,500; Corbin had $39,500; Joucar had $35,500; Legaspi had $33,500; Ernest Bennett had $23,000; and Somchub had $18,500. After some discussion, Rite surrendered the trophy, and Corbin was the official winner with an official cash prize, on paper, at least, of $18,330.
—Max Shapiro
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