| Sleep Apnea Doctor Wakes Up in
Time to Win Third No-Limit Event
Dr. Michael Eads, a former internist now vice president of a sleep apnea testing clinic, “dozed” through much of the final few hours of tonight’s $200 no-limit hold’em tournament by hanging steady around the 20,000 chip mark. In the final stages he came to life, hauled in a couple of major pots and had close to 80 percent of the chips when three players were left. A deal was then made and the Scottsdale, Arizona doctor was the winner of the third event of Hustler Casino’s Grand Slam of Poker Tournament III.
Michael Leanos had built up and held a big chip lead in the early stages, and looked to be the winner. He almost surely would have been if he had not laid down pocket 9s in the middle stages. He would have made a set and knocked out two players.
Even with the three-way chop, this event still lasted 106 hands, almost three times as many as the first two events combined.
This is about the 20th tournament for Eads, who’s been playing poker for only six months. It’s already his second win after he took down another no-limit event—the only game he plays—at Hollywood Park.
Action at the final table commenced at level 10, with $100 antes, blinds of $400 and $800 and 22:27 left in the round.
This tournament got off to a much slower start than the two prior no-limit contests. Five hands actually went by before there were two all-in confrontations. Of course, it took aces versus kings both times to accomplish this.
On hand three, Jon Kim, a Hustler Casino California games floorman, opened for $2,000 with K-K, restaurant manager Colby Spere raised $4,500 with A-A and Kim moved in for the rest of his $14,000. The board came 9-7-5-6-J and Kim was out in 10th place.
Two hands later, Jim Stewart moved in for $9,700 and Chi “Scott” Nguyen also moved in, covering him. Stewart turned up kings, Nguyen aces. Nicholas Dileo, with J-J, congratulated himself for his good laydown. Then he berated himself when a jack flopped. But he felt better when four spades came to give Nguyen a nut flush and leave Stewart, a Las Vegas stock trader, in ninth place.
Spere took a beat and finished eighth 16 hands later. He had A-J to Leanos’ A-9. A flop of A-9-5 gave Leanos top two. There were two raises, Spere went all in and busted out while Leanos took a big lead with about $92,000.
For the third time, pocket kings proved disastrous. Dileo held them against Tony Thanh Phan’s 9h-7h and was crippled when Phan flopped a 9 and caught a 7 on the river. Four hands later, Phan went out in seventh place on another bad beat. He had Q-J to 6-5 held by Leanos in the big blind when two 6s flopped. Leanos now had about $112,000.
With $300 antes and $1,000-$2,000 blinds, Emiliano Calitis, with Q-Q, called Nguyen’s all-in raise with his last $8,400. Nguyen, with A-K, turned an ace and broke Calitis. This was the hand where Leanos would have rivered a set.
After blinds went to $1,200-$2,400, Eads was down to less than $3,100 after he had A-Q and ran into Emad Rayyan’s pocket aces.
This gave Rayyan about $70,000 as he challenged Leanos for the lead. Then Eads started moving up again when his A-6 held up against Nguyen’s Q-4 on hand 76. Eight hands later, Eads moved into the lead when he opened for $10,000 and Leanos moved in with A-7. “What the hell,” said the good doctor, calling and winning with pocket 10s. He now had about $73,000 to about $60,000 for Rayyan; $48,000 for Leanos; and $20,000 for Nguyen.
Meanwhile, Phan made his last stand, moving in for $8,000 from the small blind with Q-7. Rayyan called instantly with A-K and made a straight when the board came J-10-5-Q-3. Now four were left.
Nguyen himself was dangerously low on chips, and he had been moving in time and again, winning no matter what he had. He went all in eight times in 28 hands. His closest call came on his eighth move when he held A-2 against Eads’ A-9, but squeaked by with a split pot when the board came K-7-4-7-J and the ace played for both men.
Just before blinds went to $1,500-$3,000 with $500 antes, Eads took a decisive lead with about 110k after Leanos had raised to 30k pre-flop. Eads moved in and Leanos folded.
The last pot of the night was the biggest, about $120,000. On a flop of A-Q-4, Eads bet $10,000 with A-3 and Leanos called with K-Q. A jack turned. Eads bet $20,000, Leanos moved in for about $25,000 more. A 5 on the river didn’t help, and Leanos finished fourth.
Eads now had about $166,000 of the $213,000 in play, while Rayyan, making his sixth final table this year, had about $23,500 to $23,000 for businessman Nguyen. The deal was made and Doc Eads had won Tournament III’s third event. —Max Shapiro
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