| CREW-LESS IN LAS VEGAS
Scott Fischman didn't win the $1,500 Pot Limit Hold'em today, but he was still the story.
There was no howling entourage. No high fives with the 'crew' on the rail. No flag-planting. No back-flips onto the poker table. This was the polite son Mrs. Fischman raised.
When Bill Seber caught a Spade on the river to decimate Scott's stack, he only turned to friends in the crowd and said in wonderment, "He called a 20,000 raise with that hand?" Welcome to the real world of poker, Scott. It's nice to have you here with the rest of us.
FINAL TABLE
Seat/Player/Hometown/Chip Count
Seat 1 Dale Morrow Tunica, MS 48,000
Seat 2 Scott Fischman Las Vegas, NV 123,000
Seat 3 Billy Duarte Berthoud, CO 71,000
Seat 4 Maurice Atlani Paris, France 34,000
Seat 5 Gabriel Thaler Cupertino, CA 144,000
Seat 6 Bill Seber Houston, TX 180,000,
Seat 7 Len Miller Santa Barbara, CA 46,000
Seat 8 Gevork Kasabyan Los Angeles, CA 50,000
Seat 9 Roger Easterday Las Vegas, NV 37,000
The blinds are 2,000 and 4,000. There are 56 minutes left at this level.
Pot Limit Hold'em is such a dangerous game, understandably no one wants to bet. It's not the first bet that kills you, what do you do when you are reraised? Unlike No Limit, the first bet can't protect a big hand. You're probably going to see a flop no matter what you have. Therein lies the danger.
At this first level the maximum bet was 14,000. That's usually what was deposited when anyone had a good hand. Normally that ended the auction. There are very few callers and hardly any limpers in this game. It's reraise or fold.
Folding was the wise choice for the first 18 hands. Then the legendary Len Miller found pocket 9's and raised. The founder of the Oceanside cardroom, Miller then called Scott Fischman's reraise from the small blind all-in for the last of Miller's starting chips. Scott had pocket Jacks that held up. It was Miller's time to leave in 9th.
On the very next hand, that dangerous limping play I spoke of got Gevork Kasabyan in trouble. Gevork only called the big blind of 4k from early position. That bargain brought in three other players. It was the first multi-way pot and one of the few of the entire day. Kasabyan had the J 9 of Diamonds. In a cruel flop for his hand, Gevork was trapped by a K Q of Diamonds. He had a gutshot straight flush draw. Maurice Atlani bet the pot all the way from Paris in the big blind with A K. Gevork had to call all-in with his monster draw. No diamond, no ten, no Kasabyan in 8th.
The table moved back to bet and fold until hand 32 when Billy Duarte, in the big blind, flat called an early position 12k bet from Gabriel Thaler. It was 8,000 to Billy that cost him his stack. The flop came rags, 6 4 3. Rags are good when you hold the A 5 of Clubs like Billy did. Unfortunately for Duarte in 7th place, Thaler held pocket Kings and Duarte got no help from the turn or river.
The ranks were starting to thin on hand 37 when Roger Easterday picked up those nasty pocket 9's. This was the bad luck hand of the day. They may have worked to give Phil Hellmuth his championship, but no one else seems to know how to play them. The good luck hand of the day--pocket Kings--for Frenchman Maurice Atlani this time, ended Roger's day three week before Christmas in 6th place.
The blinds were 3k/6k when Dale Morrow left in 5th. That meant that the maximum bet was now 21k (The first preflop 'pot' bet is always seven times the small blind). Dale 'You Are There' Morrow had hope on the flop of A A 6. Dale had raised from the button with pocket 3's and felt obliged to call Scott Fischman's reraise from the small blind all-in. Scott liked his chances even better, though, with pocket Queens. With a Queen on the turn, Morrow, you are gone. Only someone very old gets this reference!
Scott Fischman had about half the chips on the table when disaster struck. On hand 81, Scott tried to raise pocket Aces out of the pot. Not likely. Bill Seber had the rockets hidden in the small blind. The flop came Q J 10. Unfortunately for Fischman he flopped top pair with his Q 6. Now Bill Seber had about half the chips.
The Europeans play mostly pot limit, but Omaha high rather than Hold'em. Maurice Atlani may have thought he had two more cards than he did, because he called all-in with K 10 offsuit the worst hand anyone had showed down all day. I'm kidding, of course. Maurice was trapped by his position on hand 83. Scott Fischman was raising from the button on every opportunity. Maurice thought he caught Scott speeding and raised all-in from the small blind.
Zoot alors! Gabriel Thaler had pocket Queens in the big blind and gladly reraised all-in. Fischman gladly folded. The ladies walked and Atlani took a hike in 4th.
Now it was close. Three handed Seber had 300k, Thaler 252k and Fischman 226k.
The new blinds of 5k/10k would make short work of this event. The first hand at the new level brought a 'Wow' from Scott Fischman and a shrug from Gabriel Thaler. Scott raised again from the button to 25k. He could have made it 35k maximum. Thaler flat called from the big blind. Another calling mistake it turns out. Gabriel had pocket 7's which was a huge hand in that spot.
The flop came 3 2 2. Thaler checked the flop and Fischman understandably went all-in with the Q 3 of Diamonds. Thaler understandably called with his overpair. Too late. With no betting left, Scott said "Wow" when a trey hit the river. Scott had Gabriel covered and put him into third.
Heads up, Fischman had a 2-1 chip lead on Bill Seber. But another victory wasn't in the cards for the two-time WSOP bracelet winner. On hand 104, Scott made it 30k to go with A J after Bill limped in from the button. Seber called. The flop came A 7 5 with two Spades. Scott bet out and Bill raised. Fischman put Seber all-in. "Do you think I have the best hand?" Scott asked the rail.
"Yes," was the consensus. Bill shocked everyone by turning over the 4 3 of Spades for a gutshot straight and baby flush draw. The 8 of Spades splashed the river for a flush and Bill Seber had almost all the chips.
Five hands later it was over when those magic pocket Kings reappeared. Bill had them, Scott didn't. He had A 10 offsuit. For once the Ace magnets didn't attract.
When asked why he didn't play in more tournaments, Bill Seber said, "I work." Maybe that's a bad idea, he plays pretty well.
The 'new' non-taunting Scott Fischman was a gentleman and shook Bill Seber's hand. He may be crew-less, but Scott Fischman is no longer clueless.
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