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2006 world series of poker

Chip Reese is the Greatest Poker Player Ever in the History of the World


Ok, maybe we’re overstating "things" in the headline there, but for well over 20 years, Chip Reese has been recognized by his peers as one of the–if not the–best poker player in the game.

While we’d be about as apt to play a hand in a cash game against Chip as we would be apt to wrestle a full-grown grizzly bear (ie, not very apt to), Reese has never really had that "signature" win or recognition point with John Q. Public, mostly because he doesn’t play many tournaments.

Chip Reese WSOP poker playerBut in a field of poker’s elite, Reese came through, winning the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. event after out-dueling Andy Bloch for a WSOP record breaking seven hour heads-up battle. For the win, Chip banks $1,716,000 and his third bracelet.

This one meant a lot to Reese, who told Card Player magazine, "It was important to me, cause all my friends wanted to win it too. We all talked about it for a long time."

The rest of the final table payouts were: 2) Andy Bloch – $1,029,600, 3) Phil Ivey- $617,760, 4) Jim Bechtel – $549,120, 5) T.J. Cloutier – $480,480, 6) David Singer – $411,840, 7) Dewey Tomko – $343,200, 8) Doyle Brunson – $274,560, 9) Patrik Antonius – $205,920.

* Image from Card Player.

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H.O.R.S.E. Final Table: Will Brunson Win Bracelet 11?


There is no dead money at the 2006 WSOP $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. final table.

Chipreese_1After a marathon Day 2 that lasted past 9am (PST), Chip Reese, recognized by many as perhaps the best all-around poker player of all-time, will enter final table play tonight at 9pm (again, PST) big stacked with 1.75M. Some interesting sub-plots, if you will:

:: Reese is clearly missing a “big-time” title from his tournament resume. Will this be the event he breaks through?

:: Can Doyle Brunson distance himself from Johnny Chan and claim the all-time bracelet lead just for himself with number 11?

:: Can Phil Ivey capture bracelet number 6, something he just missed doing last week?

:: Does Barry Greenstein suddenly hate impoverished children? If not, how does one explain his lack of final tabling (he bubbled in this one, along with Gavin Smith), which is clearly getting on Chops’ nerves, since Greenstein was his first selection in the WSOP fantasy league draft. Kids need food!!! Wiiiiiiiiiinnnn!

Poker Pages actually has a good write-up of all 9 final table contestants, which also includes T.J. Cloutier, David Singer, Dewey Tomko, Jim Bechtel, Andy Bloch, and a very short-stacked Patrik Antonius.

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2006 WSOP H.O.R.S.E. : A Lot of Guys You’ve Heard of Are in the Money


The highly anticipated H.O.R.S.E. event at the 2006 WSOP is bringing out the best in the best. While Day 2 is not yet complete, the field is still replete, which is a word that sounds like complete but means "abundant" or "abounding," with Big Gamers and big namers.

The event has even brought out the best in…dare we say…Card Player? Their live blogging team mined some legit gems during Day 2 play, including:

Gavin Smith: "If they’re gonna make fun of me for playing every hand, I’m gonna start playing tight."
Layne Flack (from the rail): "If you’re gonna play every hand, don’t look.  Don’t look at your cards – that’ll really throw them off."

And:

"I just about violated one of my cardinal rules," Doyle Brunson says as he folds his small blind.  Somebody asks him which, but he replies, "I can’t tell you."
And even:

TJ Cloutier: "[Rounders] was okay, but they stole a bunch of stuff from my books and didn’t give me any credit."
Gavin Smith: "How much of those books did you even write? I’ve played with you and read your books and the two aren’t close to the same thing." 

At 17 hours and counting, Day 2 play just whittled down to two tables. At the time of publishing, Jim Bechtel was big stacked at 1,150,000. Chip Reese, who amazingly has only cashed in two other WSOP events in the past 10 years prior to today, is second overall with 758,000. Another Big Game regular you may or may not have heard of–Doyle Brunson–is third overall with 695,000. They are followed by the following laundry list of all-time poker greats and soon-to-be-all-time poker greats (in order): David Singer, Patrick Antonius, T.J. Cloutier, Gavin Smith, Dewey Tomko , Andy Bloch, Robert Williamson III, Joe Cassidy, Barry Greenstein, Phil Ivey, David Levi, Rafael Perry, and Cong Do.

Follow the continuing action “live” at Card Player.

In other WSOP tournament news…

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Cunningham Comes Back to Reem Rheem, Capture Fourth Bracelet


Allen_cunningham_winner Three-handed, WSOP bracelet on the line in the $1,000 + rebuy tourney (Event #14), Allen Cunningham’s stack was down to 200,000. He had only 8% of the total chips in play.

His two opponents, David Rheem and Captain Tom Franklin, were stacked at 1,550,000 and 720,000, respectively.

But as LL Cool J might say, "don’t call it a comeback." In fact, don’t even think about calling it a comeback. This is Allen freaking Cunningham we’re talking about here. Last year’s WSOP POY. Allen Cunningham comes back for no one.

Cunningham’s improbable comeback to claim his fourth bracelet started with a timely pair of pocket Aces. Allen moved all-in pre-flop and was called by David Rheem (9d-8d). His Aces held, and he never looked back.

Cunningham continued to build his stack, but when Captain Tom was eliminated in third place (banking $185,431) soon after Allen’s aces held, Cunningham was still outstacked by a little over 2.6-1. However, after raising and winning four of the next five hands and then doubling up when his pocket Queens held against Rheem’s A-Q, Cunningham assumed the chip lead and, well, again, he never looked back. Because looking back is not something Allen Cunningham does. Looking back is not in Allen Cunningham’s nature. Allen Cunningham does not look back, unless maybe he’s in reverse backing out of a driving space or something. Seriously, he doesn’t want to back into a car. He’s not crazy.

For the win, Cunningham brings home $625,830 and his fourth bracelet. David Rheem rakes in 327,981 for second.

In other 2006 WSOP news…

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Va l’Italia!


Italianflag

The entities that comprise Wicked Chops Enterprises were torn this weekend. As Americans, we are all contractually obligated to hate the French. We cannot, in almost any circumstances, root for the French.

Yet, after watching the 2006 World Cup (of Soccer), and watching the way Italians flopped and whined and cried so consistently in faux-pain that, as Bill Simmons wrote, they’d give Ric Flair a run for his money, it became nearly impossible to want Italia to take the title.

This is doubly hard for us, as 1/3 of Wicked Chops Enterprises is 1/2 Italian.

Eventually, Italy won, and people all over the country undoubtedly jammed the streets to eat spaghetti in a prolonged dinner that starts at 10pm and doesn’t end until 1am, put grease in their hair, begin or end all of their sentences with "eh?," and start little cosa nostras.

The Italian soccer team, however, wasn’t the only, eh, Italians winning a World [of Something] this weekend.

Respected pro Max "The Italian Pirate" Pescatori captured his first bracelet by defeating Anthony "Leatherhead" Reategui for the title. Putting aside the fact that the entities that comprise Wicked Chops Enterprises would immediately file cease and desist orders on anyone that gave us a nickname that ended in "Pirate," not to mention our previously stated aversion to the Italian soccer team, we were glad to see Pescatori win the title, because really, after getting their asses handed to them in not one but two World Wars, it’s nice to see Italy, at least for one day each century, come out on top.

In other weekend WSOP news…

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