by Nolan Dalla filed under World Series of Poker
Las Vegas, NV – When play at the final table of the $5,000 buy-in Seven-Card Stud championship became three-handed, a few bystanders glanced at the remaining players up on the main stage at the Rio. They had the following exchange:
Spectator 1: Who’s left?
Spectator 2: I see Cyndy Violette up there.
Spectator 1: Who else?
Spectator 2: There’s Sean “Sheik” Sheikhan.
Spectator 1: What about the other guy?
Spectator 2: I don’t know. He’s just some other guy.
Benjamin Lin represents all the “other guys” who play poker. He epitomizes many thousands of mostly-unknown names and faces who plow through huge tournament fields, make final tables, yet are not given the attention and admiration they probably deserve. While television and media focus mostly on the
poker superstars, many “other guys” (and ladies, too) are out there day in and day out fighting for prize money and respect – not necessarily in that order.
Three days ago, Benjamin Lin walked into the Rio Las Vegas as a 31-year-old accountant from suburban Washington-DC, who liked to play poker in his spare time. After winning the Seven-Card Stud championship at the 2006 World Series of Poker, presented by Milwaukee’s best Light, Lin is walking out of the Rio as the latest WSOP gold bracelet winner. He pulverized a highly-competitive field of 182 entrants who each put up five grand in what has become known as the “world championship” of one of poker’s most long-established games.
After 174 players had been eliminated over two days, eight players took the final table on the Rio poker stage. The eight finalists comprised a formidable lineup. Two were former WSOP gold bracelet winners – “Miami John” Cernuto with three wins, and Cyndy Violette with one victory.
This final table was exceptional for at least one reason. Perhaps no single individual has done more for poker during his lifetime than Mike ‘The Mad Genius” Caro. The former hippie used to destroy lowball draw games that were popular in California during the 1970s. Later, he started writing about poker and became one of the game’s top theorists. Caro played against (and beat) a computer, devised numerous strategies that helped thousands of poker players, and appeared on national television numerous times as the game’s top spokesman. In the 1990s, he founded “Mike Caro University,” which held classes at the Hollywood Park Casino in Los Angeles. Books, magazine articles, and seminars turned losers into winners. Yet for all of his contributions to poker science over the years, many newcomers still do not know of Caro’s profound impact on the game.
In the stud event, Caro -- who rarely plays in poker tournaments -- was making his first WSOP final table appearance in twenty years. Unfortunately, “The Mad Genius” was the first player to bust out. He lost holding (Q-10) 10-K-5-2 (X) against (K-10) A-K-3-7 (3) – which made two pair. Caro collected $21,385 for eighth place, which was his third cash at this year’s World Series.
Lupe Munquia went out next. Munquia, who owns a paint and body shop in Odessa, Texas, crashed in seventh place when his split kings were topped by two pair. Munquia had (K-4) K-2-A-10 (3) which lost to Allen Kessler’s (J-3) A-8-3-8 (6). Munquia received $29,939.
Patrick Bueno was the next player to be eliminated. The businessman from Paris, France went out on a diamond draw, which missed. Meanwhile, his opponent Benjamin Lin made a lowly pair of nines which was enough to take down the pot. Bueno was sixth – good for $38,493.
On the very next hand, Benjamin’s chip stack increased even more when he knocked out veteran poker superstar “Miami John” Cernuto. “Miami John,” who once worked as an air traffic controller before becoming a full-time professional, went off the radar screen when his buried tens failed to improve. Cernuto had (10-10) Q-3-J-2 (8) which lost to Lin’s (Q-8) Q-J-A-5 (4). Fifth place paid $76,986.
Allen Kessler has been playing on the tournament circuit for five years. The Temple University graduate has cashed many times and has made it to several final tables, but he has yet to achieve a WSOP win. Kessler’s attempt came up short again when his split tens improved to two pair, losing to Cyndy Violette’s higher-two pair. The final hand showed Kessler with (K-10) 10-3-5-4 (4) against Violette’s (J-6) 2-J-Q-K (Q). Kessler collected $76,986 for fourth place.
When play became three-handed, Cyndy Violette had to like the circumstances. Violette, who has been playing professionally for 15 years and who is one of the East Coast’s top Seven-Card Stud players, was competing for gold bracelet Number Two. This marks the third consecutive year she has made it to a WSOP final table. Violette was the early aggressor but just as it appeared she might run over the table, her two opponents began playing back at her and started taking down big pots. On her final hand, Violette was dealt several high cards and missed a flush draw, which knocked her out of the tournament. Violette’s (Q-9) A-10-7-K (X) with four hearts was cracked by Lin’s (K-K) 8-6-6-3 (X) which made two pair. Cyndy Violette received $102,648 for third place.
Sean “Sheik” Sheikhan has been described as poker’s lightening rod. He certainly electrifies any game he plays in – mostly the world’s highest-limit cash games. Sheikhan did his best to unnerve his opponent with table talk, daring his adversary to call when at a competitive disadvantage and at other times simply making it clear to everyone within listening distance that the “Sheik” was the better poker player. Unfortunately, Sheikhan ran bad in heads-up play, often starting with a solid hand which turned into a loser.
Sheikhan lost the final hand of the night when his (9-6) K-A-K-J (2) was snapped off by Lin when he caught an inside straight on seventh-street. Lin ended up with (9-9) 6-8-10-5 (7) – good for the ten-high straight. Sheikhan, who was born in Iran and now lives in Las Vegas, collected $171,080 for second place.
Benjamin Lin took his place the elite class of 396 players (out of over a 100 million worldwide) who have won a WSOP gold bracelet over the entire 37-year history of the world’s premier poker spectacle. Lin’s winnings amounted to $256,620.
Winning an event at the World Series changes everything. Perhaps the next time he makes it to a final table heads-up, the conversation will now describe Benjamin Lin as a poker champion – playing against the other guy.
Note: “X” denotes unknown card.
Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #28):
Total Entries to Date: 25,432
Total Prize Money Distributed: $ 52,786,707
