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| Event #18 $2,000 Pot Limit Hold'em 2006 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Final Results |
2006 World Series of Poker
Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino – Las Vegas
Official Results and Report
Event #18
Pot-Limit Hold’em
Buy-In: $2,000
Number of Entries: 590
Total Prize Money: $1,073,800
Defending Champion (2005):
Edward Moncada
Official Results:
Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino – Las Vegas
Official Results and Report
Event #18
Pot-Limit Hold’em
Buy-In: $2,000
Number of Entries: 590
Total Prize Money: $1,073,800
Defending Champion (2005):
Edward Moncada
Official Results:
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Place Name Hometown Prize
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1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
51.
52.
53.
54.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
51.
52.
53.
54.
Eric Kesselman
Hyon “Skip” Kim
Christopher Viox
Kevin Ross
Jason “Big Bird” Sagle
Jim McManus
Dustin Holmes
Christopher Black
Harry Thomas, Jr.
Jeff Rothstein
Jair Beltran
David Zeitlin
Marc Scott Sarner
Kirill Gerasimov
Joe Hachem
Jeff Slayton
Harley Hall
William Davis
Kakoun Haim
Kimmo Liukku
David Pool
Kenny Cruz
Chantel McNulty
Peter Jetter
Edward Walker
Neal Gersony
Richard Osborne
Anthony Hartmann
Daniel Alaei
David Levi
Philip Galfond
Jeffrey Phillips
David Brannan
James Bullard
David Baker
Jason Lester
Amy Young
Rimuydas Plenys
Benjamin Robinson
Padraig Parkinson
Elmer Lynn
Gioi Luong
Denise Molloy
Men "the Master" Nguyen
Keith Hawkins
Shawn Vanasdale
Mikhail Ustinov
George Tatalovich
K.U. Davis
David Chiu
John Clark
Dennis Waterman
Katja Thater
Thomas Fuller
Hyon “Skip” Kim
Christopher Viox
Kevin Ross
Jason “Big Bird” Sagle
Jim McManus
Dustin Holmes
Christopher Black
Harry Thomas, Jr.
Jeff Rothstein
Jair Beltran
David Zeitlin
Marc Scott Sarner
Kirill Gerasimov
Joe Hachem
Jeff Slayton
Harley Hall
William Davis
Kakoun Haim
Kimmo Liukku
David Pool
Kenny Cruz
Chantel McNulty
Peter Jetter
Edward Walker
Neal Gersony
Richard Osborne
Anthony Hartmann
Daniel Alaei
David Levi
Philip Galfond
Jeffrey Phillips
David Brannan
James Bullard
David Baker
Jason Lester
Amy Young
Rimuydas Plenys
Benjamin Robinson
Padraig Parkinson
Elmer Lynn
Gioi Luong
Denise Molloy
Men "the Master" Nguyen
Keith Hawkins
Shawn Vanasdale
Mikhail Ustinov
George Tatalovich
K.U. Davis
David Chiu
John Clark
Dennis Waterman
Katja Thater
Thomas Fuller
New York, NY
Seoul, S. Korea
Glen Carbon, IL
Chillicothe, OH
Sudbury, ON, Canada
Chicago, IL
Atlanta, GA
San Diego, CA
Hamilton, OH
New York, NY
Vancouver, Canada
New York, NY
Wildomar, CA
Moscow, Russia
Melbourne, Australia
Pembroke Pines, FL
Orange County, CA
Sarasota, FL
Casablanca, Morocco
Kotka, Finland
Wichita, KS
Orange, CA
Lake Dallas, TX
Toronto, ONT, Canada
Norfolk, VA
Rocky Hill, CT
Martinez, CA
Richfield, MN
Las Vegas, NV
Las Vegas, NV
Gaithersburg, MD
Greenville, SC
Plymouth, UK
Terrell, TX
Katy, TX
Adventura, FL
Las Vegas, NV
Fresno, CA
Parkland, FL
Dublin, Ireland
Alexandria, VA
Westminster, CA
La Jolla, CA
Bell Gardens, CA
NA
Reno, NV
Russia
Scottsdale, AZ
McKinney, TX
Rowland Hts, CA
Dallas, TX
Myrtle Pt, OR
Hamburg, Germany
Boulder, CO
Seoul, S. Korea
Glen Carbon, IL
Chillicothe, OH
Sudbury, ON, Canada
Chicago, IL
Atlanta, GA
San Diego, CA
Hamilton, OH
New York, NY
Vancouver, Canada
New York, NY
Wildomar, CA
Moscow, Russia
Melbourne, Australia
Pembroke Pines, FL
Orange County, CA
Sarasota, FL
Casablanca, Morocco
Kotka, Finland
Wichita, KS
Orange, CA
Lake Dallas, TX
Toronto, ONT, Canada
Norfolk, VA
Rocky Hill, CT
Martinez, CA
Richfield, MN
Las Vegas, NV
Las Vegas, NV
Gaithersburg, MD
Greenville, SC
Plymouth, UK
Terrell, TX
Katy, TX
Adventura, FL
Las Vegas, NV
Fresno, CA
Parkland, FL
Dublin, Ireland
Alexandria, VA
Westminster, CA
La Jolla, CA
Bell Gardens, CA
NA
Reno, NV
Russia
Scottsdale, AZ
McKinney, TX
Rowland Hts, CA
Dallas, TX
Myrtle Pt, OR
Hamburg, Germany
Boulder, CO
$311,403
$164,291
$85,904
$75,166
$64,428
$53,690
$42,952
$32,214
$21,476
$11,812
$11,812
$11,812
$9,664
$9,664
$9,664
$7,517
$7,517
$7,517
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
$164,291
$85,904
$75,166
$64,428
$53,690
$42,952
$32,214
$21,476
$11,812
$11,812
$11,812
$9,664
$9,664
$9,664
$7,517
$7,517
$7,517
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$5,369
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,758
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$3,221
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
$2,685
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| Would you like to make more money at the Poker Tables? Try Poker Tracker for free! |
Tournament Report
Witness for the Persecution
Eric Kesselman Wins WSOP Pot-Limit Hold’em Championship
Former attorney and public defender gets winning verdict in
$311,403 settlement
Las Vegas, NV – Life is full of tough decisions. Success depends on the
decisions that we make. Those who make wise decisions are typically
successful in life. Those who make wrong decisions commonly fail. Of course,
“luck” makes some of our decisions irrelevant.
Three years ago, Eric Kesselman faced a very tough decision. He had just
turned 30-years old. He had earned his undergraduate degree from Johns
Hopkins University and graduated from New York University Law School. He
passed the bar exam in New York State and was working as a public
defender on Long Island. He enjoyed all of the trappings of a successful life
and career. The trouble was – Kesselman wasn’t happy.
“Basically in law, I feel like there are jobs where you can make a lot of money
versus jobs where you may have a lot of fun and which provide an
opportunity to do something rewarding. In law, very few jobs have both,”
Kesselman explained. “When you see the workload and experience the
monotony, it is tough. When you see legal cases you have worked hard on,
and then the defendants are back two weeks later (charged with crimes
again) it gets very depressing. That’s very common in being a public
defender.”
At a personal and professional crossroads, Kesselman made a decision. He
quit his job. What he decided to do next shocked even those who knew
Kesselman best. The ex-attorney decided to become a professional poker
player.
“I decided I did not want to practice law anymore,” Kesselman said. “I had
some friends who were gamblers and got into poker largely because of
them. After losing a bit at first, I started to learn from my mistakes and
improved my game. Eventually I started winning, turned professional and
have been supporting myself through ( playing mostly online) poker ever
since.”
2006 marked the third consecutive year that Kesselman made the annual
pilgrimage to the World Series of Poker. Although he made enough money
the rest of the year to pay the cost of his buy-ins and expenses, Kesselman’s
tournament results up until July 12, 2006 had been a disappointment. Fact
was, he had never cashed at the WSOP. That would all change suddenly, in
a very big way.
The 18th event at this year’s World Series of Poker presented by Milwaukee’s
Best Light was the $2,000 buy-in Pot-Limit Hold’em competition. The event
began with 590 entries. After two days of play, the final table included only
one former gold bracelet winner – Harry Thomas, Jr. (the $5,000 Seven-Card
Stud champion in 1985). Two players had previously cashed in the WSOP
main event – writer Jim McManus (5th in 2000) and Jason “Big Bird” Sagle
(23rd in 2004). When the first hand was dealt out, Sagle enjoyed a slight
chip lead over Kesselman, with the rest of the players back in the pack.
The most experienced player went out first. Harry Thomas, Jr. hoped to steal
a round of blinds with ace-five suited but was instead called down by “Big
Bird” Sagle, holding pocket threes. Thomas failed to make a pair, and was
eliminated. Thomas, hoping to win his first WSOP gold bracelet in 21 years,
instead collected $21,476 for ninth place.
Christopher Black went out next when his ace-queen was topped by Chris
Viox’s pocket eights. The two big cards failed to connect, which expelled the
San Diego school teacher in eighth place. Black, aptly nicknamed
“Shakespeare” for his English and journalism teaching credentials, received
$32,214 in prize money.
Dustin Holmes got the axe next. The poker pro from Los Angeles, who won
his way into the event via a free online qualifying tournament, was eliminated
when his ace-queen was ripped by Eric Kesselman’s nine-eight suited.
Kesselman got out of line a bit early with the hand by making a bold pre-flop
raise, and when Holmes re-raised all-in, Kesselman thought he was pot-
committed, and called. Kesselman caught three lucky diamonds to make a
flush, which knocked out Holmes. Seventh place paid $42,952.
Jim McManus has been immortalized forever with his classic poker and angst-
wrought narrative, “Positively Fifth Street,” which chronicled his personal
experiences at the 2002 WSOP. McManus hoped to write a bright new
chapter in his poker career, but this one did not have a happy ending. On his
final hand of the night, McManus had king-queen suited which lost to “Skip”
Kim’s ace-ten. An ace flopped, and McManus was forced to accept a sixth-
place finish on his poker record. The Chicago writer earned $53,690.
No one was more surprised or disappointed to see the fifth place finisher
than the man who took the position. Jason Sagle had started the day in
such promising fashion. But he ran bad during his final hour and eventually
went out with pocket fives against Eric Kesselman’s pocket sixes. The bigger
pair held up and Sagle added $64,428 to his poker bankroll for fifth place.
Things do not get much uglier than what happened next to Kevin Ross. He
was dealt pocket kings. He raised to 40,000 before the flop. Kesselman re-
raised to 100,000. Then, Ross pushed all-in. Kesselman could not get his
chips in fast enough. Wham! Kesselman’s pocket aces were tabled and all of
the sudden poor Kevin Ross’ two cowboys looked like they’d been blown off
Brokeback Mountain. Ross, an Ohio antiques dealer, collected $75,166.
Christopher Viox was the next player to go out. He decided to gamble on his
final hand holding king-ten, which was edged out by “Skip” Kim, with pocket
sixes. The small pair held up and Viox was forced to call it a night. Third
place paid $85,905.
“Skip” Kim put up a valiant fight before crashing to the felt in second place.
On the final hand of the tournament, Kesselman moved all-in with ace-ten,
which dominated Kim’s ace-nine. Kim was drawing slim and failed to catch a
nine. Kesselman’s higher-kicker played and ended the event. Hyon “Skip”
Kim, an anesthesiologist born in South Korea, felt no pain when he was paid
$164,291 for second place.
A historic win at the 2006 World Series of Poker seems to validate the choice
Kesselman made back in New York when still unhappily employed as an
attorney. “The appeal to me for poker is the ability to work for myself, work
at my home, set my own schedule, and to make a very good living,”
Kesselman said. “Also, for me the key to success is to play only the poker
games I enjoy. I will only play the games I like to sit in, such as short-
handed games. I keep myself fresh that way.”
Kesselman turned more philosophical when asked about his future. “I keep
asking myself what I will be doing in five to ten years. I really have not
answered that yet. As long as the poker craze continues-- which I think it
will -- I will be happy to keep playing poker."
Indeed, life is full of tough decisions. Based on three years spent as a
successful pro, a $311,403 win in poker’s most prestigious tournament
series, and one gold bracelet – it certainly appears that Eric Kesselman made
the right one.
Report by Nolan Dalla
Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #18):
Total Entries to Date: 17,502
Total Prize Money Distributed: $ 31,882,692
World Series of Poker Commissioner – Jeffrey Pollack
Director, Sponsorship and Licensing -- Ty Stewart
Director, Communications and Operations – Gary Thompson
Director, Broadcasting and New Media – Craig Abrahams
Vice President of Specialty Gaming -- Howard Greenbaum
WSOP Tournament Director – Robert Daily
WSOP Tournament Director/Director of Poker Operations for Harrah’s
Entertainment – Jack Effel
Witness for the Persecution
Eric Kesselman Wins WSOP Pot-Limit Hold’em Championship
Former attorney and public defender gets winning verdict in
$311,403 settlement
Las Vegas, NV – Life is full of tough decisions. Success depends on the
decisions that we make. Those who make wise decisions are typically
successful in life. Those who make wrong decisions commonly fail. Of course,
“luck” makes some of our decisions irrelevant.
Three years ago, Eric Kesselman faced a very tough decision. He had just
turned 30-years old. He had earned his undergraduate degree from Johns
Hopkins University and graduated from New York University Law School. He
passed the bar exam in New York State and was working as a public
defender on Long Island. He enjoyed all of the trappings of a successful life
and career. The trouble was – Kesselman wasn’t happy.
“Basically in law, I feel like there are jobs where you can make a lot of money
versus jobs where you may have a lot of fun and which provide an
opportunity to do something rewarding. In law, very few jobs have both,”
Kesselman explained. “When you see the workload and experience the
monotony, it is tough. When you see legal cases you have worked hard on,
and then the defendants are back two weeks later (charged with crimes
again) it gets very depressing. That’s very common in being a public
defender.”
At a personal and professional crossroads, Kesselman made a decision. He
quit his job. What he decided to do next shocked even those who knew
Kesselman best. The ex-attorney decided to become a professional poker
player.
“I decided I did not want to practice law anymore,” Kesselman said. “I had
some friends who were gamblers and got into poker largely because of
them. After losing a bit at first, I started to learn from my mistakes and
improved my game. Eventually I started winning, turned professional and
have been supporting myself through ( playing mostly online) poker ever
since.”
2006 marked the third consecutive year that Kesselman made the annual
pilgrimage to the World Series of Poker. Although he made enough money
the rest of the year to pay the cost of his buy-ins and expenses, Kesselman’s
tournament results up until July 12, 2006 had been a disappointment. Fact
was, he had never cashed at the WSOP. That would all change suddenly, in
a very big way.
The 18th event at this year’s World Series of Poker presented by Milwaukee’s
Best Light was the $2,000 buy-in Pot-Limit Hold’em competition. The event
began with 590 entries. After two days of play, the final table included only
one former gold bracelet winner – Harry Thomas, Jr. (the $5,000 Seven-Card
Stud champion in 1985). Two players had previously cashed in the WSOP
main event – writer Jim McManus (5th in 2000) and Jason “Big Bird” Sagle
(23rd in 2004). When the first hand was dealt out, Sagle enjoyed a slight
chip lead over Kesselman, with the rest of the players back in the pack.
The most experienced player went out first. Harry Thomas, Jr. hoped to steal
a round of blinds with ace-five suited but was instead called down by “Big
Bird” Sagle, holding pocket threes. Thomas failed to make a pair, and was
eliminated. Thomas, hoping to win his first WSOP gold bracelet in 21 years,
instead collected $21,476 for ninth place.
Christopher Black went out next when his ace-queen was topped by Chris
Viox’s pocket eights. The two big cards failed to connect, which expelled the
San Diego school teacher in eighth place. Black, aptly nicknamed
“Shakespeare” for his English and journalism teaching credentials, received
$32,214 in prize money.
Dustin Holmes got the axe next. The poker pro from Los Angeles, who won
his way into the event via a free online qualifying tournament, was eliminated
when his ace-queen was ripped by Eric Kesselman’s nine-eight suited.
Kesselman got out of line a bit early with the hand by making a bold pre-flop
raise, and when Holmes re-raised all-in, Kesselman thought he was pot-
committed, and called. Kesselman caught three lucky diamonds to make a
flush, which knocked out Holmes. Seventh place paid $42,952.
Jim McManus has been immortalized forever with his classic poker and angst-
wrought narrative, “Positively Fifth Street,” which chronicled his personal
experiences at the 2002 WSOP. McManus hoped to write a bright new
chapter in his poker career, but this one did not have a happy ending. On his
final hand of the night, McManus had king-queen suited which lost to “Skip”
Kim’s ace-ten. An ace flopped, and McManus was forced to accept a sixth-
place finish on his poker record. The Chicago writer earned $53,690.
No one was more surprised or disappointed to see the fifth place finisher
than the man who took the position. Jason Sagle had started the day in
such promising fashion. But he ran bad during his final hour and eventually
went out with pocket fives against Eric Kesselman’s pocket sixes. The bigger
pair held up and Sagle added $64,428 to his poker bankroll for fifth place.
Things do not get much uglier than what happened next to Kevin Ross. He
was dealt pocket kings. He raised to 40,000 before the flop. Kesselman re-
raised to 100,000. Then, Ross pushed all-in. Kesselman could not get his
chips in fast enough. Wham! Kesselman’s pocket aces were tabled and all of
the sudden poor Kevin Ross’ two cowboys looked like they’d been blown off
Brokeback Mountain. Ross, an Ohio antiques dealer, collected $75,166.
Christopher Viox was the next player to go out. He decided to gamble on his
final hand holding king-ten, which was edged out by “Skip” Kim, with pocket
sixes. The small pair held up and Viox was forced to call it a night. Third
place paid $85,905.
“Skip” Kim put up a valiant fight before crashing to the felt in second place.
On the final hand of the tournament, Kesselman moved all-in with ace-ten,
which dominated Kim’s ace-nine. Kim was drawing slim and failed to catch a
nine. Kesselman’s higher-kicker played and ended the event. Hyon “Skip”
Kim, an anesthesiologist born in South Korea, felt no pain when he was paid
$164,291 for second place.
A historic win at the 2006 World Series of Poker seems to validate the choice
Kesselman made back in New York when still unhappily employed as an
attorney. “The appeal to me for poker is the ability to work for myself, work
at my home, set my own schedule, and to make a very good living,”
Kesselman said. “Also, for me the key to success is to play only the poker
games I enjoy. I will only play the games I like to sit in, such as short-
handed games. I keep myself fresh that way.”
Kesselman turned more philosophical when asked about his future. “I keep
asking myself what I will be doing in five to ten years. I really have not
answered that yet. As long as the poker craze continues-- which I think it
will -- I will be happy to keep playing poker."
Indeed, life is full of tough decisions. Based on three years spent as a
successful pro, a $311,403 win in poker’s most prestigious tournament
series, and one gold bracelet – it certainly appears that Eric Kesselman made
the right one.
Report by Nolan Dalla
Overall Tournament Statistics (through end of Event #18):
Total Entries to Date: 17,502
Total Prize Money Distributed: $ 31,882,692
World Series of Poker Commissioner – Jeffrey Pollack
Director, Sponsorship and Licensing -- Ty Stewart
Director, Communications and Operations – Gary Thompson
Director, Broadcasting and New Media – Craig Abrahams
Vice President of Specialty Gaming -- Howard Greenbaum
WSOP Tournament Director – Robert Daily
WSOP Tournament Director/Director of Poker Operations for Harrah’s
Entertainment – Jack Effel
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