Caesars Indiana Riverboat Sets Sail With Full Boat in WSOP Circuit Launch

2007 Caesars Indiana
World Series of Poker
(WSOP) Circuit Event
Event #1
$300 No Limit Hold'em
Tournament Report

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2007 Caesars Indiana WSOP Circuit Event Report

Caesars Indiana Riverboat Sets Sail
With Full Boat in WSOP Circuit Launch

Bill Latta

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Elizabeth, IN — We’re rolling on the river again, the Ohio river. After a highly
successful 2006-2007 WSOP Circuit event in October, action returned here at
Caesars Indiana, the world’s largest riverboat casino. Event #1, $300 no-limit
hold’em, attracted an over-capacity crowd of 714 players generating a prize
pool of $219,050.

The winner was Bill Latta, a 37-year-old industrial manager from Mt. Zion,
Illinois, whose only prior tournament cash-in of any note was a second-
chance seventh-place finish in a Circuit event at Tunica. First place tonight
paid him $54,708, a handsome gold and diamond trophy ring and a seat in
the $5,000 championship event.

Latta is married with two children, has been playing poker for 20 years,
learning from his father, and likes football, auto racing and heavy-metal
music. He favors tournaments, but also likes $1-$2 and $2-$5 no-limit cash
games. He describes his play as “selective-aggressive,” and said when it got
down to 24 players his strategy was to take down pots while avoiding
confrontations. He also said he had a good take on the final table, whose
players he felt had a wide range in abilities, and was able to predict who
would be the final two or three opponents he ended up facing.

The key hand for him came with four players left. There was four-way action
after a 28,000 raise. On the flop, he and Brad Sturgeon both were chasing
flushes Sturgeon moved in with the higher draw, but lost and was knocked
out when Latta paired a 7. After that, Lattta had about 600,000 of the million-
plus chips in play and was unstoppable.

This tournament, which runs from March 26 through April 6, was opened by
World Series of Poker Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack, who welcomed the
players to “the best poker room in the Midwest.” He praised table games VP
Joe Barnett, marketing VP Marc Oppenheimer, and lauded Jimmie Allen as one
of the best and most enthusiastic poker room managers in the business. He
also informed the players that Harrah’s Entertainment will be launching
WSOP Europe, starting on Sept. 6 at three locations in London.

Caesars Indiana is the final stop in the current 11-event Circuit tour, which
makes the excitement of World Series action available not only to top pros,
but also to local players around the country. Along with the Circuit events,
each day also features 3 p.m. cash tournaments.

Action went so fast on day one that there was no day two. By 11:30 p.m. we
were down to nine players, and the event was played through. Starting as
chip leader at the final table was Latta with 231,500, closely followed by
Michael Egy with 220,500, with a number of chip-lead changes to come.

Here were the starting chip counts:

SEAT 1        Brad Sturgeon
SEAT 2        Bill Hagan
SEAT 3        Steve Symsick
SEAT 4        Michael Egy
SEAT 5        Charlie Dawson
SEAT 6        Geoffrey Boes
SEAT 7        Dwight Gurtz
SEAT 8        Brent Phillips
SEAT 9        Bill Latta

Play started with 3,000-6,000 blinds and 500 antes. In comparison to the
earlier swift action, play began much more cautiously, with only one flop and
one uncalled all-in in the first 14 hands.

First out, on the next hand, was Bill “Hillbilly Bill” Hagan. In the small blind, he
waved his arms to signal all in for 85,000. His A-10 was dominated by Charlie
Dawson’s A-K, and Hagan’s pleas for a 10 went unheeded as he took home
$4,052 for ninth.

Hagan, 70, is from Henderson, Kentucky, owns a liquor store and has been
has been playing for 50 years, He’s married, this is his highest poker
achievement, and the one thing he wants everyone to know is that he’s a
“better player than Phil Hellmuth.”

Two hands later, Brent “Bee Train” Phillips, who started lowest in chips,
cashed out eighth for $6,079. He moved in for his last few chips, warning his
opponents that up to then he had only lost one pot he was involved in, when
his pocket kings were beaten by a 3-2. Well, he suffered his second and final
loss when his A-J was beaten by Michael Egy’s A-Q. Phillips, 41, is a college
grad from Evansville, Indiana, working in electrical supply sales. He likes to
ride motorcycles and work out, has been playing for 25 years, and his
highlight was winning the Southern Indiana Poker Open in 1998.

Soon after, Dwight “Diesel-Man” Gurtz, a mechanic from Milltown, Indiana,
moved in on the button for 65,000 with K-10. Dawson picked him off with Ac-
5c after a flop of 10-8-6-8-2 changed nothing. Gurtz, 51, is married with three
children, has been playing only three years and had no prior poker
accomplishments on his bio sheet. He collected $8,105 for seventh.

Dawson now took over the lead with about 275,000. On hand 31, Steve
Symsick pushed in his last 24,000 on a flop of K-6-2. He turned up a K-10,
overtaking Dawson’s A-2. “Send it!” he cried. The dealer sent it — to Dawson
— after an ace turned.

Symsick, 39, is a contractor from Mansfield, Ohio, playing in his first WSOP
event. He learned poker playing with family. Engaged, he enjoys golf and
spending time with his four kids. His sixth-place finish tonight was worth
$10,131.

As play continued, Dawson dropped down in chips, then lost his lead by
making what he called “a bad read on my part.” With the board showing 8-5-
3-5, he moved in with K-J, losing a 180,000 pot when Geoffrey Boes called
and turned up pocket 8s for a full house.

Blinds now went to 6,000-12,000 with 2,000 antes. A few hands later,
Geoffrey Boes busted out in fifth place when he moved in for 100,000 with K-
9, losing when he couldn’t catch up to Egy’s A-10.

Boes, 35, lives in Louisville and delivers pizza. He is married with one child
and learned poker from his mother. This is his third WSOP Circuit attempt,
and finishing fifth tonight was worth $12,157.

Hand 48 was the turning point. Latta opened for 28,000 and everybody
called. The flop came 8s-6d-2s. Holding Ks-10s, Sturgeon moved in for about
90,000. Latta, with a smaller flush draw holding of Js-7s, called and won by
accident when a 7 turned. He now had most of the chips in play as Sturgeon
took $14,184 for fourth place.

Sturgeon, whose nickname is “Castor Troy,” is a taxidermist who hails from
Taylorville, Kentucky. He’s been playing poker 40 years and said he never
had to learn how because he “always could.” He’s married with three
children, and his hobbies are fishing and hunting.

Seven hands later we got heads-up as Latta’s lucky 7s did the trick for him
again. He re-raised Egy with pocket 7s. Egy called with Q-8 and moved in
when a flop of Q-7-5 gave him top pair, almost totally useless against Latta’s
set of 7s.

Egy, 53 is a headhunter (recruiter, not cannibal) from Terre Haute, Indiana,
who’s been playing poker for two years, learning from his mother. He’s
married with two children and his hobbies include fishing, art and sculpture.
His poker highlight was winning his first tournament here last year. He is also
proud of his tattooed body. Third place paid $16,210.

Heads-up, Latta enjoyed a better than 6-1 chip lead over Dawson. But it
wasn’t over yet, because the contest would continue for another 43 hands.
Very little happened for the first 42 hands, with both opponents playing very
cautiously, making only occasional small raises. When blinds rose to 8,000-
16,000 with 2,000 antes, Dawson had close to doubled through after making
a straight, but that’s about as far as he could go. He hung on until hand 97,
finally going out quietly when his Ad-6h was beaten by Latta’s 8d-8s after
the board came 9-7-5-9-Q.

Dawson, 37, is from Lexington, Kentucky, has a B.S. degree in mechanical
engineering and is a real estate investor. He is married with one child,
learned poker three years ago “by fire,” and his highlight is a second in a
$1,000 World Poker Open no-limit event two years ago. Earlier in this
tournament he knocked out three players in one hand when he had A-K in
the small blind and flopped two kings to beat the big blind’s pocket aces.
Tonight his second-place finish got him $26,671.

Report by Max Shapiro -- WSOP Media Director

To view a complete listing of results for Event #1 of the 2007 Caesars
Indiana Circuit Event, click on the link below:

2007 Caesars Indiana WSOP Circuit - Event #1 Results

World Series of Poker Commissioner – Jeffrey Pollack
World Series of Poker Tournament Director -- Jack Effel
Caesars Indiana Poker Room Manager – Jimmy Allen
Caesars Indiana Tournament Directors -- Craig Carman and Doug Sullivan

59,000
106,500
97,000
220,500
133,000
99,500
105,500
33,000
231,500