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| 2007 Caesars Atlantic City World Series of Poker (WSOP) Circuit Event Event #4 $500 Buy-in No Limit Hold'em Tournament Report |
| UltimatePokerForum.com The Ultimate Poker Site |
| High Octane Bob Willis Spikes Miracle Card on River, and Wins First Major Poker Tournament |
Professional motorcycle racer tries poker for a change
of pace, and zooms off with $76,500
Atlantic City, NJ (March 9, 2007) – It takes some luck to win poker
tournaments. Sure, skill is critical (and at least in the long run, far more
important). But without a bit of luck at key moments of a tournament,
winning is analogous to racing with cheap, low-grade gasoline in the tank.
High octane fuel is what fires up powerful engines and in a metaphorical
sense, creates new poker champions.
Bob Willis, a 41-year-old professional motorcycle racer was on the receiving
end of three twists of good fortune – refueling with high-octane gas, if you
will -- at the final table, which propelled him across the finish line for a first-
place showing. Willis topped a tough field and won his first major poker
tournament with a combination of well-disciplined play and three big hands
which gave him victory.
The $500 buy-in no-limit hold’em tournament at Caesars Atlantic City
attracted 510 players. This was the fourth event of the World Series of Poker
Circuit series at Caesars. After 501 players were eliminated over the first 12
hours during day one, nine survivors returned to play the final table on day
two. Based on starting chip counts, it was the most balanced of any final
table played thus far at Caesars. Derek Buonano (with 463,000) started off
with a razor-thin chip lead over David Santitoro (with 461,000). Mike O’Dea
was close behind in third place (413,000) with the remaining six players all
below 380,000 in chips. Bob Willis was fifth. Seating positions and chip
counts began as follows:
Seat 1: David Santitoro
Seat 2: Shawn Nguyen
Seat 3: Gary Crow
Seat 4: Bob Willis
Seat 5: Mike O’Dea
Seat 6: J.J. Hurley
Seat 7: Derek Buonano
Seat 8: Marc Freund
Seat 9: Joseph Priolo
Blinds began at 8,000-16,000 with a 1,000 ante. The shortest stack
belonged to Joseph Priolo. But he quickly doubled up twice within ten
minutes and rocketed up to 200,000 in chips. Shawn Nguyen was not as
fortunate.
On his fateful yet final hand, Mr. Nguyen called an all-in raise by Derek
Buonano. Both players’ cards were turned up and Mr. Nguyen had A-K
versus Mr. Buonano’s 9-9. An ace flopped, but so did a nine – giving Mr.
Buonano’s a set. The big hand held up and put the first player out on the
rail. Shawn Nguyen, a 23-year-old poker pro from Sunrise, FL collected
$5,100 in prize money.
And that’s when Bob Willis got his first high-octane boost. One of the most
exciting hands took place in a three-way pot, which resulted in the
elimination of two players. Marc “Leggy” Freund was low on chips and tried
to steal holding Q-9. The player to his immediate left, Joseph Priolo was
dealt 3-3 and moved over the top and all-in. This delighted Bob Willis sitting
across the table who looked down and saw A-A. With a 500,000 pot at
stake, the aces were still in the lead after the flop. But a three on the turn
gave Mr. Priolo a set. The hand was far from over. Three spades on board
also gave Mr. Willis extra outs with a flush draw. Then, day became night. A
fourth spade rained down on the river, cracking Mr. Priolo’s set and
eliminating another player in the process.
Eighth place went to Marc “Leggy” Freund. He is a 50-year old salesman
from Ft. Lauderdale, FL. He received $7,650 in prize money. Right behind
him in the payout line was Joseph Priolo from New York City. He earned a
well-deserved $10,200 for seventh place.
Down to six players, Bob Willis and David Santitoro shared the chip lead.
Then, J.J. Hurley busted out when he tried to bluff with two big overcards
after the flop. It was a case of bad timing, as his opponent (the venerable
Mr. Willis) had a six in his hand flopped two more sixes – good for a set. That
pretty much erased Mr. Hurley’s chances of staging a comeback. The builder
and developer from Wayne, PA picked up $12,750 for sixth place. This was
the second time Mr. Hurley has made it to a WSOP Circuit final table. He also
appeared last year at the event in Harrah’s Atlantic City.
Gary Crow is another player accustomed to sitting at final tables. His
previous appearances included Harrah’s Atlantic City and Harrah’s New
Orleans, both held last year. This, the third time did not prove to be a charm
however, as Mr. Crow flew away when his A-6 was bested by David Santitoro’
s K-Q. The final board showed 6-4-2-K-4, giving Mr, Santitoro a higher two-
pair. A real estate investor from Georgia, Gary Crow feathered his nest with
$15,300 for fifth place.
Mike O’Dea hoped to win his first poker tournament. Instead, he was forced
to settle for fourth place. Mr. O’Dea ran card dead late in the tournament,
losing two critical big pots which left him low on chips. He finally moved all-in
holding A-7 and was crunched by Bob Willis, with 7-7. A life-saving ace
remained buried in the deck, also burying Mr. O’Dea’s dreams of victory. The
Costco Wholesale Manager cashed out for $17,850.
Then, came the second injection of lucky fuel. It started off so innocently.
Derek Buonano was dealt K-3 of hearts. Bob Willis started with 5-5. All the
chips went in after the flop came J-5-2, with two hearts. Mr. Willis had
flopped a set of fives. But Mr. Buonano had a heart flush draw. The turn
card was red. It was a heart. Wham! The room erupted and the two
players swapped emotions, going from ecstasy to horror with the simple flick
of a dealer’s wrist. There was more pain and joy to follow. Mr. Willis
desperately needed the board to pair and that is precisely what happened
when a deuce was revealed, giving the chip leader a full-house. Derek
Buonano did everything in this tournament but win, and collected $20,400 for
third place. Most interesting is the fact that Mr. Buonano is a military veteran
who just returned from a tour of duty in Iraq. He earned a Bronze Star for
his service. His efforts both there and here are to be saluted.
When heads-up play began, Bob Willis enjoyed slightly better than a 2 to 1
chip advantage over David Santitoro. But about ten minutes into the duel,
Mr. Santitoro evened things up by dragging a few sizable pots. The detour
was brief. The finalists battled for another half hour before the next big hand
of the night took place, which was the final big fill-up which moved Mr. Willis
to the checkered flag.
Mr. Willis was dealt A-6. He raised. Mr. Santitoro was dealt K-K and re-raised
all-in. Mr. Willis thought long and hard and finally called. When the hole
cards were revealed, Mr. Willis saw he was in big trouble. By the turn, Mr.
Willis was drawing to just three outs – one of the three remaining aces left in
the deck. The board showed J-7-7-8 and Mr. Santitoro was just one card
away from victory. Then, the river came.
When gas meets fire, the result is an explosion. Kaboom! An ace detonated
from the deck and the room went ballistic. Mr. Willis had caught his three-
outer and Mr. Santitoro was left burning inside. “I had him right where I
wanted,” Mr. Santitoro would say later. No one could argue. Even, Mr. Willis
himself – who was glad to deal out a bad beat to his adversary for the sake
of 76 grand. A few hands later, what was left of Mr. Santitoro’s chips went
over into Mr. Willis’ stack and the race, tournament, and the final table was
history.
Runner up David Santitoro could have easily had his name in the headline. It
was the cruelest of blows, to be one card from victory – not to mention a
difference of $35,000 in prize money. Mr. Santitoro is a Lieutenant with the
Department of Corrections. This was his third WSOP Circuit cash. Second
place paid out $41,055.
The newest poker champion is Bob Willis. In a post-tournament interview, he
admitted that he almost did not make it into this tournament. Mr. Willis had a
race a few days ago and was traveling, which meant he was forced to come
and play the first day of the tournament on almost no sleep. But sleeping
was the last thing on Mr. Willis’ mind late on a Friday night when he slipped
on the gold WSOP Circuit ring, awarded to each event champion.
Mr. Willis has been racing motorcycles for over ten years. The high point of
Mr. Willis racing career was being ranked fifth nationally on the dirt bike circuit
back in 1998. He now races on straightaway pavement, on what are called
drag bikes.
Oh, and from now on he might play a little more poker in his spare time, too.
Report by Nolan Dalla – World Series of Poker Media Director
To view the complete results for Event #4 of the 2007 Caesars Atlantic
CIty WSOP Circuit Event, click on the link below:
2007 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit - Event #4 Results
Executive Staff, World Series of Poker Circuit – Caesars Atlantic City
Vice President of Table Games – Fred Niceta
Director of Table Games – Paul A. Natello
Table Games Manager (Poker) – Thomas McDonough III
Poker Pit Manager – Jake Devries
of pace, and zooms off with $76,500
Atlantic City, NJ (March 9, 2007) – It takes some luck to win poker
tournaments. Sure, skill is critical (and at least in the long run, far more
important). But without a bit of luck at key moments of a tournament,
winning is analogous to racing with cheap, low-grade gasoline in the tank.
High octane fuel is what fires up powerful engines and in a metaphorical
sense, creates new poker champions.
Bob Willis, a 41-year-old professional motorcycle racer was on the receiving
end of three twists of good fortune – refueling with high-octane gas, if you
will -- at the final table, which propelled him across the finish line for a first-
place showing. Willis topped a tough field and won his first major poker
tournament with a combination of well-disciplined play and three big hands
which gave him victory.
The $500 buy-in no-limit hold’em tournament at Caesars Atlantic City
attracted 510 players. This was the fourth event of the World Series of Poker
Circuit series at Caesars. After 501 players were eliminated over the first 12
hours during day one, nine survivors returned to play the final table on day
two. Based on starting chip counts, it was the most balanced of any final
table played thus far at Caesars. Derek Buonano (with 463,000) started off
with a razor-thin chip lead over David Santitoro (with 461,000). Mike O’Dea
was close behind in third place (413,000) with the remaining six players all
below 380,000 in chips. Bob Willis was fifth. Seating positions and chip
counts began as follows:
Seat 1: David Santitoro
Seat 2: Shawn Nguyen
Seat 3: Gary Crow
Seat 4: Bob Willis
Seat 5: Mike O’Dea
Seat 6: J.J. Hurley
Seat 7: Derek Buonano
Seat 8: Marc Freund
Seat 9: Joseph Priolo
Blinds began at 8,000-16,000 with a 1,000 ante. The shortest stack
belonged to Joseph Priolo. But he quickly doubled up twice within ten
minutes and rocketed up to 200,000 in chips. Shawn Nguyen was not as
fortunate.
On his fateful yet final hand, Mr. Nguyen called an all-in raise by Derek
Buonano. Both players’ cards were turned up and Mr. Nguyen had A-K
versus Mr. Buonano’s 9-9. An ace flopped, but so did a nine – giving Mr.
Buonano’s a set. The big hand held up and put the first player out on the
rail. Shawn Nguyen, a 23-year-old poker pro from Sunrise, FL collected
$5,100 in prize money.
And that’s when Bob Willis got his first high-octane boost. One of the most
exciting hands took place in a three-way pot, which resulted in the
elimination of two players. Marc “Leggy” Freund was low on chips and tried
to steal holding Q-9. The player to his immediate left, Joseph Priolo was
dealt 3-3 and moved over the top and all-in. This delighted Bob Willis sitting
across the table who looked down and saw A-A. With a 500,000 pot at
stake, the aces were still in the lead after the flop. But a three on the turn
gave Mr. Priolo a set. The hand was far from over. Three spades on board
also gave Mr. Willis extra outs with a flush draw. Then, day became night. A
fourth spade rained down on the river, cracking Mr. Priolo’s set and
eliminating another player in the process.
Eighth place went to Marc “Leggy” Freund. He is a 50-year old salesman
from Ft. Lauderdale, FL. He received $7,650 in prize money. Right behind
him in the payout line was Joseph Priolo from New York City. He earned a
well-deserved $10,200 for seventh place.
Down to six players, Bob Willis and David Santitoro shared the chip lead.
Then, J.J. Hurley busted out when he tried to bluff with two big overcards
after the flop. It was a case of bad timing, as his opponent (the venerable
Mr. Willis) had a six in his hand flopped two more sixes – good for a set. That
pretty much erased Mr. Hurley’s chances of staging a comeback. The builder
and developer from Wayne, PA picked up $12,750 for sixth place. This was
the second time Mr. Hurley has made it to a WSOP Circuit final table. He also
appeared last year at the event in Harrah’s Atlantic City.
Gary Crow is another player accustomed to sitting at final tables. His
previous appearances included Harrah’s Atlantic City and Harrah’s New
Orleans, both held last year. This, the third time did not prove to be a charm
however, as Mr. Crow flew away when his A-6 was bested by David Santitoro’
s K-Q. The final board showed 6-4-2-K-4, giving Mr, Santitoro a higher two-
pair. A real estate investor from Georgia, Gary Crow feathered his nest with
$15,300 for fifth place.
Mike O’Dea hoped to win his first poker tournament. Instead, he was forced
to settle for fourth place. Mr. O’Dea ran card dead late in the tournament,
losing two critical big pots which left him low on chips. He finally moved all-in
holding A-7 and was crunched by Bob Willis, with 7-7. A life-saving ace
remained buried in the deck, also burying Mr. O’Dea’s dreams of victory. The
Costco Wholesale Manager cashed out for $17,850.
Then, came the second injection of lucky fuel. It started off so innocently.
Derek Buonano was dealt K-3 of hearts. Bob Willis started with 5-5. All the
chips went in after the flop came J-5-2, with two hearts. Mr. Willis had
flopped a set of fives. But Mr. Buonano had a heart flush draw. The turn
card was red. It was a heart. Wham! The room erupted and the two
players swapped emotions, going from ecstasy to horror with the simple flick
of a dealer’s wrist. There was more pain and joy to follow. Mr. Willis
desperately needed the board to pair and that is precisely what happened
when a deuce was revealed, giving the chip leader a full-house. Derek
Buonano did everything in this tournament but win, and collected $20,400 for
third place. Most interesting is the fact that Mr. Buonano is a military veteran
who just returned from a tour of duty in Iraq. He earned a Bronze Star for
his service. His efforts both there and here are to be saluted.
When heads-up play began, Bob Willis enjoyed slightly better than a 2 to 1
chip advantage over David Santitoro. But about ten minutes into the duel,
Mr. Santitoro evened things up by dragging a few sizable pots. The detour
was brief. The finalists battled for another half hour before the next big hand
of the night took place, which was the final big fill-up which moved Mr. Willis
to the checkered flag.
Mr. Willis was dealt A-6. He raised. Mr. Santitoro was dealt K-K and re-raised
all-in. Mr. Willis thought long and hard and finally called. When the hole
cards were revealed, Mr. Willis saw he was in big trouble. By the turn, Mr.
Willis was drawing to just three outs – one of the three remaining aces left in
the deck. The board showed J-7-7-8 and Mr. Santitoro was just one card
away from victory. Then, the river came.
When gas meets fire, the result is an explosion. Kaboom! An ace detonated
from the deck and the room went ballistic. Mr. Willis had caught his three-
outer and Mr. Santitoro was left burning inside. “I had him right where I
wanted,” Mr. Santitoro would say later. No one could argue. Even, Mr. Willis
himself – who was glad to deal out a bad beat to his adversary for the sake
of 76 grand. A few hands later, what was left of Mr. Santitoro’s chips went
over into Mr. Willis’ stack and the race, tournament, and the final table was
history.
Runner up David Santitoro could have easily had his name in the headline. It
was the cruelest of blows, to be one card from victory – not to mention a
difference of $35,000 in prize money. Mr. Santitoro is a Lieutenant with the
Department of Corrections. This was his third WSOP Circuit cash. Second
place paid out $41,055.
The newest poker champion is Bob Willis. In a post-tournament interview, he
admitted that he almost did not make it into this tournament. Mr. Willis had a
race a few days ago and was traveling, which meant he was forced to come
and play the first day of the tournament on almost no sleep. But sleeping
was the last thing on Mr. Willis’ mind late on a Friday night when he slipped
on the gold WSOP Circuit ring, awarded to each event champion.
Mr. Willis has been racing motorcycles for over ten years. The high point of
Mr. Willis racing career was being ranked fifth nationally on the dirt bike circuit
back in 1998. He now races on straightaway pavement, on what are called
drag bikes.
Oh, and from now on he might play a little more poker in his spare time, too.
Report by Nolan Dalla – World Series of Poker Media Director
To view the complete results for Event #4 of the 2007 Caesars Atlantic
CIty WSOP Circuit Event, click on the link below:
2007 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit - Event #4 Results
Executive Staff, World Series of Poker Circuit – Caesars Atlantic City
Vice President of Table Games – Fred Niceta
Director of Table Games – Paul A. Natello
Table Games Manager (Poker) – Thomas McDonough III
Poker Pit Manager – Jake Devries
461,000
211,000
170,000
255,000
413,000
380,000
463,000
170,000
43,000
211,000
170,000
255,000
413,000
380,000
463,000
170,000
43,000
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