World Series 2004 - DAY 7

*WSOP and World Series of Poker (from now on referred to as the Main Event and/or World Series)

2004 WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

FINAL TABLE FOSSILIZED

In a dominate performance reminiscent of the heyday of Stu Unger, Greg 'FossilMan' Raymer used great skill, a large chip lead and even greater luck to run over a final table of top players like they were yesterday's roadkill.

It started immediately. On the fifth hand, Michael 'mochahai' McClain picked up pocket Aces and raised it to 150,000. On the button, Raymer found pocket 10's and reraised to 500,000. This is exactly what McClain wanted. He went all-in for his last 700,000 and change. Raymer, who had more chips than god, pulled a few off the corner of his stack and called eagerly. (Too bad it was two PokerStars players against each other, but since we had four of them at the table it was inevitable that this would happen eventually.) When a 10 came on the flop, Mike McClain got to give ESPN another 'agony of defeat' moment for its archives.

Two hands later, Raymer could only shrug as the board came runner-runner straight. He'd just knocked out Mattias Andersson who'd gone all-in with 670,000 and, of course, the best hand. Greg may want to wait a few weeks to have the deck surgically removed from his forehead, then again maybe not. Raymer started with A 10, he'd called another all-in bet that didn't even dent his stack and the board came Q 9 7 J 8. Seven hands, two gone already. With the antes only 5,000 and the blinds 25,000/50,000 these guys came to bet.

It looked for awhile that we were in a gunfight not a poker game. But oddly, the men at this final table were so gentle and kind to each other they often hugged and apologized to each other as they left the table.

As suddenly at the action began, that's how fast it disappeared. It took more than an entire level and 60 hands to eliminate our 7th player. During that time there was a constant. Either Greg Raymer or Josh Arieh raised nearly every hand. In fact the first few hours could have been renamed 'The Greg and Josh Show' as it seemed they were the only combatants at the table. There were few showdowns during this stretch. Most hands had Greg or Josh raising and everyone else folding. Or there would be one caller. Greg or Josh would bet the flop and the interloper would meekly muck.

Greg Raymer said before the start of the final table that his biggest break was being seated behind Josh Arieh. Greg said Josh is difficult to read. It seemed that each man was only concerned about the other, as Josh was overheard saying before the start how he was planning to catch Greg. Well, the five million chip lead that Greg had over Josh only grew through out the afternoon and into the evening. Josh never got close to catching Greg.

There was one all-in during this slow period and it spelled the end of the second chip leader at the beginning, PokerStars Matt 'mattpackage' Dean. On a very strange hand, Matt bet 225,000 from early position. Josh Arieh was in the big blind and flat called. The flop came K 5 4. Josh check called 200k. The turn came 3. Josh bet out 400k. Matt Dean reraised 1.1 million. Josh Arieh went all-in. And Matt Dean folded! Leaving 1.5 million on the table. It will certainly be interesting to see those hands when ESPN telecasts this event.

Matt may have been frustrated because he could never get any play on his big hands. Dean was the only player at the table that got any respect. His raises were hardly ever called. In any case, Matt never recovered from the lay down to Josh Arieh. Ten hands later, Matt was on the rail as he had the misfortune to go all-in against a grateful David Williams. The hand went down like this. Matt bet 250k from early position again. This time, instead of folding as the table usually did when Dean raised, David Williams reraised to 500k. Matt just called. This sequence should have caused alarms to go off in Matt's head. But he ignored the alarms and went all-in with A 10 when the flop came 8 8 3. Instantaneously David 'RugDoctor' Williams called with A A. Williams didn't need the Ace that came on the river. Sadly one of our own took out one of our own. PokerStars, the dominate website the last two years at the Main Event was down to its last two players at the final table.

We were back in speed mode. Never have so few bet so much for so little. Remember there were 25 million chips on the table and the blinds were only 40k/80k. This was kamakazi-ville. You'd have thought we were in LA not Vegas.

Poor Al Krux. He pulled the worst seat assignment. He often just sighed in disgust sitting between the raising Josh Arieh and the raising Greg Raymer. Unable to see many flops, Krux was unable to win many hands. Undoubtedly out of sheer frustration, Krux went all-in for 925,000 on the flop when an Ace came. Al had A 9 and this time Greg Raymer had the better hand, A Q. The Queen played and Al Krux didn't anymore in 6th.

Now for some more Presto-digitation. There must have been something in the water that these guys were drinking, because the all-in bets were strange. First came the normal, meaningless raise by Josh Arieh to 225,000. Then a normal meaningless call by Greg Raymer. Well that's what Glenn Hughes must have thought because he tried to pick off these two bets with an all-in 1.3 million K Q offsuit. 1.3 million is petty cash to the great wall of Raymer. He calls with pocket 5's. Uh, oh. Presto! Pocket 5's in the hands of an internet and Barge guy? Well, they are golden of course. Goodbye, Glenn.

Now there were four and two of them were PokerStars. Also they were one and two in chips.

Evidently former world champion Dan Harrington didn't want to come back after the dinner break because on the last hand before dinner, 'Action' Dan made the most questionable bet of the final table. Considering who made the bet, it will be talked about for years. T. J. Cloutier has a saying that Dan may never have heard. "Never go broke on an unraised hand." Harrington uncharacteristically limped in on his last hand. David Williams did likewise behind him. The flop came 9 5 2 with two diamonds. Dan bet 250k, David called. The turn brings a three. Dan checks and David bets out 500k. 'Action' Dan Harrington, the tightest player at the table checkraises Williams all-in on a very thin semi-bluff. Dan has an 8 6 off. Unfortunately for Harrington, Williams has turned two pair with 3 2 and isn't at all worried about the checkraise. He calls immediately and catches full on the river. This isn't the way the only player to make final table the last two years should have to leave this one.

Now PokerStars has two of the last three and almost ALL the chips.

As Dan Goldman said, "Last year all I dreamed about was having someone win it. This year I dreamed about having lots of players at the final table and finishing 1st and 2nd."

Well keep dreaming, Dan, because both dreams came true.

Only seven hands after the dinner break, the short stacked Josh Arieh took a pocket pair of 9's up against the hottest player in the universe Greg Raymer. A 1.3 million all-in bet caused Greg no hesitation. He had A Q and only flopped Q Q J. That's how it goes when it's going good.

Heads up, PokerStars Greg 'FossilMan' Raymer had a little better than 2-1 chip lead on PokerStars David 'RugDoctor' Williams at 17.125 to 8.24. Now with all these chips and blinds of only 50k/100k we could have been here all night. Last year Chris Moneymaker didn't win it until 3 am with a third of the chips on the table.

But these guys were no dawdlers, seven hands later it was all over. At 8:40 pm Greg Raymer raised his arms in victory when he turned over pocket 8's. Or as we like to call the hand at PokerStars, the Greg Raymer. Sadly a PokerStars player had to lose but that was also inevitable since we were the only ones left at the table. Gladly, likewise, one of our own had to win for the same reason. The board carried a little trap for Williams. David had A 4. He called a 300k bet from Raymer preflop. The flop came 5 4 2. Greg bet 500k and David came over the top with 1.6 million. Raymer only called. It was a trap call. The turn came a deuce. Williams bet 2.5 million and Raymer called again. The river brought a third deuce. Williams had 2's full of 4's and had no reason to think that wasn't the best hand. Calling Raymer's bet all-in, David Williams had to be in shock to see Greg Raymer turn over those 8's for the $5 million and the World Champions title.

You asked "How could we top last year?" Well if PokerStars didn't they came very very close.

Good night from Las Vegas,
Mike Paulle 'Mikey'

2004 Main Event Final Standing

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