The molecular world of poker is one that often escapes the eye of Pulp’s ‘Common People,’ but if they did spot it, and could pierce the bubble, they would think it was a beautiful place.
It isn’t all unicorns and rainbows.
After becoming the 28th human being to earn more than $19m in live tournament earnings through winning Event #3: AUD 25,000 No-Limit Hold ’em (NLHE) at the Australian Poker Open (APO) in The Star Gold Coast in Queensland, the Canadian said:
“I’ve been playing for so long now, and I’m still very passionate about the game, but I can’t do this my whole life. This game takes a toll on you, the travel, the playing, the studying, it’s really a full-time job. I think I have a few good years left though, and maybe then I can relax a bit more.”
Adams’ win sees him move into third place in the overall leaderboard behind Andras Nemeth and the current leader, Mike Watson. Still, his chances of taking it down are hampered slightly by his decision to skip the Pot-Limit Omaha (PLO) events.
One person who won’t skip the PLO events is the $25k PLO World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner, Stephen Chidwick. The former US Poker Open winner glides ominously into fourth place after losing to Adams, heads-up.
Also breaking into the Top 5 is Orpen Kisacikoglu. The Turkish, London-based, businessman, added a fifth-place finish to the fourth-place finish he enjoyed in Event #1: AUD 10,000 NLHE.
“To win a tournament a lot of things have to go your way and today that happened to me,” said Adams.
Let’s take a look then shall we?
The Nutshell Action
The final table began with Stephen Chidwick cutting down the field with some cunning and culling. The in-form Aaron Van Blarcum became the first player to feel the former Global Poker Index (GPI) World # 1’s wrath when his ace-three fell to pocket sevens.
Orpen Kisacikoglu’s face turned from delight to desperation when he got it in with ace-queen, only for Chidwick to cooler him with ace-king, and suddenly, the poker press began to wonder if the man from the UK and Event #3 honours had been betrothed.
A feature of a vagabonding Poker Central is the ability of players to feature who are unlikely to head to Las Vegas to fight. Andy Lee is a prime example. The Australian began the final table with the chip lead, and he joined Chidwick in the final table list of vanquishers when his ace-six came from behind to hit a flush, beating ace-queen of the dangerous Steve O’Dwyer.
Three-handed play became heads-up when Lee himself hit the rail. The former World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC) AUD NLHE High Roller winner, got it in good, with top pair versus the flush draw of Adams, but the Triton Champion hit his flush on the river to set up a titanic tussle with Chidwick for the Event #3 title.
As adjectives go, ‘titanic’ was the wrong one to pull out of a Google search.
‘ Short’ is a more apt choice.
The heads-up action lasted only a few hands, and Adams won them all, including the last one of the tournament when his pocket sevens beat ace-five to confirm victory.
Australian poker players have suffered of late with the government deciding to ban online poker. The presence of events like the APO must give the activists hope that one day the government can be persuaded to see that poker is a game of skill. If they ever need an experienced man to take the stand, then the $19m man Adams is a grand choice.
ITM Results
- Timothy Adams – $416,500
- Stephen Chidwick – $269,500
- Andy Lee – $183,750
- Steve O’Dwyer – $122,500
- Orpen Kisacikoglu – $98,000
- Aaron Van Blarcum – $73,500
- Chino Rheem – $61,250
APO Leaderboard
- Mike Watson – 450 points
- Andras Nemeth – 360
- Timothy Adams – 300
- Stephen Chidwick – 210
- Orpen Kisackoglu – 210
Australian Poker Open Remaining Events
Event #4: $25,000 Pot-Limit Omaha
Event #5: $25,000 No-Limit Hold’em
Event #6: $50,000 No-Limit Hold’em
Event #7: $100,000 No-Limit Hold’em