Stuart Fox has been one of Europe’s brightest stars for a number of years now, and whilst he has always been touted as ‘one to watch’, he tended to struggle to live up to the hype and continued to miss out on that elusive ‘big win’… until 12 months ago, that is.Following on from a 2nd and 3rd in last year’s World Series, Foxy sprung into life by winning $240k at the Ongame Network Poker Classic in Barcelona only to cement his status as one of our strongest assets by finishing second in the $5,000 No Limit Hold’Em Freezeout Event at this year’s World Series.
True, he may have failed to improve on last year’s numerical position, but this being a $5,000 entry rather than a $1,500 investment, Foxy was treated to the quite splendid sum of $448,892 – a figure that would make a dent in even Ivey’s pocket!
What was most surprising about this performance, however, was not that Foxy found himself in that enviable heads-up position, but that he got there by playing just two hands, a feat which amazed not only the WSOP commentators (one of whom was perhaps slightly critical), but also us Brits who know him for his ultra-aggressive style. As the blonde forum members observed, “Foxy has found another gear.”
“I did all the jiggy stuff to get in the final,” explained a jubilant Foxy, “and I don’t care what some random guy thinks about how I play poker. I started the final with 700k," he continued, "and about 40 hands later I was heads up with 500k, how can you slate that? I played solid which fooled them as they all saw me the night before playing pots.”
Judging by the way the final went and how quickly people fell, it’s hard to criticise Stu’s display. At just 2 hours and 35 minutes, this was the quickest final table of the World Series thus far, and it’s clear that Stu saw this as an opportunity to sit back, climb the ladder and pass his way to a near half a million. And who could blame him?
Although many viewers claimed the final was somewhat of a crapshoot, Stu still had to outstay a number of tough competitors, the final table seating two previous bracelet winners in Mike Gracz and Jan Sorensen as well as two former Main Event finalists in John ‘Tex’ Barch and last year’s 4th place finisher, Michael Binger.
But outlast them he did, and Foxy soon found himself heads-up against an immaculately behaved young hotshot, albeit with a huge chip disadvantage. Faced with the prospect of having to topple aspiring pro, James Mackey, Stu battled like a Trojan but was ultimately forced to settle for another runner-up spot when his all-in call with K-4 vs. T-2 was besmirched by the Q-9-7-T-T board.Originally from Kansas City, but now residing in Columbia Missouri where he studied at the State University, 21-year old Mackey became the third youngest bracelet winner in WSOP history, Jeff Madsen and Event 1 victor Steve Billirakis pipping him to the post by a matter of months.
Although bearing boyish looks that would urge cinema clerks worldwide to ask for ID, Mackey was a worthy winner, making few, if any slip-ups and vastly deserving of his $730,740 payday.
Stuart Fox, however, will be equally pleased with what is his biggest to date. After the event, tikay had the following to say about the highly acclaimed Fox: “The guy is world class, nobody scares Foxy. I well recall his first ‘big event’. He was on a table with Gus Hansen and PokerGirl and played them off the table, Hansen was gobsmacked at Stu’s impudence.”
While Stuart Fox was flying the final table flag, Ross Boatman ran close, exiting on that uncomfortable bubble. Ben Roberts, Rory Matthews and Nick Gibson also cashed, whilst poker legend, TJ Cloutier, made the money for the first time this year, subsequently extending his all-time number of WSOP cashes to 52.
Two other events drew to a conclusion within the last couple of days, Event 23’s $1,500 Pot Limit Omaha Freezeout attracting a final table of Andy Black, Will Durkee and established pro Scott Clements (left), the latter adding to last year’s bracelet win in the $3,000 Omaha Hi-Lo Event with another victory here. A former mortgage broker from Mount Vernon, Washington, Clements took home $194,200 for his troubles.Finally, Eli Elezra of Henderson, Nevada performed impressively to overcome a feast of stars (Dutch Boyd, David Sklansy, Thor Hansen to name just three) to triumph in Event 24’s $3,000 7 Card Stud Hi-Lo Freezeout. A popular victory with the rail, the High Stakes Poker star defeated am equally popular Scotty Nguyen heads-up to take home the $198,984 first prize.
That’s a wrap for now, but be sure to keep an eye on who’s winning what in Vegas by checking out our results page. Simply click here to see what’s going down this year at the Rio.
Bottom 2 images courtesy of Imagemasters Photography