In the very early hours of this morning, Norway’s Annette Obrestad became the ‘Queen of Poker’ as she defeated London’s John Tabatabai in the inaugural World Series of Poker Europe.At just 18 years and 363 days, Annette became the youngest player in history to win a World Series bracelet, beating the likes of Jeff Madsen (2006) and Steve Billirakis (2007) who had triumphed at the Rio Casino in Vegas.
Staged across three separate casinos, catering for 362 runners was always going to be a tricky affair, but although there were inevitable teething problems, the Sportsman, Fifty and Empire Casinos were able to whittle down that figure to a final table of 9:
Seat 1: Johannes Korsar -- 1,134,000
Seat 2: Oyvind Riisem -- 664,000
Seat 3: John Tabatabai -- 982,000
Seat 4: Annette Obrestad -- 697,000
Seat 5: Dominic Kay -- 490,000
Seat 6: Matthew McCullough -- 1,278,000
Seat 7: Theo Jorgensen -- 605,000
Seat 8: Magnus Persson -- 1,231,000
Seat 9: James Keys -- 172,000
With neck-crunching, chick magnet Gus Hansen bubbling the night prior at the hands of Matthew McCullough, the final line-up was an eclectic one with five different countries being represented. Of those, three hailed from the host nation, John Tabatabai, Dominic Kay and James Keys strengthening the rail with a feast of local support so loud that it would make Wembley stadium sound like a monastery.
Unfortunately, that rail would be dissected in half as the heavily supported James Keys fell at the initial hurdle. A 21-year old Physics student from Bury St. Edmunds, James made his move with Q-To, but was called by Magnus Persson’s A-9s. An A-7-3-T-3 board later and Keys was forced to settle for 9th spot, his initial investment of $78 blossoming into a £61,540 payday.
As the oldest and most experienced payer at the final table, Copenhagen’s Theo Jorgensen was hotly tipped for victory, but after being crippled by John Tabatabai (right) with Tens versus Kings, his fate was sealed by Obrestad a few hands later who eliminated him in 8th.Magnus Persson was next to fall. He’d been one of the chip leaders for most of the comp, but would finally fall foul of his nemesis John Tabatabai, who, after turning a straight versus Magnus’s Pocket Nines earlier on, would eventually find Kings at exactly the right spot, Magnus’s push with K-T highlighting the importance of timing.
Six left, and plucky Dominic Kay was next on the hit list. A sports trader from London, Kay re-raised all-in with Pocket Sixes but was swiftly called by the Eights of McCullough which ultimately held up. For Kay, this was a true fairy tale. Having been offered a 50-50 split with a freeroll qualifier who was unable to make the event, Kay snapped up the offer like a crocodile with toothache and found himself at a major final having not paid a single dime.
With the initial Scandinavian invasion depleted, their prowess in the tournament would soon disintegrate completely as Korsar and Riisem took 4th and 5th respectively. Whilst Korsar lost a coinflip with K-J versus 6-6, Riisem’s departure was a simple affair, running Nines into the American Airlines and failing to improve.
After the dinner break, we rejoined our final three: McCullough, Obrestad and Tabatabai. Although seemingly unmovable throughout, it would be the former of those three who would hit the rail first, the 33-year old anaesthetist from Cherry Hill, New Jersey entering a raising war with Jc-8c versus Tabatatabai’s A-T on a Jh-6c-3c Flop, but suffering the fate of the Turn as the dealer popped out an Ace, and then a blank on the River.
Heads up, and what a battle it would be, both young, aggressive online pro’s, but equally capable of remaining patient and waiting for spots. After a relentless back and forth exchange that would last almost as long as the rest of the final, the inevitable cooler arrived on a 7c-6c-5h Flop with Tabatabai’s 6-5 drawing dead to running cards against Annette’s set of Sevens. No miracle occurred, and we had our winner, a renowned online pro so young that she doesn’t even remember the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.Clearly dumfounded, Annette was frozen in victory, her supporters on the rail, one of which was fellow player Jason Laso, raising her arms in triumph. At this point, Annette couldn’t help but shed a tear or two, and her overwhelming emotions were evident for all too see.
When asked by commissioner Jeffrey Pollock if she wished to share any thoughts, Annette simply shook her head, a shy, timid response that emphasised that it was the cards that had done the talking that day.
Thoroughly deserving of her victory, although experiencing her fair share of luck at the vital stages, Annette_15, as she is commonly known in the cyber world, becomes the latest female player to exceed the one million dollar mark in WSOP winnings, comfortably surpassing Annie Duke who had crept over the record just a couple of days earlier by cashing in the same event.
However, regardless of gender, Annette has proven that she can cut it both on the online and live stages, and is a real force to reckoned with in the world of poker. With a million pounds in her pocket, it’s difficult to argue…