| Game Type: | Limit |
| Buy-in: | £150 |
After a 6 week break from Festivals in the UK, the 2005 UK season began tonight where it finished in 2004, at the Grosvenor in Luton, tonight's offering being the £150 PLH.
Maybe it's not exactly the WSOP-ESOP biggie in Atlantic City, but a definite sense of excitement could be felt in the air, as 108 runner took their seats for a prompt start at 8.00pm.
3,000 starting points, 45 minute levels all the way, with the Final to be held on Tuesday afternoon.
There were 155 rebuys, so we had a prize pool just shy of £40,000, with a cheque for some £16,000 to the eventual winner.
With so many big names on away duty in Australia, Tunica, & Atlantic City, we could be forgiven for expecting a low-key affair, but all things considered, it was a pretty tidy line up.
William Hill Poker had a full strength side out, "Bad Girl" Pham, "Smokin" Steve Vladar, & Julian "Yo-Yo" Thew. Mike Magee, Rumit Somaiya & Joe Grech (12th, 15th & 27th respectively in the 2004 European Rankings) were on hand, (Mike having won the Main Event here at Luton just before Christmas), as was Jim Reid.
The West Midlands boys included Peter The Bandit Evans, Frankie Knight, Micky Wernick, & Pete Singleton, whilst Wales were represented by Ewan, & Brighton Pro-Celeb winner Viv Williamson. A strong team from the East Midlands included serial Festival Finalist Micky Jones, Greek Jack, Dave Smith & son Kevin, (where does Kevin get his good looks from?), & Jaz. The usual strong Luton crew were supplemented by Racing Ronnie, cricketer Ed Giddins, Rory Liffey, Graham Pound, Lovejoy, Aldenham Bus Garage, Rita, Paul Alterman, Graham Fiew, Riverdave, & Neil "Bad Beat" Channing.
18 players were remaining when a halt was called at 5.00am, & they are due to return at 2.30pm on Tuesday to continue battle. 10th to 18th will all get paid £150 each. These 18, together with their chip counts, are listed at the foot of the article.
Not too much detail to report on the tourney itself, as I was heading north on the M1 before 0100, having met with an "accident" at the table. I had begun brightly enough, doubling up in the first 20 minutes, & all seemed set fair for a long evening. But then I flopped a monster, tried to get cute with it, & got caught when my oppo' caught a bigger straight in the river. Rebuy.
Then, holding 2 pairs, I ran into another straight (same guy!), managed to get away from it, but not without cost.
And nearing the Freeze & in OK shape, my nemesis Racing Ronnie - damn that man! - once again comprehensively outplayed me in a big pot. I had R'd on the button with A-Q, Ronnie defended his BB, & we saw a flop of K-J-4. Ronnie checked, I quickly bet the pot, and he gave it a lengthy dwell before calling. So he aint got the K, but then again nor have I. Turn was a rag, I bet again, Ronnie gives it another dwell-up before calling. He wont go away, damn him. River another rag, I move in - no point slowing down now - & Ronnie thinks for an age, makes to pass, then suddenly calls all-in. Uh-oh, I am holding A high, so must be beat, & Ronnie must have the K - he then turns over J-9 (second pair) to take the pot. He had called me the whole way with second pair, 9 kicker....... Nice read, Ronnie.
All uphill after that, & I move to a table where I cant find a hand or a situation, & gradually sink to 3k, with blinds at 150-300. I resolve that my next play will be an all-or nothing affair, & soon I find KQ suited on the button, with a serial raiser having already made it 700 to go. I RR him - I fancy he has a weak A - so if I am right, I am only a 45% - 55% dog, & with my stack, I need to gamble. And my hand reading skills had got it spot on, he did have a weak A - two of them. Don't you just feel stupid when you RR into AA, eh?
Remaining Players & Chip Counts, in seat & table order.
Blinds are 1k-2k for another 5 minutes, then 1,500 - 3,000. Average stack is 44k.
Table 1:
Abbassi, 15,500
I Davis, 55,000
S Wilsdon, 23,000
Kevin Smith, 30,000
Dave Smith, 30,500 (button)
David Courtney, 26,000
S Maqmood, 65,000
D Shearer, 27,000
Stuart Nash, 59,000
Table 2:
Jim Reid, 47,500
K Patel, 36,000
Paul Alterman, 110,500
I Jones, 34,000
Dave Riverdave Penby, 88,000
Chandra, 42,000
Theo Dalton, 50,000
J Huckle, 23,500
B Cooper, 28,500
Luton Grand Challenge Festival - £150 PLH Full Result
17th & 18th January 2005
18 players returned on Day 2, & the full result was as follows. Please note that the OFFICIAL results from Luton Grosvenor, as generally published on the Web & printed Media, reflect the prize structure "pre-deal". The figures shown on blondepoker, in this case, are what was actually paid & to whom - i.e., after a deal was struck.
1st - David Courtney, £11,000
2nd - Dave "Riverdave" Penly, £8,500
3rd - Stuart Nash, £8,120
4th - D Shearer, £3,240
5th - J Huckle, £2,290
6th - Jim Reid, £1,530
7th - I Davies,£1,330.
8th - Chandra Khajuria, £1,140
9th - B Cooper, £950
10th - Paul Alterman, £150
11th - Kevin Smith, £150
12th - Dave Smith, £150
13th - A. Abbassi, £150
14th - I Jones, £150
15th - S Mahmood, £150
16th - K Patel, £150
17th - Theo Dalton, £150
18th - S Wilsdon, £150
The winner had made day 2 with a puny stack of 26k (blinds 5 minutes off 1,500-3,000), & was second or third lowest stack, so a terrific result for Dave. Dave is a regular at Luton, & he picked up £21,600 in August 2003 when he won the £250 PLH at the Grosvenor UK Open, with Lucy Rokach as runner-up. By coincidence, two of today's money finishers - Jim Reid & K Patel, made the same Final. tikay made that 2003 Final too, finishing in a spectacular 8th spot....Dave also won the Pot Limit 7 Card Stud at the same Festival in 2003.
Runner-up Dave Penly is on a remarkable run, & if you believe in fate, then bet on him to score again in the next day or two. Dave won at Blackpool on November 11th (£20,380) & followed that up 2 days later at the same venue with second for £12,812. A fortnight later he went down to Brighton (he seems to like the seaside!) & scored twice in 2 days. 3rd for £2,700 in the £100 PLH - (tikay made 8th in THAT Final too, so nothing changes) - and 2nd for £5,570 the very next day in the £200 PLH. He also had a minor placing in the previous Luton Festival in December.
Spare a thought for Paul Alterman, who it seems was struck by the curse of the chip leader. He entered Day two as clear chip leader with 110,000 (average 44k), but failed to Final, finishing 10th for £150.
And there was an unusual situation with the 11th & 12th place finishers, who had, coincidentally, been sat next to each other for the last few tables. 11th place Kevin Smith is the son of 12th placed Dave Smith. So the pupil beat the master! A good showing by the 2 guys who both play out of Notts Gala, where Dave currently heads the League standings.
Well done to the winner Dave Courtney, & all those who made the money.
And a big up for the Staff at Luton - they could not have been more caring & helpful, thanks go to all of them. The comp was held in good spirits throughout, no arguments or bad blood, the dealers were spot-on, and there was universal consensus that the 45 minute clock was as good as it gets in a £150 comp.
blondepoker will be bringing you more Reports from the Grosvenor Grand Challenge throughout the week. Dave Colclough joins the fray from Wednesday, so maybe we will have an inside view of a Final or two.
Maybe it's not exactly the WSOP-ESOP biggie in Atlantic City, but a definite sense of excitement could be felt in the air, as 108 runner took their seats for a prompt start at 8.00pm.
3,000 starting points, 45 minute levels all the way, with the Final to be held on Tuesday afternoon.
There were 155 rebuys, so we had a prize pool just shy of £40,000, with a cheque for some £16,000 to the eventual winner.
With so many big names on away duty in Australia, Tunica, & Atlantic City, we could be forgiven for expecting a low-key affair, but all things considered, it was a pretty tidy line up.
William Hill Poker had a full strength side out, "Bad Girl" Pham, "Smokin" Steve Vladar, & Julian "Yo-Yo" Thew. Mike Magee, Rumit Somaiya & Joe Grech (12th, 15th & 27th respectively in the 2004 European Rankings) were on hand, (Mike having won the Main Event here at Luton just before Christmas), as was Jim Reid.
The West Midlands boys included Peter The Bandit Evans, Frankie Knight, Micky Wernick, & Pete Singleton, whilst Wales were represented by Ewan, & Brighton Pro-Celeb winner Viv Williamson. A strong team from the East Midlands included serial Festival Finalist Micky Jones, Greek Jack, Dave Smith & son Kevin, (where does Kevin get his good looks from?), & Jaz. The usual strong Luton crew were supplemented by Racing Ronnie, cricketer Ed Giddins, Rory Liffey, Graham Pound, Lovejoy, Aldenham Bus Garage, Rita, Paul Alterman, Graham Fiew, Riverdave, & Neil "Bad Beat" Channing.
18 players were remaining when a halt was called at 5.00am, & they are due to return at 2.30pm on Tuesday to continue battle. 10th to 18th will all get paid £150 each. These 18, together with their chip counts, are listed at the foot of the article.
Not too much detail to report on the tourney itself, as I was heading north on the M1 before 0100, having met with an "accident" at the table. I had begun brightly enough, doubling up in the first 20 minutes, & all seemed set fair for a long evening. But then I flopped a monster, tried to get cute with it, & got caught when my oppo' caught a bigger straight in the river. Rebuy.
Then, holding 2 pairs, I ran into another straight (same guy!), managed to get away from it, but not without cost.
And nearing the Freeze & in OK shape, my nemesis Racing Ronnie - damn that man! - once again comprehensively outplayed me in a big pot. I had R'd on the button with A-Q, Ronnie defended his BB, & we saw a flop of K-J-4. Ronnie checked, I quickly bet the pot, and he gave it a lengthy dwell before calling. So he aint got the K, but then again nor have I. Turn was a rag, I bet again, Ronnie gives it another dwell-up before calling. He wont go away, damn him. River another rag, I move in - no point slowing down now - & Ronnie thinks for an age, makes to pass, then suddenly calls all-in. Uh-oh, I am holding A high, so must be beat, & Ronnie must have the K - he then turns over J-9 (second pair) to take the pot. He had called me the whole way with second pair, 9 kicker....... Nice read, Ronnie.
All uphill after that, & I move to a table where I cant find a hand or a situation, & gradually sink to 3k, with blinds at 150-300. I resolve that my next play will be an all-or nothing affair, & soon I find KQ suited on the button, with a serial raiser having already made it 700 to go. I RR him - I fancy he has a weak A - so if I am right, I am only a 45% - 55% dog, & with my stack, I need to gamble. And my hand reading skills had got it spot on, he did have a weak A - two of them. Don't you just feel stupid when you RR into AA, eh?
Remaining Players & Chip Counts, in seat & table order.
Blinds are 1k-2k for another 5 minutes, then 1,500 - 3,000. Average stack is 44k.
Table 1:
Abbassi, 15,500
I Davis, 55,000
S Wilsdon, 23,000
Kevin Smith, 30,000
Dave Smith, 30,500 (button)
David Courtney, 26,000
S Maqmood, 65,000
D Shearer, 27,000
Stuart Nash, 59,000
Table 2:
Jim Reid, 47,500
K Patel, 36,000
Paul Alterman, 110,500
I Jones, 34,000
Dave Riverdave Penby, 88,000
Chandra, 42,000
Theo Dalton, 50,000
J Huckle, 23,500
B Cooper, 28,500
Luton Grand Challenge Festival - £150 PLH Full Result
17th & 18th January 2005
18 players returned on Day 2, & the full result was as follows. Please note that the OFFICIAL results from Luton Grosvenor, as generally published on the Web & printed Media, reflect the prize structure "pre-deal". The figures shown on blondepoker, in this case, are what was actually paid & to whom - i.e., after a deal was struck.
1st - David Courtney, £11,000
2nd - Dave "Riverdave" Penly, £8,500
3rd - Stuart Nash, £8,120
4th - D Shearer, £3,240
5th - J Huckle, £2,290
6th - Jim Reid, £1,530
7th - I Davies,£1,330.
8th - Chandra Khajuria, £1,140
9th - B Cooper, £950
10th - Paul Alterman, £150
11th - Kevin Smith, £150
12th - Dave Smith, £150
13th - A. Abbassi, £150
14th - I Jones, £150
15th - S Mahmood, £150
16th - K Patel, £150
17th - Theo Dalton, £150
18th - S Wilsdon, £150
The winner had made day 2 with a puny stack of 26k (blinds 5 minutes off 1,500-3,000), & was second or third lowest stack, so a terrific result for Dave. Dave is a regular at Luton, & he picked up £21,600 in August 2003 when he won the £250 PLH at the Grosvenor UK Open, with Lucy Rokach as runner-up. By coincidence, two of today's money finishers - Jim Reid & K Patel, made the same Final. tikay made that 2003 Final too, finishing in a spectacular 8th spot....Dave also won the Pot Limit 7 Card Stud at the same Festival in 2003.
Runner-up Dave Penly is on a remarkable run, & if you believe in fate, then bet on him to score again in the next day or two. Dave won at Blackpool on November 11th (£20,380) & followed that up 2 days later at the same venue with second for £12,812. A fortnight later he went down to Brighton (he seems to like the seaside!) & scored twice in 2 days. 3rd for £2,700 in the £100 PLH - (tikay made 8th in THAT Final too, so nothing changes) - and 2nd for £5,570 the very next day in the £200 PLH. He also had a minor placing in the previous Luton Festival in December.
Spare a thought for Paul Alterman, who it seems was struck by the curse of the chip leader. He entered Day two as clear chip leader with 110,000 (average 44k), but failed to Final, finishing 10th for £150.
And there was an unusual situation with the 11th & 12th place finishers, who had, coincidentally, been sat next to each other for the last few tables. 11th place Kevin Smith is the son of 12th placed Dave Smith. So the pupil beat the master! A good showing by the 2 guys who both play out of Notts Gala, where Dave currently heads the League standings.
Well done to the winner Dave Courtney, & all those who made the money.
And a big up for the Staff at Luton - they could not have been more caring & helpful, thanks go to all of them. The comp was held in good spirits throughout, no arguments or bad blood, the dealers were spot-on, and there was universal consensus that the 45 minute clock was as good as it gets in a £150 comp.
blondepoker will be bringing you more Reports from the Grosvenor Grand Challenge throughout the week. Dave Colclough joins the fray from Wednesday, so maybe we will have an inside view of a Final or two.