New Jersey Man Beats the Field at Borgata Poker Open

ATLANTIC CITY, New Jersey – (PRESS RELEASE) -- Event eight of Borgata's 2006 Poker Open came to a conclusion late Wednesday night as Joseph Brooks of Egg Harbor Township, NJ, defeated poker great Lars Bonding for the title. The field of 317players in the $2,500 buy-in event included several of the biggest names in poker, including former World Poker Tour Player of the Year, Eric "E-Dog" Lingren and Barry Greenstein. After surviving the fierce competition, Brooks elevated his game in the final rounds and scored a big victory.

The crowd erupted when South Jersey local, Brooks, overcame a dangerously short chip stack to defeat Bonding in head's up action. Brooks was nearly speechless after the event as the crowd continued to cheer. Brooks commented, "Borgata is my 'home turf.' I was the underdog at a final table of poker greats and it is difficult to explain how great it feels to win my first major championship at the Borgata Poker Open. I really appreciate all the fans and staff at the Event Center." Brooks took home the biggest prize of the 2006 Borgata Poker Open to date, collecting $241,713 and the Champion's Rolex watch from Bernie Robbins Fine Jewelry.

Bonding, who should feel little disappointment with his second-place finish, collected $133,140 and third-place finisher Mike Gracz -- one of the top players in the world -- took home $64,589 as payouts sky-rocketed for this high buy-in event. Bonding said after the event, "I am happy for Joey. I had most of the chips when we began head's up, but he played great and won. I am happy with my finish and look forward to coming back to Borgata."

Fourth-place finisher, Padraig Parkinson of Ireland, collected $55,475 for his efforts. Padraig is a fan favorite both in Europe and the US for his outgoing personality and self-deprecating humor. Parkinson was all smiles after the tournament and had no regrets about his fourth place finish. Parkinson commented, "Amongst Europeans, Borgata is known as the gold standard, the best. I skipped a major European tournament to come to the Borgata Poker Open and now I am sure it was a good decision. They treat people right at Borgata."

The first day of the five-day WPT Main Event begins this Friday at 11:00 a.m. Plenty of fireworks are expected to light up the action as the best players from all over the country try to take home the prestigious title and first-place cash prize at this $10,000 buy-in event.

Poker greats Phil Laak and Antonio Esfandiari will host the WPT Kick-Off Party at Mixx tonight. The evening will feature music by DJ Basara and a hosted bar from 8:00 - 10:00 p.m. In addition, attendees will be invited to step-up their game with the pros themselves on PokerPro(TM), the revolutionary automated poker table that merges the gap between online and live poker.