Poker dealer wins Casino Employees Championship
30 May 2010
Pham was born in Vietnam and currently works at the Village Club Casino, in Chula Vista, Calif. Pham describes the Village Club Casino as a place with many friendly people. He considers much of the staff to be like his family.
Pham first started playing poker in 1995, and plays mostly online. His favorite poker games are Seven-Card Stud and Pot-Limit Omaha. Pham also plays in several tournaments each year, mostly in the Los Angeles area.
Pham was never in serious danger at the final table. However, Pham was very fortunate early in the tournament when on Day One he committed much of his stack with queen-jack after flopping a jack. His opponent had pocket aces. Pham caught a queen on the turn to make two pair and ended up winning the hand. He was in comfortable chip position from that point forward.
Pham later stated he was fortunate to be dealt several big hands. He stated he was dealt pocket aces about 12 times and was dealt pocket kings eight times during the tournament.
This was Pham's biggest cash to date. This was also his first major tournament victory.
Pham claims the first WSOP bracelet of 2010 (photo by GreasieWheels)
Pham collected $71,424 for first place. He was also awarded his first WSOP gold bracelet. He expects to play in more WSOP events this year, primarily focusing on the upcoming $1,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em tournaments.
"I feel very good. I am very, very happy," said Pham. "I can't wait to tell everybody. I told my boss I would take vacation to (play in this tournament). So now, I get to go back to them and show them what I won."
All final table players were from the United States. However, two of the players were born abroad. Four different states were represented at the final table – including California, Nevada, Washington, and Georgia. Players from Washington took three of the top five spots.
The runner up was A.J. Vea (a.k.a. Arthur Vea), a 27-year-old poker dealer from Union City, Calif. When heads-up play began, Pham enjoyed a sizable chip lead over A.J. Vea. The heads-up match lasted only about 15 minutes.
The final hand of the tournament came when Pham was dealt Ac Ad. Vea was dealt 4s 4c. After the flop came Qh 7d 2c, Pham moved all-in and Vea made a crying call after deliberating for a few minutes. The board ran out 5d and 6c, giving Pham the victory with pocket aces.
The third-place finisher was Chris Reider, a table games dealer from Everett, Wash. He is a former U.S. Navy veteran who someday hopes to make it as a poker professional.
Matt Hollinger, from Vancouver, Wash., a casino table games manager, finished fourth, while Patrick Silvey, from Spokane, Wash., a poker dealer at the Northern Quest Casino, was fifth.
The sixth-place finisher was Kent Washington, from Oakland, Calif. He is a poker dealer at Lucky Chances Casino. He currently has five cashes at the WSOP, including a third-place showing at the 2004 WSOP. Washington has 40 major cashes overall and nearly $400,000 in live tournament winnings, to date.
The seventh-place finisher was D.J. Villegas, from Valinda Heights, Calif. He works as a floorman at the Commerce Casino in Los Angeles. The eighth-place finisher was Jeffrey Bennett, a bartender from Atlanta, Ga. The ninth-place finisher was Yuta Motsyama, from Las Vegas, Nev. He is a financial analyst who is originally from Japan. Prior to working in the casino industry, Motsyama was a former racecar driving instructor for the Mario Andretti Racing School.
Former WSOP Tournament Director Jack McClelland, who oversaw operations during 1984 through 1998 at Binion's Horseshoe, finished in 22nd place.
Attendance for this tournament declined from last year's number, when there were 866 entries. This year's event attracted 721 entries. The total prize pool for the $500 event was $324,450. The top 72 finishers collected prize money.
The tournament began in grand fashion with WSOP Tournament Director Jack Effel welcoming players to the first event on this year's schedule. In his opening remarks, Effel said, "All of you are special to us. Without casino employees, there is no live poker. Without casino employees, there is no Las Vegas. Without casino employees, there is no WSOP." The last comment evoked loud cheers from the gallery of players and spectators.
The tournament was played over two consecutive days – which extended into a third day when the final table stretched into Sunday morning. The final table was played inside the Amazon Room, on an ESPN designated feature table. Despite the late hour, a large crowd of spectators watched most of the action.
The Casino Employees Championship is not considered an "open" event, since entry is restricted to workers in the gaming industry. This is one of three non-open events on the 2010 WSOP schedule. The other non-open events are the Ladies World Championship and the Seniors World Championship. All the other 54 tournaments are open events, since anyone over the age of 21 is eligible to enter.
The first Casino Employees Championship was held at the 2000 WSOP. It was then called the "Dealers World Poker Championship." At the time, the tournament was only open to casino dealers. The following year, all casino employees became eligible. The inaugural event attracted only 109 entries. It doubled in size the next year due to the expanded eligibility.
The Casino Employees Championship was initially added to the WSOP schedule to recognize the considerable contributions of many dedicated professionals in the gaming industry. It has been an official gold bracelet event during all 11 years it's been held.
From 2000 to 2003, the Casino Employees Championship was played as a Limit Hold'em tournament. Since 2004, the event has been a No-Limit Hold'em tournament. The largest turnout in history for this event took place at the 2006 WSOP when 1,232 players entered.
(Modified from original notes by Nolan Dalla for www.wsop.com)