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Friday, Oct. 10, 2008

Deluge of pros forecast for WPT NAPC

Scott Clements is the current North American Poker Champion, but a new one could soon be crowned.

By Miguel Strother

The WPT North American Poker Championship is set to see some of the world's best poker pros pour down on Fallsview Resort and Casino Niagara, Oct. 10-13.

Built on a cliff that looks right over Niagara's world-famous Horseshoe Falls, Fallsview Casino Resort is the largest gaming resort facility in Canada. To feel any closer to the falls you'd have to try your luck in a barrel. We say try the poker room instead.

It's the third time in as many years that the Canadian casino hosts the tournament, and all of the satellites should make for a volatile poker mix of amateurs and big-time pros.

"While many poker fans focus their attention on the big-name pro players like Daniel Negreanu, it's the satellite system with its low buy-ins that makes the WPT so exciting," said Greg Medulun, director of communications for Fallsview Casino Resort.

"We have amateur players who have been working on their poker skills online and in casino poker rooms for years winning satellite tournaments for as little as $70 and getting a shot at big-time professional poker against the giants of the poker world."

PartyPoker, for example, is offering $13,000 packages to the WPT NAPC, which cover the $10,000+$300 buy-in and also afford winners spending money and accommodation in Niagara Falls. In fact, the site holds daily qualifiers starting from just $1.

Satellites of this sort have already generated at least one winner in the WPT NAPC's short history. In 2006, Soren Turkewitsch of Oshawa, Canada entered a $90 satellite and marched on to win the whole show, which amounted to more than $1 million.

"A lot of things went my way," said Turkewitsch of the win in an interview. "I got lucky. The biggest thing was on the first day, I think I would have been out. I should have been out. Barry Greenstein had pocket aces and somebody came in for a raise, and they raised to about $2,200 and I pushed all-in for like $19,000 on the puck.

"Barry was sitting in the big blind with pocket aces and he called it, and then the original raiser called it with ace-king, and I had king-jack offsuit. And I just sucked out on them and tripled up."

That was the first time the event was ever played, and it paved the way for a great follow-up. Last year's WPT NAPC drew 504 players and a prize pool of $5,133,335, and organizers think they could exceed that this year.

"All we've heard from the players over the last two years is how much they love coming to Fallsview to play in the North American Poker Championship," says Medulun. "That means we're doing our job as the host property and it also means big fields and big prize purses."

Last season's WPT NAPC saw Scott "BigRiskky" Clements take down the $1,361,724 first-place prize by besting Jonathan Little in what was at the time one of the longest tables in WPT history.

In the final hand Jonathan Little raised $180,000 on the spot with Clements calling. The flop came 7 5 5 with a couple of checks. The turn brought out Little for a bet of $250k. Clements raised and Little came all-in over the top. Holding Q 5, Clements insta-called with his trip fives and shortly thereafter knocked Little out in second.

Clements is from Mount Vernon, Wash. and last year's WPT NAPC was his second WPT title. The first was in the Canadian Open Championship in 2006. He also has two World Series of Poker bracelets, one in a 2006 $3k Omaha Hi-Lo tournament and the other in $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha in 2007. His total career tournament earnings amount to more than $3 million.

Considering all his luck in the Great White North, don't be surprised if you see Clements in on the action again this year.

Be sure to check out all the results from the WPT NAPC in the PokerListings' Live Tournaments section here.