We begin with the WSOP Player of the Year, my top horse at this table, Ben Lamb. He not only wins an award for sharing my first name, but he also gets the Blow-up award. Lamb ended up all-in with K-J on the first hand and lost to Staszko's 7-7!! That didn't bust him, but Q-6 did a few hands later. Okay, let's think about this for a minute. You are 3-handed. You've played 9 days. You are the WSOP POY. You are a favorite to win even though you are 2nd in chips. Most importantly, you have like 40-something big blinds and you can beat these guys with only 10 big blinds and one card tied behind you're back! It's possible he just didn't want to play anymore, but K-J off really??? And Antonio "The Magician" Esfandiari thinks it's the right play? Maybe he can do a magic trick and make himself disappear from next year's broadcast. Sorry Antonio, mad respect, but I just think you're dead wrong on that one. Sidebar: I can't believe I'm saying this, but I liked Phil Hellmuth's commentary better. Now I've thought a little about this and I see where Lamb was coming from. He knows he can take Heinz, but Staszko is cold and calculating and hadn't been playing too many hands compared to Lamb and Heinz. Also, he was virtually impossible to read. It's possible Lamb's strategy was to in fact be in a coin flip situation with a chance to knock out a tough player. If he loses he still has some chips and can grind back maybe. If he wins he's heads-up and almost even in chips against Heinz who I suspect he had a good read on. Not a bad situation to be in but think about your equity here. You can at least grind with these guys and get heads-up. If you draw Heinz you are probably a favorite even when behind. If you draw Staszko you are gonna have your work cut out for you if he has a lead in chips. Then you can go all-in with K-J. To me, the top three is a new tournament. I treat it the same way as when there are 9 people. Don't finish 9th, don't finish 3rd. I'm guessing many poker players (especially the "pros") would disagree with me and say you should just go for the win. This is fine. Maybe someday we can see whose theory works on the felt. I long for that day! Not taking anything away from Benba, but I thought it was impatient and not the correct play in that situation.
The heads-up match between the 45 year old looking 35 year old Czech, Martin Staszko (Worst Dressed award) and 22 year old Pius Heinz (Most Aggressive award) was entertaining whether you are a poker enthusiast or not. There was virtually no interaction verbally between the two players. Maybe that's because they speak different languages? It was White vs Plaid for the Championship. Seriously, plaid? What is it 1992? I was waiting for Smells Like Teen Spirit to start playing whenever Staszko won a hand. If he'd had a pocket protector and thick horn-rimmed glasses to go with it I think he would've won the tournament. I must say though, it was an epic battle. The lead changed hand several times and the level of aggression between these two was unlike anything I would have imagined given the money at stake. In the end it was Heinz and his A-K prevailing over Staszko's 10-7 suited. Germany rejoices!So there it is in a nutshell. Poker has a new potential ambassador. I can only hope Pius Heinz does what he can to promote poker in Germany and around the world. ESPN deserves a lot of credit for great coverage while protecting the integrity of the game with their 15 minute delay. Poker has come a long way in the last 8 years and still has a long way to go. This year's coverage of the final table with Lon McEarhen, Norman Chad, and Antonio Esfandiari (is it just me or does he sound like he just did a wake and bake before he went on the air?) was refreshing and I already can't wait till next year. Till then...
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