Have you ever looked at your stack during a Poker tournament and thought, "Gee, I'd love to just cash this out right now!" Well, 103 brave souls recently faced down torrential thunder storms and active tornado warnings for that very opportunity!

The inaugural Badhat-White Tiger Cash Blast No-Limit Hold 'em Poker Tournament is complete, and officially declared a raging success!

On July 30, Tunica's Horseshoe Casino presented the tournament that was hosted by the creators and licensed owners of the new format, Kenny "Badhat" Piel, and Mike "White Tiger" Woods, two local poker pros.

Their format adds a new and exciting twist to a hold 'em event. Once the tournament is underway, players can cash out their chips at full face value, and leave the event any time they choose.

Once a player declares to the dealer that he wants to cash out, the floor is notified and that player's chips are no longer in play. The departing player may not re-enter the tournament, effectively surrendering any claim to the $2,500 that was added to first place by the Horseshoe.

Poker room tournament director Dale Carden was delighted with player reaction to this new and exciting format. "We couldn't have scripted a better response to this," he said. "They just loved it; I didn't hear a negative comment from anyone!"

When asked how they developed the format, Piel said it came about after he witnessed a young, inexperienced player attempt to cash out $62,000 in tournament chips during a traditional no-limit hold 'em event. Everyone got a good laugh out of it, but in later discussions, Piel and Woods decided to design a format that allows just that! After resolving legal issues, state gaming concerns, and copyrighting the entire format, they approached the Horseshoe Casino. The poker room management immediately saw the potential and jumped on the offer to present the first Badhat-White Tiger Cash Blast No Limit Hold 'em Poker Tournament.

Players bought into the event for $339, with $9 going to the dealers, $30 to the house, and $300 in tournament chips as their starting stack. The Horseshoe added $2,500 to first place. The blinds, antes, and varying length of the levels were carefully designed by Piel and Woods to allow a cash game feel during the beginning stages, which morphed into a tournament feel toward the end.

One of the first people to opt for a cash-out was Kathy Rider from Flippin, Arkansas. Kathy remarked, "It was so unique and different, I was excited to try it. It was just great fun." Kathy turned her $300 buy in into a cool $1,670.

The final five players finished in the following order:
1. J.C. Lero . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$4,220
2. Ben Mints . . . . . . . . . . . . .$3,280
3. William Totolos . . . . . . . .$2,270
4. Scotty Branch . . . . . . . . . .$2,045
5. Joe Sylvester . . . . . . . . . . .$1,600

There was no prize pool, Woods said. "All the chips on the tables ($30,900) were in play at a dollar for dollar exchange rate when a player opted to leave." The house money was added at the end for the remaining players when the event concluded and the remaining players agreed to chop the house money by percentage according to their chip count!

When the house money was divided up by chip count, here's how much each player made additionally: 1. $763, 2. $593, 3. $410, 4. $390 and 5. $298

Piel and Woods plan to take their tournament to casino poker rooms across the country. If you hold poker tournaments and are looking for something new and exciting for your players, contact them at RealBadhat@badhatpoker.com, or by phone at 928.925.5641 for more information.

Donna Marks has worked in the poker industry on both coasts, as a dealer, in management, and as a player. She is Poker Player Newspaper's sales rep in the Florida area. Reach Donna at Pokerdonna@aol.com.