The $2,500 + $100 buy-in No Limit Texas Hold'em event #11 of the Mirage Poker Showdown played the final table today. Chip leader, Chris Bigler of Las Vegas, stayed the course and won the event when he went heads up with second place finisher Max Pescatori also of Las Vegas. The two pros faced each other for less than five minutes before Max went all-in with A,4 of hearts and Chris quickly called with A,Qo. The flop came J,Q,Q giving Chris a set and Max was drawing dead, no outs.

PLAYER Profile PHIL Hellmuth

Phil Hellmuth is seemingly everywhere across the landscape of the business and poker worlds.

His sturdy presence is reflected in the attitude projected by this winner of nine World Series of Poker bracelets who finished in the money five times at the most recent Series and was the youngest winner ever of the main event when he took the 1989 title at the age of 24.

He's 40 now and does not even pretend to do "modest" very well.

No Founding Father was more responsible for America's independence and the democratic government that followed than John Adams. His contribution was at least equal to that of Washington or Jefferson.

The second President of the United States descended from America's original risk-takers, the Puritans. John Adams' family arrived in Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1638, nearly a century before he was born. He always considered himself an American.

The state of New Jersey, being one of the original colonies which formed the United States, has seen its share of history, and a large part of its history recently has been focused on Absecon Island, which is the site of the resort town of Atlantic City, one of the best-known cities in the United States. Merely the mention of Atlantic City, about 125 miles south of New York City and 60 miles southeast of Philadelphia, brings forth different images for different people.

Why is poker so entertaining to us? Part of its appeal is that you are rarely in the same situation twice. Variability. Imagine the number of combinations there are in a shuffled deck of 52 cards [It's approximately 8×10^67 -Ed.]. Combine that with the number of players with varying play styles you're likely to see, and you've got quite a decision space in which to act. Just when you think you've seen it all, another deal of the cards makes you shake your head. The foundation of our pastime lies in the concept of a fair shuffle.

The $2,500 + $80 buy-in No Limit Hold'em event scheduled at the Mirage Poker Showdown tournament began promptly at noon with 159 players taking seats. The group played all afternoon and at the 9:00 pm dinner break 16 hopefuls remained. Two players were quickly eliminated after returning from the dinner hour dropping the number of survivors to 14. The top eighteen finishers get paid so everyone left will go away with some of the prize pool.

I'm the Stud expert. I started with $50 at Party Poker. Knowing the potential risks of losing my entire bankroll, I played carefully. I followed my own best advice, willingly sacrificing some pieces of optimal play in the interests of reducing risks. I learned to win steadily if not by as much as I could if I were willing to accept more volatile play.

BREAKFAST: Two eggs (over medium), bacon, sausage, hash browns (extra crispy), a stack of pancakes (with maple syrup) two pieces of buttered sourdough toast and a large glass of bubbly cola to wash it all down.

LUNCH: A cheeseburger (animal style) which includes double spread (Thousand Island), double grilled onions, double cheese, pickles, lettuce, tomatoes, an order of French Fries, ketchup and a side of spread for dipping, all this was once again washed down with a bubbly cola.

Over the next few issues, I shall be bringing you tales from what is fast becoming one of the most popular events in the poker calendar. With 50K in chips, a slow clock and just nine hours a day play - the $25K buy-in WPT Championship at the Bellagio is poker heaven as far as tournaments go. And as with all major events nowadays, we saw many new faces and online qualifiers.

My first table would provide two such players. It was also soon clear that these two (in seat one and two) would be the action players. But even I was surprised at the plays that they came up with.

Plenty of final table action today, Tuesday May 17, 2005. The biggest would be the $50,000 buy-in, winner take all at the Plaza Hotel and Casino in downtown Las Vegas. Eleven players put up fifty big ones to sit down in the biggest buy-in poker tournament to date. All of the final table action was filmed by the Southern California Poker Tour for later broadcast on national television. Check your local TV schedules for broadcast in your area. The first entrant to pay the $50K and sit in seat #1 was local stockbroker, Bob Bright.