[DoubleG6]

Nearing the end of my WSOP trip, I took sometime to look back and reflect on what ShakeNBake and I had accomplished. Even though I had a rough time playing satellites and tournaments, I was still very happy at the way I played. I got my money in the pot with the best hand, and did not make any mistakes which cost me dearly.

I made a late exit out of the money again from the 2nd chance NLHE tourney, but was happy to see that Shake was still in it. I joined the rail by his table and cheered him on. An interesting hand came up when Shake showed me pocket nines in the BB. A loose aggressive player in late position made a move for the blinds by betting about half of Shakes stack. Faced with what could potentially be his make or break hand, Shake went in the tank. He took into account the 21 players remaining knowing that only 18 would be paid. He also remembered how the raisor would play very loose. After much deliberation Shake raised all in for the rest of his chips. The other player obviously did not expect this and cursed himself for committing to his now obviously weak hand. He made the call nonetheless and flipped over Q3. He made a comment about only needing a Queen. The dealer then slowly turned over the flop and Bam!! A Queen on the door made the guy jump on his chair! Not so fast though as a 9 was the second card revealed prompting Shake and I shout for joy. The turn was the money card, 9, and it was all over but the crying. With new water in the well and the other table busting 2, Shake cruised into the money and set his sights at the first place prize.

I left Shake to work his magic and took a stroll around the Amazon room thinking of what I could have done better. Visibly depressed from my results, I decided to take an empty seat close to the ESPN final table where Farzad Bonyadi and another little known player were heads up playing for a bracelet from yesterday's main event. I was no paying too close attention to the action and couldn't help but feel a little worn out from the long days of poker play. Just then Andy Bloch and company took seats next to me and gave each other play by play commentary on the action. This was really fun, I thought, because they would occasionally talk about what the players were thinking and what they would do when faced in those situations. It was like free poker lessons and I was thankful for the insight. The lessons were soon over when Farzad "Fred" Bonyadi won his 2nd (or 3rd) bracelet ending the tournament. As the people were clearing the area, I noticed that ESPN was prepping the stage for another tourney. What? Another final table? To my delight, I learned from a dealer that ESPN had bonus coverage to shoot when an unscheduled TV tourney produced a fantastic heads up match featuring Phil "The Unabomber" Laak and the perfect player Johnny "The Orient Express" Chan. And as if It couldn't get better, I learned that the ladies event was also at its final table stage featuring Cecelia Mortensen (yup, Mrs. Matador) and who? Jennifer "friggin" Tilly! What the heck is going on here, 4 tourneys simultaneously being played. I am in Poker Heaven. Having a bit of a TV background, I decided to stay and watch ESPN set up (Nerd Stuff).

Just as I was beginning to wonder If this match wouldn't be played until tomorrow, a man in a white shirt and white baseball cap stood next to me and watched to see if anything was developing. I glanced his way and quickly did a double take when I realized that it was Johnny "F____ing" Chan!!!! My eyes nearly popped out of their sockets and I turned to him and extended a handshake. Meeting one of your poker idols would be like a basketball fan meeting Micheal Jordan. Its a feeling like no other. All the bad beats and all the missed opportunities on this trip seemed to melt away as I shook his hand. I think that I had a smile bigger than his (if you know what I mean). I couldn't think of anything to say, so I started talking to him as if Ide know him for years. I said, "Hey John, I know youre gonna do it man. Number 10". He chuckled a bit and said in a calm, almost humble voice, "We'll see, Thank you". I replied that it was an honor to meet him and that I hope one day to join him at the table. He wished me good luck and we parted ways. I really coulndt tell you what happened for the next 10 minutes, coz I was just really happy I had the chance to do that.

I found the ladies event, which just so happened to be right next to the ESPN set, and joined the rail. I snuck in between some people and found myself next to Carlos Mortensen who was rooting his wife on. I made my way around the table and decided to settle right behind Jennifer Tilly who wasnt really protecting her hand very well and I thought I could sneak a peek at her hole cards. She was the chip leader at the time and surprisingly very comfortable playing at this level. A man pulled a chair directly behind me, stood on it, and began taking pictures. The tournament director than stopped the action and said, "Phil no flash". I turned to glance at "Phil\" and found out that it was Phil Laak. Geez, I'm just running into everyone around here. I asked someone for the time and he had said it was around 3:30am. 3:30am and all the action is barely beginning I thought to myself. I took the opportunity to say hi to Phil along with some other railbirds. Phil was very gracious and funny. He entertained us at the rail, occasionally calling out to his lady. Just then Phil was summoned to the set as his match with Johnny Chan was about to begin. I followed right behind him and made a beeline to the set. As if it was fate, there was an empty aisle seat on the bleachers directly behind Phil's seat and I grabbed it. ESPN had an HDTV monitor located just to my right and I could see all the card and chip action as clear as day. The match began and another great surprise was that naturally Johnny was seated directly across Phil. When he would stare down at Phil's direction, It almost seamed like he was staring right at me. I took that opportunity to place myself right in the action. It was not only like a dream, but it was a dream. This little man was just intimidating. He commanded the action almost from the start.

A few hands into the action, I felt a hand on my shoulder and a womans voice whispered to me "How's Phil Doing", I turned to her and replied "not bad, they're still about where they started". That woman by the way was Jennifer Tilly. I noticed that ESPN had a camera crew following her every move and I then spotted myself on the HDTV. I'm used to being behind the scenes and not infront of it. So if you tune in to the Chan-Laak match on ESPN, you maybe able to spot me directly behind Phil on the bleachers next to his girlfriend Tilly. Not exactly how I wanted to end up on ESPN but you cant say I wasnt...lol. Chan won the event in a little over an hour and we gave him the biggest standing ovation.

Shake did well for himself making it to the final table with very few chips. He got it in with J-10 on a A J 10 flop and his opponent had A-K. Great shape until a K came on the river ending his tourney and giving him 9th place. He took home $910 for his efforts, not bad considering it only cost him $10.

It was a great trip. I was witness to many unforgettable moments, historical moments. I took my chance this year and cant hardly wait till next year. Take it from an average Joe, if you have dreams of poker greatness, take that shot. You'll never regret it.