The complaints about the L.A. Poker Classic were started by Allen Kessler last week on Twitter. It is Kessler’s belief that numbers dropped at the prestigious event due to structure tweaks. There were few who agreed with Kessler simply on this point, but there is a larger argument in play. The unique structure of the LAPC is what it makes one of poker’s ‘must play’ events each and every year. There are a few tweaks that can be made but this major event has a formula that works.
- Two Plus Two Poker Forums Archived Forums Strategy Tournament Results: LA Poker Classic Event #34 End of Day 1 Results. Los Angeles, CA 89,000 29 4 5.
- Compete in Los Angeles poker tournaments. Poker series include LAPC, LA Poker Open, Cal State Poker Championship, and The Commerce Hold'em Series.
Leveling up
The World Series of Poker Main Event is the crown jewel of all tournaments. One detail that makes it such is the inclusion of two-hour levels for the duration of the event. Days 3 and 4 of LAPC have this benefit added and it marks the progression of a structure that fits all stages of the tournament.
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Kessler believes that one-hour levels on Day 1 are a mistake and prefers 90. This is incorrect.
For a freezeout event, eliminations have to come at some point in order for the tournament to proceed. A structure tailored for eight 60-minute levels on Day 1 forces action by the end of the night and pulls the field down to a number that allows for the money bubble to hit on Day 3.
Survive Day 1 and you are rewarded with 90-minute levels on Day 2. Simple as that.
Difficult terrain
To build off of a point made by David Baker, poker tournaments are created like golf courses. Not all of them have to be the same, and if you don’t like one, you can play another. Five Diamond and LAPC are both $10,000 events but carry two different structures. The unlimited re-entry at Five Diamond combined with 90-minute levels throughout gives a different feel than LAPC.
Both tournaments take five days to reach the 60-minute final table, they just take different routes to get there. If Five Diamond and LAPC were the exact same structure, why even have the two events?
The former Bay 101 Shooting Star structure and WPT Rolling Thunder event go down to six-handed and 90-minute levels when the field hits 36 players. The addition of Six Max poker is a welcome sight to those who want some spice of life when playing a WPT.
Time to add a full live stream
Poker Central and PokerGO created a new age in poker with the abundance of live streamed final tables. The product is a proven winner and there is a step further they could go to bring in more fans to their subscription-based model.
Poker PROductions set up in Los Angeles days in advance to bring coverage of the final table. Next year, the crew can bring two extra table sets with them to stream from the final three tables down to a winner.
PokerGO wants to put stars on their broadcasts and Phil Hellmuth, as well as Chance Kornuth, fit the bill. The two players placed in the top-20 at LAPC but the only way to experience their run was through live updates. Live streams are the present and future of poker and including them before a final table is music to viewers’ ears. A Hellmuth rant going viral benefits PokerGO.
Does the cost of extra tables add up to the benefit of putting stars like Hellmuth on one of poker’s largest stages? It’s an interesting thought that fans want to see answered with a resounding yes.
What to do to bring up the field size?
Matt Savage can’t be pleased with the drop off from 500-plus entrants in Seasons XIV and XV to 493 in 2018. The $1 million guaranteed first-place prize fell into place to draw out East Coasters who were on the fence to justify the costs of flying cross-country for what could ultimately be only an hour of play. Ask Ari Engel.
The loss of Bay 101 on the schedule hurt LAPC. Assuming that marquee event does not return to the schedule in Season XVII, what does LAPC do to bring up numbers? The option of changing the structure is not available.
Photo courtesy of WPT/Flickr
Below are the results of season three of the World Poker Tour television series (2004–2005).
Results[edit]
Grand Prix de Paris[edit]
- Casino: Aviation Club de France, Paris[1]
- Buy-in: €10,000
- 5-Day Event: July 17, 2004 to July 21, 2004
- Number of Entries: 205
- Total Prize Pool: €1,957,750
- Number of Payouts: 27
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Surinder Sunar | €679,860 ($828,956) |
| 2nd | Tony G | €339,930 ($414,478) |
| 3rd | Jim Overman | €203,960 ($248,689) |
| 4th | Peter Roche | €135,970 ($165,789) |
| 5th | Ben Roberts | €101,980 ($124,345) |
| 6th | Dave Colclough | €84,890 ($103,507) |
Mirage Poker Showdown[edit]
- Casino:The Mirage, Paradise, Nevada[1]
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 4-Day Event: July 29, 2004 to August 1, 2004
- Number of Entries: 281
- Total Prize Pool: $2,725,200
- Number of Payouts: 27
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Eli Elezra | $1,024,574 |
| 2nd | Lee Watkinson | $513,038 |
| 3rd | Gabe Kaplan | $256,519 |
| 4th | John Juanda | $162,012 |
| 5th | Scotty Nguyen | $121,509 |
| 6th | Jim Meehan | $94,507 |
Legends of Poker[edit]
- Casino:Bicycle Casino, Los Angeles[1]
- Buy-in: $5,000
- 4-Day Event: August 28, 2004 to August 31, 2004
- Number of Entries: 667
- Total Prize Pool: $3,335,000
- Number of Payouts: 63
- Winning Hand: Q♥9♥
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Doyle Brunson | $1,198,260 |
| 2nd | Lee Watkinson | $578,375 |
| 3rd | Pete Lawson | $272,665 |
| 4th | Grant Helling | $170,175 |
| 5th | Joe Awada | $132,200 |
| 6th | Tom Lee | $99,150 |
Borgata Poker Open[edit]
- Casino: Borgata, Atlantic City[1]
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 4-Day Event: September 19, 2004 to September 22, 2004
- Number of Entries: 302
- Total Prize Pool: $3,020,000
- Number of Payouts: 27
- Winning Hand: A♠A♦
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Daniel Negreanu | $1,117,400 |
| 2nd | David Williams | $573,800 |
| 3rd | Josh Arieh | $286,900 |
| 4th | Chris Tsiprailidis | $181,200 |
| 5th | Brandon Moran | $135,900 |
| 6th | Phil Ivey | $105,700 |
Ultimate Poker Classic[edit]
- Casino: Radisson Aruba Resort & Casino, Palm Beach, Aruba[1]
- Buy-in: $6,000
- 6-Day Event: September 26, 2004 to October 1, 2004
- Number of Entries: 647
- Total Prize Pool: $3,879,000
- Number of Payouts: 200
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Eric Brenes | $1,000,000 |
| 2nd | Layne Flack | $500,000 |
| 3rd | Mike Matusow | $250,000 |
| 4th | Pat McMillan | $170,000 |
| 5th | John Juanda | $130,000 |
| 6th | Vic Fey | $105,000 |
Festa Al Lago (Doyle Brunson North American Poker Championship)[edit]
- Casino:Bellagio, Las Vegas [1]
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 4-Day Event: October 19, 2004 to October 22, 2004
- Number of Entries: 312
- Total Prize Pool: $3,026,400
- Number of Payouts: 50
- Winning Hand: K♣10♣
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Carlos Mortensen | $1,000,000 |
| 2nd | Kido Pham | $496,400 |
| 3rd | David Pham | $255,000 |
| 4th | Erik Seidel | $165,000 |
| 5th | Hung La | $120,000 |
| 6th | John Juanda | $84,000 |
World Poker Finals[edit]
- Casino: Foxwoods, Mashantucket, Connecticut[1]
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 5-Day Event: November 13, 2004 to November 17, 2004
- Number of Entries: 674
- Total Prize Pool: $6,765,000
- Number of Payouts: 60
- Winning Hand: 6-7
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Tuan Le | $1,549,588 |
| 2nd | Temperance Hutter | $973,256 |
| 3rd | Humberto Brenes | $636,930 |
| 4th | Bradley Berman | $470,452 |
| 5th | J.C. Tran | $353,850 |
| 6th | David Pham | $277,014 |
Five Diamond World Poker Classic[edit]
- Casino: Bellagio, Las Vegas [1]
- Buy-in: $15,000
- 5-Day Event: December 14, 2004 to December 18, 2004
- Number of Entries: 376
- Total Prize Pool: $5,470,800
- Number of Payouts: 50
- Winning Hand: K-7
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Daniel Negreanu | $1,770,218 |
| 2nd | Humberto Brenes | $923,475 |
| 3rd | Vinny Landrum | $462,851 |
| 4th | Jennifer Harman | $299,492 |
| 5th | Steve Rassi | $217,812 |
| 6th | Nam Le | $152,468 |
PokerStars Caribbean Poker Adventure[edit]
- Casino:Atlantis, Paradise Island, Bahamas[1]
- Buy-in: $7,800
- 4-Day Event: January 8, 2005 to January 11, 2005
- Number of Entries: 461
- Total Prize Pool: $3,595,600
- Number of Payouts: 75
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | John Gale | $890,000 |
| 2nd | Alex Balandin | $484,000 |
| 3rd | Mikael Westerlund | $306,000 |
| 4th | Patrick Hocking | $207,000 |
| 5th | John Cernuto | $155,800 |
| 6th | Nenad Medic | $112,000 |
World Poker Open[edit]
- Casino:Gold Strike Resort and Casino, Tunica[1]
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 4-Day Event: January 24, 2005 to January 27, 2005
- Number of Entries: 512
- Total Prize Pool: $4,832,773
- Number of Payouts: 44
- Winning Hand: A-10
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Johnny Stolzmann | $1,491,444 |
| 2nd | Chau Giang | $773,448 |
| 3rd | Daniel Negreanu | $384,322 |
| 4th | Scotty Nguyen | $336,282 |
| 5th | Michael Mizrachi | $288,241 |
| 6th | Raja Kattamuri | $240,201 |
L.A. Poker Classic[edit]
- Casino:Commerce Casino, Los Angeles [1]
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 5-Day Event: February 18, 2005 to February 22, 2005
- Number of Entries: 538
- Total Prize Pool: $5,166,414
- Number of Payouts: 45
- Winning Hand: A-9
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Michael Mizrachi | $1,859,909 |
| 2nd | Haralabos Voulgaris | $904,122 |
| 3rd | Hung La | $444,312 |
| 4th | Ted Forrest | $263,487 |
| 5th | Erick Lindgren | $206,657 |
| 6th | Harley Hall | $154,992 |
Bay 101 Shooting Star[edit]
- Casino:Bay 101, San Jose, California[1]
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 5-Day Event: March 7, 2005 to March 11, 2005
- Number of Entries: 438
- Total Prize Pool: $4,070,000
- Number of Payouts: 45
- Winning Hand: 4-3
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Danny Nguyen | $1,025,000 |
| 2nd | Jay Martens | $600,000 |
| 3rd | Gus Hansen | $320,000 |
| 4th | Shandor Szentkuti | $280,000 |
| 5th | Corey Cheresnick | $240,000 |
| 6th | Men Nguyen | $200,000 |
Party Poker Million[edit]
- Buy-in: $10,000 [1]
- 5-Day Event: March 19, 2005 to March 23, 2005
- Number of Entries: 735
- Total Prize Pool: $7,430,000
- Number of Payouts: 180
- Winning Hand: J-2
La Poker Classic 2020 Winner
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Michael Gracz | $1,525,500 |
| 2nd | David Minto | $1,000,000 |
| 3rd | Matthew Cherackal | $700,000 |
| 4th | Adam Csallany | $500,000 |
| 5th | Paul Darden | $300,000 |
| 6th | Richard Kain | $200,000 |
- This event, which was limit hold 'em, had the largest prize pool in history for a tournament that was not played at no-limit hold 'em.
World Poker Challenge[edit]
- Casino: Reno Hilton, Reno[1]
- Buy-in: $5,000
- 4-Day Event: March 29, 2005 to April 1, 2005
- Number of Entries: 345
- Total Prize Pool: $1,725,350
- Number of Payouts: 27
- Winning Hand: 4♠3♠
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Arnold Spee | $633,880 |
| 2nd | Blair Rodman | $327,815 |
| 3rd | Phil Ivey | $163,908 |
| 4th | Michael Yoshino | $103,521 |
| 5th | Russ Carlson | $77,641 |
| 6th | Mark Chapic | $60,387 |
WPT Championship[edit]
- Casino: Bellagio, Las Vegas [1]
- Buy-in: $25,000
- 7-Day Event: April 18, 2005 to April 24, 2005
- Number of Entries: 453
- Total Prize Pool: $10,961,000
- Number of Payouts: 100
- Winning Hand: K-J
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Tuan Le | $2,856,150 |
| 2nd | Paul Maxfield | $1,698,390 |
| 3rd | Hasan Habib | $896,375 |
| 4th | John Phan | $518,920 |
| 5th | Rob Hollink | $377,420 |
| 6th | Phil Ivey | $264,195 |
Other Events[edit]
During season 3 of the WPT there was one special event that did not apply to the Player of the Year standings:
- The WPT Invitational - February 23-24, 2005 - Commerce Casino - postscript to Event #11: L.A. Poker Classic
References[edit]
- ^ abcdefghijklmno'World Poker Tour Season 3 results'. theHendonMob.com. Retrieved 2008-10-15.
La Poker Classic Winner