Matt Pe. captures second consecutive win in season finale

Ingram - Matt Pe. outlasted John M. in head's-up play late Saturday night to claim victory in the final regular season event of the 2010-2011 Fish 'N' Chips Poker Tour! With his back-to-back wins in Event's 10 & 11, Matt gained 6 spots in the standings to finish 3rd overall and secure a seat in this season's championship.

Event #11 filled at 20 players however with the late cancellations of sub player Ron C. and regular Kevin An, the field ended up at 18. With 18 players, both Nick G. and Jim S. (2nd and 3rd overall respectively) could overtake Jason Tr. for the top spot. Unfortunately for Jim S, he was the first player eliminated when his daughter Anita G. rivered a royal flush against his 2 pair. Angie, Keith and substitute Tom W. were next evening out the two tables to 7 players apiece.

Jim H. was eliminated in 14th place followed by Chris S, substitute Andy L, and Lolly O. Jason Tr. was out in 10th place and the final table formed.

Sub player Brian N. was eliminated in 9th place when he moved-in with J-10 o/s for 2 pair on a triple diamond flop. Matt Pe. called tabling the Kd-Qd for a flush. Brian missed his full house draw and was out. Jim O. was out 8th when he pushed his short stack in with A-J and was called by John M's A-Q. Anita was out in 7th when she pushed her dwindling stack in with J-10 and ran into Nick's A-K.

Eric Wej's RR all-in with A-10 was called by the pocket 9's of John M. The board brought no help for Eric and he was out in 6th. A few hand's later, Pat M. became the tournament's bubble boy out in 5th place courtesy of Alan K. putting the remaining 4 players in the money.

Nick G's hopes of a 1st place finish and Player of the Year honors fell short when he raised to 100k on the button with A-rag. John M. called from the SB with "Kojack". John checked the Q-9-J flop and Nick quickly moved-in. John had Nick barely covered after getting a count and made the gutsy call with middle pair. The turn and river missed Nick and he was out in 4th place.

Sub player Alan K. was out in 3rd when his K-5 was out-kicked by Matt Pe's K-9 on a 4-7-K flop. Alan raised the flop and Matt moved all-in. Alan called and the turn and river brought no help.

Head's-up play between Matt and John began with blinds at 20k-40k and Matt holding a better than 2-1 chip lead. However John put the pressure on and over the course of several hands managed to get even with his opponent. But Matt battled back and eventually regained a sizeable lead. Once again John re-took the lead. Then John's stack was reduced to smithereens when he called Matt's all-in with K-Q. Matt rolled over A-4. The flop brought an ace and John could not catch up on the turn and river. The very next hand John moved in for his last 150k with pocket jacks. Matt looked him up with the 6d-9d. The 3d-9h-Kd flop gave Matt middle pair and a flush draw however John still led. The 5h turn missed Matt however the 9s river gave Matt three of a kind and the victory.

Congrats to Matt Pe. on his win and good luck to him in the Championship!


~ Jason Tr.


2010-2011 Fish 'N' Chips Poker Tour "April Eight"


With their 1st and 2nd place finishes Saturday night, Matt Pe. and John M. managed to bump out Anita G. and Sean O. from their top eight positions in the final overall standings this season. Anita and Sean will have to compete for the 9th and final seat in the Championship in this season's Championship Qualifier.

Congratulations to the "April Eight" this season who include:

1. Jason Tr. 55.82 points
2. Nick G. 49.25 points
3. Matt Pe. 45.09 points
4. Jim S. 43.78 points
5. Eric Wej. 41.01 points
6. Jason Ta. 39.80 points
7. John M. 39.46 points
8. Jim H. 37.29 points

This season's Championship Event will include double starting stacks (T200,000) plus bonus chips.

With two regular season wins combined with a 2nd and 3rd place finish this season, Jason Tr. rounds out the top spot earning the 2010-2011 Player of the Year honor at 55.82 points. For the second consecutive season, Nick G. finishes in second place overall earning 49.25 points. With his back-to-back victories to finish the regular season, Matt Pe. takes third with 45.09 points. Despite missing 4 events, Jim S. also managed 2 wins and a 2nd place finish to finish 4th overall at 43.78 points. Eric Wej's late season win in Event #9 gave him enough points to secure 5th in the standings at 41.01 points. With his 1st and 3rd place finishes in Event's 4 and 5 and despite missing Event 11, Jason Ta. takes 6th place at 39.80 points. Despite winning Event #3 this season, John M's 2nd place finish in Event #11 solidified his spot in the "April Eight" at 39.46 points. And despite not winning a single event this season, Jim H. managed the 8th spot with 3 straight cashes in Event's 6, 7 and 8 with two 2nd place finishes and a 4th place finish.

Championship Qualifier Update

The following players have earned a seat in this season's Championship Qualifier:

9. Anita G. 35.71 points
10. Sean O. 35.32 points
11. Pat M. 34.58 points
12. Jim O. 30.72 points
13. Mike T. 29.15 points
14. Lolly O. 28.65 points
15. Angie S. 27.74 points
16. Chris S. 25.86 points
17. Kevin An. 24.13 points

This season's qualifier will be the league's standard T20,000 structure plus bonus chips.

The only player players so far to confirm their seats in the qualifier are Anita G. and Kevin An. Kevin An. won the event last season and managed to go on and finish 2nd in the Championship.

If any of the above players cannot play in the qualifier, their spot(s) will be offered to players below position 17 in the overall standings.

Jason Tr. earns FNCPT Player of the Year honor for Season 2

Ingram - Last year, the Player of the Year title was awarded to Mike T. before the season ended. This year, the race came down to the last week of the season. Despite a solid efforts through 10 weeks of the season, three people could still claim the title of "Player of the Year" with a victory in Event #11: Jason Tr., Nick G. and Jim S. Because of his points lead, Jason needed only to finish 4th or better to win it outright. For either Nick or Jim to win it, they would have to win Event #11 and Jason would have to finish back in the standings.

Jim's dream ended early as he was the first player eliminated (by the royal flush of Anita G). It was still a solid season for Jim who managed to remain competitive despite missing 4 events. Jim finished the season 4th in overall points largely based on two wins (Event #2 and Event #5) and a second place finish (Event #8), adding $1,150 to his bankroll in the process.

For Nick to win POTY honors, he needed Jason to finish no better than 5th place. A ray of hope came when Jason was eliminated in 10th place with Nick still alive in the field. Things got even more tense for Jason as Nick continued to build his stack. And just when it looked like Nick might pull off the impossible, he was dealt a cooler, leaving him short-stacked. He pushed on the next hand and was eliminated in 4th place, earning enough points to finish second overall in the standings, still six-and-a-half points behind Jason. Nick ended the season with one victory (the scandalous Event #6), four cashes, and an extra $645 in his pocket.

For Jason, despite a less-than-satisfying finish to the season, he played well throughout. In fact, with a win in event #11, Jason could have actually topped Mike T's point total from the prior year, thought to be an unreachable goal just 12 months ago.

Jason started out the season strong with a win right out of the gate in Event #1. He also cashed in Event #3 (3rd place) before winning his second tournament of the season at Event #8. Jason was actually on the brink of a third victory in Event #9 -- the only thing that stood in his way was clouded judgment and impaired decision-making induced by being over-served Guinness Draught. Despite the one that got away, Jason added $1,070 to his career earnings with 4 cashes, and also pulled in a cool $200 from the props bets.

For his season's worth of labor, Jason will have his name engraved on the Player of the Year trophy. More importantly, he'll be the chip leader at the Championship table, the field for which will be finalized after the upcoming Qualifier.

Congratulations on an outstanding season, Jason, and good luck in the Championship!



~ Eric W.