Gold Takes Home Gold in WSOP Finals

Taking home an astounding $12 million, Jamie Gold beat nearly 8,500 other players at the final table of the World Series of Poker (WSOP).

Gold, a 36-year-old television producer from Malibu, CA, who can count James Gandolfini as one of his former clients, outlasted eight other final table players ending the game with all $88 million in chips and the largest chunk of a $35 million prize pool as well as a jewel encrusted WOSP bracelet. Gold started at the final table leading the competition with $25,650,000.

The final hand of the tournament, which cost players $10,000 a pop to enter, came down to a bluff. Jamie Gold raised to $1,700,000 and Paul Wasicka made the call before the flop, which was a Q  8  5 . Paul Wasicka bet $1,500,000 and Jamie Gold moved all in. Wasicka called and showed 10 10 . Gold turned over Q 9  for a pair of queens. The turn was the A  and the river was the 4 . Though he placed second he still earned $6,102,499 for his efforts.

"I knew that he was weak, but he had a hand. And then I knew it was my chance," Gold told the Associated Press after winning. "I went all in, and then I just went into my act. I actually talked him into calling with the worst of it, and that won the whole tournament."

Before winning, Gold had said he wanted to win the tournament to make his father -- who has ALS (Lou Gehrig\'s disease) -- proud in the little time he has left. Gold has been a lifelong player who learned the art of poker from his mother and takes part in regular home games.

Paul Wasicka, whose nickname is "Kwickfish," taught himself to play poker 2.5 years ago with the help of some friends. A former bartender and restaurant manager, the 25-year-old counts "sucking out on aces" as a hobby. Prior to making the Main Event final table, the Westminster, CO, resident\'s best finish came earlier this year, when he placed 15th in another tournament. He entered the final table in 5th place with $7,970,000 in chips

In commenting on the final hand, Wasicka said: "I felt like I had a perfect read on him all day, whenever he would show his bluff, I thought he was bluffing. But against a player like that it makes it really difficult. You kind of just have to go with your gut. That\'s what I did, and it was wrong."

In 3rd place was Michael Binger who took home $4,123,310 while Allen Cunningham left with $3,628,513 for his 4th place finish. Placing 5th was Rhett Butler who won $3,216,182 and I suspect he frankly doesn’t give a dam while Richard Less finished 6th with $2,803,851 in prize money.

The poker craze is continuing to explode to record numbers. Just last year the Main Event of the 2005 World Series of Poker drew 5,619 players, while this year an additional 3,100 players put up the $10,000 entry free. The 2005 World Champion was Joseph Hachem of Melbourne, Australia, who took home $7.5 million.

The World Series of Poker is now owned by Harrah’s Entertainment who saved the tournament when they purchased Binion's Horseshoe Hotel & Casino in 2004. At the time the Horseshoe was closed by federal marshals and all its cash seized to payback the employee’s culinary union health care and pension trust fund to recoup up to $2 million.

Binion\'s Horseshoe Hotel & Casino had hosted the World Series of Poker since its inception in 1970 until it was moved to the Rio all-Suites Las Vegas.

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