$1,500 Ace-to-Five Lowball

The Lowdown on Lowball: Ace-to-Five Lowball World Championship
By Nolan Dalla

EDITOR'S PRELIMINARY NOTE: THIS STORY IS BY NOLAN DALLA, THE THIRD OF THE THREE TALENTED WRITERS (the other two being Max Shapiro and Lee Munzer) WHO GRACIOUSLY AGREED TO ASSIST ME AS BACK-UP REPORTERS DURING THE LONGEST WSOP IN HISTORY. I WANTED TO BE ABLE TO STAY FRESH TO GIVE YOU MY BEST DURING THIS LONG WSOP, AND ALSO WANTED TO BE ABLE TO PLAY SOME EVENTS MYSELF. NOLAN HAS BEEN A RESPECTED COLUMNIST FOR BOTH CARD PLAYER AND POKER DIGEST FOR MANY YEARS, AND I'M SURE YOU'LL LIKE HIS WORK. I'LL BE BACK TOMORROW, COVERING THE FINAL TABLE OF THE $1,500 NO-LIMIT HOLD'EM EVENT. THAT SAID, LETS MOVE ON TO NOLAN'S REPORT.
             -- ANDREW N.S. GLAZER, EDITOR, WEDNESDAY NITE POKER

The most unique feature of lowball is that the worst poker hand wins. Imagine that! Getting dealt "bad" cards and winning pots! Forget about high cards and big pairs. Forget about the cards with rich colors and textures of royalty. They may look pretty in most poker games. But in lowball -- face cards and pairs are the kiss of death. Chip busters. Suicide. It's aces, deuces, three, fours, and fives that make lowball players happy.

Of lowball's many variations, the most popular variety most certainly is ace-to-five draw. Played with the caveat of adding a joker (meaning 53 cards are in the deck instead of 52), the best possible lowball hand is refered to as a "wheel" -- 5-4-3-2-A. The next best hand is 6-4-3-2-A. After that, it's 6-5-3-2-A, and so forth.

The origins of this quirky but fascinating card game descend from as far back as the early 1930s, when poker was first legalized in California during the Great Depression. Born in tough economic times, it was a reflection of an era when poker was much simpler, long before the rammin' jammin' modern age of insanity that permeates inside so many cardrooms today. In fact, simple draw games such as lowball dominated the California poker scene for over 50 years -- at least until the flop games (Texas hold'em and Omaha) kicked-off a whole new craze when they were first approved in California's cardrooms in 1987. For over a half century, the good citizens of Golden State made ace-to-five lowball their own. They became the masters of this game. Other than a few odd games spread occasionlly throughout the U.S. and overseas (London in particular, which introduced it's own variation of lowball several years ago), California remains the undisputed home of lowball poker.

When a specific area or or region of the country becomes known as a hotbed for a specific card game, it's no surpirse then that the players from that region gradually come dominate the event at major poker tournaments. Texans proved this in the early days of hold'em Players from back East dominated seven-card stud. And players from Europe eventually reigned supreme in most forms of pot-limit. The ace-to-five lowball event at this year's World Series of Poker was no exception. In an event that began on May 5th with a grand total of 111 entries -- 16 players placed in the money. Of the 16 money winners, eight players (half) were from California. Of the eight players who made the final table, four were Californians. But that's only half of the story. As it turned out -- a crafy Norweigian would have his own idea about who the world's very best lowball player might be.

Play in the $1500 buy-in ace-to-five lowball event continued on Day Two, with blinds at the final table set at $1500 and $1000, with betting limits of $1500-3000. Coming into the final table, the chip counts were as follows:

Seat 7: Brian Nadell, Las Vegas, NV    $38,500
Seat 4: Thor Hansen, Oslo, Norway    $36,000
Seat 2: David Hockstra, San Pedro, CA    $25,500
Seat 8: Tony Grand, Chatsworth, CA    $21,500
Seat 5: Norm Ketchum, Rockford, IL    $17,500
Seat 3: Cary Moomjian, Dallas, TX    $17,000
Seat 6: Ken Coplon, Malibu, CA    $8,000
Seat 1: Tom Moore, Orange, CA    $3,000

The end would come quickly for those not fortunate enough to come in with decent stack sizes. Starting at the final table with only $3,000 in chips, and now down to a single $500 chip after just 15 minutes of play, Tom Moore avoided impending elimination as he watched Ken Coplon move all-in with his remaining chips in a four-way pot. Sensing the opportunity to get back into the game by quadrupling his stack size, Coplon pushed his remaining chips into the pot and drew one card. Coplon caught nearly perfect to complete a 6-4-3-2-A -- the second-best possible hand in ace-to-five lowball. To Coplon, it seemed he had caught a much-needed break. Unfortunately, Norm Ketchum caught an even better card -- two cards, actually (a 2 and a 5) -- to make a wheel. Ketchum's 5-4-3-2-A was a rude awakening to Coplon who was expecting to win the pot, and who could blame him? Coplon had survived 6 all-ins on the previous day, but his seventh tempt at fate proved to be quite unlucky indeed, as the Malibu, CA lowballer collected $3,140 for eighth place.

Shortly thereafter, Tom Moore would meet a similar fate. Moore declared himself "all-in" on the big blind with his last chip. Thor Hansen raised before the flop to $3,000 and found himself head-up against Moore. First to act, Moore strood pat with his hand -- J-9-8-7-5. There wasn't much else Moore could do given the situation, as he hoped Hansen would draw a card and catch a brick (a higher card than a jack, or a pair), thus giving Moore the pot. Unfortunately, Hansen had a beauty of a hand -- 7-6-4-3-2 and stood pat, as well. Hansen's 7-low cracked Moore's jack-low with the weight of an anvil on an eggshell, which put the barrel-chested Moore from Orange County out in seventh place with $4,700.

With Brian Nadell still the chip leader with about $60,000, Tony Grand found himself perilously close to the felt with only $3,000 remaining. Grand completed the first bet to $3,000 and drew one card. Norm Ketchum decided to stand pat with his 10-low. Ketchum's decision proved a wise one, as Grand paired a six, completely ruining his hand. Grand, wearing a bright gold medallion and topped with an English riding cap, shook his head in obvious disappointment and extended his hand to Kethum who was busy stacking chips. Grand, the winner of two previous world lowball championships held at the Commerce Casino and Four Queens respectively, took $6,260 back to Chatsworth, CA for two days of hard work at the World Series.

With 20 minutes to go before the first break, Thor Hansen suddenly became the aggressor. He seized blinds, raised ceaselessly, and ultimately seized the chip lead from Nadell for the first time. As the first round came to a close precisely one hour and thirty minutes into the final table, the chip counts stood as follows:

Thor Hansen    $60,000
Brian Nadell    $51,000
Norm Ketchum    $24,500
David Hockstra    $20,000
Cary Moomjian    $11,500

When play resumed, the blinds increased to $1000-2000, with betting limits at $2,000-4,000. David Hockstra realized that he would desperately needed to acquire some chips in order to survive the higher stakes and escalation of blinds. He made a couragous move when he tried to run a bluff after catching an unwanted king to a solid four-card low, but was called down and lost a critical pot that would seal his fate. Down to just $5,000 remaining, Hockstra bet his final chips on a one-card draw and succeeded in making an 8-6 low. Unfortunately, Ketchum made an even better catch, spiking a sweet little honey of a card to fit snuggly with his 6-5 low. Hockstra received $7,850 for fifth-place.

Cary Moomjiam, who is an oil driller from Dallas, hoped to strike crude when he bet his final chips in the big blind, calling a raise and then drawing two cards to his 6-5-4. Moomjiam caught two big cards, including a queen which foretold of his inevitable departure. It was purely academic anyway, since opponent Hansen drew one card to his 6-5-3-2, and caught the absolutely perfect card -- an ace. Moomjian went out fourth and took home $9,400.

Norm Ketchum, who cashed in earlier at two events in this year's World Series of Poker found himself down to just $9,000 and decided to make his final stand. Ketchum drew one card to a 9-low and paired up, which destroyed any chance he had of surviving. Nadell stood pat with his jack-low and scooped the final pot of the night before head-up play began. Ketchum received $15,660 for his impressive third-place showing.

It seemed fitting that the final two players in the lowball event on this breezy evening in Las Vegas would be the players who arrived at the final table with the most in chips. Brian Nadell had enjoyed a slight chip advantage over Thor Hansen when play began but lost it as Hansen enjoyed the fruits of his agressive play combined with a number of very strong hands. Now, the situation was reversed. Hansen enjoyed a slight chip lead over Nadell, as follows:

Thor Hansen    $88,000
Brian Nadell    $79,000

Just before head-up play began, Nadell showed the crowd a picture of his daughter, Melodie. The picture was tucked inside his left breast pocket as he sat quietly at the table. When the prize money wrapped tightly in bundles of hundred dollar bills was placed atop the green felt table emblazzoned with the Binion's Horsehoe seal and garnished by the gold bracelet, Nadell turned to the spectators and made a bold prediction. "I"m going to win that bracelet for Melodie," Nadell announced to the crowd -- well within listening range of a half-frowning, half-smiling Thor Hansen who had a completely different idea about where the gold bracelet would end up. Upon learning he was going up against Nadell's moving inspiration by his daughter, Hansen jokingly announced, "Now, I feel like the bad guy."

For Brian Nadell, this event would take on far more meaning than the difference in prize money between first and second-place or the simple glory of winning a poker tournament. It was about being a "world champion" and getting over the final hurdle in a distinguished career at the World Series of Poker -- cashing in ten times, making five final tables, and coming in second twice. Even though Nadell had $230,070 in all-time winnings at the World Series, the gold braclet that was displayed in front of him just inches away, in fact, represented the culmination of many years of hard work and struggle to reach the pinnacle of success in the poker world. Even Benny Binion Behnen, the patriarch of a new generation at the Horseshoe came by the final table to wish Nadell success.

For Thor Hansen, the sight of a gold bracelet within his immediate grasp was just as moving emotionally . Hansen won his first and only gold bracelet 14 years before in the 1988 seven-card stud event. Since then, Hansen has cashed 15 times, made 6 final tables, and also won the European Poker Championship a few years ago.

From the onset of head-up play, Hansen shifted into high gear. He slowly but surely chipped away at Nadell's stack $3,000 at a time. Watching Nadell's diminishing stack was like watching a dam bust. When the betting limits increased a short time later to $3,000-6,000, Hansen tightened his squeeze over Nadell and knocked him below $35,000 for the first time at the final table. Nadell was seeing his chance at the gold bracelet slip away right in front of his eyes, and there was little or nothing he could do about it. Hansen raised ceaselessly time and time again causing Nadell to fold a series of bad starting hands.

Thirty minutes into the duel, Nadell was down to $25,000 and murmurs in the corwd began that the end might very well be near. A critical hand took place when Hansen raised to $6,000 on the first round of betting and was called by Nadell. Both players drew one card. Nadell caught a 9-low, normally a fairly strong head-up hand given the opponent had also drew a card. However, Hansen caught a 7-low which all but broke the spirit of Nadell who quietly tossed his cards into the muck, folded his hands, and tried to shake off yet another devastating hand in a string of disappointments. With much of the crowd now standing, and many anticipating that Hansen's victory was now pretty much a foregone conclusion, the prospect of yet another second-place showing loomed over Nadell's head like a dark cloud. He wanted the bracelet badly. To win, he would have to reach down into the depths of his soul, and play better poker than ever he had in his life, avoiding the pitifalls of coming out with the second-best hand and hopefully catch a few cards at key moments enough to sustain a rush. Brian Nadell never gave up. Never.

He was down to an "all-in" situation and moved his final chips into the pot as Hansen sensed his inevitable victory looming on the horizon. But Nadell caught a 7-6 and Hansen's celebration would be suspended, at least temporarlily. And that's when the real story of this final table begins.

Thus began over the next hour and a half of play, one of the most couragous individual displays in the history of the World Series of Poker, certainly one of the more dramatic comeback in this history of the lowball event. Nadell went on a rampage, taking his chip count from utter devastation and looming defeat, up to $20,000. Then, $30,000. Then, $40,000. A few hands later, Nadell had $60,000 in chips. Twenty minutes later, Nadell had drawn nearly even with Hansen, who was now staring coldly across the table seeing his victory slip away. Things would only get worse for Hansen in the next round, as blinds went up to $2,000-4,000 and betting limits were increased to $4,000-8,000. In a shocking turnaround, Nadell managed to gain a 2-1 chip advantage at one point, which casued the swelling crowd to chake their heads in utter disbelief. Could a player rise from the ashes of defeat, completely reverse his fortune, and ultimately overcome all the odds to win his first world championship? While Hansen clearly enjoyed the respect and admiration of the crowd, Nadells' awesome comeback managed to win the hearts and minds of many spectators who were now filing up against the rail and cheering whenever Nadell showed the best hand.

Thing is, chance is a cruel mistress. She treats and teases even the most deserved with indifference, issuing defeats with indiscriminate folly. What Lady Chance, that grand dame of fate and fortune gives -- she also taketh away. And so it was with Brian Nadell, the cool Las Vegan on this warm night who was teased and turned around, then ultimately destroyed as Thor Hansen regained his control and composure and ended Nadell's comeback hopes. Three hours inot their marathon headup match, Hansen gradually took back the chip lead back again, then took a sledgehammer to Nadell's chips by winning a series of critical hands where Nadell caught pair after pair.

Down once again to only $20,000 remaining, Nadell hoped to re-stage yet another comeback when he stood pat with his J-10 after seeing Hansen draw one card. Nadell's final chips ened up rolling in the pot as Hansen showed 8-5-3-2. The final card dealt to Hansen remained face down. Any card queen or higher, or any pair, meant Nadell would scoop the pot and be primed to stage another run at re-gaining the chip lead. But it wasn't meant to be. As the final card was revealed, the overhead lights bounded off the white background, a momentary flash of reality that the card Hansen had received was not a high card. As it finally fell into place, nestled comfortably between the row of low cards, that card -- the four of hearts -- meant Thor Hansen had just won his second world championship, 14 years after his first voctory at the biggest tournament of them all -- while Brian Nadell would have to wait for another day, another week, or perhaps another year for his chance to return to the final table for his chance to win a gold bracelet.

Brian Nadell collected $31,300 for second place and won the crowd's admiration for an incredible comeback that should inspire many others never to give up when down to just a few remaining chips. Certainly, his disappointing loss on this evening and bitter taste of defeat will make the ulitimate taste of victory all the more sweat when that day of justice and ultimate destiny finally comes.

But this day truly belonged to Thor Hansen from Oslo, Norway -- who has become a daily fixture in high-limit games at the Hustler Casino in Los Angeles. Just minutes after collecting $62,600 for first place, Hansen jetted downstairs to jump in another poker game. There was more action to come for Hansen on this night of victory. More poker to play. More dreams to crush. More money to be won.


Final Results: $1,500 Ace-to-Five Lowball
Entries: 111
Prize Pool: $156,510

1. Thor Hansen, Oslo, Norway     $62,600
2. Brian Nadell, Las Vegas, NV     $31,300
3. Norm Ketchum, Rockford, IL     $15,660
4. Cary Moomjian, Frisco, TX     $9,400
5. David Hockstra, San Pedro, CA     $7,850
6. Tony Grand, Chatsworth, CA     $6,260
7. Tom Moore, Orange, CA     $4,700
8. Ken Coplon, Malibu, CA     $3,140

9th through 12th paid $2,340 -- (9) Ram Vaswani (10) Robert MacGregor (11) Lewis Cotton (12) E. Mahalingam

13th through 16th paid $1,560 -- (13) John Hamilton (14) Layne Flack (15) Larry Steinhauer (16) Lamar Wilkinson

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