Kathy Saraf is that this year's Women's Event winner and now $20,150 richer. To reach that, all she needed to do was beat 70 other hungry poker pros of a feminine persuasion, survive a frantic Day 2, stay focussed on a lengthy final table and pip a Team Online member's girlfriend to the post. Easy peasy.
But wait, hang on a second, Saraf's also the 2012 PCA Women's Event champion. That makes her the primary ever double winner of this much-loved $1,100 buy-in tournament, and there ain't nothing easy about that.
"I wasn't going to play the development and i am really glad I did," said Saraf after her win. "My sister in law desired to play, and it was her first tournament, so I USED TO BE like 'okay, if you wish to play I'll play'.
"I'm thrilled to win, especially for a trophy this size."
Saraf overcame a last table riddled with one of the crucial biggest talents of the feminine game. But let's not get sooner than ourselves. To grasp the real extent of her victory we have to rewind the clock a couple of hours. About 24 should do it.
Yesterday 71 players registered for the gender-exclusive event, and when the plug was pulled at the day, Adrienne "Talonchick" Rowsome was our chip leader with 17 left. Despite being 20 weeks pregnant, Rowsome pushed during the field to bag up 87,300 chips, yet still busted Day 2 wanting the overall table.
It was an enormous turnaround for Rowsome, and it came during a whirlwind of departures within the opening few levels.
No sooner had the 17 players taken their seats before we were right down to a last nine. 2012 Women's Event champ Kathy Saraf lead the charge, followed closely by a skilled chasing pack, which included the likes of Fatima Moreira de Melo, and this year's standout (and last standing) female player within the PCA Main Event, Loni Harwood.
Danijela Matusinskij was first to be sent back to her room to pack a suitcase after falling to Saraf in ninth. Harwood, Marguerite Spanguolo and Lily Kiletto quickly followed her to the elevators in eighth, seventh and sixth respectively. For a short lived moment it gave the look of the overall table could be done in time for everybody to catch a last Bahamian sunset.
Five-handed play put paiy to such wishes.
Over the next few hours, the chip lead was tossed back-and-forth, because the next jump up the payout ladder seemed a leap no person was prepared to take. Amanda Musumeci would eventually be pushed, though, after running QJ into de Melo's aces.
With four players remaining, and the chip lead still hoping around the table pot after pot, it looked as if de Melo would finally claim a primary live event win, thanks in bulk to repeating her party trick of spinning a brief stack right into a title challenge.
Of the 17 who returned for Day 2, de Melo started the day second to last in chips.
"I just checked out it like having 15 big blinds and that i was just going to play that stack and notice what happens. Usually after I start an afternoon short-stacked I AM GETTING pretty far still."
She was referring in fact to last November's UKIPT Isle of Man event, when the Team SportStar arrived on the final table in last place, before digging deep to complete second and record her biggest ever live cash of $59,660 within the process.
"You must run good obviously, but in a ladies event I ASSUME they call less so that you can building up your stack without going all-in as much," she added. "I played smaller pots to maintain the variance somewhat lower because I ASSUMED I had an edge at the field."
Today, de Melo couldn't turn that edge into the win and fell one place wanting repeating her UKIPT feat after busting in third.
"It's roughly a bummer because I WISHED to win," said de Melo. "I lost a large hand with pocket jacks when my opponent hit a suite of three, after which another girl hit a collection against my top pair which type of crippled me. You need to run good to take care of a lead."
Laurence Grondin bust to de Melo in fourth, however the chips piled in front of the Team SportStar made the quick jump over to Elena Stover's side of the table after a shove with jack-ten did not overcome pocket sevens, much to the delight of an onlooking Mickey Petersen.
Stover is Petersen's girlfriend, and the when the Team Online whizz wasn't busy bubbling today's $10,000 Turbo event, he hoped Stover's fourth live tournament cash would include a free trophy.
"There was an even little bit of breaks in my event, so I had 10 minutes every now and again to run over," he told the PokerStars Blog. "Obviously each time I went over and she or he was still in. It is a great thing.
"We sometimes play heads-up matches -- small stakes like who is going to do the dishes."
"I'm up a couple of matches," added Stover.
"There's no official count," was Petersen's quick response.
Peterstove, or Stoversen (we haven't quite selected the correct nickname yet) wouldn't be leaving with the trophy in tow, however. Instead that honor can be Saraf's for a second time in only a 3 years.
"I'm feeling good but I'm just a little disappointed to complete second in preference to first," said Stover. "It was a very tough table, and that i found it a bit weird because there are these types of external things occurring. It's a must to take into consideration your cards, the prize pool, people coloring up the chips and i am really bad at counting stack sizes. In order that was a bit difficult for me.
"I've had a good time here, and that i won a large $27.50 tournament on PokerStars the opposite night, so it has been a perfect week for me."
Petersen's fellow Team Online brethren, Dale 'Daleroxxu' Philip, generously donated a bottle of champagne to the couple to enjoy it doesn't matter what today's outcome. Sadly for them it won't be used to toast victory.
In the overall hand, Saraf's J♦7♥ overtook Stover's pocket queens way to two flopped jacks to become your first Women's Event double champ. She couldn't was happier.
"I had a chip stack going into Day 2, and that i kept that till the general table, so I felt pretty comfortable," said the winner. "And because it set out to four players I wasn't catching anything for approximately three levels and my chips began to dwindle. Overall though I felt great.
"I haven't thought of how I'll celebrate yet. I DIDN'T expect to win so I'm thrilled."
See below for a breakdown of ways each of today's final nine got their money, and do not forget to click through to live updates, features and interviews from the $10,000,000 guaranteed PCA Main Event, the $25,000 High Roller and the $100,000 Super High Roller.
$1,100 PCA Women's EventEntries: 69Prize pool: $66,9301st: Kathy Saraf - $20,1502nd: Elena Stover - $14,4603rd: Fatima Moreira de Melo - $9,4004th: Laurence Grondin - $7,1005th: Amanda Musumeci - $5,5006th: Lily Kiletto $4,2607th: Marguerite Spagnuolo $3,3808th: Loni Harwood - $2,6209th: Danijela Matusinskij - $2,066
Keir Mackay is a copywriter for PokerStars.
Read More... [Source: PokerStarsBlog.com :: PokerStars Caribbean Adventure]
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