Team Europe Wins Inaugural Caesars Cup

Team Europe emerged victorious in the first ever Caesars Cup, claiming the heads-up and two-on-two matches by a 4:1 margin. Daniel Negreanu captained the American team, while Annette “Annette_15” Obrestad headed the European squad.

Four two-on-two matches were held, with Patrik Antonius and Ilari “Ziigmund” Sahamies defeating November Nine member Phil Ivey and Huck Seed in the first pairing. The format saw one team member play before the flop before passing the hole cards to the other team member, who played the next street. The action alternated like this until the hand was completed. Only 50 big blinds were in play, ensuring an overly-aggressive style of play. In addition, blinds increased every 10 minutes and the aim was to complete each match within 45 minutes.

With the European team up 1-0, Negreanu and Phil Hellmuth took on Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier and Betfair qualifier John Harvey. In the key hand of the match, Harvey pushed pre-flop holding A-3 and Hellmuth called despite only seeing an ace in his hand. Sure enough, Hellmuth’s other card was also an ace, making the American squad a dominating favorite pre-flop. However, the first three cards ran out K-2-4 and the five of diamonds fell on the turn to give Harvey and Grospellier a straight. Eventually, the European team would take a 2-0 lead.

Doyle Brunson and Jennifer Harman took to the felts for the American team, defeating Dario Minieri and Obrestad. The European team would take down a sizable pot holding A-8 against A-6. However, Brunson and Harman made four of a kind after being dealt a wired pair of aces, vindicating the earlier bad beat. The American squad narrowed the lead to 2-1, avoiding what likely would have been an insurmountable 3-0 deficit in the first ever Caesars Cup.

In the fourth and final two-on-two match, John Juanda and Barry Greenstein teamed up to take on Gus Hansen and reigning World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event Champion Peter Eastgate. In less than 20 minutes, the match-up was completed, as Greenstein raised with K-Q and Hansen pushed with A-8. Greenstein called with his tournament life on the line and the board bricked out, shipping the pot to Hansen and improving the European team to a 3-1 lead.

A heads-up match occurred for the fifth encounter of the Caesars Cup. To compete, the American squad appropriately picked Seed, the 2009 National Heads-Up Poker Championship winner and the holder of the top record in the NBC tournament series. The Europeans countered with Obrestad, the 2007 WSOP Europe Main Event Champion and up-and-coming internet sensation. The match lasted a short nine minutes. After missing a flush draw in an early hand, Seed was all-in with A-3, but ran into Obrestad’s A-7. Obrestad spiked a seven and the Europeans triumphed in the best-of-seven series by a 4-1 score.

The Caesars Cup was filmed for airing on ESPN and will be shown on February 7th in a two-hour broadcast. Obrestad commented on the future of the Caesars Cup, which WSOP officials note has not yet been determined: “I think the Caesars Cup is a really cool concept. It is something that has never been done before. I hope the Caesars Cup goes on for every year, from now on.” Greenstein was a last-minute replacement for Full Tilt Poker pro Chris Ferguson. The American team could have been drawn from North America, Central America, or South America. However, seven of its eight members hailed from the United States.

Here were the final rosters that made up the Caesars Cup, which was held the day before the start of the 2009 WSOP Europe Main Event:

Team Europe: Annette Obrestad (Team Captain), Peter Eastgate, Dario Minieri, Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier, Ilari “Ziigmund” Sahamies, Patrik Antonius, Gus Hansen, and John Harvey (Betfair Qualifier)

Team Americas: Daniel Negreanu (Team Captain), Doyle Brunson, Phil Hellmuth, Phil Ivey, Huck Seed, John Juanda, Jennifer Harman, and Barry Greenstein

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Poker terminology:

BEE No. 92 (TM) - Trade name for the "diamond back" cards frequently used in casino games. Compare: RIDER BACK.
S&M - Sklansky & Malmuth. Generally refers to the ideas and algorithms published by these two authors. When used in a 7-card stud context, often refers to "7 Card Stud For Advanced Players", and when used in a Hold'em context, often refers to "Texas Hold'em For Advanced Players".
COLD CALL - Calling both a bet and raise at the same time, as opposed to calling a bet then later calling a raise made after the call.
BIG BOBTAIL - An open-ended 4-card straight flush.
PAT - Holding or being dealt a pat hand. "I'm pat" would mean "I don't want to draw any cards.
WHEEL - A-2-3-4-5. Usually discussed in the context of lowball where it is the best possible hand. Can also refer to a 5-high straight in high games. Also: BICYCLE.

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