Phenom Phil Ivey Ends World Poker Tour(R) Drought With Epic Victory at Commerce Casino's L.A. Poker Classic

COMMERCE, Calif., Feb. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- One of Phil Ivey's claims to fame was the fact that he had the most World Poker Tour(R) (WPT) final table appearances without a win. That, however, changed Thursday night when Ivey scored a resounding victory at Commerce Casino's L.A. Poker Classic (LAPC) and walked away with $1,596,100 -- and a pretty big grin.

"It's an unbelievable feeling to finally win one of these World Poker Tour tournaments," Ivey said during a post-event interview. "I felt unbeatable all evening, and the monkey is finally off my back."

Unbeatable is an understatement for what Ivey accomplished during the six-hour final table. He entered the evening as chip leader, but suffered some setbacks early. In the middle stages of the game, the Las Vegas resident settled down and started to grind back the chips he lost. On the way, he delivered some outstanding "beats" that left the audience at Commerce Casino cheering, shaking their heads, and generally mumbling "there's no stopping Phil tonight."

The person that kept closest to Ivey's pace was Quinn Do of El Monte, California. He finished second and won $909,400. After the tournament's conclusion, he stood with a group of friends and listened to them provide words of consolation.

"Tonight at least I lost to the best poker player in the world," Do said. "I tried to stay out of his way for most of the evening. He was playing really well all night."

The third place finisher was Charles Moore of Carlsbad, California, who won $625,630. Like the rest of the final table players, Moore realized fairly early in the evening that Ivey was going to be unstoppable.

"Phil was phenomenal tonight," Moore said. "He got hot and ran the table."

Phil Hellmuth, Jr., finished sixth earning $229,480, and proclaimed on his way to the cashier's cage, "I'm terribly disappointed." Less displeased with his performance was Scott Montgomery of Perth, Canada, who finished fifth and claimed $296,860 in his first ever big-time poker tournament. Montgomery has only been playing poker for two years and came to Los Angeles for a vacation and to play the LAPC.

"This was a very good vacation," proclaimed Montgomery as he left the WPT television set. "I did a lot better than I possibly ever could have hoped for."

The "bad beat" moment of the evening easily went to fourth place finisher Nam Le, who still won $411,770 for his time and patience. Le went "all in" with pocket aces, and Ivey "called" and showed a pair of threes. The flop did nothing for either player, but a three appeared on the "turn," giving Ivey the three-of-a-kind that eliminated Le.

"It's a tough beat, but it happens," Le said. "I can't complain. I'll bounce back and try to keep the ball rolling at the next tournament."

A total of 665 people each put up $10,000 to compete in the LAPC No-Limit Hold'Em Championship that lasted six days. Of those competitors, 63 placed "in the money" and claimed a portion of the $6,384,000 overall prize pool. In addition to the money, Ivey also garnered a $25,000 seat to the Season VI WPT World Championship being held in April, 2008 at Bellagio in Las Vegas.

Add the LAPC Main Event's $6.3+ million total prize money to the $6,689,296 awarded in the tournament's previous 29 events staged in January and February, and Commerce will have awarded $12,977,200 to a handful of nearly 10,000 players that joined in the tournament this year.

Ivey now joins an illustrious list of LAPC champions that includes Eric Hershler, who won $2,429,970 last year; Alan Goehring, who went home with $2,391,550 in 2006; Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi, who claimed $1,859,909 in 2005; and Antonio Esfandiari who grabbed $1,399,135 in 2004.

"The great titans of poker came out to this year's LAPC, and two of the best ever to grace the 'green felt' made it to the final table." said Commerce Casino Manager Tim Gustin. "The fact that Phil Ivey emerged the victor after years of coming so close will forever make the 2008 LAPC a very special event for the poker world."

The 2008 L.A. Poker Classic WPT final table will be televised on GSN July 14. The World Poker Tour airs every Monday night at 9 p.m. PT/ET starting March 24, 2008.

    Results:
    1st Place: Phil Ivey (Las Vegas, NV) - $1,596,100
    2nd Place: Quinn Do (El Monte, CA) - $909,400
    3rd Place: Charles Moore (Carlsbad, CA) - $625,630
    4th Place: Nam Le (Huntington Beach, CA) - $411,770
    5th Place: Scott Montgomery (Perth, ON, Can.) - $296,860
    6th Place: Phil Hellmuth, Jr. (Palo Alto, CA) - $229,820

About Commerce Casino

Commerce Casino is the largest poker casino in the world. There are more than 200 poker tables featuring just about every form of poker: Texas Hold'Em, 7-Card Stud, Omaha, Lowball, Pot Limit, Mexican Poker, Pineapple, Draw, Low-Ball and many others. Also offered are Pan and California games. Commerce Casino is also recognized for its innovative "Bring Your Home Game to Commerce" program which enables poker fans to invite their friends and family for a casual home game, bachelor party or birthday celebration with a professional dealer in the casino setting.

Commerce Casino is located at 6131 East Telegraph Rd., Commerce, CA 90040, just off the Santa Ana (5) Freeway at the Washington Blvd. exit. The phone is (323) 721-2100. For more information, go to http://www.commercecasino.com.

About WPT Enterprises, Inc.

WPT Enterprises, Inc. NASDAQ: WPTE is a company engaged in the creation of internationally branded entertainment and consumer products driven by the development, production, and marketing of televised programming based on gaming themes. WPTE is the creator of the World Poker Tour(R), a television show based on a series of high-stakes poker tournaments that airs on the Travel Channel in the United States and is scheduled to begin broadcasting on GSN in early 2008. WPT is licensed for broadcast globally. WPTE also operates a real-money online gaming website, http://www.worldpokertour.com, which prohibits wagers from players in the U.S. and other restricted jurisdictions. WPTE currently licenses its brand to companies in the business of poker equipment and instruction, apparel, publishing, electronic and wireless entertainment, DVD/home entertainment, casino games, and giftware. The company is also engaged in the sale of corporate sponsorships. For show information, tools for improving poker play, and other WPT news, fans may log on to http://www.worldpokertour.com. WPT Enterprises, Inc. is a majority owned subsidiary of Lakes Entertainment, Inc. NASDAQ: LACO.