Event #3: No-Limit Texas Hold 'em
Location: New Orleans, Louisiana
Buy-in: $500 (+50)
Number of Entries: 846
Total Prize Money: $410,310

The $500 buy-in no-limit hold 'em event attracted the second largest field on this year's circuit, just one player shy of yesterday's record event. However the prize pool was the highest amount for any non-championship event this far on the circuit. Seventy-two places were paid. With $410,310 in prize money at stake, players were eliminated as follows:

10th Place: Jon Backman, $4,515
Jon Backman came all the way from Sweden to play in New Orleans. He arrived at the final table with a decent stack size, but nothing went right during his 30-minute stay. Backman went out first and collected $4,515.
9th Place: Dan Phillips, $8,205
Dan Phillips was low on chips throughout. The surgery assistant from Rainelle, WV, was on life support most of the way, and finally expired in 9th place.
8th Place Adam Green, $12,310
Adam Green is a rare coin dealer (the proper term is "numismatist") from Washington, DC. He specializes in collecting and selling treasures from Nepal, Tibet, and other Himalayan regional coinage (arguably the most specialized profession in history ever to make it to a final table). Green tried to make a move at the pot on a semi-bluff with a straight draw, but was called by Sonny Perry holding pocket 9s. Green collected some extra coin -- $12,310 in American currency.
7th Place: Harry "Hop" Dujas, $16,410
Harry "Hop" Dujas went out next when he was steamrolled by Sonny Perry's full house. The St. Martinville, LA, business owner, who likes to play no-limit hold 'em as a "hobby" added $16,410 to his poker bankroll.
6th Place: Jack Ward, $20,515
Jack Ward, a Gulfport, MS, auto-broker is one of the nicest people in poker. But sometimes, bad things happen to good people. He was getting low on chips and made his final stand with 3-3. Steve Presley called the modest raise with K-10 and flopped two pair. That pretty much ended Ward's hopes of victory.
5th Place: Steve Presley, $24,620
A few hands later, pocket 3s woke from the dead. Sonny Perry was dealt 3-3 and saw the flop come Q=5=3. Steve Presley, a professional poker player from Southhaven, MS, had K-Q and was all-in with top pair. Staring at trip 3s, Presley, who has also previously won tournaments in Mississippi and Arizona, failed to catch a miracle.
4th Place: Timmy Flotte, $28,720
Timmy Flotte a local from New Orleans brought along the rowdiest cheering section. Backed by nearly a dozen cheerleaders, Flotte didn't disappoint them, lasting nearly five hours at the final table. But Flotte ended up making a costly mistake when he committed his entire stack with A-Q versus Don Mullis' A-K. Both players flopped an ace, but the Flotte was outkicked and was booted out in 4th place.
3rd Place: Don Mullis, $32,825
After Flotte's elimination, the chip counts were about equally divided. Then a game of musical chairs began. Dangerous Don Mullis seized the chip lead, leaving Russ Sherrod shortest on chips. A short time later, Sherrod won a big pot with an uncalled raise and took the chip lead. Half an hour later, Sonny Perry had a 2 to 1 chip lead over both opponents. Then, Mullis took a horrible beat. Mullis was dealt A-K versus Sherrod's A-3. Mullis' flashy grin disappeared with the final board showed J=9=3=6=10, giving Sherrod the pot with a dainty pair of 3s. From the look on Mullis' face it was as if he'd drank a bottle of Tabasco sauce. Mullis, poker's hottest tournament player with an astounding six final tables made in his last nine WSOPC events entered (66 percent), received 3rd place. "I was scared to death of Don," Perry said later. "He came from being down low on chips and took the chip lead. He's a great player."
Runner up: Russ Sherrod, $58,060
1st Place: Sonny Perry, $110,785
The heads-up duel between Russ Sherrod and Sonny Perry began with Sherrod holding a slight chip advantage - 700,000 to 570,000. Then, Perry shifted into high gear and gradually took a 3 to 1 chip lead. There were no big hands during the 30-minute duel, just a number of sizable raises by Perry, uncalled, which resulted in a windfall of chips. Then, Sherrod became the aggressor and drew back to even. The final hand of the tournament was the ultimate illustration of having the worst hand, but playing the situation perfectly, where the odds actually favored the underdog. Sherrod was dealt 9-5 of spades. He watched as the flop came 7=6=4, with two spades. He raised all-in and was called. Sherrod had a massive number of outs, holding an outside straight draw, a flush draw, and one overcard. In fact, he was the odds-on favorite. Sonny Perry had A-6 and flopped second pair. A six on the turn gave Perry trip 6s. But Sherrod still had a lot of outs. A worthless king on the river ended the night for both players, as Perry was declared the victor.

Tournament reporting by Nolan Dalla / worldseriesofpoker.com