Council Bluffs, IA—Timothy Morgan has had a lot of cashes – 19 along with nine final tables in 2009 alone – but no wins. He came close a number of times, including a second in the Southern States Poker Championship. Tonight he got heads-up in the 18th event of the WSOP Circuit tour at Horseshoe Council Bluffs, $500 No Limit Hold’em. At that point, he had better than a 2-1 chip lead, but was afraid of bubbling a win again. So he made an even-money chop in order to bring home his first title along with the diamond-and-gold trophy ring. “I did it for my wife Lisa,” he said.
“She’s put up with my shenanigans for a long time.”
First place paid $24,045.
Morgan, 57, is a full-time player from Pompano Beach, Florida. He used to be a commercial diver in the New England area doing salvage, bridge and underwater demolition work. He later bought a marine salvage and towing business which his wife now runs. He’s been playing poker for 20 years, seriously since the Moneymaker revolution.
This $500 event attracted 153 players. The prize pool was $74,205. The second-day final table was totally dominated by Danny Walker until the very late stages when Morgan began grinding him down, sometimes three-betting him, until he finally knocked Walker out by flopping two small pair to beat Walker’s pocket kings.
As a side note, Doug “Rico” Carli had tournament payouts the past two days, extending his world’s record for Circuit cashes to 42.
The final table began with blinds of 1,500-3,000, 15 minutes left. About four laps ahead of everyone else in chips was Walker, with 423,000.
Here were the starting chip counts:
|
Seat |
Name |
Chip Count |
|
1 |
Danny Walker |
423,000 |
|
2 |
Saad Vasquez |
151,300 |
|
3 |
Lee Patitz |
43,900 |
|
4 |
Bernard Morrow |
77,400 |
|
5 |
Eric Koffman |
102,200 |
|
6 |
Joel Wassom |
32,200 |
|
7 |
Jeff Banghart |
116,000 |
|
8 |
Roger Lipton |
68,900 |
|
9 |
Timothy Morgan |
68,900 |
9th place: Jeff “MrRain” Banghart was first to check out after he was all in with A-8 against Walker’s pocket 7s. A board of 4-4-8-7-K gave Walker a full house and even more chips (as if he needed them). Banghart’s nickname comes from his ownership of a lawn sprinkler company. He has so many poker accomplishments that he provided a printout of them because there wouldn’t be room on the bio sheet. Online he has more than $1.2 million in cashes, including four six-figure payouts. He has three prior Circuit final tables at Council Bluffs including a win in the opening event last year.
His biggest cash ever was $237,500 for coming in 41st in the WSOP Main Event in 2007. The Rain Man is from Bennington, Nebraska. His finish tonight paid $1,484.
8th place: Not long after, Lee Patitz, winner of the opening event here, had all his chips in with against Roger Lipton’s A-8. Three diamonds and an ace flopped. Patitz missed his flush draw, and Lipton’s paired ace ended his hopes for a second ring, but he cashed for $2,226. Patitz, 73, is from Hastings, Nebraska, where he works as a power plant operator. When he won his first event, he said that he was having “fun, fun, fun.” He still is, he said.
7th place: After a break, blinds were 2,000-4,000 with 400 antes. Holding pocket aces, Eric Koffman made what turned out to be a big mistake when he just limped. Walker, in the small blind, called for the additional 2,000 with 9-2 suited. A flop of k-9-9 gave him trips. He put Koffman all in, winning when a J and 10 came.
Koffman, 35, is a property manager from Bay City, Michigan. He has a prior Circuit final table, cashing 7th in a $500 event at Tunica earlier this year.
6th place: After several all-ins and survivals, another player exited. This time it was Saad Vasquez, who went in with K-J and couldn’t catch Walker’s A-2 after the board came Q-10-4-8-A. Sixth paid $3,710. Vasqez is from Castle Rock, Colorado, where he owns an unusual business: a medical marijuana dispensary.
Walker, meanwhile, had knocked out three of the first four players and had now amassed about 450,000 chips, close to half of all those on the table.
5th place: With blinds of 3,000-6,000 and 500 antes, an unstoppable Walker continued his massacre. His next victim was Bernard Morrow, who moved in for 40,000 with K-Q, well ahead of Walker’s . No problem. Walker promptly made a flush on a flop of , and we were down to four.
Morrow, 58, is a 58-year-old government worker from Grand Island, Nebraska. This final table is his best yet. Fifth place paid $4,452.
Walker went after the next all-in player, and again was behind with A-7 to Joel Wassom’s A-J. The best Walker could manage this time was a chop when the board came 4-10-A-K-4. Was Walker slipping? Maybe. On the next hand he challenged an all-in Roger Lipton, again behind with to Lipton’s A-6. He was about to knock Lipton out with two pair, 6s and 3s, when the board showed 4-3-8-6. But he let Lipton get away when a river 4 gave his opponent 6s and 4s. Shame on you, Danny.
4th place: Perhaps Walker had now given up knocking out players, because he let Morgan do the next job. Roger Lipton was all in with and Morgan had . A board of gave both players flush draws. Morgan got there when a gave him the flush and Lipton left in fourth place, paying $5,936.
Lipton, 36, from Greenwood, Nebraska, owns a trucking company. This is his first final table here.
3rd place: Three-handed, Walker still led, but by now not nearly as much, and after losing a couple of pots to Morgan, dropped back into second place behind him. Soon after we had another confrontation between the two players. When the flop came Q-8-6, Walker bet 55,000, Morgan made it 120,000 to go and Walker, with pocket kings, moved in. Morgan turned up for two pair, and won after a jack and deuce came.
Finishing a disappointing third, Walker settled for $7,421. Walker is a 25-year-old gambler from Omaha. His cashes include a win and a second in Circuit events here, three final tables at the L.A. Poker Classic, and a 30th in a $1,500 7-card Razz event at the WSOP.
2nd place: Despite being well in front, with about 800,000 chips to around 350,000 for Wassom, Morgan agreed to the chop and first-place honors. Wassom, 40, is from Dickens, Iowa, where he is a security/safety director. –Max Shapiro