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LAS VEGAS RESIDENT WINS SENECA POKER CLASSIC
Niagara Falls, NY, November 2004 - You know it's serious Poker when players come from Las Vegas for a one-day No Limit Texas Hold'em tournament and win. Las Vegas resident John McEvoy took first place in the first Seneca Poker Classic held Sunday, November 14 at Seneca Niagara Casino, Niagara Falls, NY. With a bit of luck and his playing skills, McEvoy won $11,018.
For their $225 Buy-In, each player received $1,500 in tournament chips. When play got down to the final round, players had the option of splitting the pot or taking the previously established prize amounts. Players from the final table decided to divide the winnings so that the second through seventh places each took $8,500, with the eighth place claiming $2,390 and ninth place claiming $1,992. In total, 36 places were paid from the $82,600 prize pool. Winners and hometowns are as follows:
2nd Adam Collura, Buffalo, NY
3rd Guy Krzywda, Tonawanda, NY
4th Travis Heron, Versailles, NY
5th Phillip Badger, Endwell, NY
6th Rayshawn Smalls, Buffalo, NY
7th Warren V., Pine Plains, NY
8th Thomas Urbanski, Hamburg, NY
9th Jerome Morris, Brockport, NY
The tournament was expected to seat the first 300 players. However, more than 400 came to participate and the Casino decided to accommodate them all. This pushed back the start of the tournament one half-hour to 12:30 p.m., with each game lasting approximately 30 minutes. The final game was completed just before midnight.
The Seneca Poker Classic is the largest Poker tournament ever held in New York State. Players came by the busload from Long Island, Cleveland and from points across the border in Canada. A few former Buffalo Bills players and current National Hockey League players competed but didn't make the final rounds.
"Michael Gainey, our Director of Poker, did a great job with this tournament. We plan to make this an annual event," said Mickey Brown, President and CEO, Seneca Gaming Corporation. "Players have asked that we do this every month. We currently have the World Series of Poker Tournaments going on every Thursday between now and April and we'll certainly entertain another tournament before next November."
Seneca Niagara Casino is New York State's first full-service casino featuring reel-spinning and video slot machines. Just a few blocks from world-famous Niagara Falls, the Casino is located at 310 Fourth Street. The 112,590 square feet gaming floor houses more than 3,200 slot machines and 97 table games. A separate smoke-free casino, Turtle Island, is also available to patrons along with the Poker Room and the high-stakes Blue Heron Room.
In addition to gaming, Seneca Niagara Casino offers several restaurants including Thunder Falls Buffet, Morrie's Place and The Western Door: A Seneca Steakhouse. The Bear's Den Showroom, a 443-seat showroom-style theater and Club 101, a unique music venue located in the heart of the gaming floor, provide live entertainment. Free parking is available to patrons through complimentary valet services, self-parking areas and a four-story garage with covered walkway. The Casino is owned and operated by The Seneca Nation of Indians.
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