Daniel Negreanu is Back

Just as Scotty Nguyen did a couple weeks ago, Daniel Negreanu ended a year-long winless streak last week, winning the $10,000 Main Event of the World Series of Poker circuit stop in Tunica. The 2004 Player of the Year, who had a complete reversal of fortune at the tournament tables in 2005, cashed in big, receiving $755,525 for the four day effort.

“The Kid” went into the final table second in chips, behind Brian Lamkin. But once he got going, Negreanu was virtually a one-man wrecking crew during the early stages of the fourth day. It took almost an hour for Chad Brown to bow out in 9th place, but after that, Negreanu started pushing over the dominoes.

Ten minutes after Brown, local favorite Robert Schulz moved all-in with pocket 7’s, only to get stonewalled by Negreanu’s pocket 9’s.

After only another ten minutes, Wendell Barnes thought he flopped a monster when his A-3 turned into two pair, but little did he know Negreanu was hiding behind pocket rockets and a flopped set. That knockout, plus the one before, catapulted Negreanu into the chip lead, overtaking Lamkin by $200,000.

After a break, Negreanu walloped Lamkin, scooped a $1 million pot, sending the former chip leader all the way to the bottom of the pile. Negreanu had flopped top two pair with his A-Q and was able to get Lamkin to call him all the way through the river – Lamkin mucked his cards, so nobody knows for sure what he had. Now Negreanu had over half of the chips at the table, while Lamkin was down to table scraps.

For a while, Negreanu let the others at the table battle it out, holding steady at just over $1 million. In time, he added on a couple hundred thousand as opponents were eliminated around him. Once play got to heads-up, Daniel Negreanu held an approximately $1.7 million to $700,000 chip lead on Bryant King.

It did not take long for Negreanu to finish off his one remaining challenger. After having lost several pots in a row, both men moved all-in on the eighth hand on K-Q-4 flop. Both had a King, but Negreanu’s kicker was better and King (Bryant, that is) got no help on the turn or river. While he was no doubt a bit disappointed not to win, Bryant King still went home with a $416,690 check, minus tax and tip.

If this serves as any indication, 2006 might be the year that Daniel “The Kid” Negreanu finds himself back on top of the tournament poker world.

Final Table Standings

(Place/Player/Prize Money)

1. Daniel Negreanu -- $755,525
2. Bryant King -- $416,690
3. Kianoosh Mohajeri -- $228,950
4. Lee Markholt -- $183,160
5. Brian Lamkin -- $137,370
6. Brandon Adams -- $114,475
7. Wendell Barnes -- $91,580
8. Robert Schulz -- $66,624
9. Chad Brown -- $45,790

Originally published February 2, 2006