When I played live poker for the first time at Canterbury Card Club in Shakopee, Minnesota there was barely any Texas Hold 'em being played on the card room floor. As was about to give away $100 to Minnesota's finest seven card stud players at the $1/$2 tables, I spotted a tourney being put on for fifty bucks and thought my money might last a tad longer. Four hours and looking back on some collusion that occurred with two tables left in a 100 person tourney, I sat with the money at the final table.

Of course I got the bottom cash, but to play for several hours against players that didn't share my last name and win was my first step towards playing online and eventually writing the game. The Full Tilt Online Poker Series rolled out its seven card stud event number ten with Keith Sexton hosting, and posting a respectable 24th place finish himself.

Max Pescatori didn't give up his bounty (any Full Tilt pro gets knocked out they pay the tourney entry fee to the player that knocks them out) until finishing in 4th place to a 7th street flush. "lifeor99" walked away with the big bucks taking down $29,850 for the win, check out the back story to his win at Full Tilt.com:

Heads-up started with the blinds at 25,000/50,000 and a 4,000 ante, creating a lot of large pots. With 450,000 chips in the middle, bluff27allin was forced to fold when both players represented a diamond flush, but lileor69 had the Ace.
Just a few hands later, both players made up pairs on 6th street, bluff27allin with Jacks and lileor69 with Aces.

lileor99 continued betting his hand and bluff27allin called him down. With 600,000 in the pot, lileor99 revealed that he had another Ace in the hole, giving him more than a two-to-one lead with well over 1 million in chips.

Significantly short stacked, bluff27allin put his last remaining chips in the middle on sixth street and revealed 3c-Qc-10c-Qs-2c-8h, for a pair of Queens, a flush draw, and a gut-shot straight draw. But lileor69 was already sailing away with the championship, having made a full boat on 5th street with 4d-4s-9s-9h-4h. lileor99 earned $29,850 for the championship and bluff27allin took home $19,701 for his second-place finish.