Phil Ivey Smiles at the WPT LA Poker Classic

Filed in archive Tournament News on February 29, 2008

If you go over the World Poker Tour's website right now, you'll be greeted by a video preview of a smiling Phil Ivey with the lovely Kimberly Lansing.

He smiles?!?!

I wonder if he even smirked when the ace on the turn made a full house and left runner-up Quinn do with thoughts about picking up his $909K at the cashier's window before the river card even came. That's right, Phil Ivey is now a WPT champion after several heart breaking WPT final tables with no toasting the beer with Mike Sexton and Vince Van Patten afterwards. But now, Phil Ivey is the proud owner of a WPT chip set, $1.6 million to pay the blinds at the next "big game" in Vegas, and a $25,000 freeroll into the WPT season ending WPT Championship.

Unfortunately the "other" Phil at the table did not fare as well, as Phil Hellmuth settled for sixth place when he tangled with Nam Le who turned two pair versus Hellmuth's top pair and sent his scrapes off to Charles Moore when A9 was not gold versus Moore's AQ.

Check out the WorldPokerTour's site for all the details of the big hands or thumb thru the live blogging section for a feel of Ivey's road to victory.