Russia vs. USA in WPT Finals
by Stanley Sludikoff

In a scene reminiscent of the Cold War, two warriors, Russian and American faced off against each other at the final table. At stake…the balance of payments between the two countries. There was no doubt that Kirill Gerasimon of Moscow, was taking home over $500,000, from just a $108 entry in a satellite tournament, but, would it be over a million? Not if retired junk bond analyst, Alan Goehring of Henderson, Nevada had anything to do with it. He wanted the million to stay in America…in his bank account, which is what happened in the end.

This last in a series of 13 events of the first annual World Poker Tour ended in pure excitement and a spectacular hand. I won’t spoil your fun by telling you about it, when you can see it on the Travel Channel, June 25th at 9PM. Every Wednesday before, you can check out the prior events, as the TV broadcast, aptly handled by Poker Player columnist, Mike Sexton and Vince Van Patten, I once lost $3,000 to his dad, Dick, in a Hollywood poker evening, lets you see the action, including, the player’s hole cards. Each event plays down to six people, and that is televised.

Funded by Lyle Berman of Lakes Entertainment, a world class poker player himself, and produced by Steve Lipscomb, the World Poker Tour has added a new dimension to our game that will surely increase its popularity geometrically, as well as geographically. WPT is a first class production using much of the Key talent and the most exotic locations in the poker world. From people like Linda Johnson and Jack McClelland, who did a great job hosting the finals to the live audience, to Poker executives like Doug Dalton at the Bellagio or Nick Gullo from Costa Rica or Bruno Fitoussi, who ended up 8th in the finals himself, of the Aviation Club in Paris, WPT has found the best people. Incidentally, the first event of next year’s WPT starts in July at the Aviation Club.

There were 111 warriors in this final event, most of who paid $25,000 to enter Poker’s highest stakes tournament. When it came down to the final six, sentimental favorite, two-time world champion Doyle Brunson (4th) was in the pack, along with Phil Ivey (3rd), Ted Forrest (5th), and James Hoeppner (6th).

This story was first published in the May 23rd 2003 Issue of Poker Player.

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