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Interesting pairings for 2006 Heads-Up
The pairings draws of the 2006 National Heads-Up Championships at Caesars
Palace in Las Vegas reveal some very interesting match ups. The random draw
has been a controversial event for the players and hosts in the past, with
some suggesting seeding might be more appropriate while others are dead set
against the idea. This year, several big name players may add their voices
to those calling for seeding.
Last year’s champion, Phil Hellmuth, is in tough right away as he found
himself holding the name of David “Chips” Reese. Reese was recently
victorious over Hellmuth in a tournament. Should Hellmtuh beat Reese and
advance to the next round, his likely opponent (although this may not be the
case against Freddy Deeb) will be Chris “Jesus” Ferguson, whom Hellmuth beat
in the final table last year to take the first prize. The same bracket will
feature Dan Harrington and Todd Brunson in the first round of play. One is a
former World Champion, the other the most recent winner of the Poker
Superstars International competition.
In bracket two, current European Champ and recent World Poker Tour winner
Tony G will be playing against Mike “The Mad Genius of Poker” Caro, and the
winner will play against wither Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss or Amir
Vahedi in the second round. Also in the bracket, Cindy Violette will be
taking on Barry Greenstein, and James Woods will be up against Scott
Fischman. Woods added some great humor to Friday’s draws when he drew
Fischman, recalling by memory several hands that he had beat Scott with in
recent play.
In bracket three, the legendary Doyle Brunson will be playing Juan Juanda.
Long time friends and opponents Daniel Negreneau and Evelyn Ng will sit down
and face each other, while the current leader in the World Poker Tour Player
of the Year points standings, Gavin Smith, will be pitted against Phil “The
Unabomber” Laak. Both players play a highly entertaining aggressive style of
poker.
Phil Ivey, the favorite going into the tournament, will be playing against
recent 6th place finisher of the Bay 101 Shooting Stars Tournament Chad
Brown. If he wins this match, he will face either intellectual player Ted
Forrest or Erik Seidel. Mark Seif, two time winner of the World Series of
Poker bracelet will battle the ultra hot Michael “the Grinder” Mizrachi.
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