It's official: Poker dealer at Binion's Casino in Las Vegas win WSP 1st Event
Andy Nguyen wins WSOP 1st Event, becomes Casino Employees World Poker Champion
So, WSOP Employee Event No.1 - No Limit Hold'em... Every year, the World Series of Poker starts off with the Casino Employees World Championship. To be eligible to enter, players must be active employees at a casino. The winner of the event receives a gold bracelet and bragging rights as the 'world champion' among casino employees.
The 2005 World Series of Poker began with a record-setting parade of poker players who jammed into the Rio in Las Vegas. The number of entries (662) smashed the previous all-time record for this event, when 279 players entered. It took 14 long hours for the final table to begin, as 653 players had been eliminated by 2 am. The final nine players assembled around the final table and were eliminated as follows:
9th Place -- Justin Porter, a poker dealer from the Isle of Capri Casino in Kansas City was the 9th-place finisher. He collected $5,960 in prize money.
8th Place - David Slowik, a poker dealer from the Bellagio Casino in Las Vegas was the 8th-place finisher. He collected $8,935 in prize money.
7th Place - Todd Dakake, a poker dealer at the Palms Casino in Las Vegas was the 7th-place finisher. He collected $11,915 in prize money.
6th Place - Dustin West, a poker dealer at Casino Morongo near Palm Springs, CA was the 6th-place finisher. He collected $14,895.
5th Place - Steven Cuti, a poker dealer at the Casino Real in Stockton, CA was the 5th-place finisher. He collected $17,875.
4th Place - Simon Matthews, a poker dealer at Great Canadian Casinos in Victoria, British Columbia was the 4th-place finisher. He collected $20,855.
3rd Place - Thang Luu, a craps dealer at Harrah's Las Vegas was the 3rd-place finisher. He collected $23,830.
2nd Place - The runner up was Danilo Flores, a poker dealer at the Oaks Card Club in Emeryville, CA. He collected $43,195.
The winner was Andy Nguyen, a poker dealer at Binion's Casino in Las Vegas. Nguyen is a 43-year-old native of Vietnam. He has been in the U.S. for 20 years and has worked at Binion's since 2001.
Official Report by Nolan Dalla - World Series of Poker Media Director
This Official Report was compiled and submitted by World Series of Poker Directors
