10 weeks, 6 provinces, 88 finalists, 1 winner. It was a whirlwind adventure that has finally come to a close. It was quite an experience working the Labatt Blue Chip Poker Tour, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I have been to my share of bars, and even worked in one for close to 4 years, and in that time I have never witnessed — let alone been part off — such a huge logistical, and crowd pleasing event. Oh, and I got a tux out of it to boot.
The final was held June 16th at the Liberty Grand in Toronto, on the CNE grounds. This event is why beer companies are great, because they know how to throw a party.
From the ice sculptures, to the ice bar, to the tables, to the lights, to the performers, to the band, to the staff, to the players, guests and VIPs, this was the Labatt event of the summer. Held in the lap of luxury at the Liberty Grand we arrived on Wednesday morning to start moving all our equipment into the building. After 3 healthy cube trucks full we left for the day, with the gents returning at midnight to move and set up the equipment in the room we were using. The next morning the entire team gathering to put the finishing touches on the room, and give it the Vegas/Labatt touch. It promised to be a great night with hours of poker ahead, and The Marble Index on deck to play.
We were down to 24 players by the dinner break at 6:30. The entertainment part of the night began at 7:30 when all the guests and VIPs showed up for the show. At this point Vegas show girls descended on the hall, stilt walkers, fire breathers, and many other ‘big show’ type attractions. I had the great fortune to deal one of the final 3 tables when the audience arrived. It was a rush to be standing there at my table ready to deal with 100′s of onlookers. I’d like to say this was the highlight, but it was only the beginning. I was scheduled to deal the final table, and the final table screamed WPT TV action.
It was a fantastic experience dealing on a blue lit stage with 100′s of people watching live, and close to 500 others watching on closed circuit screens thought the hall. In typical Kyle style I shrunk the table to two players before handing it off to Steve who was going to finish off the night. I think he got to deal 5 hands or so. In the end a bloke from Moncton, NB. won the event. He was in total shock, as were we. He made it to the finals by winning at one of the events I dealt at, and he was one of the few people that I recognized at the event. After seeing 100′s of faces 5 nights a week for 10 weeks they tend to blend together.
Cheers. To Friends.
Just wanted to send out a big CONGRATS to Richard, you played some great poker and made NB proud, best of luck in the WPT event and ill be seeing you at the final table buddy.