Three pieces of news with a World Series of Poker theme after bracelet winner James ‘Minneapolis Jim” Meehan passes away, and World Series of Poker Circuit wins for Matt Wakeman and Pedro Claus.
A year has passed, and Jerry sits in the same spot, my spot, the one at the back, the one where nobody can see your shit, and if a crazed lunatic came in a deck of cards short of a game of Solitaire then I could put my Jason Bourne planning into motion and escape with my life as he cuts everyone else down with his selection of Starbucks straws.
He looks a year older.
Do I?
Ruth Copeland sends her very best into my lugholes, and I wonder where Bob is? The last time I was in this joint, Bob was the red-capped tramp who became the attention of everyone’s generosity. He didn’t have a bean, and yet drank and ate better than anyone in the place.
He wasn’t homeless.
Jerry told me that his landlady had one rule – Bob couldn’t be home before her, and so he sat in Starbucks from morning till night. No book. No phone. Nothing. He just stared; occasionally he slept.
And now he’s not here?
I wonder if he’s dead?
Death has been on my mind lately. It’s Liza’s fault. Her parents are in their 70s. Mine in their 60s. She keeps asking me if I think about a future without them. Who will take care of the ones that keep knock, knock, knocking on heaven’s door?
I don’t know.
I don’t think about that shit.
And then I hear that James “Minneapolis Jim” Meehan has died. I don’t know the man. There is no reason why I should be affected by his death, except for the age.
66.
Too young, man.
My Dad’s age.
My Mum’s age in four years.
Mine in 19 more.
Time drips away like raindrops on a pane, and none of can stop it.
According to PokerNews, Meehan passed on December 6, leaving behind four sons and six grandchildren. A man of the law, Meehan began playing poker in the 60s, and, amongst his achievements, he won a World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet and a World Championships of Online Poker (WCOOP) title in the same year, the first person to do so.
All told, Meehan earned $1.4m in live tournament earnings, including eight WSOP final tables, and judging by the tributes pouring into poker’s little corner of the Twitterverse; he was a man who put a smile on the face of those who sat down with him to play a game of cards.
Matt Wakeman Wins The AUD 5k Challenge in Sydney; Pedro Claus Wins a Pre-Christmas Title in Uruguay
Matt Wakeman has never won a WSOP bracelet, but he does have a WSOPC gold ring courtesy of his win in the AUD 5,000 Challenge at World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC) The Star Sydney.
Wakeman defeated a field of 215-entrants, including such luminaries as the former Melbourne Poker Championships Main Event winner Gautam Dhingra, the former Crown Australian Poker Championships winner, Sam Khoueis, and the Australian Poker Hall of Famer Bill ‘The Croc’ Argyros.
Wakeman beat Dejan Boskovic, heads-up, to claim his second title and the most impressive result of his career. The pair began the final joust even in chips until Wakeman took an early lead that he never surrendered. The last hand saw the dominating A9 crush A2.
Wakeman has now earned $914,853 in live tournament earnings, it is his fifth cash of the year, and as short and sweet as those numbers may be, he did come into this event flying after a sterling Sydney Championships at The Star coming 3/152 in the AUD 5,000 No-Limit Hold’em for $64,574, and 2/28 in the AUD 20,000 High Roller for $118,522.
Here are the final table results:
Final Table Results
1. Matt Wakeman – $183,880
2. Dejan Boskovic – $157,804
3. Gautam Dhingra – $114,850
4. Joshua McCully – $85,332
5. Robert Spano – $64,094
6. Isaac Lau – $48,889
7. Sam Khoueis – $37,859
8. Billy Argyros – $29,754
9. Hauman Darbani – $23,731
Pedro Claus Takes Down WSOPC Uruguay title
We end with a story that I am sure Meehan would have enjoyed, and that’s the news that Pedro Claus has taken down a 10-entrant $200 Pot-Limit Omaha (PLO) event at the WSOPC in Uruguay.
Rumour has it that his brother Santa allowed him one last poker pitch before being knee deep in Christmas wrapping, and he turned it into a title. I am no purist but imagine, Claus will not pick up a gold ring for winning such a small event.
In 2016, Claus won the Latin American Poker Tour (LAPT) Main Event in Uruguay for $90,630 after driving his sledge through a 438-entrant field.
Ho.
Ho.
Ho.
