In a lot of ways poker tournaments are like golf tournaments. A large number of players enter the field, and the best players don’t win every time. Well tell that to, Vanessa Selbst, who just made history by winning the Mohegan Sun tournament back to back to take home $450,000. In 2010, in this same Mohegan Sun tournament, Selbst beat a field of 716 to win $750,000. This feat of winning back-to-back major live poker events is unprecedented.
Selbst is the first player in the six years of NAPT history to win back to back titles. No one in the 9 year history of the WPT has won the same tournament twice, let alone back to back titles. While not as legendary as Johnny Chan winning back to bitcoin roulette back WSOP titles, in today’s world of bloated tournament fields, highly trained professionals, and slight edges, Selbst’s accomplishment deserves a slow and steady standing ovation. We’re only in April and Selbst’s repeat Mohegan Sun titles will surely be one of the biggest poker accomplishments of 2011.
ESPN2 is slated to begin broadcasting the North American Poker Tour (NAPT) Monday, April 19.
Viewers can tune in every Monday at 10:00 PM EST to catch two episodes of the NAPT. The familiar faces of Lon McEachern and Norman Chad will be providing the commentary. The duo has been ESPN’s voice of poker since 2003. Supermodel Joana Krupa will join the two, providing eye candy and insight into the poker world between hands.
The first two episodes of the NAPT cover the PokerStars.net High Roller Bounty Shootout. These episodes feature poker legends such as Daniel Negreanu and Phil Hellmuth. The first season of the NAPT will broadcast two episodes every Monday for five weeks. The final six episodes are scheduled for the summer.
The NAPT made just three stops in 2010, but had strong attendance at each event. Deuce Cracked instructor, Vanessa Selbst, took down the final tournament, NAPT Mohegan Sun, on April 12. She collected a pay day of $750,000.
Jeffrey Hass, Global Poker Tour Director, believes the NAPT installments will inspire people to win a live event. “It will make the NAPT an aspirational event and will drive a lot more people to compete. Not only will they want to win the money and have the opportunity to compete at the highest level, but let’s face it: The dream of poker players everywhere is to win a poker tournament on ESPN. That’s what we’re giving them.”
This win takes Selbst’s lifetime tournament winnings to $4,115,800 and moves her to third on the all-time women’s money list, behind Annie Duke and Kathy Liebert. Selbst’s signature poker style is super aggressive when the stacks get deep and the money is on the line. For her aggressive play, Selbst’s live tournament results have been absolutely spectacular the last two years. Next year we have our fingers crossed for a historical Vanessa Selbst Mohegan Sun three-peat.
Places & Payouts:
1st: Vanessa Selbst – $450,000
2nd: Dan Shak – $254,000
3rd: Tyler Kenney – $170,000
4th: Thomas Hoglund Jr – $120,000
5th: Vincent Rubianes – $90,000
6th: Joe Tehan – $70,000
7th: Aaron Overton – $50,000
8th: Steve O’Dwyer – $32,330
