One might say that poker history was made last week, and we're not talking about the dramatic victory at the 2009 World Series of Poker Final Table, we're talking about a victory in a 96-deep field in Lake Tahoe.
22 year-old Greg Sessler, a student at the University of California-Davis, earned himself a $9,932 payday by winning a Ladies Poker Championship in Stateline, Nevada. The tournament is actually on the WSOP Circuit and is a well-regarded competition, locally.
It might come as a shock to some, but the WSOP doesn't get involved in gender disputes- something the International Athletics Federation may want to keep in mind next time they're dealing with a South African runner.
Knowing that the result of this tournament would raise a few eyebrows, the WSOP issued a press release declaring "The WSOP isn't a political organization and can't be expected to get involved in debates about sexism, discrimination, or other polarizing issues which may be applicable to poker tournaments...While the WSOP makes a sincere effort to promote women in poker and offers quasi-exclusive tournaments designed to increase female participation in the game, officials generally do not turn away those who want to play in the event, based solely on gender."
The event was a $300 buy-in and actually included three other male players. Sessler stated that he didn't choose to participate in the woman's event because he thought it would feature weaker players, he was forced to play in the tournament due to a very tight shcedule. He declared, "I came here because I only had one day, and I really like the structures and the payout. This was the only tournament I could play."
Sessler was the only male to actually finish in the top 9 or make the final table. The winning hand? None other than a pair of Queens.
