Sunday marked the second to last episode of the season for the PokerStars sponsored “Million Dollar Challenge,” which flanks NFL coverage on FOX. Ray Reid, a 29 year old son of a pastor from Canada, was the show’s challenger and told host Chris Rose that he wanted to use any money earned to turn his life around and help his father build a church.
Reid faced off against celebrity defender Gary Payton in the first round. In each of the matches, both players began with 20,000 in chips and the blinds started at a hefty 400/800. In the opening round, show front man Daniel Negreanu was seated alongside the contestant and could offer advice, but was unable to see any hole cards. In addition, the challenger had one timeout to confer with “Kid Poker.”
The match against Payton lasted all of one hand. On a board of K-9-7-4, Reid bet 4,000 with J-9 for second pair and Payton shoved all-in with A-10 for ace-high. Reid asked for time and Negreanu told him to call given the size of the pot. Reid obliged and the river was a five, giving the challenger the win in the match and a $5,000 trip to the Bahamas for the 2011 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in January.
Next up was pro defender Barry Greenstein, a three-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner. Negreanu moved to an isolation booth where he could communicate with Reid through and earpiece and see his hole cards. To counter, Greenstein could shut off communication between Negreanu and Reid twice using the “Dome of Silence.”
Like the match against Payton, Reid’s tangle with Greenstein was abbreviated. On a flop of 8-9-4, Reid checked with Q-10 for a gutshot straight draw and two overcards and Greenstein bet 4,000 with 9-7 for top pair. Reid min-raised to 8,000 and Greenstein invoked the “Dome of Silence,” forcing the amateur to finish the hand on his own. Greenstein shoved over-the-top all-in and Reid called, putting Greenstein at risk. The turn card was a jack, filling Reid’s straight, and Greenstein was drawing dead to the river.
For beating the PokerStars pro, Reid earned $25,000. He was then faced with a tough decision: take the cash and dash or risk his payday for a $100,000 match against Negreanu and a shot at $1 million. His friends and family reminded him that the show wasn’t called the “$25,000 Poker Challenge” and encouraged him to go for broke. Reid agreed to set up a heads-up showdown with Negreanu.
The key hand between Reid and Negreanu saw Reid flop a flush with 9-7 of spades on a board of A-10-K, all spades. Negreanu, holding A-10 for top and bottom pair, checked and Reid checked behind to another ace on the turn. Negreanu, now holding an unbeatable boat, checked and Reid bet 3,000. Negreanu check-raised to 6,000 and Reid shipped it in. Negreanu called all-in and doubled up, crippling Reid’s stack to just three big blinds.
Reid committed his remaining chips before the flop with 6-3, but ran into Negreanu’s 7-6 and could not improve when the board came 2-5-10-A-Q. However, he still received a $5,000 trip to the Bahamas for his efforts.
On December 12th, the finale of the second season of the PokerStars “Million Dollar Challenge” will air. The Challenge of Champions will see the show’s top winners vie in a sit and go whose victor will play Negreanu heads-up for $1 million. In the meantime, you can catch Season 1 of the poker game show on GSN. Check your local listings for more details.
