The final players six remaining in the Party Poker Women’s World Open II have been determined and the action concludes today with $50,000 for first place up for grabs. The tournament boasted a prize pool of $108,000 and showcased some of the top female poker players in the world battling it out in front of UK Channel Five television cameras. The tournament is scheduled to air on Five in 2009 and then be distributed worldwide.
Entrants into the Party Poker Women’s World Open II included Erica Schoenberg, Jen Mason, Maria Demetriou, Xuyen Pham, Pippa Flanders, Jackie Meecham, Katharine Hartree, Mel Lofthouse, Lucy Porter, Michelle Orpe, Cheryl Baker, Shelley Rubenstein, Maud Mulder, Agnieszka Rylik, and Christine Klecz. In addition, Bev Pace, the champion of the Women’s World Open I, was also in the field. There were 36 participants in total. Each paid the $3,000 buy-in, creating a payout structure as follows:
First Place – $50,000
Second Place – $22,000
Third Place – $14,000
Fourth Place – $10,000
Fifth Place – $7,000
Sixth Place – $5,000
Today, six women will vie for the $50,000 first place prize. They include Soraya Homam, who Party Poker claims “narrowly missed out on a place in the final of the PartyPoker.com Women’s World Open I last year.” Also at the final table are journalist Eliza Burnett and television personality Michelle Orpe. Poker player John Kalamar’s wife Kyla is also at the final table. John is best known for making the final table of the 2007 World Series of Poker Main Event. He cashed in that tournament, which was eventually won by Jerry Yang, for $1.2 million. He also finished 82nd in the 2005 WSOP Main Event for $92,000.
Finally, two poker pros round out the final table, May Maceiras and Stefanie Bergener. Maceiras finished 40th in the recently-completed European Poker Tour Barcelona event, cashing for $24,393. Bergener is a member of Team Everest Poker and hails from Germany. She told Everest Poker that she found out about poker from a dealer in a casino: “I visited the casino several times with a friend and played some Blackjack. The dealers told us about poker and that it was a skill game and not just a luck game. I started reading books and articles about poker, playing online games at Everest Poker, and competing in live events.”
American poker pro Robert Williamson III is providing commentary on the Open’s final table. Here were the seating assignments, which should play a significant role in determining today’s outcome:
Seat 1: Soraya Homam (Germany)
Seat 2: Eliza Burnett (United Kingdom)
Seat 3: Michelle Orpe (United Kingdom)
Seat 4: Kyla Kalmar (United Kingdom)
Seat 5: May Maceiras (Spain)
Seat 6: Stefanie Bergener (Germany)
On Sunday, November 30th, Party Poker is holding a $2 million guaranteed tournament. The winner is assured at least $300,000. Last week, Party Poker held four “Kingrolls” that dished out 50 seats each to the $2 million Guaranteed. Direct buy-in to the tournament is $640 and qualifiers start as little as $1. Mega Satellite Fridays and Super Satellite Saturdays are available as well and are held weekly. All told, the $2 million guaranteed will be the largest tournament ever held on Party Poker. Currently in the online poker world, PokerStars holds a weekly $1.5 million Guaranteed Sunday Million, which is the largest recurring prize pool tournament. Until a few months ago, the guarantee of that event had been $1 million.
MatchroomPoker.com is hosting live coverage of the PartyPoker Women’s World Open II.
