Business owner Patrick Eskandar finished 20th in the 2010 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event and cashed for $317,000. The windfall marked his first in the money finish in a WSOP tournament.
On his final hand in the $10,000 buy-in event, Eskandar moved all-in for his last 845,000 in chips. He received not one, but two calls from Pascal LeFrancois and Soi Nguyen and the flop came Q-9-10 with two diamonds showing. Nguyen bet out and LeFrancois got out of the way.
When the cards were turned up, Eskandar tabled A-7 of hearts for ace-high, while Nguyen tabled K-Q for top pair. Nguyen had hit the flop hard and the situation didn’t change when a 10 came on the turn. Down to rooting for one of the three aces left in the deck, Eskandar watched his final river card peel off in the 2010 WSOP Main Event, the king of diamonds.
Eskandar entered Day 8 of the 2010 WSOP Main Event, when 27 players began, with just the 25th largest stack. He was never able to gain any traction and was part of a quick series of bust outs prior to the Day 8 dinner break.
According to WSOP officials, Eskandar claimed a seat in poker’s most prestigious tournament by winning a $550 satellite at the Rio in Las Vegas. At the time, he was just a few hours away from his hometown of Ladera Ranch, Califonia, located in Orange County. The “OC” native, like several others who reached the final 27 of the Main Event including Hasan Habib, is a tennis enthusiast. Habib was a champion in the sport at age 14.
Eskandar began his final day in the 2010 WSOP Main Event seated at the outer table alongside Habib, LeFrancois, Nguyen, and UB.com pro Adam “Roothlus” Levy.