Take a Breather, Ivey – It's the Schoenfeld Show

You're probably tired of reading about Phil Ivey, and I'm tired of writing about him. After spending about 14 seconds trying to convince him to go to Costa Rica, I decided that I didn't need to encourage another superstar to play in the camisa (rebuy) tournaments. Instead, I used my sales skills on less qualified players like Daniel Negreanu, Diego Cordovez, Adam Schoenfeld, and Harley Hall (fifth in this year's "Big One" at the World Series). I showed up a few days into the tournament, and none of my buddies had produced any results. In fact, Danny was in such a funk that he stayed in his room for an entire day reading some chick book. I decided that it was time for a motivational speech. Hours into the pep talk, Adam picked up his cell phone, hit Danny on the back of his head, and asked, "Can you hear me now? Can you hear me now?"

I think this changed everything. Daniel's smile returned and Adam felt like a father figure to the kid. I guess the beating worked, because not only did Daniel make a few final tables, he won the Linda Johnson Celebrity Challenge, which included a nice trophy and $69,000. Meanwhile, something possessed Adam, because he went on an Ivey-like winning spree. He had back-to-back second-place finishes in limit hold'em and Omaha eight-or-better events, even though he doesn't play those games. He then took an evening off to provide Diego the opportunity to win the Daniel Negreanu Challenge. The following evening, Adam won his first big tournament ever, in no-limit hold'em. At least he knows the rules of that game. Daniel then slapped him around a little in the championship event, and he was able to finish only seventh. For his great performances, he was named the best all-around player. Congrats, Adam. Costa Rica itself was the same as usual – there were lots of beautiful girls and the poker was great. Oh, yeah, I left Harley out of the story. Maybe that is because players usually don't get press for finishing on the bubble three times.

On a different note, I am pleased to announce the return to Card Player of one of poker's most entertaining writers. Starting next issue, Andy Glazer, "The Poker Pundit," will once again write a column and begin a series of his "Top 10" World Series of Poker articles. Andy's title role of tournament editor will give him the opportunity to cover some big championship events throughout the year. Welcome back, Andy!

I am saddened to report that Brian Saltus has passed away after his long battle with cancer. Brian won the 2001 Tournament of Champions seven months after playing in his first poker tournament. His inspiration touched everyone. See Mike Sexton's tribute to Brian.