1995 Hall of Fame Poker Classic

$1,000 Buy-in
Entries: 352
Total Prize Money: $352,000

1995 Champion: ELDON ELIAS

• The Winners.
• The Showdown.
• The Final Table.
• The Final Hand.

1. Eldon Elias                              $132,000
Palo Alto, California
2. J.C. Pearson                               66,880
Las Vegas, Nevada
3. Chuck Thompson                             33,440
Santa Cruz, California
4. Michael Dearing                            22,880
Visalia, California
5. Bob Gammon                                 15,840
Bloomington, Indiana
6. Jennifer Harman                            12,320
Las Vegas, Nevada
7. Jack Lindsay                                8,800
Dalton, Georgia
8. Lamar Hampton                               7,040
Winter Park, Florida
9. Gene Fisher                                 5,280
El Paso, Texas
10. Ali Gowani                                 4,224
San Jose, California
11. Bill Argyros                               4,224
Las Vegas, Nevada
12. Don Ciresi                                 4,224
Orchard Park, New York
13. Diana Blankenship                          3,520
Columbus, Ohio
14. Anthony Passacantano                       3,520
Addison, Texas
15. Don Williams                               3,520
Las Vegas, Nevada
16. Steve Zolotow                              2,816
Las Vegas, Nevada
17. Kevin Song                                 2,816
Hacienda Heights, California
18. Curtis Amundson                            2,816
Faribault, Minnesota
19. Robert Poolos                              1,760
Marco Island, Florida
20. Bernie Heidenreich                         1,760
Las Vegas, Nevada
21. Steve Brecher                              1,760
Reno, Nevada
22. Keith Alter                                1,760
Wichita, Kansas
23. Keith Darr                                 1,760
Las Vegas, Nevada
24. Michael Chang                              1,760
Hawaiian Gardens, California
25. Malki Marzouq                              1,760
St. Clair Shores, Michigan
26. Gary Fisher                                1,760
Greenville, Texas
27. Bob Sherman                                1,760
Elizabeth, Pennsylvania

. An importer and wholesaler of Japanese Koi fish, Elias was the organizer of the Cajun Cup poker tournament, which was held in Louisiana from 1986 through 1989. He holds a title from the 1989 Caesar's Super Challenge and has cashed twice at the World Series of Poker. Introduced to the game in college, Elias has been a professional poker player for 18 years.

. Elias came to the final table as one of the chip leaders, and his stack was never in jeopardy. When heads-up play began, he had amassed more than a 5-to-1 advantage over runner-up J.C. Pearson, and it was all over shortly thereafter. The final hand came down when Elias raised before the flop with K-7 offsuit and Pearson called all in with 9S 3S. The final board showed K-8-3-J-A, and Elias claimed the pot and the title with a pair of kings.

. It was the Hall of Fame watch, however, that had been foremost on Elias' mind. With four players left, he glanced at the wrists of his opponents and noticed that they all were wearing watches. "You have watches," he stated. Then displaying his bare wrist, he added, "I don't have a watch. I need that watch." Later when Jack McClelland brought the watch to the table, Elias -- in a foreshadowing of what was to come -- exclaimed, "There's my watch!"

. Pearson, a 62-year-old professional poker player from Las Vegas, received $66,880 for his second-place finish. He has to his credit a Hall of Fame title, as well as titles from the Queens Poker Classic and the L.A. Poker Classic, and has cashed in numerous other major competitions. Formerly the owner of a retail home-delivery milk service, Pearson began playing poker during his stint in the military.

. Placing third in the limit Hold'em competition and taking home $33,440 was Chuck Thompson, a 56-year-old professional player from Santa Cruz, California. Formerly a chemist for Mobil Oil Company, Thompson holds a title from the Peppermill tournament and has cashed countless times in major poker competitions. When he isn't following the tournament trail, he props the games at Bay 101 and occasionally writes poker-related articles for various gaming publications.

. Almost down to the felt and forced to take the big blind, Thompson made his final stand and was eliminated from the tournament when he raised all in before the flop with 6-5 offsuit and was called by Pearson, who held JC 4C. The board helped neither player, and Pearson's jack was good enough to take the pot.

The Final Hand

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