1995 Hall of Fame Poker Classic

$1,500 Buy-in
Entries: 145
Total Prize Money: $217,500

1994 Winner: Ed Hill -- $57,600

1995 Champion: SURINDER SUNAR

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

1. Surinder Sunar                           $87,000
Wolverhampton, England
2. Dewey Weum                                43,500
Monona, Wisconsin
3. Kevin Song                                21,750
Hacienda Heights, California
4. Mike Laing                                14,138
Franklin, Pennsylvania
5. Jose Rosenkrantz                          10,875
Miami Lakes, Florida
6. Mike Cook                                  7,613
London, England
7. Ed Hill                                    5,437
Las Vegas, Nevada
8. Alex Brenes                                4,350
Miami Lakes, Florida
9. Mickey Finn                                3,262
Dreieich, Germany
10. Peter Brehm                               2,610
Houston, Texas
11. Tom Jacobs                                2,610
Las Vegas, Nevada
12. Catherine Brown *                         2,320
San Antonio, Texas
13. Carl McKelvey *                           2,320
Mandeville, Louisiana
14. Pat Fleming *                             2,320
Las Vegas, Nevada
15. John Spadavecchia                         2,175
North Miami Beach, Florida
16. David Stearns                             1,740
Downey, California
17. John Henson                               1,740
Temple City, California
18. Annie Duke                                1,740
Las Vegas, Nevada

* Tie

. The 1994 British Poker Champion, Sunar also holds a title from the Queens Poker Classic and has cashed in numerous other major competitions, including finishing second in the 1990 World Series of Poker no-limit Hold'em championship event. An electronic engineer by profession, Sunar began playing poker 10 years ago.

. Sunar came to the final table as one of the chip underdogs, but by the time heads-up play began, he held almost a 2-to-1 advantage over runner-up Dewey Weum. However, it wasn't long before Weum got even, and over the course of the next two hours, the two men traded chips back and forth. Then Sunar seized a substantial lead when he made a pair of jacks on the flop to render Weum's pocket sevens no good and win a $70,000 pot. It was all over on the next hand when Weum raised before the flop with J-8 offsuit and Sunar reraised with K-Q offsuit, putting Weum all in. The final board showed 7-7-6-7-A, and Sunar claimed the pot and the title with his king.

. Weum, a 52-year-old recreational poker player from Monona, Wisconsin, was awarded $43,500 for his second-place finish. The owner of a trucking company, Weum holds titles from the Queens Poker Classic and the Aladdin's Oasis Poker Tournament, and has cashed in several other major competitions. He has been a poker player since the age of 15.

. Winning third place in the pot-limit Hold'em competition and pocketing $21,750 was Kevin Song of Hacienda Heights, California. A perpetually 39-year-old real-estate broker and semi-professional player, Song holds titles from the L.A. Poker Classic, the Legends of Poker Tournament, and the Diamond Jim Brady event, and has finished in the money in numerous other major competitions, including cashing five times during this year's Hall of Fame. Although he began playing poker as a teenager in his native Korea, he has been a serious competitor for just three years. "Kevin has made great strides this past year," commented Hall of Fame Tournament Coordinator Jack McClelland. "He is definitely the most improved tournament player in 1995."

. Left with a short stack after losing an $85,000 pot to Surinder Sunar, Song was eliminated from the tournament a few hands later when he called all in before the flop with A-5 offsuit against Dewey Weum, whose pocket tens stood up to win the pot.

. Defending champion Ed Hill of Las Vegas finished in seventh place for $5,437. A 41-year-old recreational player and a co-owner of Poker World magazine, Hill also holds a title from the Gold Coast Open and has cashed in several other major tournaments.

The Final Hand

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