Once In A Lifetime....and Being A Part of WPT History

A friend of mine, DP had the wonderful opportunity to play in the WPT Celebrity Invititational at the Commerce Casino this past weekend. Here's the link to the tournament.

There were 430 plus people in the tournament, and my friend made it to the second day. She was happy to have made it that far. The second day began with 13 tables, and their were more poker pros than celebrities left playing. Hoyt, Phil Laak, The Dragon, The Master, Linda Johnson, Jan Fischer, Kenna James, Jennifer Tilly and other players whose faces I recognize but can't recall their names at this moment, were also there on the second day.

The action was fast and furious enough, that by the time I left for dinner, they were down to 6 tables. And DP had been on a roller coaster ride of ups and downs. Just prior to my leaving, she had almost quadrupled her stack. I hated leaving, but I had already made dinner plans with Amanda. I asked DP to text me if she got out.

Unfortunately during dinner, the flu hit me head on, and I could barely hold my head up by the end of dinner. So after much internal dialogue on how terrible a friend I am, I went to bed....and woke up to a text that she had gone out at 7th.

I was thrilled for her....but I also knew that she was going to be upset, because the final table always films with 6! That means she was the bubble!
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I call her on Monday, the day of the taping to see how she is doing. And the whole story is that she actually went out at the same time as another woman, Beverly.....therefore the final table was going to be starting with 5. She was still going to go to the taping, since they wanted to interview her.

She wasn't doing too well emotionally, and there was nothing that I could say that would help her feel better.
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As they start the taping, Mike Sexton and Vince Van Patten announce that "for the first time in WPT history, the final table is beginning with 5 players." I had no idea that this had never happened before, and neither did DP.

In her interview, the girl asked her how did it feel to make WPT history....and I was proud of DP's answer---nothing could have prepared me to answer that one if it had been me---especially with the wound so fresh.
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I've had almost a week to think about the opportunity DP had to play, and how well she did, and the result, and the questions that she is going to be asking herself for a very long time. I feel for her in many ways. I'm so happy and proud of her for doing so well........and I'm sad for her that she is going to be questioning her decisions and being on the cusp of sitting at the final table.

I know she'll make another final table....she is too good a player....and now she should know that she can hold her own in a field of professionals.
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And of course, a woman won the tourmanent....for the first time!!!!!!!!