Robert Varkonyi is one of the less known WSOP winners. Before his triumph in 2002 nobody knew his name. He had never played at the WSOP before it. When being a student Robert Varkonyi like all American students played penny ante poker. He didn’t plan to make a poker career… and I’m not sure that his great win can be called a career. As Phil Hellmuth said: “This is Robert’s day, let him have 10-15 minutes to enjoy it”. I guess he enjoyed it: $2,000.000 – nobody had ever won a bigger sum. It was before Greg Raymer got his $5,000,000. So, how it was? How did Robert Varkonyi win?
I think he was immensely lucky. To win with QT. In fact – all WSOP winning hands are very… strange. Just remember Doyle’s 10-2. So… When it came to heads-up Robert Varkonyi was sitting with:
While Julian Gardner enjoyed his:
At the river both Gardner and Varkonyi saw that they had a chance to win. Though Julian saw this chance at the flop when went all in at the sight of two clubs, Julian – with a flush and Varkonyi… Let’s look at the river:
Gardner was happy! A flush. But he didn’t know that Varkonyi has a better hand: full house.
In addition to it Q-10 hand is a hand that cost Phil Hellmuth his hair. I think that it is the greatest Varkonyi’s achievement. To shave this “Pokerbrat”! When Varkonyi won, the crowd roared: “Shave Phil’s head!” Before the WSOP Hellmuth said: “I will shave my head if Varkonyi wins”. And Phil was shaved.
