Under the most ideal circumstances in the minds of most men, any competition that included Vanessa Rousso, Erica Schoenberg, and Clonie Gowen would involve a pillow fight. Of course those who think so also don't quite understand Monty Python, but think the Three Stooges are a gift from God, so their opinions can be quickly dismissed. In reality Vanessa, Erica, and Clonie did find themselves squaring off against each other along with Gus Hansen and Beth Shak. This happened on NBC's Poker After Dark, and there were no pillows involved.
This wasn't just player vs. player, it shaped up into a team vs. team event. PokerStars and Full Tilt both have very potent stables of players on their teams, and this event was dominated by foot soldiers from these two sites.
In the end it was Vanessa Rousso's day to shine. Like the last girl standing during a high school gym class game of dodgeball, Vanessa was outnumbered by Full Tilt rivals, but didn't cave in.
Vanessa took out Gus Hansen first, and then set her sights on Erica Schoenberg. After ejecting Erica with an A-Q, her pocket Queens crushed Shak's pair of 8s. The attrition left Vanessa heads up against Clonie Gowen. At this point Rousso had a 4 to 1 chip advantage. In realistic terms this is like Roman army fighting the Shriners. Clonie didn't last long and was taken out when Vanessa completed a two pair at the river.
"Taking home my first Poker After Dark title is a great feeling," said Rousso. "It builds needed momentum heading into the World Series of Poker. Hopefully I can use this win and my strong play at PokerStars' EPT events as a launch pad to take home my first gold bracelet this summer."
We congratulate Vanessa and wish her the best of luck at the World Series of Poker.
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