CHINO TAKES THE DIAMOND CLASSIC

26 December 2008

1,538,730 reasons for playing a major live tourney!

 

28-year-old poker pro David "Chino" Rheem has followed his 2008 World Series of Poker final table appearance with a major win, surviving a field of 497 and a tough final six table to win the Doyle Brunson 5 Diamond Classic. His reward was a winner's check for $1 538 730, bringing his career winnings to date to over $4 million.

Rheem and 496 others anted up a buy-in of $15 000 for the pleasure and experience of playing in the 6 day tournament, which was held at the Bellagio in Las Vegas this week.

The final table comprised Rheem, Amnon Filippi, Hoyt Corkins, Steve Sung, Evan McNiff and Justin Young, with the latter surviving to face Rheem in the heads up with the chip lead, but as so often happens this fluctuated frequently between the two survivors as they battled it out for the big money. In the end, though it was Rheem who prevailed, ending the game with a massive lead to take the main prize. Justin Young collected a very useful Christmas check for $936 760 for his second place.

Rheem has achieved two seven-figure cashes in the last five weeks for a total of $3.2 million, preceding the Diamonds event with a seventh placing in the 2008 WSOP final table. His previous best tournament cash was a $327 000 check for a second place against Allen Cunningham in a thousand dollar re-buy event during the 2006 WSOP.