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May 9th 2006
Erik123 Vs Liz Lieu – Roundup
It all started because Erik Sagstrom called Liz Lieu a “fisken” during a game of online poker at MartinsPoker.com.
Liz Lieu had recently signed on at the poker room as a sponsored player and was playing heads-up against Erik Sagstrom (Erik123), the undisputed king of high stakes internet limit Hold’em. Apparently there was some trash talking, but when Sagstrom called Lieu a fish in Swedish she took exception, and challenged him to a live cash game. Sagstrom readily accepted.
This all took place about a month ago and after arranging the details of the game at the WPT Championship the two players were ready to go to war last weekend.
The venue was to the Venetian. The format: three heads-up games for $400,000 each ($200,000 per, player per game). The game: $2000 - $4000 limit Hold’em.
With a number of friends and spectators watching the match kicked off at 5pm on Friday (May 5th). This first game set the tone for the series, with one player taking an early lead but being unable to finish the other off. In this match it was Lieu that couldn’t find the killer blow - on more than one occasion she had Sagstrom down to just $60,000 chips, but at the end of the day it was Sagstrom who led, with $245,000 to $155,000.
The next day both players agreed to start afresh, playing the second of the three matches and planning to go back to the previous night’s game at a later time. This time Lieu again took the lead, turning a full house on the second hand of the game and getting paid for it. And this time she was able to deliver the final blow, collecting all the chips in a little over two hours. Plus $200,000 for Lieu.
With the match over so quickly the players decided to get straight on and finish Match One. This time Sagstrom took control of the game and had Lieu down to $12,000 at one point, but the luck of the short stack was still in evidence and Lieu managed to build back up to $165,000.
Sagstrom must have been wondering what he needed to do, but managed somehow to get his rhythm back and eventually won the match when he turned a gutshot king high straight to beat Lieu’s flopped jack high straight. $200K all.
So with one game to go the money was even. It was a straight, one game, winner takes all show down for $200,000.
Riding high from his recent victory Sagstrom began to take the lead after a couple of hours before hitting two huge pots in quick succession, rivering a full house on both occasions. Lieu was in trouble; Sagstrom was cruising with $370,000 to her $30,000 and it looked like only divine intervention could save her.
But instead of divine intervention there was De Knijff intervention. Martin De Knijff, professional gambler, Bridge expert, winner of the first WPT Championship and owner of MartinsPoker.com was backing Lieu in this confrontation despite his being Swedish.
He took Lieu aside, had a quiet word with her, and that, as they say, was that. Lieu never looked back and in an extraordinary turnaround she regained the chip lead within an hour – from being $340,000 behind!
Sagstrom fought as best he could and battled on for another four hours, but the momentum had irrevocably turned and Lieu went on to win when she rivered a straight against Sagstrom's set of threes. Game, set and match for Liz Lieu.
Fisken? Haj more like.
Submitted: 09/05/2006 11:23:15
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