Extreme Poker
Loser's Leap
July 26, 2006 (Las Vegas, NV)
With the World Series main event looming InterPoker.com took to the skies in search of pokers biggest adrenaline rush. In a plane 15,000 feet above the Nevada desert poker pro Phil 'Unabomber' Laak tested his nerve against four InterPoker.com players in a bid to become the next Extreme Poker champion. Phil was joined by Nick 'Stoxtrader' Grudzien, Jamie Glasser, Fraser Linkleter and Patrick Neary with the winner aiming not only for a smooth landing as our new extreme poker champion but also an all expenses paid trip to the 2006 Caribbean Poker Classic in St. Kitts, a package valued at $11,300. The four losers were to be literally thrown out of the plane - with a parachute of course!
The growing phenomenon of Extreme Poker is all about keeping your cool under extreme duress, "I can't think of a more stressful situation than knowing that you must fall 15,000 feet from a moving aircraft if your opponent calls your bluff" said Peter Marcus, spokesperson for InterPoker.com and creator of Extreme Poker. "Trying to concentrate in a bustling casino during the World Series of Poker is tough - but after taking a bad beat and plunging to the desert below, the main event should be a walk in the park for our InterPoker players".
Now down to the game. With the competitors seated in the center of our SkyVan aircraft and the altitude of 15,000 feet matched the cards began to be dealt. The game took off at a great pace with, after only fifteen minutes of flying, online qualifier Patrick Neary becoming the first to not only bust out of the tournament but be the first pushed out the door. Minutes later, Nick Grudzien called an all-in move from Phil Laak, and sent the Unabomber packing his chute and freefalling above the desert.
"The pressure in this game was unbelievable, knowing that if someone called my bluff, I would have to jump out of a plane," said Laak. "Now that I'm done, I want to get right back up there and do it again."
Grudzien made light work of his remaining two opponents, and emerged as the last man from the plane and made the latest Extreme Poker champion. After his victorious landing and thanking his competitors, Grudzien promptly re-boarded the plane for a personal skydiving adventure. As the newest Extreme Poker Champion, Grudzien not only has earned a place in the Extreme Poker Hall of Fame, alongside pros such as World Poker Tour event winner Juha Helppi and 2002 WSOP Main Event winner Robert Varkonyi. Juha Helppi will also be heading to the 2006 Caribbean Poker Classic in St. Kitts on behalf of InterPoker.
Later this week, Grudzien will test his luck and put his skills to the test and he competes against up to 8,000 poker pros and online qualifiers and the biggest World Series of Poker in history.
