Carter Wins WPT Southern Poker Championship

Million dollar win in tough company amateur player A poker player who had previously only cashed in two tournaments scored a dream win that paid out a million dollars in the WPT Southern Poker Championship in Biloxi's Beau Rivage Casino this week. Allen Carter triumphed in an epic 8 hour final table that featured highly experienced poker veterans with bracelet qualifications from some of the biggest contest on the globe. He faced chip leader and formidable tourney veteran Soheil Shamseddin; three time WSOP bracelet winner Hilbert Shirey; Bobby Suer, a tough pro from California; Tyler Smith who has a WSOPC New Orleans bracelet to his credit and relative newcomer Hyong Kim after surviving the original entry field of 283 players. That entry field included players of the calibre of "Miami John" Cernuto, Scott Clements, T. J. Cloutier, Hoyt Corkins and 2008 WSOP Player of the Year Erick Lindgren, along with Ted Lawson and Internet whiz Hevad "Rain" Khan and Vanessa Rousso. The action at the final table was initially slow, taking near a hundred hands before the first player was sent to the rail - the unfortunately short-stacked Chuck Kim - who was taken down by Shamseddin. A few hands further into the game Tyler Smith was on his way home, a victim of Bobby Suer, and at Hand 109 it was Hilbert Shirley's time to head for the exit after a clash with Suer. By Hand 123, Shamseddin's original lead in chips had shrunk, probably as a consequence of his aggressive playing style, when he came into confrontation with Carter....and lost, leaving in third place and setting the scene for the heads up between Carter and Suer, with the former holding a slim chip lead. 30 hands on, Carter had extended his lead and ultimately finished off the plucky Californian to walk away with the $1 million first prize and the title. For his second placing, Suer collected a $501 028 pay check, leaving third placed Shaseddin with $263 725 and six figure payouts for the remaining final tablers.