Tran beats 475 players to win $683,473 and a prestigious tourney seat
Friday 30th March 2007
After making five World Poker Tour (WPT) final tables in his career, with three in the past two months, pro player JC Tran won his first WPT Champion title yesterday at the World Poker Challenge.
At the tourney, which was staged at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Tran defeated a field of 475 pros and amateurs. The 30-year-old California-native took home a first place prize of $683,473 and a $25,000 seat in the WPT World Championship at the Bellagio in April.
On the heels of two recent WPT final table appearances – including a second place finish in the Los Angeles Poker Classic on 1 March 2007 and a sixth place finish in the World Poker Open on 25 January 2007 – Tran will pass the current point leader Joe Pelton in the Season V WPT Player of the Year race.
Tran secured his first place World Poker Challenge finish on the fourth hand of heads-up poker against Juan Carlos Alvarado, who moved all in pre-flop. Tran called with pocket 10s that held up against Alvarado’s A6, sending the 21-year-old Alvarado home with a second place prize of $366,798.
During a toast to the winner, Alvarado expressed his praise to Tran, saying: “I have a tremendous amount of respect for JC. He deserves this.”
After making five World Poker Tour (WPT) final tables in his career, with three in the past two months, pro player JC Tran won his first WPT Champion title yesterday at the World Poker Challenge.