Lucky Player Wins Car

For one lucky Borgata player, January 27th turned out to be 'good' Friday. Players waited with baited breath as names flickered on a plasma screen in a random drawing at Borgata's event center. Staten Island's Arthur Azen, a loyal Borgata player, was the lucky winner of a brand new 2006 Cadillac Escalade. Azen could hardly contain his surprise as his name was announced by Borgata's director of poker operations, Stan Strickland. Players broke out in applause as Azen made his way to the front of the room to look at his new car. All players who entered events one through eight were eligible for the luxurious vehicle.  'This is so great. I can't believe you guys have done this. I was sitting at the table and thinking about how nice it would be to win the car and the next thing I know, my buddy is screaming my name. It was a total shock. It's a wonderful thing. No other casino is doing this - only at Borgata,' Azen said after posing for pictures with his new car.

Playing professionally for two years, Azen had luck on his side this day. When asked what he was going to do with the car his responded, "I already promised it to my wife." Friday saw the beginning of the final event before the World Poker Tour $10,000 buy-in, the $2,500 No Limit Hold'em tournament and the end of the Ladies $300 buy-in event. Both provided plenty of action, but the Ladies' final table drew the most spectators. Fans surrounded the players as they took in the strong play of the ladies. In the end, it was Clifton, N.J.'s Cuc 'Cookie' Dang who stood alone in the winner's circle. In the final hand of the tournament, Cookie's king and nine stood up to second-place finisher, Laurel, MD's Sherece Gasaway. Dang took home $25,104 for finishing first while Gasaway collected $14,175 for placing second.

Friday also saw the beginning of the $2,500 buy-in featuring some of the biggest names in the game. Barry Greenstein, Kenna James, Andy Black, Amir Vahedie, Allen Cunningham, John Phan, David 'the Dragon' Pham, and Steve Dannemann all participated in the 366 player tournament. More and more players continue to flock to Borgata for Sunday's main event start. Coming right on the heels of his victory in Tunica at the WSOP Circuit event this week, poker phenom Daniel Negreanu is expected to once again give his competition fits and make a serious run for the Borgata champion's bracelet, a 2006 Cadillac Escalade, and a $25,000 seat into the World Poker Tour championship in April. Tomorrow brings the start of the big event and the spectators and players seem ready for some of the best poker action ever to hit the East Coast.