KOSTAS TSONIS WINS POKER CHAMPIONSHIP

(June 19). BREAKING NEWS: Chicago poker veteran Kostas Tsonis was the "last man standing" at the 3rd Annual Chicago No-Limit Poker Grand Championship held June 14th. Kostas came to the Final Table short-stacked and proved all you need is a "chip and a chair" to win it all.

The Final Table was tremendously exciting, with all the roller-coaster action you would expect at a table featuring 6 players who have qualified for the Chicago Player of the Decade Tournament.

The No-Limit Poker Grand Championship is Chicago's toughest championship tournament series. It's structured double-elimination style, effectively meaning that Tsonis had to beat everyone twice to win it. "Chicago Mike" Bishop was the Tournament Director. Full pictures and interviews with the players will be published here shortly.

For pictorial coverage of past Chicago Championships, please see the following story.

2008 HOLDEM CHAMPIONSHIP COVERAGE

Robb Rabito wins Chicago Championship

8 New Players Qualify for Player of the Decade

(Dec. 22). BREAKING NEWS: On Sunday, January 4th, over 80 Chicago poker players met to compete at the 2008 Chicago No-Limit Poker Grand Championship. The tournament featured all the competition and drama you would expect of an event of this caliber. As one measure of difficulty, both of the top-rated players of 2007 made the Final Table. After nearly 9 hours of play, Robb Rabito had survived every challenge thrown his way and was the last player standing.

The Grand Championship is a double-elimination No-Limit Texas Holdem tournament that emphasizes skill over luck. This structure gives every player two full opportunities to win. Upon first bust-out each player received a re-entry chipstack equal to 30 times the next big blind. Because of this unique structure, the eventual champion effectively had to "beat everyone twice", leaving no question as to their accomplishment. The entire Final Table will return to compete in the 2010 Chicago Poker Tournament of the Decade.

Acting Tournament Manager for this event was Stew "Chicago Mike" Bishop, a rules forum administrator for the Poker Tournament Directors Assocation. Interviewed after the tournament, Bishop commented "... this event exceeded all expectations... everyone brought their 'A' game.... Chicago championships are always exciting but it seems like the quality of play just keeps getting better..."

For complete photo coverage of the 2008 Championship, click here. More information can also be found at the event websites at the Chicago Poker Group and the Chicago Texas Holdem Group.

Two prominent Chicago players, Fabian Ramos and Merri Furlong made back-to-back Final Tables in 2007 and 2008. For complete pictorial coverage of last year's 2007 Grand Championship, click here.

'07 NL Poker Grand Champion	'07 Player of the Year
Merri Furlong	Fabian Ramos

Chicago Poker News is honored to have been a part of this historical tournament and congratulates all competitors for making it such a great success! yes.

See archive of prior reports here.