News:

Half a million dollar$ win for poker champ

By Emily Attwood

Nov 4 2005 A BUILDER from Croydon who started playing poker just two years ago has won $500,000 in a massive competition.

Ian Frazer only got into the game after messing around on the internet and picking up a few tips. And when he took on his mates in friendly tournaments he lost every time.

But now the dad-of-three has seen his dreams come true with a massive payout, equivalent to £280,000, as he scooped first place in the televised 888.com UK Poker Open Championship which saw him pit his wits against Las Vegas pros on Tuesday night.

The 46-year-old said: "My feet are firmly on the ground. This money has dropped out of the sky straight into my bank account - I will be spending it quick as you like. I expect I will have the odd drink tonight.

"It felt fantastic but I knew I was going to win. In the first televised heat, of 108 people, I was interviewed and I told them I really fancied winning. "I did not fear the pros at all - even when I was down to the last guy who was an American just flown over from Vegas after winning a world series.

"He was wearing this big diamond studded bracelet he had won - you could not wear it out - and I beat him.

"He was very, very cocky but I knew I was going to win."

Ian, who works for Vidette Limited based at Airport House on the Purley Way, had made it through to a couple of finals thanks to his online efforts but never seemed to get any further. He explained: "I watched it on TV as well and worked out it was always the top guys getting to the final tables - I realised it couldn't just be luck. I put together a strategy and it came up trumps.

"You have got to be strict with yourself. It is so easy to dislike someone and get carried away putting your money down." Ian also took part in several low-key games against his mates from work but always ended up doing badly. "They ganged up against me" he said.

"The only time I won was last Friday - it must have been a good omen."

The former pupil of Kingsley School in Thomson Crescent, Croydon, added: "I get a massive buzz playing. When you put your chips down you get a big, big adrenaline rush. It is the uncertainty but also the confidence of thinking you have the best hand.

"My heart goes a thousand miles an hour but I look as cool as a cucumber." And Ian's wife Chrissie and his daughters Amie, 19, Emily, 15, and Charlotte, nine, are thrilled with his success.

But he is determined not to let it go to his head - despite being invited to play in two high-profile games including representing the rest of the world against America in Vegas.

Source: http://iccroydon.icnetwork.co.uk

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