Thursday, April 25, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.
Gamblers love to study the odds and probabilities, but they never would have wagered on the oddity that occurred during the first week of action at the World Series of Poker.
After all, what are the odds of the only two gamblers in a record field of 528 players with the same name -- albeit there is a slight difference in the spellings -- finishing one-two in the second of 24 events?
Furthermore, what are the odds that the winner, David Chiu (pronounced shoe) and second place finisher David Shu (also pronounced shoe), would enter the $2,000 buy-in limit Texas hold 'em game each with less than four previous World Series appearances and no prior money winnings?
Following a marathon game that began Monday afternoon and finished before dawn Tuesday at the Horseshoe casino, that's what happened, as Chiu, 36, of Lakewood, Colo., collected $396,000 and Shu, 40, of Anaheim, Calif., won $200,654.
Chiu, a poker dealer at the Gilpin Hotel Casino-Blackhawk in Colorado, had competed in just two prior World Series events, while Shu, an importer based in Los Angeles, had been in just three events at last year's World Series.
The event also marked the first time that player buy-ins created a $1 million prize pool in an event other than the $10,000 buy-in no-limit Texas hold 'em finale. This year's climax to the month-long, 27th annual granddaddy of all gaming tournaments will be May 13-16, where the winner will get $1 million.
"I would say that patience is it," Chiu said in response to a reporter's question about his best attribute as a poker player.
"I was in trouble early when I was dealt two kings and another player had two fours. He wound up with quads (poker jargon for four-of-a-kind) and I was down to less than $1,300. But I played steadily after that."
Despite his windfall and new-found fame as a World Series event champion, Chiu said he would keep his poker dealer's job.
Heading into the final table, Chiu was in seventh place with just $55,000 in checks. But, slowly, Chiu started to get good cards and turned the tables on veteran player Paul "Eskimo" Clark. The burly, bearded gambler out of New Orleans was the leader going into the final table with $234,000 in chips.
First, Chiu held ace-deuce of clubs and caught three running clubs among the five community cards for the nut flush. Then, holding ace-ace, the best starting hand possible, Chiu knocked Clark out when he missed a straight draw.
Shu's key hand involved thee other players, including Clark, vying for a $300,000 pot.
Holding ace-king, Shu bet aggressively with three jacks on the board and was rewarded with a king on the "river" (fifth and final community card) to beat Clark's jacks full of sixes and leave him ripe for elimination by Chiu.
Clark settled for fourth-place money, $68,640, behind Las Vegan Steve Kopp, who won $100,320.
The winning hand was Chiu's three fives-ace high to Shu's three fives-queen high.
Of the 26 women in the field, including Kopp's wife, Mary, only one placed in the money. Brenda Jacobus of Las Vegas finished 16th and won $8,448.
While nine ex-world champions entered the game, only one cashed in. Brad Daugherty, the 1991 World Series titlist, placed 22nd, earning $5,280, to make him just the 10th player in World Series history to top $1.1 million career earnings plateau. He now has $1,100,825.
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