The 2009 Canadian Open Poker Championship took place this past weekend at the Stampede Casino in Calgary, Alberta and saw many a poker pro vying for the top prize of $100,000. But it would not be a poker pro who claimed the prize, it would be an amateur online player named Benjamin LaBlond of Quebec.

Twenty three year old LaBlond faced poker pro Jeff Madsen in heads up play before he took the win. LaBlond had been down in chips making his way to the finals but he fought back and earned his spot at the final table. LaBlond had to face Phil Hellmuth in a six hour match during the quarter finals before he moved on to face Brad Booth in the semis. After defeating Booth he would face Madsen.

In the final hand LaBlond held pocket fours against Madsen’s 10-A and the flop gave LaBlond another four and the river gave him a full house and the win. LaBlond admitted he has only online poker playing experience stating: “"I play pretty low stakes online -- head-ups for anywhere from $30 to $200, so this is definitely a big win for me. I spent anywhere from five and 10 hours a day playing head-ups online, playing six tables at once.”

LaBlond will use what he has earned in the tournament to pay for the entry fee into the Main Event of the 2009 WSOP. It will be interesting to see how far he will go as it seems he can hold his own pretty well against the poker pros.





- 2009-05-19