Two share big prize at Dania Le Batard tourney
Mike Balan from Davie and Jorge Pena from Lauderhill agreed to split the cash of $12,959 rather than take the trip to the World Poker Tour tournament at Borgata in Atlantic City Wednesday night at Dania Jai-Alai.
First prize in the Dan LeBatard 790 The Ticket poker tournament was $10,000, and 374 players showed up.
Balan, right, with 790 The Ticket producer Mike Ryan, held up the Dwayne Schintzius Trophy named for the ex-Gator basketball center who was featured in an inside joke on the Le Batard show all week.
The next big tournament scheduled at Dania is the $40,000 Halloween Hold’em Tournament at noon Oct. 30. Buy-in is $250.
Dania Jai-Alai’s Cardroom is open Sundays through Thursdays from noon to midnight, Friday and Saturdays from noon to 2 a.m. The fronton is located at 301 E. Dania Beach Blvd in Dania Beach.
NICK SORTAL began playing 3-card "gut" and "Indian poker" on high school band trips, moved on to "night baseball" and "pass the trash" during a Dr. Pepper-infused midnight game in the 1980s at the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, and now play in a regular neighborhood Hold 'Em game in Plantation. I have been given the assignment of writing about the gambling life in South Florida casinos for the Sun-Sentinel...which means sitting around watching poker on TV now counts as research.
