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March 1: Boarding!
Players, their companions, and the crew and staff of PartyPoker, World Poker Tour and Card Player Cruises board the Holland America cruise line's ms Zandaam in Port Canaveral, Florida. The mood is high as players who have played together countless times online finally meet face to face! At 5:00 PartyPoker hosts a grand welcome party in the Zandaam's elegant showroom, with champagne, music and lots of gifts for all the players.
March 2: Tournament Day 1
The tournament begins! Half the players begin today with 89 players playing throughout the day and into the evening, the blinds and limits increasing as the day wears on, and the group of players gets smaller and smaller. The poker room floor is a who's who of the poker world, with such pros as T.J. Cloutier, Howard Lederer, Scotty Nguyen, Mel Judah, Phil Hellmuth, Tom McEvoy, Chris Ferguson and many others playing alongside PartyPoker online qualifiers. In addition, last year's inaugural PartyPoker Million winner, Kathy Liebert, and second place winner, online qualifier Berj Kacherian, are also playing for this year's prize.
March 3: Tournament Day 2
Another day at sea as we cruise through the Atlantic en route to the Caribbean!
In the afternoon PartyPoker hosts a meeting inviting all PartyPoker players to come and share their input about making the software and poker action as good as it can be. Senior PartyPoker management, technical, marketing, customer service and design staff are in attendance, listening to player concerns and suggestions. We realize that PartyPoker is only as good as our players know us to be, so we take player input very seriously.
On the second day of the tournament, the second half of the players play their first round, beginning with 88 players at the beginning of the day, and ending with 40 players by the conclusion of the games at 10 o'clock that night. This concludes the first round of player elimination; the remaining players from days one and two (total of 84) play again tomorrow.
March 4: Tournament Day 3
Today we arrive in St. Maarten! This charming Caribbean island is half French and half Dutch. Players and companions go ashore to enjoy shopping, rent motor scooters to tour around, lounge on the island's many world-class beaches, or stay aboard the ship to relax by the pool.
That night, back at the tables, the action is getting hot! The remaining players from Day 1 and Day 2 play, whittling the number of players from 84 down to 18. The blinds and limits are getting high, and the pace quickens.
March 5: Tournament Day 4
We spend the day in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. This gorgeous island, a territory of the United States, is one of the most visited ports in the Caribbean. It is easy to see why: the shopping is truly world class, and St. Thomas is home to one of the top three most beautiful beaches in the world according to National Geographic, Magens Bay. Players, companions and staff enjoy the day on the island.
That afternoon on the ship, Linda Johnson, Jan Fisher, and Mike Sexton host a poker seminar where they share their top poker tips with PartyPoker players.
That evening, back at the tournament tables, breathless onlookers watch as 18 players are winnowed down to the final six. Online qualifiers dominate the table, making for excitement and high hopes among the crowd. The play continues into the wee hours, until the final six remain.
March 6: Tournament Finals!
Another glorious day at sea, with all those aboard relaxing and enjoying the ship's fantastic food and activities, and the final six players preparing for the evening's event, where only one player will remain, the winner of the PartyPoker Million II!
The tournament finals take place in the ship's glamorous showroom, the Mondriaan Room. The set on stage is a sight to behold: lights, bold and colorful backdrops and banners, cameramen everywhere. The finals are being filmed by the World Poker Tour for display on the Travel Channel June 11 (9-11 pm). The final six players meet for makeup with the WPT crew, and then it's lights, camera, action! Linda Johnson and Jan Fisher from Card Player Cruises announce the hands while giant screen televisions show all the table action to the packed house. The room is filled with the expectancy and excitement of a major sporting event as all eyes are on the players at the table center stage.
The action at the table is fast, furious, and aggressive, as the first three players to be eliminated are busted out in quick succession. This leaves Joe "Cowboy" Simpkins, a PartyPoker online qualifier, Chip Jett, and Howard Lederer. Another hour of play finds Cowboy out of the game, but still going home with $107,000!
At the moment that only two players remain, the procession with the money and trophy enter the showroom, accompanied by confetti cannons, music, and lights! The ship's crew carries in the platter with an unbelievable pile of $100 bill bundles, with the crystal trophy in the center. The prizes are placed on the table, and the showroom falls silent as play resumes. At the beginning of the evening, Chip Jett had a formidable lead, but by the end of the night, with the chips going back and forth, it is Howard Lederer who emerges the winner. At midnight he exhausts Chip's stack, and Howard wins the 2003 PartyPoker Million II, taking home $263,850! Second place winner Chip Jett receives $175,900, plus in a surprising development, also receives the $25,000 entry to the Bellagio tournament intended for the winner. (Howard Lederer has already won a World Poker Tour event into the WPT championship final at Bellagio, so the entry fell to Chip.)
The moment Howard emerged victor, amid the thundering applause, a storm of media and press swooped in on Howard and Chip as they received their checks. Then the action moved to the ship's night club, the Crow's Nest, where the dancing and partying went into the night!
The PartyPoker Million II was a resounding successful event that was enjoyed by all. You can see this exciting event on the World Poker Tour on June 11, 2003 (Travel Channel from 9-11 pm).
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