Female Chess Masters Make Waves at WPT Celebrity Invitational
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With the World Poker Tour’s Celebrity Invitational down to its final table, there’s definitely some recognizable talent remaining in contention. However, that talent isn’t confined to the world of poker, as two titled chess masters have also fought their way to the final six and remain in contention for the $100,000 first prize.
While World Series of Poker bracelet winners Dan Heimiller and David Kitai are probably the two names most poker players would be familiar with at the final table, chess players are more likely to recognize the name of Almira Skripchenko. An International Master and Woman Grandmaster, Skripchenko is the second-ranked female chess player in France, and the 31st-ranked woman in the world, and won the European Women’s Chess Championship in 2001. Skripchenko is also an accomplished poker player, having already reached the final table at a WSOP event in 2009.
Dinara Khaziyeva is less known in chess circles, but is still a very accomplished player. She is the 3rd-ranked female player in Canada, and has attained the title of Woman International Master. She is also a virtual unknown at the poker table, but finds herself in 5th position moving into the final table.
George Rechnitzer and Damon Schramm round out the final table field. Schramm is the current chip leader, with 865,000 chips; but with Rechnitzer as the short stack with 660,000 chips, the final table should be a very balanced affair.
As usual, the WPT Celebrity Invitational drew a large field of notable names from the entertainment industry, as well as some of the world’s top professional poker players. UFC star Randy Couture was the first celebrity to be eliminated, but he was soon to be followed by many others, including Corey Feldman, Lou Diamond Phillips and Jose Canseco. Poker pros who fell to the rail included Barry Greenstein, Scotty Nguyen and Antonio Esfandiari.
The final table action will take place on March 2nd, to coincide with the final stages of the LA Poker Classic (which holds its final table on March 3rd). The top prize includes a $25,000 buy-in into the season-ending WPT Championship. Second place will receive $50,000, down to $5,000 for 6th place.