Davidow is 2009 POY
By Arnold Warner

Gerry Davidow of Fresno was looking for something extra to feed his competitive nature and he found it by entering The Cardroom’s NorCal Poker Tournament Player of the Year contest. Just playing in the tournaments gets him going, but adding the concept of going up against players from all over Northern California makes it even sweeter.

When asked about what made him interested in the POY contest, Davidow immediately responded, “It’s the competition. It’s recognition by my peers that I’m good.”

Good enough that over the course of the year he racked up 46 final tables and a grand total of 3,952.51 points. Second place went to C.J. Herro of Livermore with 3,270.15 points and 30 final tables, which was also quite an accomplishment after he came in third place in 2008.

The rest of the top ten consisted of Charles Thompson, North Highlands (third); Matt Bolar, Livermore (fourth); Thomas Sharp, Livermore (fifth); Ken Smith, Livermore (sixth); Kelly Joy, Fresno (seventh); Aubrey Robertson, Livermore (eighth—last year’s champion); Martin “Dick” Corpuz, Mountain View (ninth); and Clarence Cooper, Roseville (tenth).

Davidow scratches his poker itch primarily at Club One in Fresno. Owner Kyle Kirkland said, “Gerry is a fixture at Club One and plays in almost all of our tournaments. He’s always close to the final table, if not at the final table, so we think he’s a good guy.”

Kirkland added that he wasn’t really following the POY contest himself, but said, “I wasn’t really surprised [that Davidow was in first place], but I like to see that for any of our Club One people.”

Born in the Bronx (“a Yankee fan until I die”), Davidow grew up in Long Beach, Long Island and graduated from NYU. In 1975 he moved to California, attending law school at Lincoln University in San Francisco. After finishing at Lincoln and passing the Bar Exam he said that before long, “I decided to buy a house. In the Bay Area that wasn’t going to happen, so I looked around and found an opening in the DA’s office here [Fresno County] and was hired in January of 1981 as a Deputy 1. In three years I was a Deputy 5 heading the Business Fraud unit. Back then they called it Consumer Affairs.

“I went to Hartford Insurance in 1985 and I became their house counsel for 17 years.” He retired from Hartford, worked for a few small firms over the next couple years, then took the house counsel job at AAA for a few more years before “officially” retiring (aside from the occasional assistance to friends and family).

Davidow first played poker back in high school and while a student at NYU he began to play 7-Card Stud with some regularity. After coming to California he soon discovered Artichoke Joe’s in San Bruno where he learned to play Lowball and refined his Stud game, playing there about twice a week. “That’s when I started playing poker seriously,” he added.

Occasionally famous faces would turn up there. “On my way to law school, sometimes I would stop at Artichoke Joe’s to play if I had a couple of hours in my schedule. The first time I ran into a celebrity it was Rod Stewart who used to come there to make donations,” Davidow recalled. “He was one of the worst poker players that I’d seen, but he lost with such grace.

“Neil Young was better, he was a more serious player, but Rod Stewart sticks out in my mind. When we heard he was in town …. I never felt guilty taking his money. I think he came just to give out money. It was like Santa Claus. I was honestly not a big Rod Stewart fan, but I knew who he was and I listened to his music and I took his money whenever I could.”

For many years after moving to Fresno his poker playing consisted mostly of home games, then, in 2003, poker changed for him as it did for so many others. “Where I got hooked was with Chris Moneymaker. I’m one of that generation of Moneymaker followers. That’s what got me into Hold’em. I tried it once or twice at the 500 Club because I was working over in Clovis, so I said ‘what the hell’ and gave it a shot.”

Retirement gave him more time to play and he became a regular at Club One about two years ago. “When I read a ruling from some judge back east who said that this is a game of skill, not a game of chance, then I could say to my wife: ‘See, I’m not really gambling.’ She still doesn’t believe that, but I am her lawyer.”

In coming to Club One he was immediately attracted to the tournaments. “I enjoy competition. I’m an ex-athlete. I was a basketball player, a football player, a baseball player and it’s the competition.” He says that, for him, tournaments are a more competitive experience than live games. “I don’t use strategy in a live game, but I do use strategy in a tournament.”

Pressed for the secret of his success, he replied with the following anecdote: “I remember one tournament here that every time this particular guy did something I knew what he had and what he was doing. I don’t know why. Some guy says to me, ‘How could you go down to the river and the potential all-in bet with ace high?’ I said, ‘Because I knew this guy didn’t have anything.’

“I don’t know how. Whether it’s poker instinct, pure luck … I don’t know what the answer is. It happens occasionally where I’ll read somebody real well. It’s not so much that I see his tell. Maybe I do, but subconsciously I’m doing it.”

When asked if his courtroom experience helps with that he answered emphatically, “Yeah. In front of a jury you have to know people without knowing them.”

His goal for next year is somewhat predictable: “I’m going to try again … to defend my title.”

In closing, he said, “I still don’t believe that poker is a sport, but it’s one of the most enjoyable things I think I’ve ever done. You get to use your mind. You don’t use your body a lot; you’re just using your hands. And the camaraderie is incredible, more than I thought. There were guys that were rooting me on for this Player of the Year thing. I was surprised. I’ve enjoyed this year immensely.”

Of the nearly 400 players signed up for the contest, 223 received points over the course of the year. The total number of points awarded was 100,472.16 for an average of 450 points per player. This was an increase from 2008 of nearly 150 percent in the total number of points and almost 300 percent in the number of players receiving points.

The biggest haul of points for any one tournament went to Howard “Tahoe” Andrew of Walnut Creek who received 449 points when he was part of a four-way chop at the Bay 101 Casino on July 25. The tournament had 111 players and a $500 buy-in.

We received 927 tournament reports over the course of the year from nine cardrooms: The Bay 101 Casino in San Jose, Casino Marysville in Marysville, Casino Royale in Sacramento, Club One Casino in Fresno, Livermore Casino in Livermore, Lucky Buck Card Club in Livermore, Lucky Derby Casino in Citrus Heights, The 101 Casino in Petaluma, and Wine Country Cardroom in Lodi. The Bay 101 sent in the most results (248), followed by Lucky Derby (195), Casino Royale (119) and Club One (119).

The 2010 contest is already underway, as tournaments will count from Jan. 1 to Nov. 30 2010. We hope to add more cardrooms to our list of participants, so be sure to ask about the Player of the Year contest at your favorite poker room and sign up while you’re there. If you’re already signed up, there’s no need to sign up again as your “membership” in the contest continues from year to year; however, if you would like to start receiving notification by text when points are updated, email your mobile phone number to info@thecard room-norcal.com, let us know that’s what you want and we’ll add you to that list once we get it up and running.

For the record, here is the final list of players and their point totals for 2009:

Name

City

Points

Final Tbls.

Davidow, G

Fresno

3,952.51

46

Herro, C

Livermore

3,270.15

30

Thompson, C

North Highlands

3,045.15

28

Bolar, M

Livermore

2,838.60

27

Sharp, T

Livermore

2,703.24

25

Smith, K

Livermore

2,481.88

24

Joy, K

Fresno

2,415.89

24

Robertson, A

Livermore

2,414.70

23

Corpuz, M

Mountain View

2,234.81

14

Cooper, C

Roseville

2,077.10

24

Plenys, R

Sanger

2,074.98

22

Rasmus, J

Livermore

1,887.60

18

Dowdell, D

Fresno

1,787.64

19

Andrew, H

Walnut Creek

1,781.72

10

Gomez, E

Livermore

1,666.50

16

Nguyen, K

San Jose

1,501.50

7

Pham, C

Fremont

1,449.45

11

Nguyen, C

San Jose

1,354.61

8

Concepcion, C

San Jose

1,305.17

10

Zika, M

Livermore

1,259.17

10

Smith, D

Fair Oaks

1,095.30

14

Flores, R

Santa Clara

1,082.59

8

Campbell, E

Auburn

1,070.06

12

Bakarich, J

Sacramento

1,069.44

11

Soares, R

Hanford

1,057.80

9

McGee, D

Roseville

1,050.55

12

Sanchez, I

Reedley

1,033.74

5

Ackley, T

Loomis

1,029.20

12

Trujillo, B

Sacramento

1,014.67

9

Hicks, J

Citrus Heights

973.57

10

Baza, L

Sunnyvale

966.77

7

Tighe, G

Santa Cruz

917.50

7

Shebar, G

Palo Alto

859.22

8

Huynh, T

Sacramento

791.25

8

Porcalla, E

Elk Grove

780.36

8

Fiolle. T

Sacramento

747.42

9

Angel, K

Gold River

740.80

6

Terry, J

Citrus Heights

721.25

9

Schiopu, M

Livermore

718.85

7

Longacre, J

Fair Oaks

715.30

6

Ciaglo, D

Granite Bay

708.87

8

Rowell, D

Granite Bay

697.94

8

Bounsavang, B

Citrus Heights

696.09

6

Wilson, T

Sacramento

662.70

7

Williams, H

Los Gatos

661.68

3

Lomba, A

Sacramento

631.13

5

Reyes, J

Sacramento

610.39

6

Sharp, J

Livermore

565.85

6

Klein, C

Auburn

565.58

6

Nichols, S

Sacramento

554.30

6

Massone, M

Fremont

551.95

6

Weber, G

Orangevale

517.70

5

Ryan, D

Woodland

509.40

6

Khorrami, K

Los Gatos

501.14

5

Sousa, J

San Jose

500.25

5

Tequida, T

Sacramento

496.34

5

Bicking, M

Antelope

490.62

4

Ching, G

Fair Oaks

490.19

6

Lieu, T

Marina

487.69

3

Barber, B

Citrus Heights

482.76

4

Nethery, J

Pleasanton

481.50

4

Cappas, G

Sacramento

465.26

4

Heltsley, K

Petaluma

462.33

4

Shako, D

San Jose

456.75

4

Dorricott, J

Sacramento

446.44

5

Stoner, B

Livermore

423.95

4

Landrom, J

Citrus Heights

414.45

3

Taylor, Z

Lincoln

408.54

4

Peterson, L

St. George

395.86

4

Ansari, T

Novato

386.90

5

Rood, R

Livermore

366.85

4

Nguyen, T

North Highlands

357.70

3

Mesick, J

Sacramento

336.93

4

Pettengill, J

Madera

329.75

3

Common, A

Clear Lake

326.70

3

Jung, W

Santa Clara

325.40

3

Hengel, J

Lincoln

324.80

4

Drake, S

Sacramento

324.23

3

Barber, A

Roseville

313.87

4

Truong, T

Sacramento

306.35

3

Estrada, P

Santa Rosa

302.40

3

Wedum, D

Roseville

301.93

3

Kashiwagi, W

Sacramento

300.30

5

Marion, S

Auburn

299.10

3

Hurley, A

Sunol

287.50

3

Olsen, V

Sacramento

282.60

3

Lopez, L

Sactamento

277.00

2

Martin, H

Yuba City

276.00

2

May, M

Davis

275.90

3

Burum, C

Novato

269.50

2

Signey, A

Elk Grove

267.50

3

Chiaratti, J

Auburn

266.42

2

Kolla, Z

Pleasanton

263.70

3

Collins, G

Sacramento

256.15

3

Rowell, H

Granite Bay

242.23

2

Loya, T

Fremont

240.45

3

Brown, R

Carmichael

236.50

2

Wright, J

North Highlands

236.10

3

Nguyen, D

Antelope

234.90

3

Cassidy, B

Folsom

233.10

2

Warren, L

Roseville

225.90

2

Williams, J

Sacramento

225.50

4

Koenig, D

Citrus Heights

221.26

3

Glidden, B

Antelope

220.12

2

Fitzgerald, K

Roseville

218.32

2

Poladi, I

Lodi

212.00

2

Tuminelli, M

Dublin

204.60

2

Johnson, T

Rancho Cordova

201.90

2

Montoya, E

Madera

195.28

2

Mazza, D

Sacramento

190.40

2

Felger, P

Elk Grove

190.30

2

Arango, A

Sacramento

184.00

2

Castello, C

San Jose

177.10

2

Miller, K

Livermore

169.10

2

Godoy, J

Los Gatos

168.00

2

Florio, B

San Jose

168.00

2

Gibson, D

Orangevale

168.00

2

Cassidy, J

Granite Bay

165.00

1

Smart, S

Citrus Heights

162.80

1

Boeddeker, L

Cool

162.80

1

Jimenez, A

Sacramento

160.10

2

McCord, J

Gold River

156.30

2

Van Vuren, R

Carmichael

155.40

1

Morse, S

Davis

155.25

2

Gutierrez, P

Sacramento

154.00

1

Pickering, A

Mather

153.47

2

Flowers, R

Roseville

152.95

2

McGuin, B

Duncans Mills

152.20

2

Xayamongkhoun, M

Sacramento

151.75

2

Purushothaman, R

Sunnyvale

147.00

1

Lickey, N

Fair Oaks

146.62

1

Servillo, C

Tuburon

142.45

1

Catalano, R

Fair Oaks

138.60

1

Green, R

Citrus Heights

138.29

1

Wardlaw, C

Citrus Heights

136.40

2

Cha, T

Sacramento

135.97

1

Rooney, T

Granite Bay

135.97

1

Lamb, J

Auburn

135.84

1

Green, M

Roseville

135.10

2

Francis, J

Rancho Cordova

134.20

2

Vang, S

Sacramento

132.00

1

Hansen, R

Sacramento

132.00

1

Wood, A

Sacramento

127.65

1

Blackjack, B

Fresno

126.50

1

Vanderscnuur, J

Auburn

126.50

1

Becker, B

Orangevale

126.50

2

Weible, S

Rancho Cordova

125.92

1

Mullick, J

Citrus Heights

121.80

2

Palmer, C

Rohnert Park

121.55

1

Garner, J

Sacramento

121.55

1

Hager, J

Livermore

121.00

1

Arnold, A

Stockton

120.00

1

Lee, C

Merced

118.80

1

Chandler, J

Sacramento

118.13

1

Ortiz, R

Roseville

117.60

1

Gellman, S

Pleasanton

116.02

1

Pisano, T

San Jose

112.20

1

Young, B

El Dorado Hills

112.20

1

Castaneda, R

Woodland

109.37

1

Vahidi, T

Grass Valley

109.37

1

Wood, M

Rancho Cordova

109.37

1

Tynan, D

Napa

107.80

1

Benton, R

Elk Grove

107.80

1

Himbing, R

Elk Grove

107.53

1

Kirsten, K

Woodbridge

105.00

1

Wagenhals, K

Lodi

105.00

1

Huynh, L

Sacramento

102.90

1

McLaughlin, J

Lincoln

102.85

1

Sellai, B

Fresno

102.00

1

Smith, D

Sacramento

101.20

2

Nutt, M

Elk Grove

100.10

1

Keena, J

Antelope

99.00

1

Dier, D

Sacramento

99.00

1

Nguyen, H

San Jose

98.00

1

Morkovine, S

Menlo Park

98.00

1

Lusk, K

Reedley

96.36

1

Hynes, W

Sebastopol

95.70

2

Her, B

Sacramento

93.50

1

Haugh, D

Orangevale

93.50

1

Kunzmann, J

Sacramento

92.40

1

MacDonald, T

Sacramento

92.40

1

Morrow, A

Rohnert Park

92.40

1

Kalbach, C

Lincoln

89.70

1

Gable, P

Carmichael

88.55

1

Cunningham, T

Sacramento

88.20

1

Chinh, P

Roseville

88.20

1

Katague, D

Fair Oaks

88.20

1

Edwards, D

North Highlands

88.20

1

Thornton, B

Fresno

87.75

1

Perry, M

Gilroy

86.80

2

Zaza, J

Sacramento

85.80

1

Peirson, S

Roseville

85.80

1

Ckash, N

Antelope

84.00

1

Vera, J

Elk Grove

79.20

1

Yang, L

Sacramento

79.20

1

Dela Cruz, R

San Jose

78.40

1

Nguyen, P

San Jose

78.40

1

Bruno, J

Fresno

78.00

1

Thao, P

Sacramento

77.00

1

Watson, R

Sacramento

77.00

1

Modaffari, P

Fresno

77.00

1

Lopez, G

Fresno

75.90

1

Vadhva, S

Sacramento

74.75

1

Smyth, D

Woodland

73.50

1

Sallade, R

Milpitas

71.40

1

Arish, N

Elk Grove

69.00

1

Roberts, E

Roseville

68.25

1

Lowery, F

Carmichael

66.00

1

Franco, M

Ivanhoe

65.00

1

McDougall, D

Citrus Heights

59.80

1

Shiu, A

Sacramento

58.80

1

Nguyen, T

Sacramento

58.80

1

Brown, G

Sacramento

57.20

1

Sivret, S

Sacramento

57.20

1

Andaya, M

Roseville

55.00

1

Belletto, G

Fresno

52.00

1

Lopez, A

Citrus Heights

49.50

1

Sample, J

Elk Grove

44.00

1

Guzman, H

Sacramento

35.20

1

Lacy, S

Roseville

34.50

1

Nguyen, E

Sacramento

30.00

1