online poker room<\/a>. PartyPoker operates the world\u00e2\u0080\u0099s largest online poker room, PartyPoker.com and its companion play-for-free education site, PartyPoker.net, where Bartfield played in a \u00e2\u0080\u009cfreeroll\u00e2\u0080? Texas Hold\u00e2\u0080\u0099em tournament\u00e2\u0080\u0094without spending a penny. The married grandfather of one beat thousands of top players and is now the proud owner of a sleek Ferrari F430 Coupe with a 4.3-litre, V8 engine that will top out at 195 mph.<\/p>\nPartyPoker spokesman Warren Lush said: \u00e2\u0080\u009cBruce\u00e2\u0080\u0099s story shows how ordinary guys can go all the way in poker and win fantastic prizes.\u00e2\u0080?<\/p>\n
Commenting on his win, Bartfield said: \u00e2\u0080\u009cA friend of mine kept telling me to play online, but I was a bit cynical. I\u00e2\u0080\u0099d always been a five or seven-card stud man and have played for years with family over Thanksgiving and Christmas. I learned Texas Hold\u00e2\u0080\u0099em about a year ago, playing with friends, and finally thought I\u00e2\u0080\u0099d give it a go online when I saw the tournament offering the chance to win a Ferrari.\u00e2\u0080?<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u0080\u009cI remember shouting out to my wife Cookie during the tournament. \u00e2\u0080\u0098Honey I\u00e2\u0080\u0099m in the final three,\u00e2\u0080\u0099 I screamed and she didn\u00e2\u0080\u0099t react. She told me afterwards that she didn\u00e2\u0080\u0099t want to say anything since she was desperate not to distract me. I rode my luck a lot in the tournament. Sometimes I went all-in with very little and was just praying that others would fold. Luckily for me, they did. Thank goodness for Sadie.\u00e2\u0080?<\/p>\n
Other players may recognize Bartfeld\u00e2\u0080\u0099s poker user name \u00e2\u0080\u009cbestdragon.\u00e2\u0080? He chose that name because he breeds bearded dragon lizards for sale as pets in his pet store. Lizards and poker are his two primary hobbies. Ten years ago he even provided the snake for WWE wrestler Jake \u00e2\u0080\u009cThe Snake\u00e2\u0080? Roberts when they were in town.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u0080\u009cThis is a major event in my life, \u00e2\u0080\u009csaid Bartfield. \u00e2\u0080\u009cI\u00e2\u0080\u0099m now going to take my poker a lot more seriously and try and qualify for the World Series of Poker. I\u00e2\u0080\u0099ve seen how ordinary guys like Greg Raymer and Chris Moneymaker can do it and now I want my chance at the big-time. My accountant knows Steve Dannenmann, who came second in the main event this year. If I could achieve even a little of what he has I\u00e2\u0080\u0099ll be a happy man. My mother made me a dreamer while my father taught me self discipline.\u00e2\u0080?<\/p>\n
No need to dream anymore. There\u00e2\u0080\u0099ll soon be a new Ferrari sitting in Bartfeld\u00e2\u0080\u0099s driveway. His current car is a Chrysler Town-and-Country van. \u00e2\u0080\u009cThe fact that I won still hasn\u00e2\u0080\u0099t sunk in. I\u00e2\u0080\u0099d always dreamed of having a nice car, but a Ferrari? I haven\u00e2\u0080\u0099t had a speeding ticket in 10 years. I\u00e2\u0080\u0099m going to polish it and perhaps I will sit it on the driveway and let the neighbours look at it!\u00e2\u0080?<\/p>\n
Maybe he\u00e2\u0080\u0099ll even let Sadie go for a ride.<\/p>\n
Bartfeld wasn\u00e2\u0080\u0099t the only winner. Jim Williamson, a 57 year-old railroad worker from Sebring, Florida won the tournament on PartyPoker.com, the company\u00e2\u0080\u0099s \u00e2\u0080\u0098real money\u00e2\u0080\u0099 gaming site, but decided to take $150,000, the cash equivalent to the car.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u0080\u009cI\u00e2\u0080\u0099m going to use it to pay off bills,\u00e2\u0080? said Williamson. \u00e2\u0080\u009cI think I\u00e2\u0080\u0099ll never have a better day of poker than I did on the final table. I didn\u00e2\u0080\u0099t hit a full house once and never had a hand which I\u00e2\u0080\u0099d consider to be the nuts. I won the money with ace high. I passed on the car even though I can see the Sebring Speedway from my back garden!\u00e2\u0080?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
MARYLAND PET STORE OWNER GETS ASSIST FROM HIS CAT IN WINNING FERRARI ON FREE ONLINE POKER TOURNAMENT AT PARTYPOKER.NET Bruce Bartfeld of Churchville, Maryland was playing a free-entry online poker tournament on PartyPoker.net and was running out of chips. The 52-year-old pet store owner says he has his cat Sadie to thank for helping him<\/p>\n
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