Daniel L. Cox
Editor, Poker nsider Magazine
July 1, 2009
Las Vegas - With the explosive growth of Texas Hold'em, Seven-Card Stud, with all of its variations, is not played as often in casinos and card rooms today as it was 5 or 10 years ago. It is a role reversal of the "Old Days," where Stud was King and Hold'em was only played by High Rollers and at the World Series of Poker. Even when it is difficult to find a game of Stud at your local card room, it is still a popular game at the World Series. This year Jeffery Lisandro nearly accomplished the impossible of making the final table in four Seven Card Stud tournaments in a single series. He started his amazing run with a 9th place finish (Seven-Card Stud Tournaments only seat eight players at the final table instead of the normal nine players for a Hold'em Tourney) in Event 6, playing well in $10,000 World Championship Seven Card Stud tournament. A little more than a week later, in the $1,500 Seven Card Stud event, he outlasted Rodney Pardey for his second bracelet. In the next Stud event, $10,000 World Championship Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo he took down the title by defeating Farzad Rouhani. In Event 44, the $2,500 Seven Card Razz tournament, he beat Michael Craig (no relation to 007’s Daniel) for his third bracelet of the series. When Lisandro won his fourth career WSOPgold bracelet (his first was in the 2007 Seven-Card Stud event) he became only the fifth player in the 40-year history of the WSOP to achieve the mark, joining poker greats Phil Hellmuth, Phil Ivey, Ted Forrest, and Puggy Pearson as the only players in history to win three gold bracelets in one year.
Jeffery Lisandro is known as a solid poker player in Europe, but not as well known here in the States. In an interview, he stated “Before it all started this year, I was very disappointed. I could not get a sponsor. I made the usual rounds to find out if anyone needed a player. I could not get a response. I spoke about it with a few of my friends. Finally I said, ‘you know what – never mind. I am going to blast them right out of the water.’ I think I have done a lot in poker. But I’ve always been a little bit short of doing something really great. So, there was this doubt and maybe an excuse that I had not done quite enough to deserve [being sponsored]. I said that to a few of my closest friends. ‘I’m just going to go ahead and win three [gold bracelets].’ And, now I have done it.”
After winning his third bracelet, he commented, “Even after winning three bracelets, the sponsors have not approached me. They are still not approaching me. Maybe there is a little bit of jealousy. Maybe it is because I have knocked out so many high-profile players.” Though Jeffery may feel it is jealousy, others think it may be the perception that he is known for his proficiency in Stud, not Hold’em, which is causing the lack of interest.
Though Jeffery now lives in Salerno, Italy, he holds dual citizenship in both Italy and Australia. When asked who was the best Australian player, Joe Hachem or himself, he side-stepped the answer when he replied, “In Australia, I don’t think anyone is bigger than Joe Hachem. Winning the Main Event is a huge achievement. He’ll always be remembered for that. It’s like in horse racing. I could win ten races in a row. But everyone remembers who wins the Kentucky Derby.”
Editor’s Addition: On July 9th, Jeffery officially became World Series of Poker 2009 Player of the Year when Finnish player Ville Wahlbeck (six final 13 and cashing in four $10,000 events) was knocked out of the WSOP Main Event on Day 3.
