Ex-Utican wins $1M poker title

The 8 of clubs was a million-dollar card for former Utican Joseph Tehan.

When that card came out of the deck, it brought to an end the Mandalay Bay Poker Championship in Las Vegas, a stop on the World Poker Tour, and handed the 25-year-old Tehan the top prize of $1,033,440.

"The intensity was so high, Joey was shaking like a leaf when he won," said his father, Basil, 63, of Utica, who was sitting in the audience as his son topped a field of 350 players over five days to win the title June 8. "Joey cried when he was done playing and won."

The tournament finals will air in March 2007 on the Travel Channel, according to officials of the World Poker Tour.

Joseph Tehan trailed in that final hand heading to the final card. He sported two pair (9s and 8s), but trailed opponent Burt Boutin's two pair (aces and 10s) until the magical final card gave Tehan the winning full house.

Some may credit Lady Luck for turning Tehan into a winner, but he has another idea.

"The day I won was special because it was my late mother's birthday. I believe she was watching over me," he said.

While the win was emotional for Tehan, family and friends in the audience equally were overwhelmed.

"It was unreal to see my brother win," said Elizabeth Tehan, 28, of Utica. "With every hand played, I was on the edge of my seat."

Back in Utica, longtime friends were able to share in the excitement over the Internet.

"I was shocked when Joe won," said Ralph Giovinazzo III, 26, of Utica. "I watched each hand on the (World Poker Tour) Web site and stayed up all night to see the outcome."

Tehan earned a master's degree in business from Clarkson University in Potsdam, but shocked his family when he moved to Las Vegas 2 1/2 years ago to play poker professionally. It took him a while to win enough money to compete in bigger tournaments.

"I began playing small buy-in games of $1,000 and was successful, so I decided to compete in the $10,000 buy-in tournaments," Tehan said.

But even as a relative newcomer to the sport — he's only been playing the game about five years, his sister Elizabeth said — he said he has not been intimidated as he has played against some of poker's biggest names.

"I feel comfortable competing with the best poker players because I know the odds, and I play the game more on numbers than on feel," Tehan said.

"He definitely has the personality for poker because he sure can bluff, and he thinks about each move that he makes," his sister added.

As a new millionaire, Tehan said he will definitely play in the World Series of Poker when it begins later this month in Las Vegas. Otherwise, he doesn't see himself spending a lot of his winnings.

"I might buy a new car and invest some money, but I will not go crazy with it," he said.

When Tehan is not playing poker, he likes to play golf, hang out with friends, go to the lake and spend time with his girlfriend. And while he has moved across the country, he said his heart is still in Utica.

"I am extremely close to my family, even though we are all over. I missed them all when I moved to Vegas," he said.

News Added: 18 June, 2006

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