Yevgeny
Kafelnikov, who was cleared of attempting to fix a match after
an investigation by the ATP Tour in 2003, quit tennis last year
to become a professional
Texas Holdem
poker player,
hiring fellow Russian Kirill Gerasimov, professional poker's
Rookie of the Year in 2002, to mentor him. Looks like it worked.
Kafelnikov won the Russian Poker Championships last fall in
Moscow, and earlier this month the 31-year-old won $10,745 and
finished ninth in the World Series of Poker's Seven-Card Stud
tournament--just one spot out of making the final table.
Gerasimov finished second. Kafelnikov went all-in with about
$30,000 in chips and was eliminated by Abe Almalhi when his
flush was beaten by Almalhi's river full house, according to
cardplayer.com. In an interview with The Independent about his
move from tennis to poker, Kafelnikov said: "The most important
thing was not to disappoint my fans. It is very hard to earn a
good image in Russia. Once you do, you're a hero. . . . So when
people on the street in Moscow ask why I stopped playing, I say,
`Because I don't want to see you people crying when I lose.'
They understand that."
