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2007 World Series of Poker
Main Event Day 7 -- Player BIO's
Main Event Day 7 is considered an off day for all players who were fortunate enough to make the final table.
We now have the BIO's of all players, (courtesy of WSOP Media Director Nolan Dalla), below who will contend for the title of Main Event champion. The final table
will be played beginning at noon.
Seat 1: Jon Kalmar Country: UK
Chip Count: 20,320,000
Jon Kalmar is a 34-year-old professional poker player, who plays mostly in clubs located in the north and the
Midlands region of England. He is married with one child. Among his prior accomplishments, Kalmar was once
the lead singer in a punk rock band. Before entering this year�s world championship, Kalmar admitted to enduring
a "terrible" run of bad fortune at this year�s World Series of Poker. He failed to cash a single time in the
preliminary tournaments. But everything changed the night before the main event began. Dejected, Kalmar
tried to switch his airline ticket and return home early. But he was told the cost to change his departure
from Las Vegas back to England would be about $600. So instead, Kalmar decided to enter the last mega-satellite
at the Rio just before the start of the main event. He ended up winning a $10,000 seat. And now, here he is
at the final table ten days later - third among the chip leaders.
Seat 2: Lee Childs Country: USA
Chip Count: 13,240,000
Lee Childs is a 35-year-old aspiring poker professional from suburban Washington, DC. He is married with no children.
Childs holds a BBA in computer information systems from James Madison University, in Virginia. Just two months ago,
he voluntarily took some time off from a high-tech position with a firm affiliated with the National Geographic Society.
He worked on "The JASON Project", which is an educational foundation for students dedicated to scientific expeditions
and research founded by the person who first located the Titantic. Childs has been on his own for a few months - and
is pursuing one of his dreams which is to play in the World Series of Poker. He says that he would not be here without
the love of his incredible wife, dad, and all the support of his family and friends. His is currently fifth in the chip count.
Seat 3: Philip Hilm Country: UK
Chip Count: 22,070,000
Philip Hilm is the chip leader coming into the final table of the 2007
World Series of Poker. He is a 31-year-old online poker pro. Hilm is
a native of Denmark, but currently lives in England. Family is very
important to Hilm. He spent two years living in Poland to get to know
his mother�s side of the family before moving on to England. Ten years
ago, Hilm earned a degree in economics from the Copenhagen Business
School. He formed a company with 12 employees, but eventually went
bankrupt. Just four years ago, Hilm was at his lowest point - selling
coffee machines at grocery stores to make Christmas money so he could
buy presents for his family. Then, Hilm discovered poker on the
Internet. Before long, he was earning enough money to make a decent
living. And now, he is the largest stack at the final table of the
main event.
Seat 4: Jerry Yang Country: USA
Chip Count: 8,459,000
Jerry Yang is a 39-year-old psychologist and social worker from southern
California. He holds a Masters Degree in health psychology. Yang was
born in Laos. He is married and has six children. Yang started playing
poker only two years ago. He won a seat into the main event via a
satellite held at the Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, CA. His
total investment in this event is $225. The socially-conscious Yang is
determined to give something back to charity. He is pledging 10 percent
of his winnings from this tournament to three different charities - the
Make-A-Wish Foundation, Feed the Children, and the Ronald McDonald House.
Seat 5: Raymond Rahme Country: South Africa
Chip Count: 16,320,000
Raymond Rahme is the first person ever to appear at the final table of
the main event from the continent of Africa. At age 62, he is also the
senior participant at the final table. He is married to his wife
Teresa, and together they have six children. Prior to his retirement,
Rahme owned and operated a bed and breakfast inn. Although he played
stud for three decades, Rahme has only been playing the game of hold�em
for about two years. Yet, Rahme has already enjoyed significant
tournament success. He�s taken first and second place at major events
held in South Africa. He also took fourth place in the "All Africa
Poker Championship" recently, which was the largest poker tournament
ever held in Africa. As part of his prize, he received a travel package
to Las Vegas and an entry into the 2007 main event. And now, he is
ranked fourth in the chip count at the start of the final table.
Seat 6: Tuan Lam Country: Ontario, Canada
Chip Count: 21,315,000
Tuan Lam was born in Vietnam on New Years Day in 1966, during the war.
He eventually immigrated to Canada at the age of 19. He now lives in
the Toronto area where he plays poker professionally. Prior to turning
pro, Lam worked as a general laborer for a metal company. Then, he
learned how to play poker from friends and has made it all the way to
the final table of the 2007 main event. This is his third year to
attend the WSOP. His prior cashes were 46th place in an event last
year and 78th place in a WSOP tournament held in 2005. He is married
with two children. Lam arrives at the final table ranked second in
the chip count.
Seat 7: Alex Kravchenko Country: Russia
Chip Count: 6,570,000
Alex Kravchenko is a 36-year-old businessman. He has been playing
poker for about eight years. He is married and has two children.
Kravchenko became the first Russian citizen in history to win a WSOP
gold bracelet when he was victorious in the $1,500 buy-in Omaha High-Low
championship at this year�s WSOP � in what was the largest Omaha High-Low
field in history. Russian immigrants have won previously at the World
Series. But Kravchenko�s victory was clearly a milestone. Kravechenko
has an impressive history of poker tournament wins in Europe. He won
the Austrian Masters Pot-Limit Championship in 2001. He also won the
Russian Pot-Limit Championship held that same year. His also won a Limit
Hold�em title at the Helsinki Frezeout in 2002. He has cashed over 30
times in what is becoming an illustrious poker career.
This is Kravchenko�s fifth time to cash at the WSOP in 2007. Kravchnko
faces the biggest challenge of any player in the finale, as the lowest
stack at the table.
Seat 8: Lee Watkinson Country: USA
Chip Count: 9,925,000
Lee Watkinson is a 40-year-old poker pro, businessman, and animal rights
activist from Cheney, WA. He is one of only two players at the final
table who currently owns a WSOP gold bracelet. In 2006, Watkinson won
the Pot-Limit Omaha World Championship. He owns a few businesses as
well, including a record company and a clothing line - which were
started exclusively with his poker winnings. The Washington State
native holds a degree in economics, which perhaps explains why Watkinson
is so astute as an investor and poker professional. Yet, often when he
is interviewed Watkinson is quick to shift everyone's attention to a
greater, more humanitarian purpose. Watkins and his fianc� Timmi DeRosa
share a commitment to rescuing and retiring captive chimpanzees, many
of which have been used in everything from movies to research
laboratories. Watkinson and DeRosa told about how chimpanzees are not as useful as
they become older and are commonly discarded. So a few years ago,
the couple made a commitment to rescue as many creatures as possible
and eventually build an animal sanctuary. "All the animals need our
help," Watkinson says. "But we really try to focus on the chimpanzees."
But -- when it comes to poker, Watkinson is not monkeying around. He
arrives seventh in the chip count.
Seat 9: Hevad Khan Country: USA
Chip Count: 9,205,000
Hevad "Rain" Khan is a 22-year-old professional poker originally from
Poughkeepsie, NY. He attended college at the State University of New
York-Albany. He has since moved around the country, living in both
the San Francisco bay area, and Las Vegas. Khan�s claim to fame before
arriving at this final table was his extraordinary ability to play
multiple poker games simultaneously. In what can only be described as
a prodigal Bobby Fischer-like capability, Khan has played in as many as
43 poker games all at once on his home computer. Today, he must play
in just one poker game - the biggest and most glamorous event in the
world for the world championship. Khan arrives eighth in the chip
count at the start of the final table.