WINNER: Erlinda Sotto

Her second straight tournament win. Incredible!
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PLAYERS:

The players are Ahmet Akdeniz, Michael Toomey, "Hollywood" Dave Stann, Matti Shuale, John Smith, Brian Soper, and Erlinda Sotto.

The UBT Barona Open had a big field, meaning these players had to win several rounds to get to this final. The marquee name is Hollywood Dave, a UBT champion and top tournament talent, but there are two others with good credentials: Erlinda Sotto, who was coming off a recent big-field tournament win at Barona, and Brian Soper. Brian was this tournament's Internet qualifier, but unlike many of his predecessors, he'd had a lot of online practice and success; those in the audience who knew him were picking Brian as a dark horse to win.

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ELIMINATION:
Hand 8: As the second-low bankroll, Michael Toomey is matched in turn by the players betting after him (see "Strategy Notes"). When an all-in bet from the low bankroll wins, Michael has no way out and is the first eliminated.

Hand 13: Beginning with hand 10, Matti Shuale hits one of those streaks that there's no escaping from, and after four consecutive losses, is out before the second Elimination Hand.

Hand 16: Ahmet Akdeniz is second low and makes a near all-in bet. He's forced to stand stiff and the dealer has a hard 15, but when she pulls a deuce, it's kismet for Ahmet.

Hand 25: This was a bad tournament to be second low on an Elimination Hand. This time it's John Smith who can't fend off the low bankroll. Hollywood Dave wins an all-in bet and John doesn't bet enough to cover him. He's eliminated in fourth place.

Hand 27: Hollywood's reprieve was short-lived. After surrendering a big bet on hand 26 (see "Strategy Notes"), he's essentially all in here and busts against the dealer's ace. Say good-bye to Hollywood.

Last Hand
As alluded to earlier, the best parts of this match played out before hand 25. From 25 on, Erlinda Sotto had the luxury of watching her pursuers go down on each shot they took. With $170,500 to Brian Soper's $78,000 on hand 28, Erlinda bet only $10,000 and had Brian covered even if he won his all-in bet and she lost. Brian lost the hand and Erlinda was the champion.

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SEASON ONE RECAP:
Episode 1: The final table is a powerhouse, featuring great play, a classic good-versus-evil scenario...
Episode 2: This is an emotion-packed contest, with tempers flaring (between Matthews and Pine) in later rounds...
Episode 3: If anything, this episode demonstrates that you're not out till you're out. Tyrone Jackson is down to just $15,000 on hand 9...
Episode 4: This is a strategy-packed match that provides plenty of fodder, as you'll see, for Strategy Notes...
Episode 5: The match is a roller-coaster ride of ups and downs, featuring a couple of excellent strategic plays and the first playoff of the UBT series...
Episode 6: It's a shootout. At hand 25, the three remaining players—Monica, Jennifer, and Angie—have nearly $1 million among them...
Episode 7: As has been the case earlier in this season, the repeat players, Gary Debernardi and John Cernuto, fair much better the second time around...
Episode 8: Dave gets battered mid-match and has to climb back from a significant deficit to get to heads-up play with Erica Schoenberg...
Episode 9: All of the players obviously have tournament chops. Ken Smith is the consensus favorite, but David Matthews, Adriana Jade, and Hollywood Dave are all considered prominent...
Episode 10: With huge bragging rights on the line (not to mention the prize money), the players are dialed in for this one and there are loads of high-end...

SEASON TWO RECAP:
Episode 1: This wasn't a timid table, but the eliminations came slowly and there were three players all the way to the 30th hand...
Episode 2: As it often does, it came down to cards in the end—but rather than it being about who got them, it was more about who didn't...
Episode 3: With two seasoned blackjack-tournament pros (Anthony and Blair) and one poker-tournament superstar...
Episode 4: This match will go down as one of the strangest and best in UBT history...
Episode 5: The blackjack players excelled on this day, with Ken Einiger and Adriana Jade steadily pulling away from the field..
Episode 6: Chips flew early in this match and three players, including Ken Smith, were already gone by the end of hand 8...
Episode 7: The final table of the UBT's first Poker vs. Blackjack Superstar Showdown features an interesting mix of poker and blackjack luminaries...
Episode 8: The three "favorites" mentioned above go out before the third Elimination Hand and the All-Stars contest comes down to the unlikely trio...