Tinian Dynasty gives out $170K in baccarat tourney

From 170 participants, it was down the wire to the top three Sunday night. The plush VIP room of the Tinian Dynasty Hotel and Casino was strident with shouts as the audience yelled out instructions and encouragements to their participating friends.

One of the players, Japanese Aihara Shuri, was tense—and it showed. She was hunched over, her head in both her hands, as she pondered where to place her bet.

Unable to bear the tension any longer, the audience jumped through the wooden railings surrounding the players and crowded around the baccarat table, craning their necks to get a glimpse at the cards as player after player squeezed their cards with terrible slowness. From the back, the frenzy of excitement was more characteristic of cockfights than the sedate confines of a casino. The security could do nothing but shrug and give sheepish smiles.

As the clock ticked 9:38pm, the excited chatter suddenly broke out into loud cheers and catcalls, and the barrage of congratulatory hands raining down on Kumagai Jun of Japan gave no doubt as to who emerged champion in Tinian Dynasty Hotel and Casino’s $100,000 Baccarat Challenge.

In a field dominated by some 141 Japanese players, Jun broke through and won for himself the grand prize of $76,000, a crystal trophy, and bragging rights—at least until the next TDHC baccarat challenge. Trailing him as 1st runner-up was youthful Sebata Manabu, who also got a trophy and $45,000; 2nd runner-up honors and a not-bad $30,000 check went to an exuberant Heo Won Suk; while 3rd runner-up honors went to Shuri, the lone female finalist, who got for herself $13,000. The six other finalists won for themselves $1,000 each.

TDHC casino manager Ken Barberis said this was the best ever Baccarat Tournament hosted by the casino, with the most number of players so far. “The response was incredible. This was the most successful so far, which only means that baccarat is growing in popularity,” he said. Barberis joined TDHC in December 2002.

Besides the 141 Japanese players, there were 23 from Korea, five local players, and one from China. The entry fee for the tournament was $1,000, inclusive of air fare, hotel accommodations for two days, and meals.

Barberis said the casino will host another tournament, this time a Blackjack Tournament, in December this year, rounding out their annual schedule of two baccarat and two blackjack tournaments each year.

TDHC chairman Michael Kwan expressed himself pleased with the outcome, saying he is very happy that more and more people are participating every time the tournament is held.

Later, Lt. Gov. Diego T. Benavente, who was on Tinian for the Kantan Isla Festival, graciously agreed to present the grand prize to Jun, and congratulated him for his successful run at the baccarat table. Others who helped present the awards were Kwan, Customs director Jay Santos, and Honolulu police chief Steve Watarai.