Published: July 16, 2009 12:14 am      

Oakland man leads at big poker tournament

Moon wins over $20M in chips

LAS VEGAS — After several tries to even get a seat in the World Series of Poker, Oakland resident Darvin Moon finished day seven of the tournament as the chip leader, according to pokerati.com.

He was one of the remaining 27 players out of a starting field of of 6,494 players. Each of the 27 was guaranteed at least $352,832.

The final table was to be determined yesterday or early today, with each of the last nine players remaining winning at least $1.26 million. Top prize in the tournament is $8.55 million.

“I won my seat at the casino in Wheeling (W.Va.),” Moon said in an interview on the Web site. “We started going out there last year. I came in ninth one time last year. This time, I played three times (trying to qualify for a seat to play in the main event). I finished third the first time, and then busted out the next time. The third time, I won my seat.”

Moon said he credited his current position as chip leader, with $20.16 million total, to the types of hands he has been dealt through the course of the tournament, which had 6,494 entrants, according to the official world series of poker Web site.

He said he had a good deal of luck, getting good hands as well as watching his fellow players carefully.

Moon, who owns and operates a small logging company, told pokerati.com that he was part of a group of about 70 locals who play at various benefits like the Elks Club, American Legion and local fire departments. Of course, he also plays in Wheeling, W.Va., where he won his seat. He has been playing for about three years and watches the games on television.

The trip to Las Vegas was a first for Moon, who said it was also his first time in a large airplane. However, he said that while he’s nervous, he does his best to focus on the game, despite the cameras and playing on the main ESPN stage.

“It didn’t bother me at all,” he said. “I mean, I am nervous. But I am more nervous out here than I am here. I focus on the cards and I am comfortable playing. I walk down the hall and everybody that’s won and everybody is big time and a name. And they walk right by you and you say, ‘Wow, here I am playing with these guys. It’s a dream come true.’”

While Moon lost his lead early in the eighth day, falling to 10th place, he recovered after winning a few big hands and stayed near the top of the leaderboard, above big name players like Phil Ivey, and competitor Billy Kopp, who is the closest to Moon’s chip holdings thus far with $15.97 million.

Asked whether he would settle for ninth place, he said: “Ninth place? I got my goals set. It’s not first. But it’s not ninth, either. I’ll be happy. I don’t care if I go out on the first hand tomorrow. I’ve had fun. It’s been worth every minute of it. I just like to play, and it’s unreal. It’s something I can’t even dream of doing, and here I am.”

To watch for updates on Moon as well as the other players in the tournament, visit www.worldseriesofpoker.com.

Sarah Moses can be reached at smoses@times-news.com.