The first Ritchie Center Intramural Poker Tournament was held this past Wednesday and Thursday, with more than 30 excited students participating.

For the $10 entry fee, contestants were eligible to win prizes such as Chipotle gift cards, Coors Fitness Center gift cards and towels.

The grand prize was round-trip airfare for two to anywhere in the continental United States, donated by Frontier Airlines.

The Ritchie Center’s Special Events & Operations Manager Ruth Brown had the idea for the tournament.

Brown said, “We wanted something for the students to do, to get into a dynamic atmosphere and have the opportunity to have fun and meet people.”

There are already plans to hold another tournament in late February, and Brown is confident it will be even better.

“We got a lot of good feedback about how to make it better – mainly, to get more people involved to enhance the experience,” said Brown.

Taking home the grand prize was freshman Kyle Mullica, an avid poker player.

Mullica won the tournament when runner-up Paul Nadeau moved his stack all-in after the turn.

“The best hand I had against Kyle was the first one and I blew it,” said Nadeau.

He said, “I should have gone all in but I didn’t pull the trigger.”

The flop gave Nadeau a pair of deuces, but the turn greeted Mullica with a pair of sevens.

Nadeau needed a two, an eight, or a spade on the river to stay alive, but instead, a three gave Mullica two-pair, and a two-way trip to Oregon.

“I’m actually using the tickets to take my girlfriend Julie out to visit my Grandparents. I won it for her – I used the Chipotle gift card I won last night to buy her dinner too,” said Mullica.

Mullica was lucky to get into the final day of the tournament.

He was forced all-in three times the previous night and survived each encounter to make it to the final table.

“I didn’t go in thinking I was going to win, I came out to have a good time,” said Mullica.

He added, “Making it to the second night was huge – knowing that I had a chance to win it all.”

Things took a turn in Mullica’s direction when four people remained at the final table.

A flop came up eight, King, six, and the turn dropped a seven.

Quoc Nguyen, who finished in fourth place, bet hard, and got calls from Jared Gibbens-Rickman, the third place finisher, and Mullica.

When an ace came on the river, Nguyen pushed all his chips in immediately.

After pondering the decision for a few very long minutes, Gibbens-Rickman called the bet, and then Mullica immediately raised to put Gibbens-Rickman all-in as well.

Nguyen and Gibbens-Rickman both flipped over four, five – giving them a straight.

Mullica calmly turned over his nine, 10, a higher straight, and what the poker world refers to as “the nuts.”

“I thought I had to go in, I thought I was fighting two pair,” said Gibbens-Rickman.

He added, “I wish I was walking away with more.”

Gibbens-Rickman wasn’t the only one left shocked by that hand, Nguyen was stunned too.

“Three straights, I had the lower one, he had the nuts, but that’s poker I guess,” said Nguyen.

“I’m stupid for playing four, five pre-flop anyways,” he said.

Despite taking fourth, Nguyen earned the respect of the table.

Nadeau mentioned “Quoc was a good player. “He was tough.”

Gibbens-Rickman confessed he was “[intimidated] a little bit by Quoc.”

Even the champion mentioned that Nguyen may have been the toughest player in the tournament.

When asked who the best was, Nguyen said bluntly, “myself.”