Where Are They Now - Jim Betchel
Jim Betchel is two very distinct things. 1. He is a cotton farmer who lives in Gilbert, Arizona.
2. He is the 1993 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion.
If you knew neither of these facts, especially the second one considering this is a poker website, don’t be discouraged, you are by far not the only one. Betchel is sort of like the “cicada of the poker world” coming along every few years, making his mark, and then retreating off to wherever it is cicadas go when they aren’t seen; in Betchel’s case, his farm. Interestingly enough, Betchel is also the middle of a trio of people to take down the biggest prize in poker to only disappear just as quickly. The difference between him and 1992 Main Event winner Hamid Dastmalchi and 1994 champion Russ Hamilton though is that Betchel didn’t give up tournament poker for other pursuits. Dastmalchi has gone on to become a very successful cash game player and Hamilton has become a successful businessman, including being the founder of the “Ultimate Blackjack Tour.”* Betchel still plays tournament poker. In fact, he has never stopped. The “cicada” effect comes from the fact that with the exception of his huge win in 1992 he has hardly ever made big cash, but at the same time has very quietly cashed in 13 WSOP events, while collecting upwards of 2.5 million dollars.
The final hand of the 1992 WSOP Main Event seemed about as unassuming as Betchel himself. In what has been described by poker historians as one of the most anti-climatic finishes to the end of a WSOP main event, Betchel’s jack high held up against rags, giving him his first, and to this point, only bracelet.
If the final hand was anti-climatic, it was because of Betchel’s play at the final table that made it that way. Going into heads up play against dentist Glen Cozen, he held nearly a 100 to 1 chip advantage. The huge chip advantage came when Betchel successfully coaxed third place finisher John Bonetti into going all in while he had made a set of sixes on the flop. If Bonetti would have held off one more hand Cozen would have been forced all-in by the blinds, virtually guaranteeing second place money, with just a slight chip disadvantage going into heads-up play.
In the inflated fields of today, it’s more than even odds to put your money on an amateur player to take down the WSOP Main Event. An argument can be made that because of the huge fields it’s tougher to take down a huge tournament simply on a stamina front. However, with so much “dead money” it’s possible for a mediocre player to accumulate a large stack, giving him plenty of room for errors against accomplished pros. It’s more than fair to suggest that recent winners have this to thank, at least in part, for their titles. The smaller fields of yesteryears were filled with a small percentage of amateurs, competing with professionals on their “home court.” Any “home court advantage” is theoretically gone now.
In 1993 the field was much more competitive, with only 220 entrants, most of which were former bracelet winners, or known poker professionals. Betchel was neither of these. With the victory Betchel became the second amateur to win the coveted first place bracelet, only a few years before it would become a reoccurring theme. (The first was the equally inconspicuous Hal Fowler in 1979, with an even tougher field of only 54.)
So, what’s known of Jim Betchel is that he shows up every now and then and takes a decent prize, not including the huge prize of one million dollars for his Main Event win, then disappears back to his farm in Arizona. After the 1993 win Betchel returned home, only embarking on a trip to Las Vegas for some of the bigger events, predictably including the WSOP. Between 1993 and 2005 he had about a dozen cashes in some of the lesser buy-in events, but never duplicating his success in 1993.
However, in 2005 he reemerged at the 2006 50k H.O.R.S.E Event. The H.O.R.S.E event has gained popularity among poker purists (see: anti-amateur) as being the toughest field in all of tournament poker. First of all, the 50k buy-in is the largest at the WSOP, and didn’t offer any satellites, meaning it’s mostly all professionals. It also means that you are competing in all aspects of poker: Hold’Em, Omaha, Razz, Seven Card Stud, and Seven Card Stud high-low Eight or Better. Nearly all of Betchel’s tournament cashes had came in either Hold’em or Omaha. Unbeknownst to most was the fact that Betchell even knew how to play the other games involved in H.O.R.S.E.
Betchel managed to make it to the final table which featured a virtual “Murders Row,” of poker playing legends. In fact, it has been called perhaps the greatest final table in the history of poker, and many magazine and online articles have been written about it.
Betchel found himself among the late Chip Reese, Andy Bloch, Phil Ivey, T.J. Cloutier, David Singer, Dewey Tomko, Doyle Brunson, and Patrik Antonius. It’s my guess that if you say Jim Betchel’s name among this list of players you would have either thought he was the dealer, or had sat down at the wrong table. Betchel proved his worth, finishing in 4th place for $549,120. He also proved that somewhere along the lines he has managed to become more than passable at nearly every type or form poker has to offer. Before his 1993 WSOP victory he had also final tabled and won a few smaller 2-7 draw events.
To say that Betchel is one of the more underrated players in the history of poker is quite obvious. He has proven that it is possible to be successful at poker without making it all you think about. He has also managed to keep his private life private, which in this day and age is almost as impressive as any of his tournament poker wins. It’s hard to say what Betchel is up to right now, but chances are before too long you’ll find him at a final table.
*This article was written before Russ Hamilton's name was associated with the Ultimate Bet cheating scandal.
Major Tournament Results
20-Jul-06 $ 5,000 Short Handed No Limit Hold'em
37th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2006, Las Vegas 54th $ 8,340
12-Jul-06 $ 50,000 H.O.R.S.E.
37th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2006, Las Vegas 4th $ 549,120
08-Jul-06 $ 1,000 No Limit Hold'em
37th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2006, Las Vegas 72nd $ 2,028
02-Jul-06 $ 3,000 Limit Hold'em
37th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2006, Las Vegas 35th $ 4,582
30-Jun-06 $ 2,500 Short Handed No Limit Hold'em
37th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2006, Las Vegas 39th $ 8,528
27-Jun-06 $ 1,500 No Limit Hold'em
37th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2006, Las Vegas 78th $ 7,578
16-Feb-06 $ 9,600 Championship Event - No Limit Hold'em
2006 L.A. Poker Classic, Los Angeles 35th $ 26,573
13-Jun-05 $ 2,000 Pot Limit Omaha
36th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2005, Las Vegas 10th $ 16,190
04-Jun-05 $ 1,500 Pot Limit Hold'em
36th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2005, Las Vegas 24th $ 7,390
03-Jun-05 $ 1,500 No Limit Hold'em
36th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2005, Las Vegas 62nd $ 6,360
18-Apr-05 $ 25,000 Main Event (WPT) - No Limit Hold'em Championship
Third Annual Five-Star World Poker Classic, Las Vegas 69th $ 30,000
03-Jul-04 $ 10,000 No Limit Hold'em Championship Final Day
Festa al Lago II, Las Vegas 23rd $ 10,381
15-Dec-03 $ 10,000 WPT No Limit Hold'em Championship
2003 Bellagio Five-Diamond World Poker Classic, Las Vegas 10th $ 34,917
01-Sep-03 $ 5,000 No Limit Hold'em Main Event - WPT
2003 Legends of Poker, Los Angeles 15th $ 15,450
18-May-02 $ 5,000 Deuce to Seven No-Limit
33rd World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2002, Las Vegas 5th $ 16,020
14-May-01 $ 10,000 Championship Event - No Limit Hold'em
32nd World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2001, Las Vegas 23rd $ 39,960
28-Apr-00 $ 1,500 Pot Limit Omaha
31st World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2000, Las Vegas 7th $ 11,215
24-Apr-00 $ 2,000 Limit Hold'em
31st World Series of Poker (WSOP) 2000, Las Vegas 11th $ 11,905
28-Jan-99 $ 5,000 Championship Event - No Limit Hold'em
Carnivale of Poker II, Las Vegas 8th $ 20,300
22-Apr-97 $ 2,000 Limit Hold'em
28th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 1997, Las Vegas 12th $ 13,056
19-Sep-96 $ 5,085 No Limit Hold'em - Championship Finals
1996 Four Queens Poker Classic, Las Vegas 4th $ 19,600
10-May-96 $ 2,500 No Limit Hold'em
27th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 1996, Las Vegas 22nd $ 3,337
07-Feb-96 $ 1,000 No Limit Hold'em
Amarillo Slim's Superbowl of Poker, Los Angeles 5th $ 3,135
16-Dec-95 $ 1,500 Limit Hold'em
Hall of Fame Poker Classic 1995, Las Vegas 5th $ 14,625
14-Dec-95 $ 3,000 No Limit Deuce to Seven Draw
Hall of Fame Poker Classic 1995, Las Vegas 4th $ 16,200
Sep-95 $ 500 No Limit Hold'em
1995 Four Queens Poker Classic, Las Vegas 6th $ 4,638
12-Jun-95 $ 500 Deuce to Seven Draw
Queens Poker Classic Summer Edition, Las Vegas 3rd $ 6,150
15-May-95 $ 10,000 No Limit Hold'em World Championship
26th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 1995, Las Vegas 89th
10-May-95 $ 2,500 Hold'em Pot Limit
26th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 1995, Las Vegas 9th $ 6,112
27-Feb-95 $ 1,000 Deuce to Seven Draw
LA Poker Classic IV, Los Angeles 3rd $ 9,525
11-Jan-95 $ 2,500 Deuce to Seven Draw
Queens Poker Classic V, Las Vegas 5th $ 6,250
Dec-94 $ 5,000 No Limit Hold'em - Championship Event
Hall of Fame Poker Classic 1994, Las Vegas 3rd $ 55,200
Dec-94 $ 2,500 No Limit Deuce to Seven Draw
Hall of Fame Poker Classic 1994, Las Vegas 4th $ 11,750
Nov-94 $ 105 Hold'em
Texas Hold'em Tournament, Scottsdale 6th $ 2,000
24-Jul-94 $ 500 No Limit Hold'em
Gold Coast Open, Las Vegas 8th $ 2,175
24-Jan-94 $ 5,000 No Limit Hold'em
Queens Poker Classic IV, Las Vegas 3rd $ 70,500
12-Jan-94 $ 2,500 No Limit Deuce To 7 Lowball
Queens Poker Classic IV, Las Vegas 1st $ 60,750
10-May-93 $ 10,000 No Limit Hold'em World Championship
24th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 1993, Las Vegas 1st $ 1,000,000
22-Jan-93 $ 5,000 No Limit Hold'em - Championship Event
Queens Poker Classic III, Las Vegas 4th $ 29,400
10-Jan-93 $ 500 No Limit Hold'em
Queens Poker Classic III, Las Vegas 8th $ 1,480
09-Nov-92 $ 5,000 No Limit Hold'em - Championship Event
Hall of Fame Poker Classic 1992, Las Vegas 1st $ 214,000
15-May-89 $ 10,000 No Limit Hold'em World Championship
20th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 1989, Las Vegas 31st $ 7,500
May-88 $ 10,000 No Limit Hold'em World Championship
19th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 1988, Las Vegas 6th $ 49,000
12-May-86 $ 10,000 No Limit Hold'em World Championship
17th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 1986, Las Vegas 11th $ 12,500
May-84 $ 1,500 No Limit Hold'em
15th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 1984, Las Vegas 9th $ 5,340
May-83 $ 1,500 No Limit Hold'em
14th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 1983, Las Vegas 4th $ 14,550
May-79 $ 1,500 No Limit Hold'em
10th World Series of Poker (WSOP) 1979, Las Vegas 2nd $ 38,250
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