Patrik Antonius Thrashes Brandon Adams In $30k Tennis Showdown

The poker pro tennis showdown between Brandon Adams and Patrik Antonius which was arranged on a Poker After Dark episode has finally been realised during an off-day for the two pros on the sidelines of the 2011 WSOP in Las Vegas.
Many people may wonder why Brandon Adams might want to take on the former potential tennis pro. After all, at the age of 13 Antonius was  singled out by his tennis coach as Wimbledon material until a back injury put payed to his chosen career path.
Two factors may have swayed Brandon Adams’ decision. Firstly, was the nearly 10-to-1 generous odds the Finn layed Adams on his $30,000 bet. Secondly, was some unrealistic optimism on Adams’ side concerning the difference between a good tennis player and a potential pro.
As Brandon Adams explained just prior to his match at the Las Vegas International Tennis Centre:
“I’m pretty nervous. And Patrick is good. His game is sharp. My strategy is to counterpunch. I have a pretty good game. I can attack, but today I’m just gonna lay low and try not to miss.”
However, despite the incentive of potentially winning more than a semi finalists at Wimbledon next month, Adams was unable to properly impose himself on his match against Antonius and lost 6-0, 6-1 to the Finn. He also walked away $30,000 lighter after his sobering challenge.
Commenting later on his match against Antonius on Twitter, Brandon said:
“No mental game vs Patrik. We both started v tight. He got rolling and loosened up; I just got tighter and tighter.”
“My mental state was the opposite of flow. All of the thoughts I’ve had about the match in the last 7 months flooded in.”
“I should have played more high pressure matches. Match play for money is like a different game; I’m not used to playing when juiced up.”
Meanwhile, both Antonius and Adams have yet to win a career WSOP bracelet and as far as this year’s competition goes, both players are still waiting to cash in at their first event. However, something tells me the gambling duo are probably finding plenty of other side action in Vegas to make their journeys well worth while.