It’s an old school game with an old school World Champion.

Freddie Ellis, 74, won Event #6 ($10,000 World Championship Seven-card Stud) of the 2009 World Series of Poker Thursday morning, outlasting 66-year-old Eric Drache, a respected Las Vegas Stud player, earning his first gold bracelet and $373,744. Drache left with $231,014.

Ellis won the final hand of the 142-player tournament with 2 8 8 / 4 9 3 J, for a flush to clinch the title.

This was Ellis’ first appearance in the WSOP and only second cash in a major tournament in the last six years, as the Brooklyn native finished sixth in the 2003 U.S. Poker Championship Seven-card Stud Main Event, winning $14,000. Ellis, an amateur poker player, moved to New York in the 1950s to become a pop singer but has been active in the city’s real estate market since 1967.

“I was playing poker just to do something different and I started playing, really, casino poker when I went to Atlantic City, when they got it officially (in 1993),” he said. “The one thing I wanted to do (when I came to Las Vegas), was play in the Seven-card Stud tournament and that was one of the main reasons I came.”

The bracelet and title is special to Ellis because his wife Barbara, who would travel with him to wherever and whenever he played cards, passed away two years ago.

“The one thing — that I can’t talk about — is my wife used to always go with me, wherever I would play poker, whether to Atlantic City, whether it’s wherever, Las Vegas, and I would love for her (to see this),” he said, his voice quivering. “And I know I couldn’t go without her. If I talk about her, I can’t hold (back the tears). I still haven’t gotten over it.”

Ellis played heads up with Drache, who came into Day 3 as the chip leader with Ellis in third, for more than three and a half hours passing the chip lead back and forth.

Drache, who was the WSOP Tournament Director from 1970-88, now has finished in second in the three Seven-card Stud events he has cashed in, including back in the 1973 and 1981 WSOP tournaments.

Ellis had the edge going into heads-up play with Drache as he had just under 2.5 million in chips whereas Drache had about 1.8 million. Drache over took the chip lead within 20 minutes as he took down a big pot a set of fives and was able to chip away at Ellis in the next bunch of hands.

But Ellis would fight back winning big showdowns and get back what he lost. After pairing the 5 in the door with the 5 on fourth street, Ellis single bet and Drache called. Ellis bet his Q and J on the next two streets and Drache called him all the way down. Ellis flipped over a jack, a five and and a seven in the hole at showdown for fives full of jacks, pulled in the pot and was back to about even in chips with Drache.

Drache took the lead back when he made a queen-high flush against Ellis’ three Queens and Drache tried to lean on his opponent, but the two continued to trade the chip lead throughout the night.

Ellis entered three-handed play with a dominant chip lead over Drache and Villie Wahlbeck at 2.3 million, 1.4 million and 495,000, respectively.

The three played for nearly two and a half hours trading antes and bring ins with few large pots seen. Wahlbeck was able to double-up early when he made an Ace-high flush against Drache’s two pair, but was folding several hands on late streets, cutting into his stack. He was finally eliminated after the levels were raised and he moved all in with wired kings, but Drache had A A in the hole and neither players’ hand improved. Wahlbeck finished in third and won $152,915.

The final day of the World Championship was longer than originally scheduled and the low levels, big stacks and slow play made it seem even longer.

Instead of getting to a final table by the end of Day 2, as scheduled, it ended with Wednesday morning at 3 a.m. 11 players and Day 3 play began that afternoon at 1 p.m., an hour earlier than it would have had the field been down to the last eight. It only took 15 minutes, however, to lose two players — Ray Dehkharghani and Daniel Negreanu — and move the rest of the players to one table.

Thirty minutes after the two tables were combined, 2007 WSOP Seven Card Stud bracelet winner Jeff Lisandro was the first to go. He moved all in on fourth street with split tens against Whalback and Mueller.

The two held their hands until the river with Mueller dragging the pot with kings and sixes after his flush draw missed, eliminating Lissandro, who made $36,267.

The final eight were Ellis, Drache, Wahlbeck, Hasan Habib, Ivan Schertzer, Max Pescatori, Greg “FTB” Mueller, and Tim Phan.

It took two hours for the next player to eliminated, but Phan was the next player out, in eighth. He moved all in before fourth street with A 5 / 2, Schertzer had tens rolled up and moved all in on fifth street against Ellis, the chip leader with A K / 2 9 9. Neither Phan nor Ellis were able to beat Schertzer’s three tens and he doubled up, eliminating Phan in the process. Phan left with $47,532.

Within 20 minutes, two more players were felted and the field was down to five. Mueller moved all in with wired deuces and Habib called him with split aces. Neither player was able to improve and Mueller was sent to the rail.

Five minutes later, Schertzer was knocked out in sixth place when his wired Kings ran into Drache’s pocket Aces. Shertzer caught two pair on sixth street — Kings and Jacks — but Drache made a better two pair when he paired 5s on the river to go with his A A. Schertzer and Mueller left with $64,297 and $53,886, respectively. Coming back from the dinner break, play was slow for about an hour and then the final five began to make moves.

Ellis’ 1 million chip lead over Drache in second was slowly slipping away and bringing Ellis closer to the rest of the field, but he started picking up more pots and broke the 2 million mark while only Drache had only about half of that and the other three had less than 500,000.

Habib doubled-up Pescatori and went broke about 10 minutes later when he missed his straight draw to Broadway and Drache had two pair. Habib finished in fifth, good enough for $80,969.

Pescatori busted 20 minutes after doubling up at the hands of Wahlbeck. Pescatori moved all in with Q J / T while the Helsinki-native held wired queens. Despite making jacks-up on sixth street, Wahlbeck paired eights on the river and knocked out Pescatori in fourth place. He took home $107,959.

Event #6 final table results and payouts

1. Freddie Ellis - $373,744
2. Eric Drache - $231,014
3. Villie Wahlbeck - $152,915
4. Max Pescatori - $107,959
5. Hasan Habib- $80,969
6. Ivan Schertzer - $64,297
7. Greg “FTB” Mueller - $53,886
8. Tim Phan - $47,532

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