Say you're sitting across the felt at the World Series of Poker from former champion Greg Raymer, wearing his lizard-eye sunglasses, who raises you some obscene amount. What would you do?

Twenty-three-year old Cody Hartl of Spearfish got the chance to find out recently after winning a seat to one of the 54 events at the annual poker championships in Las Vegas.

"I had a really bad hand, but he had on his glasses and he was just staring me down. I kind of took my time and acted like I was thinking about it. I ended up folding, but it was pretty cool sitting at the same table with him," Hartl said.

Hartl, an accounting major at Black Hills State University, won an end of season 150 person tournament sponsored by the Black Hills Poker Tour to earn a seat in event No. 2 at the World Series, a $1,500 buy in, no-limit Texas Hold'em tournament that had 4,300 people entered.

Though he finished roughly 800 spots from first, Hartl said he probably played the best poker he has ever played.

"I was so patient. The blinds were an hour long so you could just sit there and look at a lot of hands for free. I played really tight," he said. "Obviously, you kind of get a feel of the table and how everybody's playing and you can pick your spots to be aggressive."

Hartl said it is nerve-wracking when you sit down in a tournament field of 4,300, but after awhile you settle down and begin to play.

"It's just poker. It really is," he said.

Along with Hartl, Rapid City residents Keith Brink and Stan and Kelly Scheurer also participated in World Series events. All four play in local tournaments sponsored by the Black Hills Poker Tour. Kelly Scheurer won a seat in event No. 52, a $1,500 no-limit Hold'em tournament, by winning a tournament sponsored by Full House Party, a poker tour that traveled through Rapid City. The prize package also included round-trip air fare for two to Las Vegas, an eight-night hotel stay and $600 spending money. Her husband, Stan, played in a $125 buy-in satellite tournament in Las Vegas and earned a seat in the same event Kelly was entered in.

Kelly was knocked out after nearly six hours of play and finished 872nd out of 2,700. Stan finished in about 1,300.

"I was really upset when I lost," Kelly said with a laugh. "I had Ace-Jack suited. The antes were $300, and the blinds were getting quite expensive and I was going to be in the big blind next. The player who called me had Kings and they held."

Kelly started playing poker about three years ago. It was her first time to go to the World Series and she definitely wants to do it again next year.

"A lot of people think it's luck, and to an extent it is, but there's also skill involved. Even if you have nothing, sometimes you have to represent you have something if you've got quite a bit of money invested in the pot," she said.

Another big hand for Scheurer came when she held King-Queen suited. Another player made a big bet, she went all in, and he called her with pocket Aces. An Ace on the flop gave the man three of a kind but a Jack and a 10 on the turn and river gave her the suck-out straight.

"He was a little upset about that. But that's poker," she said.

Kelly Scheurer said she saw quite a few poker professionals such as Jennifer Tilly and boyfriend Phil "The Unabomber" Laak, Chris Ferguson and Umberto Brenes.

After getting sent to the rail, Stan Scheurer ran into two-time main event winner Johnny Chan, fresh from winning $1.9 million in the HORSE tourney.

"What a nice guy. We got to visit a little bit," Stan Scheurer said.

Scheurer was eliminated when his full house ran up against a bigger full house, but he said he enjoyed the experience. He said seeing 270 tables in two rooms and poker players as far as he could see was quite a sight.

"Everybody played pretty tight. There was very little bluffing going on, at least at my table. The people who were playing a little loose, they didn't last very long," he said.

Hartl said at one point he was at the same table with both Greg Raymer and another professional, Hoyt Corkins, and outlasted them both. He said he busted out with pocket fives after going all in against a woman who limped into the pot holding pocket Aces.

Like many people, Hartl began playing penny-ante type poker with friends when he was a kid. He started playing more seriously in high school and only in the past year started playing in local poker tour events.

Heading into the World Series, Hartl even had thoughts of turning pro himself one day. But that idea changed after spending 10 hours straight at the table.

"I realized that's just something I can't do. It's gruesome," he said. "I can do it once, maybe twice, but I could never do it for a living, that's for sure. It kind of takes out the fun if you do it all the time, and you're not really enjoying it."

Contact Scott Aust at 394-8415, or scott.aust@rapidcityjournal.com