Football
Gary Wise, ESPN Poker 17y

Ray's Turn

"When's it going to be my turn?"

Ever since the poker boom bloomed and the tournament fields blossomed with it, dedicated professionals who haven't hit their big score have been asking themselves that question. Their life isn't an easy one to lead. Scraping together buy-ins and rent, while watching their peers, some better, some worse, finally hit that big score that makes it all worth it.

"It just makes life better. Food tastes betterÂ…air smells cleaner." That's what Nam Le said about that one transformational tournament that takes a player from "wannabe" to "established." It's about the achievement of goals. Once you do it, you can set new ones. Until you do, there's only the failure to achieve victory to dwell on.

Ray Henson is one guy who's been asking the big question for years. In an event that has seen its stars fall mostly by the wayside, Henson's presence ensures a few of them will be out here to see things go down, because Henson's been friends with them since before they were stars. He's seen them make the transition from zero to hero and at the same time has ensured they keep their human sides intact.

Henson's been playing cards since he could walk.

"My father was always a card player, so he taught me how to play early on," he said. "He never had much money or much gamble, so I guess I'm doing now what he couldn't."

Richard Henson, Ray's father, died a few years ago of emphysema. Despite the excitement of the moment Ray is currently emerged in, you could see in his eyes he was wishing his father could be here.

Says Henson, "When dad was about to die, he told me to go out and live my life, so that's what I've been doing ever since." He doesn't mince words about the realities of the life he chose. "It's been hard, getting money together, surviving this long. I've been waiting for this for a long time."

"This" is his finishing 12th place in the main event of the World Series of Poker. Finishing that high awarded him $476,926 for his trouble.

Henson almost didn't make it here. His mother came down with what doctors expected was pneumonia and he stayed with her in the hospital as they re-examined the symptoms. It unfortunately turned out that she also had emphysema, the same illness her late husband suffered from. She was ordered to cease and desist with the smoking. Her son, resolved to stay with her, told friends that he wouldn't be playing in this year's main event.

The friends weren't hearing any of it. His roommates from the 2005 WSOP, Ed Moncada and Greg 'FBT' Mueller, rallied together a number of friends including a couple of Mizrachi brothers, Sean Buchanan, Justin Bonomo and a number of other pros to get together the scratch.

"Ray called and told me he didn't think he'd be making it," Moncada said. "With a new business and his mother's bills, he didn't think he'd find the money. The next day was his birthday, so I told him to stop worrying about it and take care of her. The next day, I called and said 'Happy birthday, you have a buy-in.'"

The seldom-bashful FBT explained that "Rayzer" Henson "is just such a good guy. I mean, in poker, guys will hang around to watch you play if they have a piece of you, but it never mattered to him if he had a piece or not. He'd just stick around to give you some support, discuss his hands. It's awesome that the roles are reversed now."

There's a big-brother pride to Mueller's words.

"He's just got a good heart" Moncada explained. "I mean, we roomed together in 2004, and there was no doubt that I wanted to do it in 2005. It was just the best time I've ever had. Ray's just an awesome guy. [This success] couldn't happen to a better person."

While the stake was a matter of friendship for Mueller and Moncada, for Bonomo it was something else. "I only met him yesterday!" Bonomo said, with a big smile on his face. "Ed called me up and told me he had a smart kid with good game who he trusted and who needed a stake. Now, (as his grin gets broader) I have the biggest piece of anybody."

Call it another one of Henson's friends for life.

Now, Henson is making the best of it. With a bunch of his backers in tow, has been going to town on this field.

"I've been waiting a long time for this," he said. "It's taken a lot of patience. I guess now is when it finally pays off."

Now is more than that though, now is the time for new questions, because the old one was answered early Monday morning. When will it finally be Henson's turn?

Now. Even though he finished in 12th place, Henson has emerged as more than a supporter. He's a true poker player now.

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