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Niagara Fallsview Crown Blackjack Champion

NIAGARA FALLS, Ontario – (PRESS RELEASE)-- It was deja vu at Niagara Fallsview Casino resort this evening, when the winners of last year's Masters of Blackjack tournament came back with a vengeance to defend their titles. Vince Costa of Phoenix Arizona outlasted 146 other blackjack players at Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort Friday night to capture the 2005 Masters of Blackjack championship.

Second place winner Gemma Kappel, of Laurel Hollow, New York was also in the winner's circle last year - when her husband Robert took second place at the Casino Niagara Masters of Blackjack tournament.

Costa's title of "2005 Master of Blackjack" also comes with a cash prize of $100,000. Kappel will take home $25,000.

"I play a very conservative game and risk only when it's appropriate," said Costa. "And of course you have to have some luck."

"Mr. Costa and Mrs. Kappel both had an absolutely remarkable tournament," said Larry L. Lewin, President, Niagara Casinos. "They managed their money perfectly, which is one of the keys to winning these big tournaments. Luck always plays a role in any card game, but these individuals certainly demonstrated extraordinary skill as well."

The year-long Masters of Blackjack tournament series features five qualifying tournaments leading up to a championship event with a total prize purse of $150,000. The top three scorers from each of these five qualifying tournaments win a spot in the championship tournament and an exemption from the $1,000 championship round entry fee. The championship event consists of three rounds of 21 hands. The players with the most tournament chips at the end of the first round advance to the semi-final round, where they compete for one of just seven spots available in the final round of the championship tournament.

The Masters series is the largest annual Blackjack tournament in Canada, bringing competitors to the Niagara region from several U.S. States and from across Ontario. In addition to the $150,000 prize purse for the final, the event's five qualifying tournaments each feature a prize purse of $20,000 for a total of $250,000 in total prize money.

The 2005 Masters was the fourth annual event. Past champions include Vince Costa of Phoenix Arizona, and Van Nghi Tran of Downsview, Ontario, who won the title in 2004 and 2003, respectively. In 2002, John Mann of Buffalo, New York, and Milovan Lukovic, of Caledon East, Ontario, defied the odds and finished the championship tied and were named co-champions.

Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort is the largest gaming facility in Canada. At the heart of this sprawling, 2.5 million square foot facility is a 200,000-square-foot casino featuring 3,000 slot machines, 142 gaming tables and a dedicated poker room. The resort's other amenities include a 368-room luxury hotel, a full-service spa and fitness centre, a 1,500 seat showroom, room for 46 retail shops, numerous restaurants and lounges, 30,000 square feet of meeting and convention space, an art gallery and the first wedding chapels built into a Canadian gaming facility.

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