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2011 Harrah’s New Orleans WSOP Circuit Main Event Results

Thursday, May 19th, 2011

2010/2011 World Series of Poker Circuit
Harrah’s New Orleans
Event #9
No-Limit Hold’em
Main Event Championship
Buy-In: $1,500 (+100)
Total Entries: 382
Total Prize Pool: $550,060
May 16-18, 2011

Official Final Results:

1 Jonathon Poche LAFAYETTE, LA, US $121,017
2 Robert Toye BATON ROUGE, LA, US $74,783
3 Josh Evans PLANO, TX, US $54,644
4 Todd Wood SPRINGFIELD, LA, US $40,573
5 Scott Zakheim DAVIE, FL, US $30,595
6 Jacob Bazeley CINCINNATI, OH, US $23,416
7 William Payne SAN ANTONIO, TX, US $18,185
8 Matthew Waxman PARKLAND, FL, US $14,324
9 James Mcbride Slidell, LA, US $11,441
10 Lance Craig IRVING, TX, US $9,263
11 Billy McBrayer TUSCALOOSA, AL, US $9,263
12 Douglas Lang DELMAR, NY, US $9,263
13 Michael Benton LAFAYETTE, LA, US $7,602
14 Samuel Bailey GULF BREEZE, FL, US $7,602
15 William Moorer MONCKS CORNER, SC, US $7,602
16 Mario Silvestri COLLEYVILLE, TX, US $6,325
17 Jared Ingles Dry Prong, LA, US $6,325
18 Allie Prescott LAS VEGAS, NV, US $6,325
19 Brian Heptinstall Birmingham, AL, US $5,350
20 Corrie Wunstel BATON ROUGE, LA, US $5,330
21 Mstr Lynch LEWISVILLE, TX, US $5,330
22 Richard Sasso MIAMI, FL, US $4,549
23 David Emmons HOUSTON, TX, US $4,549
24 Dwyte Pilgrim BROOKLYN, NY, US $4,549
25 James Namken HOUSTON, TX, US $3,933
26 Sundeepan Mehta Wyckoff, NJ, US $3,933
27 Matthew Hankins NEWNAN, GA, US $3,933
28 Mike Beasley HOLLYWOOD, FL, US $3,443
29 Michael Hallen Tampa, FL, US $3,443
30 Eric Utter Jacksonville, FL, US $3,443
31 Walter Wright LAS VEGAS, NV, US $3,052
32 Melih Birdal KNOXVILLE, TN, US $3,052
33 Chun Law LONDON, GB $3,052
34 Michael Traylor HOUSTON, TX, US $2,739
35 Daniel MacDougald NEW ORLEANS, LA, US $2,739
36 Mederic Lemenager Denham Springs, LA, US $2,739
37 Edward Corrado NAPLES, FL, US $2,486
38 Johnny Landreth LANETT, AL, US $2,486
39 John Ross THE WOODLANDS, TX, US $2,486
40 Douglas Friedmutter BROOKLYN, NY, US $2,486
41 Curtis Simpson LIVINGSTON, TX, US $2,486
42 Arturo Alaniz Houston, TX, US $2,486
43 Dan Schmiech HOUSTON, TX, US $2,486
44 Torrey Reily NEW ORLEANS, LA, US $2,486
45 Michael Smith HIRAM, GA, US $2,486

2011 Harrah's New Orelans WSOP Circuit Main Event Champion Jonathon Poche

2011 Harrah's New Orelans WSOP Circuit Main Event Champion Jonathon Poche

Jonathan Poche Makes Winning Look Easy

Local Poker Pro Wins Big Easy Main Event Championship

Main Event Draws Biggest Field in Seven Years – 382 Players

Brian Walsingham Wins “Best All-Around” Points Race in New Orleans

National Championship Points Race Nears the Finish Line

WSOP Circuit Southern Regional Championship Runs May 19-22

New Orleans, LA (May 18, 2011) – The 2010-2011 World Series of Poker Circuit season is winding down to a thrilling conclusion. The season moved one step closer to ending today with the crowing of a new gold ring champion at Harrah’s New Orleans.

New Orleans has been the final stop during each and every season since the WSOP Circuit began, back in 2005. There were 15 WSOP Circuit stops this season, the most ever. Most stops included ten official gold ring events. A “gold ring event” means the winner is awarded a gold ring, which symbolizes victory. Furthermore, all players who finished in-the-money in gold ring events were awarded points which apply to a national championship race and leader board. This is the first season the WSOP Circuit has utilized a ranking system for its players.

Four WSOP Circuit stops were designated as Regional Championships, including Harrah’s New Orleans. Each of these stops had included one additional gold ring event. The first three Regional Championships were completed at Horseshoe Hammond (Indiana), Harrah’s Atlantic City, and Harrah’s Rincon (San Diego). Harrah’s New Orleans is the final Regional Championship, which will take place May 19-22. The Southern Regional Championship costs $10,000 to enter.

The culmination of this season comes during May 27-29 in Las Vegas, just prior to the start of the WSOP. The inaugural WSOP Circuit National Championship will take place at Caesars Palace. The tournament will be nationally-televised on the Versus Network. Only 100 qualifiers will be eligible to participate. Eleven of the qualifiers came from events held at Harrah’s New Orleans.

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The Main Event Championship was a $1,500 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em tournament. The field consisted of 382 entries, creating a prize pool totaling $550,060. This was the largest field ever for any Main Event ever held in New Orleans. The previous high mark was set in 2005, with 259 entries.

The winner and new champion is Jonathan Poche, from St. Martinsville, LA. He is a professional poker player. Pocha kept a low profile during most of the tournament, never holding the chip lead until the very end when play became short-handed. He entered the final table ranked in sixth place.

But Pocha won most of the key late pots. He seemed to get stronger as players were gradually eliminated, demonstrating great proficiency as a short-handed player. Once play reached heads-up, Pocha dominated play and earned a well-deserved victory.

Pocha collected $121,017 for first place. He was presented with the coveted WSOP Circuit gold ring. The bonus for winning this year’s Main Event was an automatic seat into the WSOP Circuit National Championship.

Pocha joins an exclusive list of seven players who have won the WSOP Circuit Main Event Championship at Harrah’s New Orleans. The list of Big Easy champions includes:

2011 – Jonathan Pocha (St. Martinville, LA)
2010 – Fred Berger (Las Vegas, NV)
2009 – Jean “Prince” Gaspard (Evanston, IL)
2008 – Nick Ceci (New Orleans, LA)
2007 – Andy Philachack (Garland, TX)
2006 – Peter Feldman (Las Vegas, NV)
2005 – Walter Chambers (Baton Rouge, LA)

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Play stretched out over three days. The Main Event’s top 45 finishers collected prize money. The end of Day One chip leader was Mario Silvestri, from Ft. Worth, TX. But he was eliminated during Day Two and ended up finishing in 16th place. Other notable players who cashed included – Allie Prescott (18th), Mstr Lynch (21st), Dwyte Pilgrim (24th), Michael Traylor (34th), and Dan Schmiech (43rd).

Another notable finish was that of Edward Corrado, from Naples, FL. The 80-year-old retiree finished in 37th place. He took fourth place in last year’s Main Event Championship at Harrah’s New Orleans.

A complete list of all in-the-money finishers in EVENT #9 can be found at WSOP.COM.

Final table play took place on the main stage inside the tournament room at Harrah’s New Orleans. The blinds started at 15,000-30,000 with a 4,000 ante. When cards went into the air, the ten finalists and their chip counts were as follows:

Seat One: Lance Craig (Grapevine, TX) — 694,000 in chips
Seat Two: Josh Evans (Dallas, TX) – 1,159,000 in chips
Seat Three: Matthew Waxman (Parkland, FL) – 460,000 in chips
Seat Four: Bobby Toye (New Orleans, LA) – 882,000 in chips
Seat Five: Jonathan Poche (St. Martinsville, LA) – 656,000 in chips
Seat Six: Jacob Bazeley (Cincinnati, OH) — 983,000 in chips
Seat Seven: Todd Wood (Bucktown, LA) — 1,619,000 in chips
Seat Eight: Billie Payne (Mansfield, TX) — 307,000 in chips
Seat Nine: Scott Zakheim (Davie, FL) — 491,000 in chips
Seat Ten: Jim McBride (Slidell, LA) — 395,000 in chips

Final table play began at 2 pm on a Wednesday afternoon. Play concluded at 8 pm – making the total duration of play about six hours. Players were eliminated in the following order:

Tenth Place – Lance Craig experienced a nightmare at the final table. After about an hour of play, he became the first player to be eliminated when he shoved all-in with pocket queens. To his horror, chip leader Todd Wood snap called and showed pocket aces. Craig could not believe what he was seeing, not only facing the dreaded overpair, but also suffering the misfortune against a bigger stack. Craig failed to improve and had to settle for $92,63 in prize money.

Lance Craig, from grapevine, TX is a 42-year-old self-described “man of leisure.” He once worked as a software engineer. Craig has participated in five previous WSOP Circuit events. He took 17th in the Main Event Championship held two months ago at Harrah’s St. Louis. He also final tabled various tournaments in the past held at the Winstar Casino, in Oklahoma.

Ninth Place – Jim McBride was the senior player among the final ten. He is a 63-year-old retiree from Slidell, LA. He has played in many prior WSOP Circuit tournaments, cashing four times with two previous final table appearances. He took fourth place at the 2009 Winter Bayou Poker Challenge Main Event held at Harrah’s New Orleans.

McBride lost a race on what turned out to be his final hand. He took pocket eights up against A-Q. A queen flopped and an ace fell on the river, which busted McBride. He received $11,441 in prize money.

Eighth Place – Matthew Waxman was never able to generate much momentum on the final day. He ended up in eighth place. Waxman was down to his last 150,000 in chips and shoved with K-Q offsuit. He made the wrong time to make a move as his opponent called and revealed pocket kings. The dominant hand held up, putting Waxman out of the event.

Matthew Waxman is a 26-year-old professional poker player from Parkland, FL. He is originally from Princeton, NJ. He has many previous tournament accolades, including winning the WSOP Circuit Main Event Championship at Harrah’s Atlantic City earlier this season. Waxman has accumulated more than $700,000 in live tournament earnings in his career. He added another $14,324 to that figure for his performance in this tournament.

Seventh Place – Billy Payne went out about two hours into the finale. He shoved holding pocket eights and ran into pocket aces. Payne felt plenty of pain as the five board cards failed to bring a desperately-needed eight. He had to settle for $18,185.

Billie Payne is a 34-year-old plumber from Mansfield, TX. This marks only his second time to play in a WSOP Circuit tournament. He has two previous cashes elsewhere – including an in-the-money finish at the Choctaw Circuit stop in January as well as a cash at the WSOP in Las Vegas last year

Sixth Place – Jake Bazeley started play ranked third in chips but ran out of momentum about midway through the final and finished in sixth place. Bazeley’s final hand consisted of A-6 suited, which ran into pocket aces. Predictably, the bigger hand held up, leaving Bazeley with a payout totaling $23,416.

Jacob Bazeley is a 28-year-old professional poker player from Cincinnati, OH. He has played in nearly a dozen WSOP Circuit tournaments in the past. This marks his fifth time to cash, which means he’s made the money about half the time he has entered. Bazeley won first place in an event at the Indiana State Poker Championships in 2009. He has also cashed four times at the WSOP in Las Vegas.

Fifth Place – Scott Zakheim survived quite a while nursing a short stack. He was low on chips late on Day Two and still managed to make it not only to the final table, but all the way to fifth place. Zakheim might he gone even higher were it not for losing a race holding A-K against pocket queens. That critical hand cost Zakheim his stack and he went out with $30,595 in prize money.

Scott Zakheim is a 52-year-old attorney from Davie, FL. He is originally from New York. Zakheim has participated in four previous WSOP Circuit events. His most notable poker accomplishments include cashing in last year’s WSOP Main Event in Las Vegas, another cash at the Circuit Championship Main Event at Caesars Palace Las Vegas in 2008, and 16 overall in-the-money tournament finishes totaling more than $200,000 in prize money.

One of the biggest hands of the tournament took place when play was four-handed. Bobby Toye won a huge pot against Josh Evans and seized a commanding chip lead. Toye was all-in pre-flop holding pocket kings, which bested Evans’ A-Q. That hand all but ended Evan’s shot of winning.

Fourth Place – Todd Wood came into the finale as the chip leader. He ended up as the third-place finisher. Wood ran low on chips and shoved with K-7 suited on his final hand. He ran into K-Q. Both players rivered a king for top pair, but Wood’s weak kicker cost him his last chips. Woods’ share of the prize money came to $40,573.

Todd Wood is a 42-year-old lexicographer, which means he evaluates and edits dictionaries. Wood was born in New Orleans. This is only the second WSOP Circuit tournament Wood has entered. In his only previous appearance, he finished in second place in a $500 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em event at Harrah’s New Orleans, held two years ago. Wood now has a second and a fourth-place finish in his two Circuit events, which is a remarkable accomplishment.

Third Place – Josh Evans lost most of his chips on the big hand against Toye. He managed to double up one time and moved back into contention. But the rising blinds eventually made it necessary for Evans to gamble. On his final hand, Evans shoved with 9-8. He got a call by Jonathan Poche who tabled an ace. An ace on the flop crushed Evans, who ended up finishing in third place. The payout was $56,644.

Josh Evans is a 26-year-old poker pro from Dallas. He has played in numerous WSOP Circuit events in the past. This is his seventh Circuit cash this season. His best previous showing was third place – sho now he has two such finishes. Evans has many tournament accolades, including making the money in the 2007 WSOP Main Event Championship – which paid more than $100,000 for 76th place.

Second Place – Bobby Toye had a good shot to win, but went apparently went card dead at the worst possible time, when he was heads-up against a very aggressive opponent. However, Toye played remarkably well in this tournament. He earned his biggest cash ever in this event. Toye’s consolation prize for second place amounted to $74,783.

Bobby Toye is 24-years-old and resides in New Orleans. Remarkably, Toye won the very first three poker tournaments in which he cashed — earning victories at the Imperial Palace Classic in Biloxi, the World Poker Open, and the WSOP Circuit Seven-Card Stud Championship held at Harrah’s New Orleans in 2008, which earned him a gold ring. In fact, Toye was one of only two players at the final table who had previously won a WSOP Circuit gold ring.

When heads-up play began, the two finalists were close to even in chips. Pocha became super aggressive at this point, betting no matter what the situation, and ended up taking down pot after pot. Most of the hands were not shown.

The final hand came when Pocha had a big chip lead. Toye was forced to try to do something to stop Pocha’s ceaseless aggression. But he threw the gauntlet down at a bad time. When Pocha declared he was all-in, Pocha woke up with a strong hand – pocket eights. The final hand of the tournament played out as follows:

Toye: Js 8h
Pocha: 8s 8c
Flop: 5s 3d 2c
Turn: 6d
River: 5h

Toye was all-in pre-flop and was drawing slim. He essentially needed to catch a jack in order to stay alive. He did not get the jack and had to settle for second place. Jonathan Pocha was declared the winner.

First Place – The new champion is Jonathan Pocha, from St. Martinville, LA. He is a 29-year-old professional poker player. Prior to playing poker for a living, he worked as an oil field engineer. Poche has only participated in two WSOP Circuit events in the past and has made it all the way to the final table for the first time. He made the most of this opportunity and won a commanding victory.

Immediately following his victory, Pocha posed with “Mardi” the alligator. Mardi, named in honor of the Mardi Gras parade, has become a Harrah’s New Orleans tradition. Every year, the Main Event champion has posed with the big-jawed beast, stuffed with wads of $100 bills. Despite the unsavory company of being framed with the reptile, Pocha didn’t seem to mind one bit being photographed with “Mardi,” since the gawking gator was carrying the winner’s share of the loot.

With the Main Event now completed, New Orleans has crowned ten WSOP Circuit gold ring champions this year. The list of winners includes:

Event #1: John Christian (Baton Rouge, LA) defeated 473 players and won $28,288 in $355 NLHE
Event #2: John Holley (Destin, FL) defeated 96 players and won $8,380 in $355 MIX POT-LIMIT
Event #3: Danny Doucet (Lafayette, LA) defeated 312 players and won $21,116 in $355 NLHE
Event #4: Brian Walsingham (Atlanta, GA) defeated 423 players and won $26,801 in $355 NLHE
Event #5: Zhen Cai (Daytona Beach, FL) defeated 293 players and won $33,753 in $355 NLHE
Event #6: Walter B. Wright (Las Vegas, NV) defeated 101 players and won $14,544 in $565 PLO
Event #7: Tom Franklin (Gulfport, MS) defeated 646 players and won $38,139 in $355 NLHE
Event #8: Brian Walsingham (Atlanta, GA) defeated 356 players and won $78,604 in 1085 NLHE
Event #9: Jonathan Pocha (St. Martinville, LA) defeated 382 players and won $121,017 in MAIN EVENT
Event #10: Stephen Puleio (New Orleans, LA) defeated 355 players and won $23,515 in $355 NLHE

The Best All-Around Champion for the Harrah’s New Orleans series has officially been determined. The winner is Brian Walsingham. He won two gold rings and accumulated 100 points in the race for best player. By virtue of his outstanding performance, Walsingham qualified for a seat in the National Championship.

The inaugural WSOP Circuit Southern Regional Championship comes next. The $10,000 buy-in tournament will be taped for broadcast on national television. This is the first time since 2006 television cameras have filmed a poker event in New Orleans. The final of four regional tournaments promises to be an exciting end to the great 2010-2011 WSOP Circuit season.
 
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A Short History of the WSOP Circuit at Harrah’s New Orleans

The first major poker tournament held at Harrah’s New Orleans was called the “Cajun Poker Classic,” which took place in early 2004. The three-day tournament attracted 536 players and inspired the casino to host more poker events in the future. Later that year, the first Bayou Poker Challenge was held, which consisted of six tournaments.

Next, Harrah’s New Orleans became a charter member of the World Series of Poker Circuits, which officially started play in 2005. Since then, New Orleans has hosted the final stop on the circuit each year, which takes place in mid-May just prior to the start of the WSOP at the Rio in Las Vegas. The first two WSOP Circuit championships held at Harrah’s New Orleans were televised by ESPN and were among the most exciting tournaments broadcast at the time. They still occasionally appear in re-runs to this day.

WSOP Circuit events in New Orleans proved to be so successful that a second tournament series was created, starting in 2007. This became known as the “Bayou Poker Challenge” (a.k.a. the Winter Bayou Poker Challenge), which has since become a December attraction. This tournament series is categorized as a World Series of Poker Satellite, since its Main Event winner earns an entry valued at $10,000 seat (plus expense money) into the WSOP championship, held the following year.

Tournament Director – Steve Frezer
General Manager of Harrah’s New Orleans
Assistant General Manager – Sherri Pucci
Vice President of Marketing – Luann Pappas
Director of Table Games – Tosha Skipper
Shift Manager of Harrah’s New Orleans – Larry Barrett

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2010-2011 Harvey’s Lake Tahoe WSOP Circuit Main Event Results

Wednesday, November 24th, 2010

2010-2011 World Series of Poker Circuit
Season Seven
Harvey’s Lake Tahoe
Event #9
Main Event Championship
No-Limit Hold’em
Buy-In: $1,600
Total Entries: 246
Total Prize Pool: $354,240
November 21-23, 2010

OFFICIAL RESULTS:

2010-2011 Harveys Lake Tahoe WSOP Circuit Main Event Winner Stanley Quinn

2010-2011 Harveys Lake Tahoe WSOP Circuit Main Event Winner Stanley Quinn

1 Stanley Quinn Danville, CA $86,789

2 John McNeilly Glen Ellen, CA $53,625

3 Michael Traylor Houston, TX $38,743

4 Dan Black Cloverdale, CA $28,513

5 Drew Caseri Merced, CA $21,361

6 Ned Mantua Bodega Bay, CA $16,277

7 Donna Jetter Sparta, TN $12,611

8 Grant Hillman Oakland, CA $9,929

9 Joseph Mongkul-Ua-Aree Gardnerville, NV $7,942

10 Tom Masinter Dublin, CA $6,451

11 Leroy Patitz Hastings, NE $6,451

12 Ray Martin Bargersville, IN $6,451

13 Arthur Molloy La Jolla, CA $5,321

14 Kevin Fleming Pleasanton, CA $5,321

15 Dustin Leary Mountain View, CA $5,321

16 Stephen Brown Simi Valley, CA $4,456

17 Anthony Winters Patterson, CA $4,456

18 John Miner Carlson City, NV $4,456

19 Kenneth Churchill Auburn , WA $3,790

20 Jason Stern San Jose, CA $3,790

21 Jason Moe Roseville, CA $3,790

22 Archie Raimer Boerne, TX $3,270

23 Andrew Barber Rocklin, CA $3,270

24 Zachary Gilbert Reno, NV $3,270

25 Richard Peterson Oakdale, CA $2,862

26 George Reese Sacramento, CA $2,862

27 Jeffrey Lennon Fresno, CA $2,862

Stan Quinn Wins WSOP Circuit Main Event Championship Gold Ring at Harvey’s

Andrew Barber Wins Lake Tahoe’s Best All-Around Player Points Race

Winter Blizzard in High Sierras Fails to Cool Off Two National Championship Qualifiers – Quinn and Barber

Stateline, NV – The winner of the World Series of Poker Circuit Main Event Championship held at the Harvey’s Lake Tahoe Resort and Casino is Stan Quinn, from Danville, CA.

Quinn collected $86,789 in prize money. He was presented with his first gold ring, which is the supreme token of achievement awarded for winning a WSOP Circuit event. Quinn also received an automatic seat qualification into the 2010-2011 WSOP Circuit National Championship, to be held in Las Vegas next May.

Quinn is a 51-year-old professional poker player. He formally worked in IT management. Quinn earned his way into the championship by winning a mega-satellite in the Harvey’s Poker Room. Shortly after making the decision to play poker full-time, he cashed in this year’s WSOP Main Event – finishing in 549th place.

This marks Quinn’s debut year on the WSOP Circuit. Quinn cashed in one of the earlier gold ring events at Harvey’s finishing in 14th place in a $345 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em event. With this victory, he now has more than $100,000 in WSOP-related earnings for the year.

The $1,600 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em tournament began on Sunday at noon and ended Tuesday night. The tournament attracted a larger-than-expected field size totaling 246 entrants.

Tournament attendance was expected to suffer due to a record snowstorm which punished the Lake Tahoe area for more than four days. Around Harvey’s Lake Tahoe, nearly three feet of snow hit the ground and created white-out conditions during most of the weekend. Snowfall hit more than six feet at the higher elevations. Wind gusts on the upper ridges of the High Sierras were 80-90 mph, at times. According to some reports, this was the heaviest November snowfall in the last 100 years.

This made the trek to South Lake Tahoe treacherous for all but the most daring drivers, winter sportsmen, and poker players. Some roads were closed, and those paths that were open required snow chains. Nevertheless, players came and made this one of the busier weekends of the year.

Despite the severe weather, the number of participants in the Main Event Championship increased significantly over last year. Furthermore, the $354,240 prize pool was up by 15 percent over the previous figure, even though this year’s buy-in ($1,600) was reduced from the previous year ($5,000).

The first day opened with 246 players playing down to 51 survivors — which took about 12 hours. The first day chip leader was Dan Black, who would end up making it to the final table – ending up in fourth place. The second day of play whittled the field down to the final nine — which lasted about 10 hours. The second day chip leader was Michael Traylor, who enjoyed a 2 to 1 advantage over his closest rival when the final table started on the third day of competition. Traylor ended up as the third-place finisher.

The final table began at 12 noon on Tuesday and ended about 5 hours 15 minutes later. When the nine finalists took their seats, the chip counts were as follows:

SEAT 1: Dan Black (Cloverdale, CA) – 585,000 in chips
SEAT 2: Donna Jetter (Nashville, TN) – 111,000 in chips
SEAT 3: John McNeilly (Sonoma, CA) – 263,000 in chips
SEAT 4: Joe “13” Mongkol-ua-aree (Gardnerville, NV) – 287,000 in chips
SEAT 5: Michael Traylor (Houston, TX) – 1,843,000 in chips
SEAT 6: Drew Caseri (Merced, CA) – 164,000 in chips
SEAT 7: Grant Hillman (Oakland, CA) – 484,000 in chips
SEAT 8: Ned Mantua (Bedega Bay, CA) – 945,000 in chips
SEAT 9: Stan Quinn (Danville, CA) – 377,000 in chips

Blinds began at 10,000-20,000 with a 3,000 ante. Players were eliminated in the following order:

9th Place – Joe “13” Mongkol-ua-aree, from nearby Gardnerville, NV was the first player to exit. He went out after only about 20 minutes. Mongkol-ua-aree lost most of his stack with Ad Js. He moved all-in and got a quick call by Dan Black, who showed Ks Kc. Just a few hands earlier, Black had lost half of his stack when his K-K lost to Q-Q (a queen flopped). Black avoided a devastating repeat this second time around as his K-K survived a board which showed Qs 8d 3s 5s 5c. Mongkol-ua-aree was left with just 75,000 in chips and went out a few hands later when his A-Q lost to Michael Traylor’s straight.

Mongkol-ua-aree is a 38-year-old small business owner. He has been playing on the WSOP Circuit for 4 years. Mr. Mongkol-ua-aree loves playing poker with his wife Yvette, who has also cashed at Harvey’s Lake Tahoe. He once served proudly with the 82nd Airborne Division. Monghol-ua-aree collected $7,942 in prize money for ninth place.

8th Place – Grant Hillman, from Oakland, CA went out next. He was lowest in chips and moved all-in on a semi-bluff, which lost. Hillman was dealt Td 8d. After the flop came Qd Js 6h, Hillman moved all-in. Michael Traylor was delighted to call and tabled Qs Jd, good for top two pair. The cards ran out 3h Ad, pushing another pot to Traylor and putting Hillman out in eighth place with $9,929 in prize money.

Grant Hillman is a 38-year-old bio-informatics manager, which means he applies computer science and statistics to the field of molecular biology. He holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Illinois and a Masters Degree from the University of Colorado. Hillman won his way into the Main Event through a single-table satellite. This is his second year to play on the WSOP Circuit.

7th Place – Donna Jetter began play with the lowest stack. She managed to move two spots up the money ladder. Jetter doubled up three times during her two-hour session. She had a chance to go over 1,000,000 in chips at one point, but lost a critical race and fell back to a short stack. Jetter went out when she moved all-in with Js Ts. Michael Traylor faded her raise and called with Ad Kh. The flop gave Jetter several more outs, but she missed as two blanks hit the turn and river. The final board showed Qc 9c 3h 4c 3c giving Traylor more chips, and bankrupting Jetter. She is the only female to make a WSOP Circuit Main Event final table this season (through four championship events). Seventh place paid $12,611.

Donna Jetter specializes in renovating homes in and around the Nashville area. She has been playing on the WSOP Circuit for the past three years. She won the Ladies Championship at Harrah’s Tunica last January. Jetter is the first female poker player to make it to a WSOP Circuit championship final table this season.

6th Place – Ned Mantua was eliminated in sixth place when he was down to his last 150,000 and needed to find a hand. He found one shoved with Ac Td. Michael Traylor — who covered his opponent by more than a 10 to 1 margin — called and showed Kh Js. The final board came Kd Tc 4s 7c 2h giving Traylor top two pair. Thus, Mantua ended up in sixth place.

Ned Mantua is a 68-year-old gas station manager. He is a proud father of four, and a grandfather to four. Mr. Mantua enjoys fishing, but he found no fish at this final table. Mantua earned $16,277 in prize money.

5th Place – Drew Caseri’s last five minutes at the final table were a nightmare. He managed to run his initial stack size of 164,000 up to more than 800,000. He would have had 1.4 million except for a brutal beat which took place about three hours into play. Caseri re-raised all-in holding 9-9 and had John McNeilly covered, who showed 6-6. It appeared that Caseri would knock out McNeilly and move into second place in chips. But a six on the river completely reversed the fortunes of both players. Two hands later, Caseri was down to 200,000 and moved all-in again, with Ks Ts. Michael Traylor called and showed Ac Qd. The flop was good for Caseri, but once again, the river card was a killer. The board ran Tc 9d 4c 3c Qh, giving Traylor what remained of Caseri’s stack.

Drew Caseri is a 25-year-old college student. He won his way into this tournament via a $235 mega-satellite. Mr. Caseri loves poker, but says he actually came to Lake Tahoe to snowboard. However, he didn’t get to snowboard much on this trip because of his success in this tournament. Caseri earned $21,361 in prize money.

4th place – Dan Black was eliminated during the fifth hour of play. He was all-in on an unusual hand where both players had straight-flush draws. Black was dealt Td 9d and was up against Michael Traylor, with 6d 5d. After the flop came 9c 8d 7d Black moved in with top pair and the straight-flush draw. But Traylor had the made straight which held up as the final two cards were 7d and Qh. Black collected $28,513 in prize money.

Dan Black is a 61-year-old retired construction specialist and former fireman. He prefers to play in cash games and paid his way into this event through his cash game winnings. Mr. Black owns his own ranch which is 5,000 acres, where he escorts visitors on hunting trips around his property. This marks his fifth year to play on the WSOP Circuit.

3rd Place – Despite being the powerhouse force during much of the final table, Michael Traylor ended up finishing in third place. At one point during the finale he held a 4 to 1 chip lead over his closest rival. In fact, Traylor was dealt a flurry of big hands during his stay. Trouble was, several of the hands were cracked and he ended up losing a number of big pots at critical times during the finale. He managed to double up players at the worst possible times, which was no fault of his own since he always seemed to have big cards. Traylor was finally eliminated while low on chips holding Ts 4s. The flop came Qd Jh 8d, with the Js on the turn and the Kd on the river. Stan Quinn’s Ac 9c – good for ace-high — took what remained of Traylor’s once-towering stack.

Michael Traylor is a 28-year-old professional poker player. He previously worked in sales and was an actor. Mr. Traylor has only recently begun a full-time poker career, but says he is in the game to stay and is determined to improve one step at a time. Traylor took a solid step forward with his third-place finish in this tournament. He collected $38,743.

2nd Place – John McNeilly was the runner up. He collected a very respectable consolation prize totaling $53,625.

The final hand of the tournament came quickly and unexpectedly. After five hours of final table action, a routine looking hand developed when the flop came 8h 6c 3h. McNeilly moved all-in and showed 8c 7h (after his bet was called), good for top pair. Unfortunately, Stan Quinn had Js Jc — good for an overpair. McNeilly added several outs to his shot of seizing the chip lead after the 5d fell on the turn. But the river bricked with the Ks coming, which gave the victory to Quinn and put McNeilly out in second place.

John McNeilly is a 54-year-old part-time player who says he is currently out of work. He previously worked as a manager at a winery. He was also a high school basketball coach at one time. Mr. McNeilly has been playing on the WSOP Circuit for two years. He wished to acknowledge the support he received from his wife, two daughters, and older brother, who is diagnosed with ALS, who followed his progress online.

1st Place – Stan Quinn won his first major poker tournament and his first WSOP Circuit gold ring. First place paid $86,789 in prize money.

The overall winner in the point race for this year’s Harvey’s Lake Tahoe series is Andrew Barber, from Rocklin, CA. He edged out two rivals, Tom Masinter and John Deng, both of whom won gold ring events. Barber won the point tally with a second and a third place finish in two events. He also cashed in the Main Event.

Joining the Main Event champion Stan Quinn, Barber earns an automatic bid into the WSOP Circuit National Championship.

This year, all players on the WSOP Circuit who cash will accumulate points which are used to qualify towards the WSOP Circuit National Championship. The tournament is to be held in May 2011 in Las Vegas.  The $1 million freeroll tournament will be nationally televised and will be open to only 100 qualifiers.  For the first time ever, a WSOP gold bracelet will be presented to the winner.
  
This was the final WSOP Circuit gold ring event held this year at Harvey’s Lake Tahoe. The WSOP Circuit gold ring winners at Harvey’s Lake Tahoe were as follows:
 
Phillip Hui (Event #1 champion — NLHE)
Manh Tran (Event #2 champion — NLHE)
James Sparks (Event #3 champion – Omaha High-Low Split)
Devin Jackson (Event #4 champion – H.O.R.S.E.)
Cyle Curtis (Event #5 champion – NLHE)
Matthew Hughes (Event #6 champion – Six-Handed NLHE)
Joel Casper (Event #7 champion – NLHE)
Tom Masinter (Event #8 champion — NLHE)
Stan Quinn (Event #9 MAIN EVENT champion – NLHE)
 
A total of 2,197 players participated in the ten WSOP Circuit events played at this year’s Harvey’s Lake Tahoe series.  That means each event has attracted an average of 220 players.

The impressive attendance figures at Harvey’s Lake Tahoe are consistent with big turnouts at all WSOP Circuit stops, so far.  All four WSOP Circuit events now completed have experienced increases in both attendance and prize money.  Numbers were up significantly at Council Bluffs, Hammond (Chicago), and Southern Indiana.  A new addition to this year’s schedule held at the IP Casino-Resort and Spa in Biloxi also produced impressive numbers.

This is the seventh WSOP Circuit stop to be held at Harvey’s Lake Tahoe. It is one of only three stops which have been a part of the WSOP Circuit season every year. The others are Harrah’s Rincon (San Diego) and Harrah’s Atlantic City.
 
Harvey’s Lake Tahoe is located on the south shore of crystal blue Lake Tahoe, beneath a wall of snow-capped mountains, making for one of the most astounding views of any poker destination in the world.
 
Northern Nevada has a rich poker history.  The WSOP had its origins, not in Las Vegas, but rather in Northern Nevada.  The first WSOP-style tournament was played in Reno at the Holiday Casino in 1969.  That first gathering of poker players was called the “Second Annual Gambling Fraternity Convention,” and was won by Crandell Addington, later a Poker Hall of Fame inductee.  Poker patriarch Benny Binion was so impressed with the concept that he held the first WSOP the following year at Binion’s Horseshoe in Las Vegas, in 1970. Now some 41 years later, poker remains alive and well in the Reno-Lake Tahoe area.

2010-2011 Harvey’s Lake Tahoe WSOP Circuit Main Event Championship Results

2010-2011 Harvey’s Lake Tahoe WSOP Circuit Event Schedule and Results

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2010 Harrah’s New Orleans WSOP Circuit Main Event Championship Final Results

Thursday, May 20th, 2010

2009/2010 World Series of Poker Circuit
Harrah’s New Orleans
Bayou Poker Challenge
Event #17
No Limit Hold’em
Main Event Championship
Buy-In: $5,000 (+150)
Total Entries: 156
Total Prize Pool: $745,600
May 17-19, 2010

Final Results:

1 Fred Berger Slidell, LA $197,584

2 Mike Beasley Hollywood, FL $119,296

3 Ben Keiley Missoula, MT $76,424

4 Ed Corrado Naples, FL $59,648

5 Fernando Perez Mexico City, Mexico $46,600

6 Joel Merwick Omaha, NE $37,280

7 Jacob Naquin New Orleans, LA $29,824

8 Chander Jain Houston, TX $24,232

9 Jared Ingles Baton Rouge, LA $20,504

10 Jean “Prince” Gaspard Evanston, IL $16,776

11 Andrew Liporace Westport, CT $16,776

12 Patricia Pate Birmingham, AL $16,776

13 James Jewett Meridian, ID $14,912

14 Michael Rofman Houston, TX $14,912

15 Gordon Hammer Houma, LA $14,912

16 Robert Thornhill Spring, TX $13,048

17 Do Shin Choung Baton Rouge, LA $13,048

18 Eric Cloutier Lafayette, LA $13,048

“First the Bracelet, then the Ring”

Fred Berger Wins WSOP Circuit Main Event Championship at Harrah’s New Orleans

2002 WSOP Gold Bracelet Winner Adds to His Jewelry Collection with Gold Ring Victory

2010 Harrah's New Orleans WSOP Circuit Main Event Championship Winner Fred Berger

2010 Harrah's New Orleans WSOP Circuit Main Event Championship Winner Fred Berger

New Orleans, LA – The World Series of Poker uses a catchy slogan to promote its national tournament circuit. The popular slogan goes, “First the Ring, then the Bracelet.” The routine is for poker players to gain valauble tournament experience at various WSOP Circuit stops around the country, and then later come to Las Vegas and play in the WSOP to compete for poker’s ultimate prize – the gold bracelet.

Fred Berger has things backwards. The business owner from Slidell, LA won his gold bracelet at the 2002 WSOP. Eight years later, he won his first WSOP Circuit gold ring victory. Berger topped a tough field of 156 players at Harrah’s New Orleans and ultimately became the 2010 Bayou Poker Challenge champion. For his win, he received $197,584 in prize money, plus a pre-paid seat into the 2010 WSOP Main Event, to be played in Las Vegas. Berger was also presented with the coveted gold and diamond ring, awarded to all WSOP Circuit winners.

This was the final tournament of the 2009-2010 World Series of Poker Circuit season and the sixth Bayou Poker Challenge championship held at Harrah’s New Orleans. The Bayou series is held every May in the Crescent City and traditionally comes at the end of the eight-month long WSOP Circuit season. The $5,000 (+150) buy-in No-Limit Hold’em tournament was played over three consecutive days during May 17-19, 2010. The Main Event paid out the top 18 finishers, who divided a prize pool totaling $745,600.

The tournament officially began with a $10,000 donation given to the New Orleans Area Habitat For Humanity and “Project Full House,” which is a charitable partnership jointly supported by the World Series of Poker and Cabot Creamery Cooperative, from Vermont. Demonstrating the poker community’s support for good causes, poker players from around the country made donations at all eleven WSOP Circuit locations, with the pool of funds graciously handed over here in New Orleans.

The Main Event attracted several notable players, including multiple former WSOP gold bracelet winners. Among them was six-time WSOP title holder T.J. Cloutier, who is also a member of the Poker Hall of Fame. A local celebrity among those who entered was Paul Prudhomme, the world-famous New Orleans chef and connoisseur of Cajon-style cooking. After 87 players were eliminated on Day One, 69 players returned. During Day Two, players reached the prize money and played down to the final table.

The tenth place finisher was Jean “Prince” Gaspard, who won the 2009 Bayou Poker Challenge championship. He was on track most of the way to defend his title. However, Gaspard was eliminated at 4:30 am following a long Day Two holding pocket jacks, which ended up losing to pocket aces.

After winning a huge pot late on Day Two, Montana poker pro Ben Keiley arrived at the final table with a distinct chip lead over his closest threat, Ed Corrado, a retiree from Florida. Chander Jain, from Houston, started off play in third place. The remaining six players were each outchipped by margins of greater than 2 to 1. The eventual winner, Fred Berger started out in fifth place with about an average-sized stack.

The final table included a cross generational mix of players. Ranging in ages from 23 to 79, three generations of poker players competed for the Bayou Poker Challenge championship. The Day Three finale also attracted a large crowd of spectators. Among those who watched part of the final table action was former U.S. Senator Carol Moseley Braun, who previously represented Illinois and once sought for the Democratic presidential nomination. She was accompanied by local dignitaries, who also happen to be part of the local New Orleans poker scene.

Final table player introductions can be seen in this short video clip:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VRgZTSX0H0

The nine finalists and their starting chip counts were as follows:

Seat Player Hometown Chip Count

1 Fred Berger Slidell, LA 298,500

2 Chander Jain Houston, TX 522,000

3 Joel Merwick Omaha, NE 262,000

4 Ben Keiley Missoula, MT 889,500

5 Jacob Naquin New Orleans, LA 183,500

6 Ed Corrado Naples, FL 575,000

7 Fernando Perez Mexico City, Mexico 127,000

8 Jared Ingles Baton Rouge, LA 126,000

9 Mike Beasley Hollywood, FL 446,500

Final table play began at 3:00 pm and ended at past midnight. Eight out of the nine finalists ended up singing the blues, in the following order:

Ninth Place: Jared Ingles Goes “Boom, Boom”
Jared Ingles lasted just one hand. As the shortest-stacked player, he tried to steal a round of blinds with a marginal hand, but got caught bluffing by a player holding AK. An ace flopped which basically ended Ingles’ shot of moving further up the money ladder. Jared Ingles, from Baton Rouge, LA now has nearly a dozen major cashes and about $200,000 in career tournament earnings at the ripe young age of 23. He collected $20,504 for ninth place.

Eighth Place: “The Thrill is Gone” for Chander Jain
Chander Jain, an IT consultant from Houston lost a race on what turned out to be his final hand, and went out in eighth place. Jain was dealt JJ and moved all-in. He got a call by AK and watched with disappointment as the flop brought an ace, turning his pocket pair from a small favorite into a huge underdog. The turn and river failed to bring the jack of salvation for Jain, who was forced to settle for a payout of $24,232. Interestingly, Jain was the 156th and final player to register for this tournament. His last-minute entry turned out to be a wise investment, indeed. Jain previously made another final table at a major tournament held earlier this year in Mississippi. He has won about $50,000 this year in live tournaments alone.

Seventh Place: Jacob Naquin is “Born Under a Bad Sign”
Jacob Naquin, who owns a convenience store in New Orleans was bagged up as the seventh place finisher. On his final hand, the 31-year-old part-time poker player took AJ up against pocket queens, with the predictable result. The big pocket pair won the pot, although a jack in the flop gave Naquin some hope. That’s as much improvement as Naquin would received, who ended up collecting $29,824. Naquin has several small cashes in various Bayou Poker Challenge events, dating all the way back to 2004.

Sixth Place: It’s a “Mean Ol’ World” says Joel Merwick
Joel Merwick was the player to beat during much of this tournament. He was the chip leader at end of Day One and maintained a healthy stack size throughout play, at least until about four hours into the final table when he took a nightmare beat on his final hand. Merwick had A2 and saw a flop with an ace and a deuce. He moved all-in with two pair and got a call from a rival with an ace (one pair). Unfortunately, one of the other cards paired on the river, and Merwick lost with kicker problems when both players ended up with two pair. Merwick, a 29-year-old entrepreneur from Omaha, NE had to settle for a sixth-place finish, which paid $37,280. Merwick also cashed in the 2005 WSOP Main Event, finishing 189th out of 5,619 players. This marked his sixth time to cash in a WSOP Circuit event.

Fifth Place: “It’s a Cryin’ Shame,” Says Fernando Perez
Originally from Belgium, Fernando Perez now lives in Mexico City and currently practices law. The attorney was short-stacked for five hours and finally busted out on a tough beat when his A9 lost to K9 of hearts, when the opponent made a heart flush. Perez, one of an emerging number of poker players from Mexico who have begun to play more tournaments, received a nice settlement totaling $46,600. Perez has one other cash in his tournament resume – at the 2008 WSOP in Las Vegas.

Fourth Place: For Ed Corrado, “Out Goes the Light”
Ed Corrado demonstrated that age is no barrier to playing with the best in the game. The 79-year-old retiree from Naples, FL had an average-sized stack most of the way, but lost many of his chips when he was bluffed out of a big pot by Fred Berger. That left him short-stacked. A few minutes later, Corrado moved all-in with A8 which got a call from pocket nines. The middle pocket pair held up, leaving Corrado on the rail with a fourth-place finish. Corrado collected a nice sum amounting to $59,648. Corrado now has nearly 30 major cashes, three wins, and several WSOP-related cashes on his record. He also final tabled last year’s Winter Bayou Poker Challenge, finishing in second place to Allen “Chainsaw” Kessler.

Third Place: “They Sky is Crying” for Ben Keiley
After the top three players agreed to a deal, the next player to bust out was the early chip leader, Ben Keiley. On his final hand, the Montana poker pro tried to make a move pre-flop with K5 suited. But his all-in raise was called by Fred Berger, who tabled AJ. Keiley took a temporary lead on the hand when the five flopped. But an ace fell on the turn, and Berger surged back into the lead. Keiley failed to catch one of five outs on the river and ended up with an official payout amounting to $76,424. An interesting side note and lesson to all poker players regarding Keiley’s experience: At the end of Day One, Keiley was down to just 9,000 in chips, which amounted to about a round of blinds and antes. He even later said he almost flew home without completing the tournament. As it turned out, Day Two was huge for Keiley and he ended up making his biggest poker score ever.

Second Place: Mike Beasley “Can’t Be Satisfied”
Mike Beasley, a poker pro from Hollywood, FL, is enjoying the year of a lifetime. He cashed for half a million dollars in a recent tournament held in Connecticut. In his next major, Beasley came to New Orleans and ended up taking $119,296 for this effort, quite a consolation prize for a non-victory. Nevertheless, the experience was bittersweet for 46-year-old Beasley who was visibly disappointed that he did not win.

Beasley was outchipped by about a 5 to 1 margin when the final hand of the tournament was dealt out about 1:30 am. Beasley moved all in with Kh 7s. Berger called and showed Ad Tc. The board ran out Th 5s 3d 4s Jd which gave Berger the final pot of the tournament with a pair of 10′s.
First Place: Fred Berger Says — “Lets the Good Times Roll”
Low-key Fred Berger did not make a big scene following his victory. But he was clearly thrilled with the course of events and satisfied with how he played – thus embodying the mark of a true professional. Berger remarked afterward that his victory here in New Orleans was particularly special.

When asked about what he remembers most about winning his WSOP gold bracelet eight years ago, Berger recalled that he defeated Chris “Jesus” Ferguson in heads up play, and ended up winning the Pot-Limit Hold’em championship. Incredibly, it was the first WSOP tournament Berger had ever played – resulting in poker’s most coveted prize. Berger has since gone on to win more than $900,000 in various tournaments, including this payout which amounted to $197,584.

“I plan on giving ten percent of my winnings to charity,” Berger stated afterward. “That’s how I do things. The rest of the money – I’ll give it to (my wife). I hope she might stake me in a few future tournaments.”

Incredibly, Berger’s victory almost never happened. In fact, he almost won nothing at all. When the tournament still had 19 players on Day Two, once spot away from the money Berger moved all-in holding pocket 8s. He got an annoying call from a bigger stack, holding AK. Berger ended up winning the critical race and 24 hours later, he was the tournament champion.

On second thought, perhaps Berger is following the credo “First the Ring, then the Bracelet,” after all. With plans to play in the upcoming WSOP to be held in Las Vegas which begins next week, perhaps what Berger really means is “First the Ring, then the Bracelet – this year.”

An interview with Fred Berger and the final hand of the tournament can be seen at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfXdzYUgf-A

This year’s championship at Harrah’s New Orleans brings a fitting close to a WSOP Circuit season that was both entertaining and exciting. This year’s WSOP Circuit included tournaments held at Hammond Horseshoe (Chicago), Caesars Indiana, Harvey’s Lake Tahoe, Harrah’s Atlantic City, Harrah’s Tunica, Horseshoe Council Bluffs, Caesars Atlantic City, Harrah’s Rincon, Harrah’s St. Louis, Caesars Palace Las Vegas, and Harrah’s New Orleans. More than $20 million was awarded this season to more than two-thousand poker players who cashed in 150 official gold ring events.

2010 Harrah’s New Orleans WSOP Circuit Main Event Championship Final Results

2010 Harrah’s New Orleans WSOP Circuit Events Schedule and Results

Executive Staff, World Series of Poker Circuit – Harrah’s New Orleans

Tournament Director – Steve Frezer

General Manager of Harrah’s New Orleans — Jim Hoskins
Vice President of Marketing – Sandie McNamara
Director of Table Games – Tosha Skipper
Shift Manager of Harrah’s New Orleans – Larry Barrett
Special Events Coordinator – Gretchen Holzhauser

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