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2010 Harrah’s Rincon WSOP Circuit – Event #4 Final Results

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010

2009/2010 World Series of Poker Circuit
Harrah’s Rincon Casino and Resort
Event #4
No Limit Hold’em
Buy-In: $300 (+40)
Total Entries: 197
Total Prize Pool: $57,327
March 21-22 2010

Final Results:

1 Ethan van Klaveren Mountainview, CA $15,079

2 Chicago Ali Yousri Chicago, IL $9,258

3 Stephen Peterson Portland, OR $6,552

4 Troy Benjamin San Diego, CA $4,678

5 Keith Strebe Palm Desert, CA $3,743

6 Ron Moskokwitz San Diego, CA $2,809

7 Vincent Burgio West Hill, CA $1,875

8 Raymond McCabe Anaheim Hills, CA $1,519

9 Kelvin Goode Farmington, CT $1,290

10 Matthew Chang Rockville, MD $1,129

11 Wayne Johnson Escondido, CA $1,129

12 Shawn Lawrence Fairfield, CA $1,129

13 Sean Stewart Chino Hills, CA $929

14 Russell Higa Montobello, CA $929

15 Lars Torngren London, UK $929

16 Rod Dingler Temecula, CA $774

17 Timothy Kane Corona, CA $774

18 James Dipippo El Sobriante, CA $774

19 Ernest Rafanan Pacifica, CA $676

20 Matt Foist Mountainview, CA $676

21 Andrew Farnsworth San Diego, CA $676

Ethan van Klaveren Victorious at Harrah’s Rincon

San Francisco Part-Time Poker Player Wins First WSOP Circuit Gold Ring

2010 Harrah's Rincon WSOP Circuit Event #4 Winner Ethan van Klaveren

2010 Harrah's Rincon WSOP Circuit Event #4 Winner Ethan van Klaveren

Valley Center, CA – The most recent tournament played at Harrah’s Rincon was filled with remarkable poker hands, amazing comebacks, and a surprise victory by a first-time winner. Ethan van Klaveren, a professional massage therapist from San Francisco, CA won the World Series of Poker Circuit event, along with his first championship gold ring. But it wasn’t just the victory that was memorable. It was the thrilling poker hands along the way, plus a couple of astounding comebacks by the final two players that should put this tournament in the history books.

At one point when play was down to the final eight players, Van Klaveren looked down and saw pocket kings. He moved all-in with the premium cards on what would become the most talked about hand of the tournament. One player was already all-in holding pocket Q’s. Incredibly, a third player called, and then a fourth player also called. One of the callers tabled pocket aces. In an astounding hand, pocket queens, versus pocket kings, versus pocket aces which were turned up and all-in. Then, the real drama started. Wham! A queen on the flop completely disrupted the Pavilion Arena, the locale of the final table played at Rincon. Things went from crazy to absolute bedlam moments later. Kaboom! A king fell on the turn, once again completely changing the outcome of the tournament and disrupting the expectations of the players. As if no one could take any more excitement, a harmless blank fell on the river, which meant van Klaveren’s pocket kings ended up making trips and he quadrupled up on a monster hand.

Indeed, it was the kind of night for Ethan van Klaveren.

Although the part-time poker player from San Francisco, CA ended up winning the tournament about four hours later, the trial and tribulation experienced the second-place finisher was just as amazing. Ali Yousri, a.k.a. “Chicago Ali” started at the final table as chip leader. But he took several early beats. At one point, he was down to a single 1,000-denomination chip, when the blinds were at 4,000-8,000. The true tale of poker legend Jack Straus in the 1982 World Series of Poker Main Event has been told many times, and Ali nearly pulled off an equally astounding feat. Starting with just one chip, he went on to win five consecutive pots when he was basically all-in and managed to come all the back to the point where he regained the chip lead when play was three-handed. It was an unthinkable turn of events for Ali to go from chip leader, down to a single chip, and then back to the chip lead, but that’s exactly what happened. The colorful poker personality, born in Egypt and now living in Chicago ended up finishing in second place.

The No-Limit Hold’em tournament, which is the fourth event of this year’s World Series of Poker Circuit stop in Southern California, was played at the Harrah’s Rincon Casino and Resort, near San Diego. The $340 buy in competition was played over two days during March 22-22, 2010. Van Klaveren ended up scooping the biggest prize of his young career, collecting a payout totaling $15,079. Van Klaveren was also presented with his first gold ring, the coveted award which is presented to all champions of WSOP Circuit tournaments held around the country. This was his first time to cash in a WSOP Circuit tournament.

Final Table play began on a Monday afternoon. There were no prior WSOP Circuit gold ring event winners amongst the final nine players, thus guaranteeing a first-time champion. “Chicago Ali” arrived at the Final Table as the chip leader. But Ali lost his advantage early to Troy “Cowboy” Benjamin and later to Stephen Peterson, who were viable forces during most of the seven hour finale. Ethan van Klaveren also jumped into contention after he won the huge pot with pocket kings and acquired some chips.

When Final Table play began at 2:10 pm, the nine finalists and their starting chip counts were as follows:

Seat Player Hometown Chip Count

1 Ethan van Klaveren San Francisco, CA 125,000

2 Ray “Mac the Knife” McCabe Anaheim Hills, CA 159,000

3 Keith Strebe Palm Desert, CA 159,000

4 Vince Burgio West Hills, CA 97,000

5 Stephen Peterson Portland, OR 199,000

6 Ron “Skwitz” Moskowitz San Diego, CA 84,000

7 Kelvin “CK the Great” Goode Farmington, CT 120,000

8 Chicago Ali Chicago, IL 334,000

9 Troy “Cowboy” Benjamin San Diego, CA 220,000

Final Table player introductions can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/80E0D

Players were eliminated in the following order:

Tenth Place: Chang Chunked
Matthew Chang, an employee of the federal government from Rockville, MD was terminated in tenth place. He was lowest in chips when play was ten-handed and moved all-in on his last hand with Kh Qd. His raise was quickly called by an opponent with Ac Kc. The board came As Ah 7d Js 4s, which meant an early exit for Chang. He collected $1,129.

Ninth Place: “CK the Great” Tells a Great Bad Beat Story
Nine-handed play lasted for two hours. Then, Kelvin “CK the Great” Goode picked up a great hand on which to move all-in when he was dealt As Ad. Goode made his move with pocket aces and got a call from Troy “Cowboy” Benjamin, who had plenty of chips and could fade the smallish raise. Goode appeared headed for a double up, but the table ran Jd 6d 8h 4s Td, which ended up making two pair for Benjamin. Goode, who is a musician from Farmington, CT collected $1,290 for ninth place.

Eighth Place: “Mack the Knife” Sliced and Diced
Ray “Mac the Knife” McCabe, who owns a successful health food company called “Egg Whites International” scrambled and beat 189 other players, but could not fry the final seven. McCabe arrived in the finale with a healthy stack size, but he went out after he gradually became low on chips. He moved in with Ks Qc, which lost to As Qs. The final board made no pair for either player, so the As played as the highest card. McCabe, who has five WSOP cashes on his record and also chopped last year’s championship in the seniors event played at Rincon, received $1,519 for eighth place.

Seventh Place: Former WSOP Gold Bracelet Winner Ousted
Vince Burgio, a poker pro from West Hills, CA was the only former WSOP gold bracelet winner in the final nine. He doubled up early and appeared to be headed for a showdown with one of the nigger stacks. But Burgio ultimately went out when he took Jh Jd up against two players, and lost. On the hand, Troy “Cowboy” Benjamin had As Ks. Stephen Peterson had 8h 8s. An ace on the turn killed off Burgio and the final board showed Td 3d 2h Ah 4h. Burgio, who was one of the top tournament players of the 1990s, collected $1,875 in prize money.

Sixth Place: Moskowitz Blitzed
Ron “Skwitz” Moskowitz, from San Diego, lasted a good while nursing a short stack, but finally had to play a hand when he was desperately low on chips. He tried to steal a round of blinds and antes with 9d 6d but got called by Stephen Peterson, who tabled Qc 7d with a much bigger stack. The board came Kh 7s 2s Qh 2d which made two pair for Peterson. That put Moscowitz out of the tournament in sixth place with $2,809.

Fifth Place: Strebe Strung
Keith Strebe, from Palm Desert, CA lasted for five hours before finally exiting in fifth place. On his final hand, Strebe was dealt Td 9c. After the flop came Kh Ts 2d, Strebe moved all in holding a pair of tens. But “Chicago Ali” made a quick call and showed Ks 6h, good for top p air. Strebe failed to improve from that point forward and settled for $3,743 in prize money. This was his second time to cash in a WSOP Circuit event.

Fourth Place: “Cowboy” Bucked
Troy “Cowboy” Benjamin, a heavy equipment operator from San Diego, started the Final Table ranked second in chips. He took over the chip lead for a short time a few hours into play. But Benjamin was unable to sustain his advantage and went out in the late hour with Kc 6c which ended up missing a club draw. “Chicago Ali” had 9s 9h and had to fade two clubs on the flop, which ended up making only a four-card flush for Benjamin. The board ended up showing Jc 4c 3d 5d 8d, which gave Ali the big pot with pocket nines. Benjamin, who finished in 12th place in an event at the 2005 WSOP in Las Vegas and has done well in other tournaments since then, added $4,678 to his poker bankroll.

Third Place: Piano Player Hits a Sour Note
Stephen Peterson, a musician from Portland, OR had a reasonable shot at victory, but went card dead late. He finally moved all-in with 5s 5c after Ethan van Klaveren had put in a raise with 9s 9c. The bigger pocket pair (nines) held up, giving van Klaveren the pot. Board went: As Ts This marked Peterson’s third time to make the final table of a major poker tournament and was his highest finish ever in a WSOP-related event. He collected $6,552 in prize money.

Second Place: “Chicago Ali Goes All-In”
“Chicago Ali” experienced one of the most incredible days in tournament poker in quite some time. It’s hard to imagine any player at a major tournament anywhere that went from being chip leader, then down to a single chip, and then back to chip leader, followed by second place finish. That’s exactly what happened to the 53-year-old businessman who was born in Egypt. “Chicago Ali” received $9,258 for his second place finish.

The last hand came when Ali was dealt Tc 3h. After the flop came Ts 5d 4s, Ali moved all-in. Van Klaveren called and showed Qs Td. He had the best kicker. Ali needed help. The last two cards came Th followed by the 8s giving both players three-of-a-kind, with 10’s. But Van Klaveren won with the better kicker.

The final hand of the tournament can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/3B6A7

First Place: Ethan van Klaveren Wins
Ethan van Klaveren was absolutely thrilled with his victory. He received $15,079 in prize money. But he said the victory was really amazing because he had always hoped to win a WSOP event. Van Klaveren says he hopes to play in more events and win another WSOP tournament in the future.

An interview with van Klaveren at tableside just moments after his win can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/64A71

The WSOP Circuit at Harrah’s Rincon continues through March 31st. This year’s schedule includes 12 gold ring events, along with multiple second-chance tournaments, single table and mega satellites, in addition to cash games going around the clock inside the Rincon Poker Room. This marks the sixth straight year that Harrah’s Rincon has been a part of the WSOP Circuit. It is one of only three Harrah’s resorts which hosted a WSOP Circuit every year. This is the eighth WSOP Circuit stop of the 2009-2010 season following previous tournaments held in Chicago, Southern Indiana, Lake Tahoe, Harrah’s Atlantic City, Tunica, Council Bluffs, and Caesars Atlantic City.

2010 Harrah’s Rincon WSOP Circuit – Event #4 Final Results

2010 Harrah’s Ricnon WSOP Circuit Events Schedule and Results

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

Janet Beronio – General Manager
Robert Livingston – Assistant General Manager and VP of Operations
Jill Barrett – VP of Finance
Lee Torres – Director of Marketing
John Sebastian – Director of Casino Operations
Michelle Becker – Table Games Supervisor
Elizabeth Liemandt – Public Relations Manager
Alexia Alsop – Poker Room Manager
Tom Mendenhall – Table Games Manager
Jimmy Sommerfeld – Tournament Director
Bill Bruce – Assistant Tournament Director

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2010 Harrah’s Rincon WSOP Circuit – Event #3 Final Results

Monday, March 22nd, 2010

2009/2010 World Series of Poker Circuit
Harrah’s Rincon Casino and Resort
Event #3
No Limit Hold’em
Buy-In: $500 (+50)
Total Entries: 151
Total Prize Pool: $73,235
March 20-21, 2010

Final Results:

1 Bernie Yang Atlanta, GA $20,065

2 Jason Jacintho San Diego, CA $13,585

3 Michael Souza San Diego, CA $9,059

4 Derek Sanders Laguna Beach, CA $6,474

5 James Eubank Houston, TX $5,178

6 Alexandru Masek San Diego, CA $3,881

7 Larry Turley Nuevo, CA $2,585

8 Farhad Karimi San Diego, CA $2,102

9 Kenton Taylor El Centro, CA $1,780

10 Jake Flores Harlingen, TX $1,560

11 Lubomir Podolsky San Diego, CA $1,560

12 Matthew Chang Rockville, MD $1,560

13 Riggs Thayer San Diego, CA $1,282

14 David Frantik San Diego, CA $1,282

15 Timothy Kane Corona, CA $1,282

Bernie Yang Dominates No-Limit Hold’em Tournament at Harrah’s Rincon

Taiwanese-Born Doctoral Student Wins WSOP Circuit Gold Ring

2010 Harrah's Rincon WSOP Circuit Event #3 Winner Bernie Yang

2010 Harrah's Rincon WSOP Circuit Event #3 Winner Bernie Yang

Valley Center, CA – Bernie Yang won the most recent World Series of Poker Circuit tournament played at the Harrah’s Rincon Casino and Resort. He completely dominated the last half of the competition, a $500 (+50) buy-in No-Limit Hold’em event. Yang was never in serious danger of losing this chip lead at anytime during the last eight hours of the tournament, which was played over two days during March 20-21, 2010. In fact, some opponents might argue, most who watched Yang’s superior performance agreed that he deserved to win.

Yang, who resides in Atlanta, GA was born in Taiwan. He attended college at Georgia Tech, where he earned his Masters Degree in electrical engineering. Yang is now pursuing a Ph.D., although he admits he has recently taken some time off to play poker, mostly online. He is currently working an internship in the San Diego area, yet in uncertain about his next career move.

Yang ended up scooping the biggest prize of his young career, a payout totaling $20,065. Yang was also presented with his first gold ring, the coveted award which is presented to all champions of WSOP Circuit tournaments held around the country. This was Yang’s first time to cash in a WSOP Circuit tournament. He has previously cashed at a few tournaments held in Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

Final Table play began on a Sunday night and was held inside The Pavilion at Rincon. Two prior WSOP Circuit event winners sat amongst the final nine players. Alexandru Masek, who won his second career gold ring just two weeks at Caesars Atlantic City, arrived at the final table with an average sized stack. He ended up finishing sixth. Michael Souza, who won his gold ring back in 2005 during the WSOP Circuit inaugural season at Bally’s Las Vegas, arrived ranked second in chips. He went out in third place. The chip leader was Yang, who won a wire to wire victory that lasted about five hours.

When Final Table play began at 2:15 pm, the nine finalists and their starting chip counts were as follows:

Seat Player Hometown Chip Count

1 Alexandru Masek San Diego, CA 121,500

2 Freddy “Rocky” Karimi San Diego, CA 98,000

3 Kenton Taylor El Centro, CA 75,500

4 Derek W. Sanders Laguna Beach, CA 38,500

5 Michael Souza San Diego, CA 245,000

6 Jason D. Jacintho El Cajon, CA 62,500

7 Larry Turley Nuevo, CA 88,000

8 Bernie Yang Taiwan 351,000

9 James Eubank Houston, TX 151,000

Final Table player introductions can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/7CFB0

Players were eliminated in the following order:

Ninth Place:
Kenton Taylor, an accountant from El Centro, CA was eliminated about an hour into play. He moved all in with Js Jc but got a call from James Eubank, who tabled Ks Kc. The flop made things interesting, which was As Tc Kh. Even though Eubank flopped a set of kings, Taylor essentially had four outs to make a straight. But the 2h and 7s fell on the turn and river, giving Eubank the pot. Meanwhile, Kenton Taylor collected $1,780 for ninth place.

Eighth Place: “Rocky” Rocked
Fred “Rocky” Karimi had a decent sized stack, but took two horrendous beats, ultimately going out in eighth place. First, Karimi flopped top two pair, but lost half his stack when his opponent hit a miraculous gutshot straight on the river. A few hands later, Karimi had pocket aces cracked, which lost to AQ when two queens fell. Karimi, a poker pro from San Diego, CA went out a short time later and ended up pocketed in a less than satisfying $2,102 in prize money.

Seventh Place: Turley Toasted
Larry Turley found out the hard way that pocket kings are always vulnerable, especially when an opponent holds an ace. Turley was dealt Kd Kh on what turned out to be his final hand. He raised all in and was called by the chip leader, Bernie Yang, who showed Ah Qc. Things looked good for Turley after the flop, but an ace on the river ruined his hoped, resulting in elimination. The final board showed Ts 9h 4d Ac 7s which meant Yang’s pair of aces added to his chip advantage. Turley, a retired U.S. Air Force veteran who has made several final tables as small tournaments played in the region, received $2,585.

Sixth Place: No Third Gold Ring for Masek
Alexandru Masek’s quest for a third WSOPC gold ring fell short when he lost his last chips with As 7h. He moved all in and was called by Bernie Yang, who showed 9c 9s. The board came Qs Jh 6c 3h Kd which meant Yang’s pocket 9’s played. Masek, who is a law student from San Diego, CA added $3,881 to his impressive record in WSOP Circuit events.

Fifth Place:
James Eubank lost a critical pot early with AK against AA and was never able to recover. He was low on chips throughout and finally ran out of luck about two hours into play when he moved all in with Js 9s hoping to steal a round of blinds and antes. However, he was called in three spots and the three players proceeded to check it down all the way to the river. The final board showed Qh 6s 4d 7h 5c which gave Eubank nothing, and he thus became the fifth place finisher. Eubank, from Houston, TX received a payout totaling $5,178.

Fourth Place: Sanders Loses Race, Goes Out Fourth
Derek W. Sanders survived a few all ins before finally losing a race to the chip leader. On his final hand, Sanders was dealt 4c 4h and moved all in. Yang called and showed Ah Qs. The board came Kd 9s 8c 3d Qh, which gave Yang the pot on the river. Sanders, from Laguna Beach, CA collected $6,475.

Third Place: Souza Finishes Third
Michael Souza, a poker pro from San Diego, CA finished in third place. He was eliminated after three-handed play lasted for two hours. However, Souza became short stacked and moved all in with Kh Qc, which got a call from Jason D. Jacintho, holding Ac 6s. The board ran Jc 4c 2d 3s 4h, which meant Jacintho’s Ac played as the high card. Meanwhile, Souza had to settle for a payout totaling $9,059. He now has several WSOP-related cashes and final table appearances, including three straight cashes in the WSOP Main Event (from 2006-2008).

Second Place: Jacintho Finishes as Runner Up
When heads up play started, Bernie Yang had Jason D. Jacintho covered by about a 5 to 1 margin. It took only about 20 minutes for the final hand to be dealt. That came when Yang limped with As Ah and watched with delight as Jacintho moved all in pre-flop with Qh 8h. Yang practically beat his rival into the pot with his chips and when the board came Tc 4h 4s Jc Kh, that gave Yang the last pot of the tournament and his first major live tournament victory. The runner up was Jason D. Jacintho, who played extraordinary poker over two days. He arrived at the Final Table as a low stack, but managed to crawl all the way up to second place. Jacintho, who is a graduate student at UC-San Diego as well as teaches organic chemistry, collected a nice score amounting to $13,585. He has also down well in other tournaments played in the region. But this marked his best WSOP-related finish ever.

The final hand of the tournament can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/473A8

First Place: Yang Takes the Ring
Bernie Yang, a 24-year-old college student from Atlanta, GA, won the tournament and $20,065. He has previously won a few big online tournaments. But this marked his biggest cash in a live tournament. An interview with Yang at tableside just moments after his win can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/E38B2

The WSOP Circuit at Harrah’s Rincon continues through March 31st. This year’s schedule includes 12 gold ring events, along with multiple second-chance tournaments, single table and mega satellites, in addition to cash games going around the clock inside the Rincon Poker Room. This marks the sixth straight year that Harrah’s Rincon has been a part of the WSOP Circuit. It is one of only three Harrah’s resorts which hosted a WSOP Circuit every year. This is the eighth WSOP Circuit stop of the 2009-2010 season following previous tournaments held in Chicago, Southern Indiana, Lake Tahoe, Harrah’s Atlantic City, Tunica, Council Bluffs, and Caesars Atlantic City.

2010 Harrah’s Rincon WSOP Circuit – Event #3 Final Results

2010 Harrah’s Rincon WSOP Circuit Events Schedule and Results

For more information, please contact:
Nolan Dalla (WSOP Media Director) at (702) 358-4642
e-mail: nolandalla@aol.com
Or visit our official website: www.wsop.com

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

Janet Beronio – General Manager
Robert Livingston – Assistant General Manager and VP of Operations
Jill Barrett – VP of Finance
Lee Torres – Director of Marketing
John Sebastian – Director of Casino Operations
Michelle Becker – Table Games Supervisor
Elizabeth Liemandt – Public Relations Manager
Alexia Alsop – Poker Room Manager
Tom Mendenhall – Table Games Manager
Jimmy Sommerfeld – Tournament Director
Bill Bruce – Assistant Tournament Director

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2010 Harrah’s Rincon WSOP Circuit – Event #2 Final Results

Sunday, March 21st, 2010

2009/2010 World Series of Poker Circuit
Harrah’s Rincon Casino and Resort
Event #2
No Limit Hold’em
Buy-In: $300 (+40)
Total Entries: 236
Total Prize Pool: $68,686
March 19-20, 2010

Final Results:

Place Name Hometown Prize

1 Joseph Cheong La Mirada, CA $17,541

2 David Williams San Marcos, CA $10,727

3 Raney Stanczak Carlsbad, CA $7,609

4 John Hernandez Guatay, CA $5,432

5 David Caserta Vista, CA $4,347

6 Sean Stewart Chino Hills, CA $3,262

7 Jeffrey Givens Providence, RI $2,177

8 Brandon Bowyer Caroana, CA $1,765

9 William Guerend Canyon Country, CA $1,497

10 David Savage Encinitas, CA $1,312

11 William Cole Murrieta, CA $1,312

12 Anthony Ditomaso El Cajon, CA $1,312

13 Christopher Goodman Poway, CA $1,078

14 Tom King Irvine, CA $1,078

15 Cynthia Harrigan Arroyo Grande, CA $1,078

16 William O’ Gorman San Diego, CA $900

17 Richard Aluzzi Pasadena, CA $900

18 Steve Cook Springfield, IL $900

19 Dan Klocman Los Angeles, CA $783

20 Sirous Baghchehsaraie Long Beach, CA $783

21 Ryan Guice Redondo Beach, CA $783

22 Joseph Kuhn Tucson, AZ $700

23 Alejandro Garcia Mexico $700

24 Joe Marcal Thousand Oaks, CA $700

Cheong is the Champ

23-Year-Old Poker Pro Wins WSOP Circuit Gold Ring at Rincon Series

2010 Harrah's Rincon WSOP Circuit Event #2 Winner Joseph Cheong

2010 Harrah's Rincon WSOP Circuit Event #2 Winner Joseph Cheong

Valley Center, CA – Joseph Cheong dominated the most recent WSOP Circuit tournament in a way that has not been seen in quite some time. The 23-year-old professional poker player from La Miranda, CA patiently took his seat at the most recent tournament Final Table held at the Harrah’s Rincon Casino and Resort and proceeded to demolish the final nine players en route to his biggest live cash, to date. From the moment Cheong sat down, he seemed the player to beat. But no one could derail Cheong’s mission and the flurry of cards which propelled him to his first major tournament win.

Cheong was born in Seoul, South Korea. He is a recent college graduate. After knocking out six of the final nine players at this Final Table, he ended up scooping the biggest prize of his young career, a payout totaling $17,541. Cheong was also presented with his first gold ring, the coveted award which is presented to all champions of WSOP Circuit tournaments held around the country. This was Cheong’s first time to cash in a WSOP Circuit tournament. He has previously cashed at a few tournaments held in Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

Final Table play began on a Saturday night and was held inside The Pavilion at Rincon. There were no prior WSOP Circuit event winners amongst the final nine players, thus guaranteeing a first-time champion. Raney Stanczak, from Carlsbad, CA began play with a decisive chip advantage. In fact, he had about 25 percent of the total chips in play when “Shuffle Up and Deal” was announced. Two other players – Jeffrey Jack and Brandon Bowyer – appeared to be within striking distance. But it was Joseph Cheong who made an early move and seized momentum during much of the five-hour finale. Cheong posed the biggest threat to Stanczak and eventually seized the chip lead, culminating in an impressive victory in heads-up plays against Dave Williams, the runner up.

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

Seat Player Hometown Chip Count

1 Sean “the Dog” Stewart Chino Hills, CA 79,000

2 William Guerend Canyon Country, CA 115,000

3 Raney Stanczak Carlsbad, CA 444,000

4 John Hernandez San Diego, CA 125,000

5 Dave Williams San Marcos, CA 207,000

6 Jeffrey Jack Providence, RI 300,000

7 Dave Caserta Vista, CA 88,000

8 Brandon Bowyer Oceanside, CA 340,000

9 Joseph Cheong La Miranda, CA 167,000

Final Table player introductions can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/B7BA8

Players were eliminated in the following order:

Tenth Place: Savage Ravaged
David “Da Piper” Savage, a teacher from Encinitas, CA was the first player to be expelled from the finale. He moved all in on his last hand in what became a three-way pot, holding Kc Qs. Savage went up against two opponents – holding Ks Js and Ad Kh. The flop almost eliminated Savage from the moment it was revealed, when Ah 2s 2d showed. Then, things went from very bad to impossible when two more aces fell, giving Joseph Cheong (with Ad Kh) quad aces. This was Savage’s first time to cash in a WSOP-related tournament. However, he has won two small tournaments played at a nearby casino near San Diego. Tenth place paid $1,312.

Ninth Place: Retiree Retired
A few hands later, William Guerend was knocked out when his Kh Qs was bested by John Hernandez, who held Td Ts. Guerend failed to make a pair, which resulted in his early dismissal. Guerend, a retiree who lives in Canyon Country, CA received a poker pension totaling $1,497.

Eighth Place: Brandon Bowyer Bounced
Brandon Bowyer, who works in sales and lives in Oceanside, CA came into the finale with high expectations, based on his third-best chip count. But nothing went right for Bowyer, who lost his remaining stack with Ah 7h, which ended up losing to Joseph Cheong’s 9c 8c. Bowyer flopped a pair and pushed all of his chips into the pot, but Cheong flopped two pair and made the instant call. Bowyer failed to improve which ultimately led to his eighth place finish. He collected $1,765.

Seventh Place: Jack Cracked
Jeffrey Jack, a student from Providence, RI was short stacked and pushed all in with As Tc. His raise was called by John Hernandez, who showed pocket 9’s. Jack failed to connect with one of his overcards and ended up as the seventh place finisher. Jack, who served in the U.S. Navy Band for six years, could trumpet his winnings from this event, which amounted to $2,177.

Sixth Place: Chip Leader Bites “The Dog”
Sean “the Dog” Stewart came to the final table with the smallest stack, yet was able to last nearly two hours before being eliminated. On his final hand, he was dealt Ah 2c and ran into Raney Stanczak’s Ad 9c. Stanczak flopped a nine, which nearly left Stewart drawing dead. He ended up settling for $3,262 inn prize money. This marked Stewart’s third time to cash in a WSOP Circuit event at Harrah’s Rincon and was his second final table appearance.

Fifth Place: C.O.O. is O.U.T.
Dave Caserta, a chief operating officer from Vista, CA, enjoyed what was arguably the most impressive Final Table run of anyone. He began play with one of the lowest stacks, yet managed to climb all the way to fifth place. He was eliminated when he moved all in with Ah 5c against Joseph Cheong’s As 8s. The final board came Ad Qh 4h Jd 6s which gave both players a pair of aces. But Cheong’s 8s played as the kicker and put Caserta out of the tournament. He received a nice payout totaling $4,347.

Fourth Place: Hernandez Heads Home
John Hernandez, a fence installer from San Diego, CA posted blinds for about three hours before finally losing a race against Joseph Cheong. Hernandez was dealt Kh Jd against Cheong’s 8s 8c. The board came As 5d 4h Ah 10s, which gave Cheong two pair with his pocket 8’s. Hernandez could certainly be proud of his fourth place finish, which paid $5,432.

Third Place: Early Chip Leader Busts
Raney Stanczak played an outstanding tournament, but lost his momentum late, resulting in a third place finish. He watched helplessly as Joseph Cheong took over the chip lead and dominated the later states of the tournament. Stanszak managed to double up a few times and moved back into contention, but he was knocked out by his adversary late when he moved all in with 6s 6d. Cheong insta-called with Qs Qc and watched happily as five blanks fell on board, making the pocket Q’s the best hand. Stanczak, a student who has played Paintball professionally, earned $7,609 in his first time to cash in a WSOP Circuit event.

Second Place: Dave Williams is Runner Up
Dave Williams, a 41-year-old contractor from San Marcos, CA nailed down second place and $10,727. He has previously made it to WSOP Circuit Final Tables at Rincon. But this was his highest finish ever. Williams ran out of steam when he took a tough beat on the last hand of the night. He seemed likely to double up when he moved all in with Jh Jc and was called by Cheong, who showed Ks 7c. But a K on the flop ruined Williams’ hopes. The final board showed Kc 9c 3h 9h Ah, giving Cheong two pair, and the victory.

The final hand of the tournament can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/EA339

First Place: Cheong Becomes Champion
Last year, Joseph Cheong graduated with a degree from the University of California at San Diego. He has plans to work in investments, but also has serious ambitions to play poker over the next few years. His victory paid $17,541 in prize money, plus his first WSOP Circuit gold ring. Cheong says he intends to play in the remaining WSOPC events at Rincon, followed by the series at Caesars Las Vegas in April. He will also play in the WSOP this summer. Cheong’s goal is to win a few more WSOPC rings, then win his first gold bracelet.

An interview with Farmer at tableside just moments after his win can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/12A94

The WSOP Circuit at Harrah’s Rincon continues through March 31st. This year’s schedule includes 12 gold ring events, along with multiple second-chance tournaments, single table and mega satellites, in addition to cash games going around the clock inside the Rincon Poker Room. This marks the sixth straight year that Harrah’s Rincon has been a part of the WSOP Circuit. It is one of only three Harrah’s resorts which hosted a WSOP Circuit every year. This is the eighth WSOP Circuit stop of the 2009-2010 season following previous tournaments held in Chicago, Southern Indiana, Lake Tahoe, Harrah’s Atlantic City, Tunica, Council Bluffs, and Caesars Atlantic City.

2010 Harrah’s Rincon WSOP Circuit – Event #2 Final Results

2010 Harrah’s Rincon WSOP Circuit Events Schedule and Results

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

Janet Beronio – General Manager
Robert Livingston – Assistant General Manager and VP of Operations
Jill Barrett – VP of Finance
Lee Torres – Director of Marketing
John Sebastian – Director of Casino Operations
Michelle Becker – Table Games Supervisor
Elizabeth Liemandt – Public Relations Manager
Alexia Alsop – Poker Room Manager
Tom Mendenhall – Table Games Manager
Jimmy Sommerfeld – Tournament Director
Bill Bruce – Assistant Tournament Director

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2010 Harrah’s Rincon (San Diego) WSOP Circuit – Event #1 Final Results

Saturday, March 20th, 2010

2009/2010 World Series of Poker Circuit
Harrah’s Rincon Casino and Resort
Event #1
No Limit Hold’em
Buy-In: $200 (+30)
Total Entries: 599
Total Prize Pool: $116,206
March 18-19, 2010

Final Results:

Place Name Hometown Prize

1 Chris Farmer Poway, CA $24,415

2 Rod Dingler Temecula, CA $14,235

3 Ryan Westland San Diego, CA $9,471

4 Ron Segni El Cajon, CA $7,286

5 Chris McGrath San Diego, CA $5,834

6 George Rutherford Woodland Hills, CA $4,369

7 Tim Omohundro Encinitas, CA $2,917

8 Bill Denadel Escondido, CA $2,371

9 Jerry Simon Temecula, CA $2,010

10 Alan Marks Newport Coast, CA $1,755

11 Matthew Poucher San Diego, CA $1,755

12 Wesley Cain Redlands, CA $1,755

13 David Para Alpine, CA $1,441

14 Joseph Hetherington Escondido, CA $1,441

15 Wayne McGregor Wasilla, AK $1,441

16 Alex Stepanian San Diego, CA $1,209

17 Michael Cooper Escondido, CA $1,209

18 Russell Higa Montebello CA $1,209

19 Jason Looney Arroyo Grande. CA $1,057

20 Scott Stanley Carlsbad, CA $1,057

21 Christopher Lee Laguna Hills CA $1,057

22 John Forouzandeh San Diego, CA $941

23 Michael Diaz Chula Vista, CA $941

24 Joseph Occipinti Phoenix, AZ $941

25 Paul Greenwood Flagstaff, AR $848

26 Wilson Wallace Poway, CA $848

27 James Smith San Diego, CA $848

28 Justin Downing San Diego, CA $779

29 Donald Gregory Parker, CO $779

30 Peter Wong Carlsbad, CA $779

31 Raymond Mccabe Annaheim, Ca $720

32 Brett Chappell Temecula, Ca $720

33 Kole Wenger Ramona, CA $720

34 Bob Richland Del Mar, CA $662

35 Merlin Ausenhus Calgary, Alberta $662

36 James Kozono Diamond Bar, CA $662

37 Damon Terrell San Diego, CA $651

38 Ted Ushirogata Cerritos, CA $651

39 Jose Villanueva San Diego, CA $651

40 Joseph Iannazzo San Diego, CA $651

41 Humberto Luna San Diego, CA $651

42 Tom Brown Escondido, CA $651

43 Robert Butler Escondido, CA $651

44 Jonathan Sarkisian San Diego, CA $651

45 Mark Heishman Poway, CA $651

46 Todd Zacharias Huntington Beach, CA $546

47 James Jape San Diego, CA $546

48 Betty Trenberth Valley Center, CA $546

49 Timothy Mahoney San Diego, CA $546

50 Frankie Marino San Diego, CA $546

51 Ricardo Quiroz San Diego, CA $546

52 Scott Hawes San Diego, CA $546

53 William Rogers San Diego, CA $546

54 Joe Leggio Carlsbad, CA $546

55 Got mad and ran out.   $476

56 Blake Lapham Reseda, CA $476

57 David Wako El Cajon, CA $476

58 Ignacio Mallari Irvine, CA $476

59 Anthony Gentile Bullhead City, AZ $476

60 Lee Dragoun Costa Mesa, CA $476

61 Sylbert Reid Vista, CA $476

62 David Frohlich Toronto, Canada $476

63 Guillermo Bonillas San Diego, CA $476

Farmer Harvests a Gold Ring

Chris Farmer Takes $24,415 and First Tournament at Rincon Series

First Event at Harrah’s Rincon Sells Out

2010 Harrah's Rincon WSOP Circuit Event #1 Winner Chris Farmer

2010 Harrah's Rincon WSOP Circuit Event #1 Winner Chris Farmer

Valley Center, CA – The first World Series of Poker Circuit tournament held this year at Harrah’s Rincon Casino and Resort began in spectacular fashion with a complete sell out. Every poker table in the tournament arena and poker room was filled to capacity, along with 100 players who later took seats as alternates. Indeed, while some tournaments played elsewhere have suffered declining attendance, poker remains very much alive and well in Southern California, especially at Harrah’s Rincon.

This now marks the sixth consecutive year Harrah’s Rincon has hosted a WSOP Circuit stop. This year’s 12-event series began with a $200 (+30) buy-in No Limit Hold’em tournament, which was played over two days on March 18-19. The tournament attracted 599 entrants, which created a prize pool totaling $116,206. Most of the field was eliminated on day one, which clocked in at 14 hours. Four tables of survivors returned for day two which played for another 12 hours, when the last hand was dealt out at 2:00 am.

The tournament winner was Chris Farmer, a 25-year-old semi-pro poker player from San Diego, CA. He collected $24,415 in prize money. He was also presented with his first gold ring, which is the ultimate token of achievement given out to all tournament champions of WSOP Circuit events held around the country. This was his first time to cash in a WSOP Circuit tournament. He has cashed and won other events, but this was his biggest in a live tournament.

Final Table play began on a Friday night and was held inside the special events center at Rincon. There were no prior WSOP Circuit event winners amongst the final nine, thus guaranteeing a first-time champion. Rod Dingler, from Temecula, CA started play as the chip leader, and ended up finishing second. But at least three other players – including the eventual winner, Chris Farmer — were all within striking distance, making the Final Table a wide open competition. The low blinds (6,000-12,000) and average chip stack amounting to roughly 350,000 at the start allowed plenty of play. The nine finalists and their starting chip counts were as follows:

Seat Player Hometown Chip Count

1 R. Westover San Diego, CA 418,000

2 Rod “Dig Dog” Dingler Temecula, CA 820,000

3 Ron Segni El Cajon, CA 427,000

4 Chris Farmer San Diego, CA 418,000

5 Tim Omohundro Encinitas, CA 236,000

6 George Rutherford Woodland Hills, CA 730,000

7 Phil Denadel Escondido, CA 731,000

8 Jerry Simon Temecula, CA 199,000

9 Chris McGrath Media, PA 654,000

Final Table player introductions can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/A98FC

Players were eliminated in the following order:

Tenth Place: Marks is a Marked Man
Just three hands into the Final Table, Alan Marks picked up As Kh. He was delighted to be involved in a potential triple up situation with the best hand, against two callers. Jerry Simon was also all in, holding Ad Jc. Rod Digler, a.k.a. “Big Dog” had Ac Qc. The Big Dog barked loudest when the flop came Qs 8c 5h. Two blanks then fell on the turn and river, meaning the Big Dog scooped the 600,000 pot with his pair of Q’s. Meanwhile, Alan Marks ended up as the tenth place finisher. Marks, an English-born retiree who now lives in Oceanside, CA ended up with $1,755 in prize money.

Ninth Place: Simon Says, “I’m Busted”
The same hand which eliminated Alan Marks also busted out Jerry Simon. The retired Air Force veteran who now lives in nearby Temecula, CA pocketed $2,010 for his ninth place. Simon has cashed numerous times in major poker tournaments elsewhere, including five in-the-money finishes at the WSOP in Las Vegas.

Eighth Place: Denadel Done
Phil Denadel, a retiree from nearby Escondido, CA was the eighth place finisher. On his final hand of the tournament, he lost a race, holding Ac Kd against Chris McGrath’s Td Tc. The final board showed Jc 6c 3s 9d 5d which meant the opponent’s pocket tens took down the pot. Denadel received $2,371 in prize money.

Seventh Place: Omohundro Says “Oh, No” Tim Omohundro, a project manager from Encinitas, CA took a tough beat on his final hand when he took Ah Js up against Chris Farmer’s Ks Qh. After the turn card, Omohundro appeared to be headed for a double up, but the Qs fell on the river, giving Farmer the crop and putting weed kill on Omohundro’s shot of making a comeback. To his credit, this was Omohundro’s first major live poker tournament. He could certainly be proud of his finish, outlasting 592 players. Seventh place paid $2,917.

Sixth Place: Rough Times for Rutherford
George Rutherford, an office worker from Woodland Hills, CA was the sixth place finisher. He was low on chips and survived a few all-ins before finally succumbing to a bigger stack. Rutherford was dealt As Jd on his final hand, versus Ron Segni’s Ac Kh. The final board showed Qd 9s 4d 2h 9d, which meant the larger kickers held by Segni played. Rutherford, making his first WSOP cash, has plans to attend law school in the future. He collected a nice settlement from this final table which amounted to $4,369.

Fifth Place: Former Navy Officer Sinks
Chris McGrath, from Media, PA was in decent chip position much of the way, but finally went card dead late and busted out on a bad beat. McGrath was dealt Ac 9c and moved all in. He got a call from chip leader “Big Dog,” who showed Ks Jd. Just as things looked optimistic for McGrath who appeared might double up, the killer Js fell on the river, which made the a pair for Big Dog. That knocked McGrath to the rail in fifth place, good for a mixed blessing of $5,834. McGrath is a former graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy. In fact, he was formally an officer on a submarine.

Fourth Place: Bluff Goes Badly for Segni
Ron Segni, a general contractor from El Cajon, CA made a bold move on his final hand. He tried to steal a round of blinds and antes holding 7c 5h, but ran into Chris Farmer’s Qs Qh. Farmer all but ended Segni’s hopes when he flopped a set of queens. But Segni picked up an inside straight draw on the turn. Unfortunately, he missed his long shot draw and Farmer raked in the pot when the final board showed Qc Js 6c 9h 7s. Segni, who has made Final Tables at a number of tournaments, including last year’s Seniors Championship here at Harrah’s Rincon, nailed down $9,471 in prize money.

Third Place: Westover Goes South
Ryan Westover, a “stay-at-home-dad” from San Diego, finished in third place. Three-handed action lasted two full hours before Westover finally went out with Ks 9d, which ended up losing to Chris Farmer’s Kd Qd. Farmer hit one of his many outs on the last card, making a straight when the board showed As Td 9h 5d Js. That meant Westover ended up settling for $9,471 for third place.

Second Place: Big Dog Gets Run Over
Rod “Big Dog” Dingler came close to victory several times. He held the chip lead during most of the Final Table play and had his opponent all in and covered four times, losing on each occasion. Had Dingler managed to catch just one card at a key moment, he would have won. Instead, Dingler was never able to close out the victory. One of many turning points came when Chris Farmer rivered a full house, which proved to be the decisive hand of the tournament.

The key hand with Farmer making a full house against Dingler can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/BD585

Dingler was eliminated about 15 minutes later, after he lost a race with pocket 8’s against AQ. The final hand of the tournament can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/EB491

Rod “Big Dog” Dingler, a real estate agent from Temecula, CA collected runner up prize money which amounted to $14,235.

First Place: Chris Farmer is Champion
Chris Farmer, a 25-year-old semi-pro poker player from San Diego won his first WSOP Circuit gold ring and $24,415. An interview with Farmer at tableside just moments after his win can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/5D733

The WSOP Circuit at Harrah’s Rincon continues through March 31st. This year’s schedule includes 12 gold ring events, along with multiple second-chance tournaments, single table and mega satellites, in addition to cash games going around the clock inside the Rincon Poker Room. This marks the sixth straight year that Harrah’s Rincon has been a part of the WSOP Circuit. It is one of only three Harrah’s resorts which hosted a WSOP Circuit every year. This is the eighth WSOP Circuit stop of the 2009-2010 season following previous tournaments held in Chicago, Southern Indiana, Lake Tahoe, Harrah’s Atlantic City, Tunica, Council Bluffs, and Caesars Atlantic City.

2010 Harrah’s Rincon WSOP Circuit – Event #1 Final Results

2010 Harrah’s Rincon WSOP Circuit Events Schedule and Results

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

Janet Beronio – General Manager
Robert Livingston – Assistant General Manager and VP of Operations
Jill Barrett – VP of Finance
Lee Torres – Director of Marketing
John Sebastian – Director of Casino Operations
Michelle Becket – Table Games Supervisor
Elizabeth Liemandt – Public Relations Manager
Alexia Alsop – Poker Room Manager
Jimmy Sommerfeld – Tournament Director
Bill Bruce – Assistant Tournament Director

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2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit – Ladies Championship Final Results

Wednesday, March 17th, 2010

2009/2010 World Series of Poker Circuit
Caesars Atlantic City
Event #12
Ladies Poker Championship
No Limit Hold’em
Buy-In: $200 (+30)
Total Entries: 174
Total Prize Pool: $33,756
March 14, 2010

Final Results:

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Ladies Championship Event Winner Marguerite Spagnuolo

1 Marguerite Spagnuolo Staten Island, NY $10,937

2 Sophia Wei New York, NY $5,739

3 Sophany Kay New York, NY $3,376

4 Amy Siegel Setauket, NY $2,700

5 Delia Wan Stein Olney, MD $2,025

6 Gina Manidis Reading, PA $1,688

7 Antoinette Fiorenza Oviedo, FL $1,350

8 Donna DiCrescento Staten Island, NY $1,013

9 Diane Grippo Holbrook, NY $675

10 Jennifer DiNunzio $540

11 Ivonne Hernandez $540

12 Barty Adams $540

13 Heon Jo Kim $473

14 Silicia Washington $473

15 Jamie DyBas $473

16 Sue Doyle $405

17 Terry Lynne Smith $405

18 Maria Votlucka $405

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit – Ladies Championship Final Results

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Events Schedule and Results

Executive Staff, World Series of Poker Circuit – Caesars Atlantic City

Joe Domenico – Senior Vice President and General Manager
Vice President of Table Games – Fred Niceta
Public Relations Specialist – Christopher Jonic
Table Games Manager (Poker) – Thomas McDonough III
Poker Pit Manager – Jake Devries

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2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit – Main Event Championship Final Results

Tuesday, March 16th, 2010

2009/2010 World Series of Poker Circuit
Final Results: Caesars Atlantic City
Event #10
Main Event Championship
No Limit Hold’em
Buy-In: $4,900 (+250)
Total Entries: 174
Total Prize Pool: $817,015
March 12-14, 2010

Final Results:

1 Roland Isra New York, NY $264,715

2 Christopher Mitchell Sumter, SC $138,894

3 Dan Witcher Mt. Pleasant, SC $81,702

4 Chris Klodnicki Voorhees, NJ $65,362

5 Jesse Chinni Ellicott City, MD $49,021

6 Grayson Ramage Red Hook, NY $40,851

7 Feming Chan Atlantic City, NJ $32,681

8 Konstantino Dimitroulakos Tinton Falls, NJ $24,511

9 Richard Austin Lansdale, PA $16,340

10 Lloyd Whitehead Brooklyn, NY $13,072

11 Andrew Frankenberger New York, NY $13,072

12 Paul Wasicka Las Vegas, NV $13,072

13 Jerry Payne Dayton, OH $11,438

14 Jacobo Fernandez Hollywood, FL $11,438

15 Douglas Benedict Londonberry, NH $11,438

16 Manelic Minaya Tampa, FL $9,804

17 Shawn M. Busse Massapequa, NY $9,804

18 Nicholas Binger Las Vegas, NV $9,804

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Championship Event Winner Roland Isra

Battle on the Boardwalk

Roland Isra Overcomes Huge Chip Disadvantage at Final Table and Wins WSOP Circuit Championship at Caesars Atlantic City

Atlantic City, NJ – To win, all poker players must pay a price. More often than not, the price of victory is not measured by the size of the entry fee or the expenses of entering a poker tournament. For many poker players, the much greater sacrifice is the accompanying disappointment that comes with playing tournament poker full time. In between extraordinary moments of fulfillment manifested in tournament triumphs are torturous moments of defeat, disappointment, and despair.

Roland Isra, a 52 year old professional poker player from New York City, knows the perils of poker all too well. He has come to the threshold of a major tournament victory numerous times. But each and every prior occasion when it seemed that Isra might finally win big tournament, he suffered a bad bet or was the victim of some cruel misfortune. Nevertheless, Isra endured over the years and to his credit, finally earned a major breakthrough victory at the most recent World Series of Poker Circuit championship.

Isra overcame a number of significant chip disadvantages, outlasted many of the East Coat’s best poker players, and collected the top cash prize at Caesars Atlantic City, which totaled $264,715. He was also presented with his first gold ring, the ultimate token of achievement given out to all tournament champions who win WSOP Circuit events held around the country.

Isra, who was born in the former Soviet Union (actually the Republic of Georgia) worked as a jeweler for 25 years before he began playing poker seriously in 2002. Isra managed to cash in the 2005 WSOP Main Event, finishing 37th. He also achieved seven other WSOP cashes, and did well in many other tournaments played elsewhere. Yet, this victory marks his biggest tournament win ever.

This marked the fifth straight year Caesars Atlantic City has hosted a WSOP Circuit stop. The Main Event was the last of 12 tournaments played at Caesars, all of which are classified as “gold ring” events. This year’s championship attracted 174 entrants, from 20 states and seven different nations. The buy in was $4,900 (+250), creating a prize pool totaling $817,015.

The tournament was played over three days during March 12-14. More than half the field was eliminated on day one, which clocked in at 14 hours. Eight tables of survivors returned for day two which played for another 14 hours. The top 18 finishers collected prize money. Along those who cashed was Paul Wasicka, perhaps best known as the runner up finisher to Jamie Gold in the 2006 WSOP Main Event. Wasicka finished 12th. Another top pro who cashed was Jacobo Fernandez (14th), who enjoyed a huge year at the 2008 WSOP when he cashed seven times and made three final tables. Las Vegas pro Nick Binger also made the money, finishing in 17th place.

Final table play began on a Sunday afternoon and was held inside the Palladium Arena at Caesars. Christopher Mitchell arrived as chip leader and was in a comfortable position throughout the competition. He faced serious threats from various challengers, most notably Roland Isra and Dan Witcher in the late stages of the competition.

Chris Klondicki arrived at the final table ranked second in chips. He had a unique opportunity to pull off an East Coast poker parlay. Klondicki won the Main Event championship at Atlantic City’s earlier WSOP Circuit stop, played three months ago. Klodnicki won his first gold ring and $215,915 at Harrah’s Atlantic City last December. He was also the only player to make back to back WSOP Circuit final tables at Caesars. He finished 8th in last year’s championship event. This time, he took fourth place.

The low blinds (6,000-12,000) and average chip stack of 570,000 at the start of play gave all competitors plenty of time to be patient and wait for a hand. Tournament structures for all the tournaments played at Caesars this year have received overwhelmingly positive feedback from many players and postings at online poker forums. Tournament players have been given plenty of starting chips and blind increases have been incremental, allowing for skillful play to overcome the short-term luck factor which is a part of all tournaments. This has resulted in several lengthy final tables, which have lasted 8 to 10 hours on average. However, this final table clocked in at 12 hours.

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

1 Feming Chan Atlantic City, NJ 292,000

2 Dan Witcher Mt. Pleasant, SC 411,000

3 Christopher Mitchell Sumter, SC 1,800,000

4 Grayson Ramage Red Hook, NY 627,000

5 Richard Austin Lansdale, PA 178,000

6 Roland Isra New York, NY 210,000

7 Chris Klodnicki Voorhees, NJ 1,110,000

8 Jesse Chinni Ellicott City, MD 427,000

9 Konstantino Dimitroulakos Tonton Falls, NJ 104,000

Final table player introductions can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/BB7E7

Players were eliminated in the following order:

Ninth Place: Lights Out for Austin
Richard Austin, a retail store owner from Lansdale, PA was the first player to be eliminated. He was low on chips and tried to steal a round of blinds and antes holding a marginal 10 8, but ended up making an ill timed bluff when he was called by an opponent holding pocket 9’s. Neither player improved, which meant Austin was out in ninth place. He collected $16,340 in prize money. Austin’s previous poker accomplishments include two other WSOP Circuit final tables, once for second place (two years ago in this same championship event) and the other for second place.

Eighth Place: Pastry Chef Rolled
Konstantino Dimitroulakos, a Greek-born pastry chef now living in Tinton Falls, NY arrived at the final table with the shortest stack. He survived for about an hour before going bust with A 8 offsuit, which lost to pocket 10’s. The final board showed QQJ28, giving Dan Witcher two pair. Dimitroulakos earned a nice payout totaling $24,511. He is one a nice run in tournaments, having cashed in three consecutive events.

Seventh Place: Feming Chan is No Johnny Chan
Feming Chan, who is self-employed and lives in Atlantic City, NJ went out on a bluff. He tried to steal pre-flop holding 9-6 suited. Grayson Ramage had a much bigger big stack and decided to fade the raise from the big blind with J 10 offsuit. Chan picked up a big draw, when the flop came J95, with two cards to Chan’s suit. But he ended up missing both the flush and straight draws, while Ramage’s top pair (J’s) held up. Chan settled for a payout which amounted to $32,681.

Sixth Place: Bucknell College Student Expelled
Grayson Ramage, a college student at Bucknell University, went out on a disappointing hand when he called an all in raise by the chip leader, Chris Mitchell. Ramage had pocket Q’s. But Mitchell held pocket A’s. Neither player improved, which meant Ramage was eliminated. Ramage’s take from the prize pool came to $40,851. Among his accomplishments are a 35th place finish in the 2009 WSOP Main Event, and a 3rd place showing at the Harrah’s Atlantic City WSOPC championship last December.

Fifth Place: Chinni Takes the Fifth
Jesse Chinni, a poker pro from Ellicott City, MD went bust when he moved all in with pocket 5’s, which lost to Dan Witcher’s A J. The board made a straight for Witcher. That meant Chinni had to settle for fifth place, which paid $49,021. Chinni, a 24-year-old graduate of the University of Maryland, has now made it to two WSOP Circuit final tables.

Fourth Place: Former WSOP Circuit Champion Ousted
Chris Klodnicki’s shot to win back to back WSOP Circuit championships in Atlantic City came to an abrupt end when he took the final table’s worst beat. Klodnicki, a poker pro who now lives in Philadelphia, PA moved all in with pocket 9’s. He was called by Dan Witcher, holding pocket’s 8’s. It looked like Klodnicki would double up, but an 8 of the river made Witcher a full house and also ejected one of the tournament’s most dangerous players. Klodnicki, a graduate of Lehigh University, who has enjoyed great success in tournament poker the last few years, collected $65,362.

A short interview with Chris Klodnicki, moments after his elimination from the tournament can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/89A41

Third Place: Witcher Bewitched
Dan Witcher, from Mount Pleasant, SC battled three-handed for nearly four hours before he busted out in third place. He moved all in with pocket 10’s, which turned out to be a base of terrible timing for the 25-year-old. Chris Mitchell called the big bet and flipped over pocket A’s. The better hand held up, which removed Witcher from the tournament. Third place paid $81,702.

Second Place: Christopher Mitchell Finishes as Runner Up
Chris Mitchell, a poker pro from Sumter, SC dominated this tournament over three full days. He held a dominant chip lead at the conclusion of Day One. By Day Two, Mitchell had increased his chip advantage to the point he was more than 2 to 1 over every other player that remained, except one. He also arrived at the final table with about one-third of the total chips in play. His runner up status and $138,894 in prize money for second place did not mask his disappointment with the final outcome. Mitchell suffered a serious of beats in the final stages of the tournament, and went card dead at the worst possible time. He ultimately lost his remaining chips when he missed an outside straight draw, which was topped by the champion’s two pair.

When heads-up play began, the two survivors were close to even in chips. It took about three hours for the outcome to be decided. The final hand of the tournament can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/40AA5

First Place: Roland Isra Wins!
Roland Isra, from New York, NY collected the $264,715 top prize, plus a seat into to the 2010 WSOP Main Event ($10,000 entry and expenses paid) to be held in Las Vegas in July.

An interview with Roland Isra moments after his victory can be seen here: (PART 1) — http://www.twitvid.com/DAB6C (PART 2) — http://www.twitvid.com/163CE

This concludes the WSOP Circuit at Caesars Atlantic City. This was the seventh WSOP Circuit stop of the 2009-2010 season following previous tournaments held in Chicago, Southern Indiana, Lake Tahoe, Harrah’s Atlantic City, Tunica, and Council Bluffs. Upcoming Circuit events will take place at Harrah’s Rincon, Harrah’s St. Louis, Caesars Las Vegas, and Harrah’s New Orleans. Harrah’s Rincon comes next and runs from March 17-31.

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Championship Event Final Results

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Events Schedule and Results

Executive Staff, World Series of Poker Circuit – Caesars Atlantic City

Joe Domenico – Senior Vice President and General Manager
Vice President of Table Games – Fred Niceta
Public Relations Specialist – Christopher Jonic
Table Games Manager (Poker) – Thomas McDonough III
Poker Pit Manager – Jake Devries

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2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit – Event #11 Final Results

Tuesday, March 16th, 2010

2009/2010 World Series of Poker Circuit
Final Results: Caesars Atlantic City
Event #11
Turbo No Limit Hold’em
Buy-In: $200 (+30)
Total Entries: 282
Total Prize Pool: $54,708
March 13, 2010

Final Results:

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Event #11 Winner Roman Valerstein

1 Roman Valerstein Newtown, PA $17,507

2 Adam Blyweiss Philadelphia, PA $9,629

3 Khan Tiath Fairfax, VA $4,924

4 Donald Paddy W. Friendship, MD $3,830

5 Patrick Quinn Gallitzin, PA $3,282

6 George Johnson Fishtown, PA $2,735

7 Joseph Balberchak Altoona, PA $2,188

8 Michael Leah Toronto, ON (Canada) $1,641

9 Ryan Miller Atlantic City, NJ $1,094

10 Miguel Bornero $657

11 Chad Daley $657

12 Brady Patrick $657

13 Dawn Faktor $547

14 Shelrese Leach $547

15 Paul T. Silva $547

16 Rusin Anton $438

17 Tuan K. Gbehan $438

18 Darren Cox $438

19 Marilyn Matthews $328

20 Jeremy Evan Alva $328

21 Ketan B. Pandya $328

22 Allen Chou $328

23 Kevin R. Sanchez $328

24 Paul A. Rizzitello $328

25 Stephen J. Wish $328

26 William H. Jennings $328

27 Susan Garrison Frazier $328

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit – Event #11 Final Results

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Events Schedule and Results

Executive Staff, World Series of Poker Circuit – Caesars Atlantic City

Joe Domenico – Senior Vice President and General Manager
Vice President of Table Games – Fred Niceta
Public Relations Specialist – Christopher Jonic
Table Games Manager (Poker) – Thomas McDonough III
Poker Pit Manager – Jake Devries

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2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit – Event #9 Final Results

Friday, March 12th, 2010

2009/2010 World Series of Poker Circuit
Final Results: Caesars Atlantic City
Event #9
No Limit Hold’em
Buy-In: $200 (+30)
Total Entries: 390
Total Prize Pool: $70,510
March 10, 2010

Final Results:

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Event #9 Winner Timothy Lux

1 Timothy Lux $21,282

2 Vimy Ha $11,282

3 Sara Slohler $5,641

4 Lawrence Oharloran $4,936

5 Todd Rebello $4,231

6 Kevin Gugliotta $3,526

7 Michael Dentale $2,820

8 John Clifford $2,115

9 William Wallace $1,410

10 Timothy Gallagher $846

11 Jack King $846

12 Alexander Lindit $846

13 Michael Valenti $705

14 Mukul Pahuja $705

15 Reginald McCullom $705

16 Brian Johnson $564

17 Mia Han $564

18 Robert Carpenter $564

19 Steven Riback $432

20 John Murrmann $432

21 Robert Abrahamyan $432

22 Theodore Mikolasy $432

23 Daniel Beavers $432

24 Anthony Scolazzo $432

25 Ryu Barnes $432

26 Ronald Gervolino $432

27 John Rollman $432

28 Ronald Isra $282

29 Hyong Kim $282

30 Vineet Chanhock $282

31 Cenk Vzel $282

32 Adam Varrenti $282

33 Gregory Rudolph $282

34 Ronald Faison $282

35 Lori Below $282

36 Andrew Knee $282

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit – Event #9 Final Results

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Events Schedule and Results

Executive Staff, World Series of Poker Circuit – Caesars Atlantic City

Joe Domenico – Senior Vice President and General Manager
Vice President of Table Games – Fred Niceta
Public Relations Specialist – Christopher Jonic
Table Games Manager (Poker) – Thomas McDonough III
Poker Pit Manager – Jake Devries

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2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit – Event #8 Final Results

Friday, March 12th, 2010

2009/2010 World Series of Poker Circuit
Caesars Atlantic City
Event #8
No Limit Hold’em
Buy-In: $1,500 (+100)
Total Entries: 190
Total Prize Pool: $276,450
March 10-11, 2010

Final Results:

1 Thomas Taylor Innisfil, Canada $89,570

2 Vincent DeVita Bayville, NJ $46,997

3 Mark Nimorov Brooklyn, NY $27,645

4 Donald Matusow Philadelphia, PA $22,116

5 Christopher Carey Hillsborough, NC $16,587

6 Steven Tabb Newton, MA $13,822

7 Francis Anderson Poughkeepsie, NY $11,058

8 Scott Lazewski Manalapan, NY $8,294

9 Scott Tuchman Mays Landing, NY $5,529

10 Kevin Murray $4,423

11 Benjamin Klier $4,423

12 Emmanuil Digilon $4,423

13 Joshua Goldstein $3,870

14 Li Chen $3,870

15 Andrew Frankenbeier $3,870

16 Bernard Collins $3,317

17 Timothy Dougherty $3,317

18 Steven Curtin $3,317

Breakfast of Champions

Sandy Taylor Wins WSOP Circuit Event, $89,570 and Gold Ring at Caesars Atlantic City

Final Table Duration Sets Record

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Event #8 Winner Thomas Taylor

Atlantic City, NJ – The most recent World Series of Poker Circuit final table began on the eve of the Main Event and went so long, it ended just as players were funneling into the room preparing to play the next day’s championship. Indeed, if some poker tournaments have become an around the clock pursuit, most of the WSOP Circuit events played this year at Caesars Atlantic City may as well start serving breakfast. Today’s early bird special included hot coffee, bacon, eggs, and about ninety grand in prize money.

The man who scrambled his opponents and toasted the competition was Thomas “Sandy” Taylor, who brought home the bacon with his first WSOP-related victory, following a number of big cashes in other tournaments. He is a 27 year old professional poker player from Innisfil, Ontario (Canada). Taylor collected a cash prize totaling $89,570. He was also presented with his first gold ring, which is the ultimate token of achievement given out to all tournament champions who win WSOP Circuit events held around the country.

The $1,500 (+100) buy in No Limit Hold’em tournament won by Taylor marked the eighth of 12 WSOP Circuit events on this year’s schedule at Caesars Atlantic. The two-day tournament (which actually stretched into three days) attracted 190 entrants. Most of the field was eliminated on day one which clocked in at 14 hours. Six tables of survivors returned for day two which played another backbreaking session totaling 22.5 hours. This tournament was not for the faint of heart. The top 18 finishers divided up prize money from a $276,450 prize pool.

Final table play began on a Thursday night and was held inside the Palladium Arena at Caesars. The last hand of the tournament was finally dealt out the following morning at 11:35 am.

There were no previous WSOP Circuit winners among the final nine, thus guaranteeing a first time champion. Taylor arrived as chip leader and was in a comfortable position during most of the competition, or at least as comfortable one could possibly be propped in an upright position under glaring lights engaged in an all-nighter. Mark Nimorov managed to seize the chip lead away from Taylor about nine hours into the finale. Then later, Vincent DeVita took his turn as the biggest stack. Then, Taylor regained his advantage in the chip lead merry go round.

The low blinds (6,000-12,000) and average chip stack of 600,000 at the start of the marathon gave competitors plenty of time to be patient and wait for a hand. Truth be told, if patience was a virtue, the top finishers in this tournament must all qualify for sainthood. Tournament structures at Caesars this year have received positive feedback from many players and postings at online poker forums. Tournament players have been given plenty of starting chips and blind increases have been incremental, allowing for skillful play to overcome the short-term luck factor which is a part of all tournaments. This has resulted in several lengthy final tables, which have lasted 8 to 10 hours on average. But this finale obliterated all previous Caesars’ events on record, making the end result not only a test of poker skill, but of physical and mental endurance. It was the longest final table in the six year history of the WSOP Circuits, for a preliminary (non-Main Event).

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

Seat Player Hometown Chip Count

1 Don Matusow Philadelphia, PA 460,000

2 Mark Nimokov Brooklyn, NY 300,500

3 Scott Lazewski Manaklapan, NY 540,000

4 Francis Anderson Poughkeepsie, NY 620,000

5 Steven Tabb Newton, MA 375,000

6 Christopher Paul Carey Hillsborough, NC 319,000

7 Vincent DeVita Bayville, NJ 201,000

8 Thomas “Sandy” Taylor Innisfil, ON (Canada) 953,000

9 Scott Tuchman Mays Landing, NJ 90,000

Final table player introductions can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/4C05E

Players were eliminated in the following order:

Ninth Place: Local Player Busts
Scott Tuchman, a professional poker player from nearby Mays Landing, NJ, was the first to be eliminated. He was the shortest stack and moved all in with pocket 6’s hoping to double up. He got a call from A K, which managed to hit an ace on the flop. That’s not exactly what Tuchman had in mind as far as the final outcome. Hence, the player who had previously done well in various deep stack tournaments around the country ended up taking $5,529 in prize money. This marked Tuchman’s first appearance at a WSOP Circuit final table.

Eighth Place: A Bad Beat
Scott Lazewski, a poker pro from Manalapan, NY went out next when his A K took a bad beat against A J. Lazewski seemed headed for a double up, but a J came on the turn, ending Lazewski’s tournament life. The poker pro who also has a pilots license crash landed in eighth place with $8,294.

Seventh Place: Pocket Aces Cracked
Francis Anderson, an online poker pro from Poughkeepsie, NY was eliminated on what is every Hold’em poker player’s worst possible nightmare. He moved all in with pocket A’s and was called by a bigger stack holding pocket 9’s. Anderson was way ahead after the turn, but an ugly 9 fell on the river disconnecting the online pro from the finale. Anderson, who has won more than $150,000 in online play the last few years, added $11,058 to his poker bankroll.

Sixth Place: Another Pro Bites the Dust
Steven Tabb, a professional poker player from Newton, MA went bust holding pocket 7’s. He went all in a coin flip race against A K. When a K fell on the river, Tabb was sent packing. The Boston area poker pro has previously cashed several times in major events. Oddly enough, he specializes in 5 Card Draw games played online. This was Tabb’s highest WSOP related finish to date, worth $13,822 in prize money.

Fifth Place: Tow Truck Driver Gets Hauled Away
Christopher Paul Carey, a tow truck driver from Hillsborough, NC stood the test of time. But he finally went out holding A Q, which lost to pocket A’s. Carey received a payout totaling $16,587.

Fourth Place: Matusow (Not that Matusow) Out Fourth
Don Matusow (no relation to the famous poker pro), who works in sales and lives in Philadelphia, exited after he lost a race to a small pocket pair. Matusow took A K up against pocket 5’s, which was flattened when a 5 fell on the turn, making a set for Vincent DeVita. The grandfather who has made it to numerous final tables in small tournaments in the area, collected a nice prize which amounted to $22,116.

Third Place: Nimorov No More
Mark Nimorov, an Israeli native who now lives in Brooklyn, NY was eliminated after taking the chip lead momentarily. But he suffered a bad run of cards late and went out with pocket 9’s which was steamrolled by Vincent DeVita’s pocket K’s. The business owner scooped $27,645 from the prize pool.

Second Place: DeVita Finally Succumbs
Vincent DeVita, a senior vice president from Bayville, NJ finished as the runner up. He collected a well deserved $46,997 in a final table performance that was one of the most impressive of any at Caesars this year.

The biggest hand of the tournament occurred when DeVita moved all in pre-flop with A J, and Taylor snap called with pocket 10’s. When a 10 fell, that gave Taylor the huge pot, and eventually led to his victory. The key hand of the tournament can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/4CF1F

DeVita managed to make a comeback and the two players battled for nearly three hours of heads up play. The final hand of the tournament came when DeVita’s A J lost to Taylor’s pocket 5’s.

First Place:
Thomas “Sandy” Taylor, from Innisfil, Ontario (Canada) won the coveted WSOP Circuit gold ring and the $89,570 top prize. Not merely content with nearly six figures in profit and the WSOP Circuit’s ultimate token of achievement, following 36 hours of poker playing within just two days, Taylor waltzed over to the registration area for the championship event and plunked down the entry fee, which began just a few minutes after his victory. “I’m not finished yet,” he said.

The WSOP Circuit at Caesars Atlantic City continues through March 14. This year’s schedule includes 12 gold ring events, along with multiple second-chance tournaments, single table and mega satellites, in addition to cash games going around the clock inside the Caesars Poker Room. The $4,900 (+250) Main Event starts on Friday, March 12th and will be a three day event.

This marks the fifth straight year that Caesars Atlantic City has been a part of the WSOP Circuit. This is the seventh WSOP Circuit stop of the 2009-2010 season following previous tournaments held in Chicago, Southern Indiana, Lake Tahoe, Harrah’s Atlantic City, Tunica, and Council Bluffs. Upcoming Circuit events will take place at Harrah’s Rincon, Harrah’s St. Louis, Caesars Las Vegas, and Harrah’s New Orleans.

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit – Event #8 Final Results

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Events Schedule and Results

Executive Staff, World Series of Poker Circuit – Caesars Atlantic City

Joe Domenico – Senior Vice President and General Manager
Vice President of Table Games – Fred Niceta
Public Relations Specialist – Christopher Jonic
Table Games Manager (Poker) – Thomas McDonough III
Poker Pit Manager – Jake Devries

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2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit – Event #7 Final Results

Thursday, March 11th, 2010

2009/2010 World Series of Poker Circuit
Caesars Atlantic City
Event #7
No Limit Hold’em
Buy-In: $1,000 (+80)
Total Entries: 196
Total Prize Pool: $190,120
March 9-10, 2010

Final Results:

1 Paul Vogel Merrick, NY $61,599

2 Keith Crowder Philadelphia, PA $32,320

3 Charles Croft Sumter, SC $19,012

4 Kenneth Packer Fayetteville, NC $15,210

5 David Zeitlin New York, NY $11,407

6 Bruce MacGregor Port Orange, FL $9,506

7 Anthony Tannoya Woodbridge, VA $7,605

8 Pedro Vicente Jersey City, NJ $5,704

9 Eugene Castro New York, NY $3,802

10 Dean Shultz $3,042

11 Adam Lippert $3,042

12 Howard Boltz $3,042

13 Jesse Chinni $2,662

14 Albert Riccobono $2,662

15 Michael Caswell $2,662

16 Joseph Pitti $2,281

17 Cuong Phung $2,281

18 Peter Lios $2,281

Paul Vogel Earns Well Deserved Victory

Amateur Poker Player from Merrick, NY Wins WSOP Circuit Event, $61,599 and Gold Ring at Caesars Atlantic City

Generous Tournament Structure at WSOP Circuit Continues to Gain Positive Feedback

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Event #7 Winner Paul Vogel

Atlantic City, NJ – Paul Vogel, a 42 year old information systems manager from Merrick, NY won his first major poker tournament today. He won the $1,000 (+80) buy in No Limit Hold’em tournament held at Caesars Atlantic City. Vogel collected the top cash prize totaling $61,599. He was also presented with his first gold ring, which is the ultimate token of achievement given out to all tournament champions who win WSOP Circuit events held around the country.

The father of five considers himself to be a recreational poker player. But he has aspirations of improving and doing big things in the game. Vogel plays online primarily. However, he has competed in the WSOP Main Event twice. This marked Vogel’s first major victory ever and was the biggest payday of his career, so far.

This marked the seventh of 12 WSOP Circuit events on this year’s Caesars schedule. The two-day tournament attracted 196 entrants. Most of the field was eliminated on day one, which clocked in at 14 hours. Four tables of survivors returned for day two which played another 18 hours. The top 18 finishers divided up prize money from a $190,120 prize pool.

Final table play began on a Wednesday night and was held inside the Palladium Arena at Caesars. There were no previous WSOP Circuit winners among the final nine, thus guaranteeing a first time champion. Paul Vogel arrived as chip leader and was in a comfortable position throughout the competition. He faced serious threats from various challengers, but never lost his chip lead at any point during the nine hour finale.

The low blinds (2,500-5,000) and average chip stack of 165,000 at the start gave all competitors plenty of time to be patient and wait for a hand. In fact, the tournament structures for all the tournaments played at Caesars this year have received overwhelmingly positive feedback from many players and postings at online poker forums. Tournament players have been given plenty of starting chips and blind increases have been incremental, allowing for skillful play to overcome the short-term luck factor which is a part of all tournaments. This has resulted in several lengthy final tables, which have lasted 8 to 10 hours on average.

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

Seat Player Hometown Chip Count

1 Anthony J. Tannoya Woodbridge, VA 140,000

2 Bruce F. MacGregor Port Orange, FL 293,500

3 Kenneth Packer Fayetteville, NC 130,000

4 David Zeitlin Brooklyn, NY 129,500

5 Brandon Croft Sumter, SC 271,500

6 Paul Vogel Merrick, NY 405,000

7 Keith Crowder Philadelphia, PA 275,500

8 Pete White Jersey City, NJ 135,000

9 Eugene Castro New York, NY 98,000

Final table player introductions can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/7507E

Players were eliminated in the following order:

Ninth Place: Castro Overthrown
Eugene Castro, a poker professional from New York City, was the first player eliminated. He was short stacked and got all his chips into the pot with the best hand. But his A J ended up losing to K J when a K flopped. Castro is the founder of an organization called Poker Player International. He has earned three major tournament victories, and has over 20 cashes in his tournament career. He finished in the money in last year’s WSOP Main Event held in Las Vegas. Ninth place paid $3,802.

Eighth Place: White Goes Dark
Pete White (a.k.a. Pedro Vicente), a recreational poker player from Jersey City, NJ was making his second final table appearance so far at this year’s Caesars series. He took fifth place in an event played just three days ago. This time, White finished in eighth place after being low on chips and moving in on a steal attempt. He was called by pocket 10’s which ended up scooping the pot. White added $5,704 to his poker bankroll and remains a player to watch for the remaining events to be played here in Atlantic City.

Seventh Place: Tannoya Out
Anthony J. Tannoya, a computer engineer from Woodbridge, VA went out in seventh place. He survived about two hours at the final table before finally running out of chips. The former Air Force serviceman flew away with $7,605 in prize money.

Sixth Place: Big Draw Misses
Bruce F. MacGregor, a land developer from Port Orange, FL was eliminated after he missed a monster draw, and went bust. MacGregor had A 10 suited and flopped a flush draw as well as a straight draw. But two bricks on the turn and river ended his tournament life. MacGregor, who is a Vietnam veteran, pocketed a nice score to the tune of $9,506. His previous tournament accomplishments include a win at a major event held in Costa Rica, as well as 14 other cashes in major tournaments throughout the U.S.

Fifth Place: Brooklyn Pro Can Fuggetaboutit
David Zeitlin, a poker pro from Brooklyn, NY took two beats late and lost most of his stack. He finally moved all in on what turned out to be his final hand, holding pocket 4’s. He was called by an opponent with A J, who caught an A. The pretty much ended Zeitlin’s night. The 36 year old pro collected $11,407.

Fourth Place: Packer Sent Packing
Kenneth Packer, a 39 year old self employed part-time poker pro from North Carolina, took a brutal beat on his final hand. His stack was slightly below average and after the chip leader made a raise, Packer moved all in with pocket K’s. He got a call, and looked to be in great shape to double up. But the board came with four clubs, and the chip leader’s Ac played to make the nut flush. Packer was disappointed with the result but could certainly be proud of the cash prize for fourth place, which amounted to $15,210. Packer noted that he mostly plays in cash games, and has been a winning player for the past ten years.

Third Place: Adult Nightclub Manager Gets Last Call
Brandon Croft, who manages an adult nightclub in South Carolina, was bounced from the final table when he tried to bluff on the river following a missed flush draw. He ran into Paul Vogel’s set of 5’s, who called the bluff instantly. Croft had battled for nearly three hours when play was at three handed, but finally succumbed to the temptation to try and steamroll his opponent, at what turned out to be the worst possible moment. This was Croft’s second final table appearance in a WSOP Circuit event at Caesars. He collected his biggest payday ever, at $19,012.

Second Place: Crowder Crushed
Keith Crowder, a 39 year old real estate investor from Philadelphia, PA was certainly a tough adversary. He was able to draw very close to even in chips at one point when play was heads up. In fact, the determined duo played nearly 100 hands together and battled for about three hours before Crowder ultimately lost his final hand holding A Q to a pair of 8’s. Crowder picked up a big draw after the flop, but missed twice, which gave the last pot of the night to Paul Vogel. Crowder’s take of the prize pool amounted to $32,320. He has previously made it to other final tables at major poker tournaments played elsewhere. But this was his best WSOP related finish, to date.

The final hand of the tournament can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/EBF44

First Place: Vogel Victorious
Paul Vogel, an information systems manager from Merrick, NY won a WSOP Circuit title for the first time and officially collected $61,599 in prize money.

An interview with Vogel moments after his victory can be seen here: http://www.twitvid.com/89390

The WSOP Circuit at Caesars Atlantic City continues through March 14. This year’s schedule includes 12 gold ring events, along with multiple second-chance tournaments, single table and mega satellites, in addition to cash games going around the clock inside the Caesars Poker Room. The $4,900 (+250) Main Event starts on Friday, March 12th and will be a three day event.

This marks the fifth straight year that Caesars Atlantic City has been a part of the WSOP Circuit. This is the seventh WSOP Circuit stop of the 2009-2010 season following previous tournaments held in Chicago, Southern Indiana, Lake Tahoe, Harrah’s Atlantic City, Tunica, and Council Bluffs. Upcoming Circuit events will take place at Harrah’s Rincon, Harrah’s St. Louis, Caesars Las Vegas, and Harrah’s New Orleans.

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit – Event #7 Final Results

2010 Caesars Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Events Schedule and Results

Executive Staff, World Series of Poker Circuit – Caesars Atlantic City

Joe Domenico – Senior Vice President and General Manager
Vice President of Table Games – Fred Niceta
Public Relations Specialist – Christopher Jonic
Table Games Manager (Poker) – Thomas McDonough III
Poker Pit Manager – Jake Devries

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Poker, World Series of Poker Circuit Events | No Comments »

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