Previewing the 2011-2012 World Series of Poker Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club
The World Series of Poker Circuit has returned to West Palm Beach, Florida, for one of the biggest stops of the year. The 12-event series kicked off on February 16 and will culminate in a $1,600 Main Event on Saturday, Feb. 25. Of course the PokerNews Live Reporting Team will be providing coverage of the Main Event, but we thought we��d set the stage with a look back at the preliminary events.
Without a doubt, the most notable preliminary tournament was Event #1: $555 No-Limit Hold��em, which drew an astounding 2,607 players, the second-largest turnout in WSOP Circuit history, and created a prize pool of $1,250,345, the largest-ever outside of Main Events.
Caesars Interactive Entertainment Media Director, Nolan Dalla described the scene during Event #1: ��There were unavoidable lines. There were scalpers �� yes, selling places in line to get a seat in the tournament. There was a near riot during one of the opening days. There was also a calm and cozy peace that prevailed over the sprawling tournament area once cards finally flew into the air and competition began, with poker tables terraced along the atrium-like windows facing out towards circling greyhounds and throngs of horseplayers screaming for their favorite ponies, appearing on simulcast.��
It took five days of play, including three separate starting days, for the tournament to finish, but before that happened, the final 30 players had to play down to a winner. One man who was looking for his first piece of WSOP gold was Harrison Gimbel, whom you may recall won the 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. Unfortunately, Gimbel��s run came up a bit short in seventh place, for which he earned $32,214, and his first WSOP Circuit cash.
When all was said and done, a 50-year-old nail technician by the name of Anh Lu emerged victorious to capture the $182,750 first-place prize, which was the biggest payout for a WSOP Circuit prelim event. In what would be the final hand of the tournament, Lu held a 2:1 chip lead over Charles Flett in heads-up play, which lasted just 10 minutes. Flett was all-in with K?Q?, but was behind the J?J? of Lu. The J?10?3? flop gave Lu a set, and it held as neither the 7? turn nor 4? river completed Flett��s open-ended straight draw.
Here's a look at the WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club events completed thus far:
WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #1: No-Limit Hold��em Re-Entry
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $500+$55 | 2,607 | $1,250,345 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anh Lu | Bradenton, FL | $182,750 |
| 2 | Charles Flett | Ponca City, OK | $113,759 |
| 3 | Jerry Ard | Moticello, MS | $86,611 |
| 4 | Josh Kay | West Bloomfield, MI | $66,874 |
| 5 | Jose Silverman | San Juan, PR | $52,014 |
| 6 | Phong Nguyen | Bristow, VA | $40,772 |
| 7 | Harrison Gimbel | Jupiter, FL | $32,214 |
| 8 | Devon Garbus | Tampa, FL | $25,648 |
| 9 | Michael Cox | Sumter, SC | $20,594 |
WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #2: No-Limit Hold'em
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $300+$45 | 500 | $144,150 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Loni Harwood | Staten Island, NY | $30,994 |
| 2 | Anne Amato | Sarasota, FL | $19,162 |
| 3 | Amanda Musumeci | Philadelphia, PA | $13,998 |
| 4 | William Buckmaster | Atlanta, GA | $10,377 |
| 5 | Frank Mainade | Miami, FL | $7,804 |
| 6 | Eric Brenes | San Jose, Costa Rica | $5,953 |
| 7 | Christopher Lambert | Carmichael, CA | $4,606 |
| 8 | Michael Palumbo | Fort Myers, FL | $3,614 |
| 9 | Calvin Smith | Gastonia, NC | $2,876 |
WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Event #3: H.O.R.S.E.
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $300+$45 | 247 | $70,527 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jason Reep | Jupiter, FL | $17,279 |
| 2 | Steve Allen | Bradenton, FL | $10,676 |
| 3 | Ryan Gelsomino | Deerfield Beach, FL | $7,714 |
| 4 | David Fried | Las Vegas, NV | $5,677 |
| 5 | Joseph Palma | Langhorne, PA | $4,253 |
| 6 | Christopher Brown | Miami, FL | $3,241 |
| 7 | Chris Bigler | Las Vegas, NV | $2,511 |
| 8 | Ralph Broderick | Boynston Beach, FL | $1,977 |
WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #4: No-Limit Hold��em
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $300+$45 | 413 | $118,833 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adam Cook | Pasadena, MD | $26,142 |
| 2 | Ralph Robinson | Stone Mountain, GA | $16,155 |
| 3 | Christopher Cristillo | Nantucket, MA | $11,805 |
| 4 | Alberto Fonseca | Moravia, Costa Rica | $8,765 |
| 5 | Eddie Uehara | Waldo, FL | $6,609 |
| 6 | Mstr Lynch | Lewisville, TX | $5,509 |
| 7 | Drazen Ilich | Lincoln, NE | $3,929 |
| 8 | Steven Costa | Coconut Creek, FL | $3,094 |
| 9 | Michael Smith | Olive Branch, MS | $2,472 |
WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Event #5: No-Limit Hold'em Six Handed
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $300+$45 | 391 | $112,431 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacob Schindler | Philadelphia, PA | $24,736 |
| 2 | Abbey Daniels | Coral Springs, FL | $15,285 |
| 3 | Patricia Till | Avon, IN | $11,169 |
| 4 | Andrew Priore | Union, NJ | $8,293 |
| 5 | Roman Valerstein | Newtown, PA | $6,253 |
| 6 | Michael Almerood | Orlando, FL | $4,786 |
WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #6: No-Limit Hold��em Six Handed
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $300+$45 | 353 | $101,373 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joseph Casella | Royal Palm Beach, FL | $23,315 |
| 2 | Aaron Berman | West Bloomfield, MI | $14,414 |
| 3 | Steven Tabb | Newton, MA | $10,515 |
| 4 | Jamey Johnson | Tifton, GA | $7,800 |
| 5 | Austen Johnson | Woodsboro, MD | $5,876 |
| 6 | Yonisander Ramirez | Miami, FL | $4,494 |
| 7 | Douglas Lang | Delmer, NY | $3,487 |
| 8 | Christopher Choy | East Brunswick, NJ | $2,745 |
| 9 | Christopher Ashley | Martinez, GA | $2,192 |
WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #7 No-Limit Hold��em
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $500+$55 | 290 | $139,300 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | James Henson | Lake Jackson, TX | $33,749 |
| 2 | Drew Dumanski | Richardson, TX | $20,861 |
| 3 | John Harris | Bakersfield, CA | $11,168 |
| 4 | John Devia | West Palm Beach, FL | $11,168 |
| 5 | Chad Batista | Henderson, NV | $8,376 |
| 6 | Jerry Payne | Centerville, OH | $6,383 |
| 7 | Stuart McMahen | Springhill, LA | $4,940 |
| 8 | Lou Stadler | Miami, FL | $3,845 |
| 9 | Glenn Poole | Memphis, TN | $3,067 |
WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #8 No-Limit Hold��em
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $300+$45 | 279 | $81,189 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brian Odonoghue | Bayside, NY | $19,487 |
| 2 | Jonathan Marks | Weston, FL | $12,042 |
| 3 | Ira Schwartz | Weston, FL | $8,738 |
| 4 | James Biehl | Mancelona, MI | $6,446 |
| 5 | Chris Parsons | Mentor, OH | $4,835 |
| 6 | Chris Tryba | Las Vegas, NV | $3,684 |
| 7 | Michael Carlson | Gainesville, GA | $2,851 |
| 8 | Joseph Opie | Fair Haven, NJ | $2,241 |
| 9 | Robert Goldbaum | Chappaqua, NY | $1,788 |
WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #9 No-Limit Hold��em
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $1,000+$80 | 149 | $144,530 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joseph Patalano | Wellington, FL | $40,467 |
| 2 | William Criego | Prior Lake, MN | $25,012 |
| 3 | Julian Sacks | Ridgewood, NJ | $18,055 |
| 4 | Paul Sokoloff | Toronto, ON | $13,266 |
| 5 | Blake Idle | West Palm Beach, FL | $9,918 |
| 6 | Lee Childs | Alexandria, VA | $7,540 |
| 7 | Jovan Sudar | Omaha, NE | $5,829 |
| 8 | Katherine Bowen | Judson, TX | $4,579 |
| 9 | Tom Dobrilovic | West Nyack, NY | $3,655 |
With several events yet to be determined, the race for the WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Casino Champion is undecided. Whoever captures that title, along with the eventual winner of the Main Event, will automatically qualify for the Second Annual $1 Million National Championship. That event is limited to 100 players, and so far only a handful of players have qualified:
National Championship Qualifiers
| Player | Qualified |
|---|---|
| David Nicholson | Horseshoe Bossier City Main Event Winner |
| Chris Gamboa | Horseshoe Bossier City Casino Champion |
| Robert Castoire | Horseshoe Southern Indiana Main Event Winner |
| Mark ��Pegasus�� Smith | Horseshoe Southern Indiana Casino Champion |
| Bob Chow | Horseshoe Hammond Main Event Winner |
| Drazen Ilich | Horseshoe Hammond Casino Champion |
| Gene Dudek | IP Biloxi Casino Champion |
| Jerry Monroe | IP Biloxi Main Event Winner |
| Michael Rosenbach | Lake Tahoe Casino Champ |
| Bryan Schultz | Lake Tahoe Main Event Champion |
| Tuan Phan | Harrah��s AC Main Event Winner |
| Hao Le | Harrah��s AC Casino Champ |
| Freddy Deeb | Bicycle Casino Main Event Winner |
| Huy Quach | Bicycle Casino Champ |
| Raja Kattamuri | Choctaw Casino Champ |
| Abraham Araya | Choctaw Main Event Champion |
| Gary Bolden | Caesars Palace Casino Champ |
| Kevin Calenzo | Caesars Palace Main Event Winner |
| Matthew Weber | Harrah��s Tunica Casino Champ |
| Kurt Jewell | Harrah��s Tunica Main Event Winner |
In addition to the qualifiers, players who earn enough points on the National Leaderboard will be able to buy in to the National Championship:
WSOPC National Leaderboard Top Ten*
| Player | Points | Rings | Cashed | Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Clark | 165 | 1 | 7 | $56,209 |
| Russell Ivy | 130 | 0 | 7 | $72,703 |
| Benjamin Kramer | 130 | 1 | 8 | $58,600 |
| Daniel Lowery | 122.5 | 0 | 6 | $240,522 |
| Matthew Chang | 122.5 | 1 | 7 | $25,468 |
| Alexandru Masek | 117.5 | 1 | 5 | $125,015 |
| Jeremy Burleson | 117.5 | 2 | 3 | $48,474 |
| Jeremy Drewery | 117.5 | 0 | 6 | $47,275 |
| Oran Haynes | 115 | 0 | 5 | $56,220 |
| Robert Newman | 115 | 1 | 4 | $45,619 |
*Leading up to the WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club stop.
Don��t miss your chance to qualify for the National Championship. There are still plenty of opportunities to play, including any of the remaining stops on the WSOP Circuit schedule.
Remaining 2011-2012 WSOPC Schedule
| Event | Location | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Circuit Event | Caesars Atlantic City | March 1 - 12, 2012 |
| Circuit Event | Harrah��s Rincon | March 15 - 26, 2012 |
| Circuit Event | Horseshoe Council Bluffs | March 29 - April 9, 2012 |
| Circuit Event | Harrah��s St. Louis | April 12 - 23, 2012 |
| Circuit Event | Harrah��s Chester | April 26 - May 7, 2012 |
| Circuit Event | Harrah��s New Orleans | May 10 - 21, 2012 |
Get all the latest PokerNews updates on your social media outlets. Follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook today! In the meantime, see who qualifies for the National Championship this week by following our Live Reporting Team��s coverage from the Palm Beach Kennel Club.
*Photos courtesy of Eric Harkins and ImageMasters.
