Loni Harwood Wins Event #4 $345 NLHE
Once again, we'll defer to one of Nolan Dalla's excellent recaps to give you the 411 on preliminary Event #4 $345 NLHE:
Loni Harwood is emerging as one of the breakout stars of the 2011-2012 World Series of Poker Circuit season. The 22-year-old New Yorker just won her second gold ring, with the most recent prize coming at Harrah’s New Orleans.
Remarkably, Harwood has only attended two WSOP Circuit stops this season – and has triumphed at both. That makes her two for two. Harwood’s first victory took place at the Palm Beach Kennel Club (West Palm Beach, FL) in February. That $30,000 tournament win was historic, namely for the fact that for the first time in history, three women took each of the top three spots in a major poker tournament. At the time, one wondered whether Harwood would return to the tour sometime later and potentially match her previous victory.
Three months went by – with no sign of Harwood. Then, here at Harrah’s New Orleans she appeared from nowhere, entered the opening event, and managed to cash in 37th place – out of 945 entrants. Two days later, Harwood blitzed through a tough field stacked with WSOP Circuit regulars, many of whom are in New Orleans making one last drive to get points to qualify for seats in the National Championship. Displaying an attitude that made it seem victory was pre-destined Harwood took care of business, ultimately earning $23,090 for her success.
Last year, Harwood graduated from State University of New York-Albany with a degree in finance. She is uncertain about her future plans, but certainly plans to play more poker. She also plans to attend this year’s WSOP in Las Vegas. Harwood confided that she expects to get a “real” job at some point. But at least for now, she appears to be enjoying life and doing well quite in poker, particularly given her limited investment of time and money.
WSOP Circuit Harrah’s New Orleans Event #4 No-Limit Hold’em
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $300+$55 | 345 | $103,500 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Loni Harwood | Staten Island, NY | $23,090 |
| 2 | Peter Mavro | Las Vegas, NV | $14,275 |
| 3 | Russell Sartin | Lacombe, LA | $10,413 |
| 4 | Longlith Boutchantharaj | Fort Worth, TX | $7,724 |
| 5 | Thomas Mosier | Bloomington, IN | $5,818 |
| 6 | Randolph Reynolds | Jacksonville, FL | $4,450 |
| 7 | Dominic Gabaldon | Iowa City, IA | $3,453 |
| 8 | Paul Phillips | Weatherford, TX | $2,718 |
| 9 | Jonathan Biddle | Bay St. Louis, MS | $2,170 |