At the 2012 World Series of Poker, a shiny new product received its public unveiling. Players and fans the world over were introduced to a program with revolutionary potential. It could track the chip ebbs and flows of every player in a tournament while also serving as the back end operating system to run said tournament. It promised the ability to change the way poker tournaments were followed, with players and fans interacting at the stroke of a few keys.
That product was ChipTic. And it proved to be a colossal failure.
This is the two-part oral history of ChipTic, from those who experienced it first-hand and witnessed that failure — three former employees, two members of WSOP staff, and two poker media members who watched it implode.
On Friday, July 16, the WSOP Summer Online Circuit kicked off to run alongside the bracelet events. The firs tournament was the $320 buy-in Event #1: $40,000 GTD Limit O8 or Better 8-Max, which attracted 142 runners who rebought 51 times. The 193-entry field resulted in a $57,900 prize pool that was paid out to the top 30 finishers.
Among those to cash were Nathan "surfbum" Gamble (3rd - $6,791.67), Bruce "Robert1951" Yamron (5th - $3,850.35), Michael "miw210x" Wang (8th - $1,638.57), Jesse "Rebuysexual" Cohen (14th - $764.28), Kevin "SpecialK333" Calenzo (20th - $486.36), Nicholas "MrFinalT" Kiley (26th - $486.36), and Anthony "Duhmenace" Tomita (30th - $486.36).
In the end, it was Aaron "Sagevsal" Henderson besting "lilmiracle" in heads-up play to win a $12,077.94 top prize and his first gold ring.
WSOP Summer Online Circuit Event #1 Final Table Results
Last December, Gershon "jets613" Distenfeld, who is in today's field, was one of the finalists at the 2020 WSOP Demostic Main Event final table. He was a fan favorite because the 45-year-old pledged to donate 100% of winnings (minus any taxes) to charities of his family's choice, and he wound up finishing in eighth place for $125,885.
A professional in the finance space, Distenfeld said he simply plays poker for the challenge and competition.
“The charities I have chosen thus far encompass many of my and my wife Aviva’s personal areas of interest which include organizations with proven track records in helping those less fortunate and more vulnerable improve their lives," he said at the time.
Here's a partial list of the charities Distenfeld benefitted with his finish:
Minds Matter – Helping driven, low-income students succeed in college, create their future and change the world.
NCSY Relief Missions – Harnessing teen volunteers to address disaster relief and food insecurity. I named this program after my parents of blessed memory.
Yachad - Dedicated to enhancing the life opportunities of Jewish individuals with developmental disabilities or other learning challenges.
Project S.A.R.A.H. (Stop Abusive Relationships At Home) - working to overcome cultural, legal and religious barriers confronting victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse.
Distenfeld, 45, was born in Queens, New York but now resides in Bergenfield, New Jersey with his wife of nearly 21 years, Aviva. Together they have three daughters Shoshana (19), Talia (15), Esti (13), and one son, Aryeh (4). He graduated from Yeshiva University with a BS in Finance in 1997.
A recreational player, Distenfeld works for AllianceBernstein as co-head of Fixed Income and Director of Credit. His position has led to him being a frequent guest on Bloomberg TV and CNBC. In fact, the day after making the final table he was able to share the news to a mainstream audience by making an announcement on Bloomberg Surveillance Simulcast (at the 1:14:20 mark).
“I mainly started watching on TV in the Moneymaker era,” said Distenfeld, a passionate fan of the New York Jets and New York Rangers. “Eventually started reading/studying a lot and finally began to play in casinos. I gravitated towards tournaments over cash games. I have been going to the WSOP for a week in June for most of the past several years where I’ve played in some of the events, but this is my first Main Event.”
For Distenfeld, part of poker’s allure was the fact that he could use many of his professional skills in the game.
“I’ve studied behavioral finance a lot which has impacted how I approach the financial markets,” he explained. “I have brought that same discipline to the poker tables. Often, it isn’t how smart you are that determines your success. It’s capitalizing on the biases of others that makes you a consistent winner.”
PokerNews has activated the MyStack App for this event, allowing you to directly adjust your chip counts in our live reporting blog using your iPhone or Android phone. But it's more than just chip counts! You can include notes about big hands, your photo, and even your Table and Seat assignments so your friends can find you.
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The virtual cards are in the air and the Grand Finale looks to be the largest field of the series as a whopping 464 players are already in their seats at the start.
The 2021 Online World Series of Poker hosts its final tournament today with Event #33: $500 No-Limit Hold'em Grand Finale which gets underway today at 3 p.m.
This is the final event of the series, with a massive 1 million dollar guarantee for a small $500 buy in. The field promises to be the largest of the series as players of all types will be aiming to take a chunk of the gargantuan prizepool.
In this event players will start with a stack of 15,000 in chips and blinds will increase every 15 minutes. Players who bust out can re-enter three times with each re-entry lasting only 30 seconds, so players will need to make sure they have enough funds in their WSOP.com account before the tournament starts if they plan on re-entering.
Late registration and the re-entry option will be open for the first 3 hours and 45 minutes of play.
This is the 33rd of 66 bracelet events being held on WSOP.com (33 events) and GG Poker (holding the remaining 33 events).
2021 WSOP.com Online Series Schedule
Date
Tournament
Aug. 1
#33: $500 No-Limit Hold'em Grand Finale ($1M Guaranteed)
Stay tuned to PokerNews to find out which lucky person is crowned the latest WSOP Bracelet Champion!
