Harrah's Rincon San Diego Poker Tournament
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The eighth stop of the 2012/2013 World Series of Poker Circuit presented by Southern Comfort 100 Proof at Harrah’s Rincon kicked off on Dec. 6 with the first of 12 ring events. Many of those tournaments have concluded throughout the week, but the stop won’t climax until this weekend’s $1,675 Main Event, which you can follow by clicking here.
In the meantime, we thought we’d set the stage by taking a look at the preliminary events thus far, which included a historic performance by Alexandru Masek, who won his record-tying fifth gold ring in Event #1 $365 No-Limit Hold’em. The 27-year-old law school graduate from San Diego moved into a three-way tie alongside Mark “Pegausus” Smith and Kyle Cartwright.
“I feel really good. I feel like I'm on cloud nine right now,” Masek told WSOP officials shortly after his win. “I feel like I got close quite a few times (to winning the fifth), and that's tournament poker. Now, it's great to finally get number five to come out.”
Masek navigated a field of 205 players to make the final table, which turned out to be a nine-hour affair. What’s more, the winner of the same event the previous year, Randy Paguio, was also at the final table. Fittingly, the two experienced players made it to heads-up play. That meant WSOP Circuit history would be made because either Masek would win ring number five, or Paguio would go back-to-back. As fate would have it, lady luck favored Masek, who took home $15,989 for the win.
“When I won before, I don't think back then I realized how hard it is to win,” Masek said. “[The drought of not winning] made me realize just how good I ran when I was winning.”
Check out Masek’s postvictory interview with the WSOP’s Nolan Dalla:
Here's a look at the WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon events completed thus far:
WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #1 No-Limit Hold’em
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $300+$65 | 157 | $47,100 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alexandru Masek | San Diego, CA | $15,989 |
| 2 | Randy Paguio | San Diego, CA | $9,878 |
| 3 | Kevin Swad | Bloomington, IN | $7,132 |
| 4 | Keith Morgan | Encinitas, CA | $5,238 |
| 5 | Kevin Krickhahn | El Cajon, CA | $3,913 |
| 6 | Lance Martinez | Mukilteo, WA | $2,974 |
| 7 | Titan Leard | San Clemente, CA | $2,297 |
| 8 | Kenton Taylor | El Centro, CA | $1,804 |
| 9 | Robert Hoag | San Diego, CA | $1,439 |
WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #2 No-Limit Hold’em
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mike Souza | San Diego, CA | $12,718 |
| 2 | Robert Pagcaliwagan | Oceanside, CA | $7,859 |
| 3 | Thomas Rogers | Milwaukee, WI | $5,657 |
| 4 | Charles Deets | Oceanside, CA | $4,146 |
| 5 | Paul Hendee | Redwood, Valley, CA | $3,093 |
| 6 | Neil Scott | Mammoth Lakes, CA | $2,347 |
| 7 | Michelle Owen | Surrey, British Columbia, Canada | $1,811 |
| 8 | Joseph Hurvitz | San Diego, CA | $1,421 |
| 9 | Mary Anne Madruga | San Diego, CA | $1,133 |
WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #3 H.O.R.S.E.
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Matthew Schultz | San Diego, CA | $7,241 |
| 2 | Frank Lin | Los Angeles, CA | $4,481 |
| 3 | Jeff Myers | Los Angeles, CA | $2,950 |
| 4 | Fernando Ortiz | San Diego, CA | $2,065 |
| 5 | Kenneth Leflore | El Cajon, CA | $1,530 |
| 6 | Henry Ferguson | Los Angeles, CA | $1,197 |
| 7 | Alexander Lee | San Diego, CA | $985 |
| 8 | Kevin Krickhahn | El Cajon, CA | $851 |
WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #4 No-Limit Hold’em
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Wynn | Las Vegas, NV | $26,405 |
| 2 | Carter Myers | Breckenridge, MI | $16,314 |
| 3 | Gary Fessia | Chula Vista, CA | $11,921 |
| 4 | Darius Johnson | Vallejo, CA | $8,851 |
| 5 | Dave Para | La Mesa, CA | $6,674 |
| 6 | Shawn Daniels | Wayne, PA | $5,108 |
| 7 | Sean Yu | Irvine, CA | $3,967 |
| 8 | David Clark | Dallas, TX | $3,125 |
| 9 | Lucien Breault | Ewa Beach, HI | $2,496 |
WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #5 No-Limit Hold’em
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Donna Delfin | Folsom, CA | $11,844 |
| 2 | Todd Davis | Jacksonville, FL | $7,320 |
| 3 | John Meekhael | Anaheim, CA | $5,284 |
| 4 | Raymond Padgett | Santa Paula, CA | $3,883 |
| 5 | Connor Cronkhite | Erie, PA | $2,903 |
| 6 | Jack Converse | Yorba Linda, CA | $2,207 |
| 7 | Adam Laskey | Fargo, ND | $1,706 |
| 8 | Chad Thyzel | Temecula, CA | $1,340 |
| 9 | Eric Revak | Santee, CA | $1,070 |
WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #6 No-Limit Hold’em
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jimmy Nguyen | San Diego, CA | $11,341 |
| 2 | Saul Frank | Escondido, CA | $7,009 |
| 3 | Thomas Johnson | Mansfield, TX | $5,059 |
| 4 | Ivan Mahood | Maple Ridge, BC, Canada | $3,717 |
| 5 | Peter Zaferis | Temecula, CA | $2,779 |
| 6 | Sam Ashley | Southlake, TX | $2,113 |
| 7 | Daniel Rincones | Cullacan, Mexico | $1,633 |
| 8 | Tavish Margers | Santee, CA | $1,283 |
| 9 | Chris Ruby | Temecula, CA | $1,024 |
WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #7 No-Limit Hold’em Six Handed
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valentin Vornicu | San Diego, CA | $10,858 |
| 2 | Eddy Asady | San Diego, CA | $6,712 |
| 3 | Casey Stewart | Canyon Country, CA | $4,838 |
| 4 | Jason Tang | El Cajon, CA | $3,501 |
| 5 | Dwight Englekirk | Zephyr Cove, NV | $2,543 |
| 6 | Brian Coan | Riverside, CA | $1,854 |
| 7 | William Ellis II | Blue Springs, MO | $1,356 |
| 8 | Jarod Ludemann | Wells, MN | $1,356 |
| 9 | Jack Converse | Yorba Linda, CA | $995 |
WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #8 No-Limit Hold’em
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nancy Birnbaum | Atlanta, GA | $13,122 |
| 2 | David Anderson | Murrieta, CA | $8,109 |
| 3 | Brent Carter | Oak Park, IL | $5,837 |
| 4 | Chad Wassmuth | Lewiston, ID | $4,278 |
| 5 | Jonathan Chehanske | Brigantine, NJ | $3,191 |
| 6 | Misato Black | Las Vegas, NV | $2,422 |
| 7 | Daniel Rincones | Culiacan, Mexico | $1,869 |
| 8 | John Kral | San Diego, CA | $1,465 |
| 9 | Glenn Castens | Carlsbad, CA | $1,169 |
With several events yet to be determined, the race for the WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Champion is undetermined. Whoever captures that title, along with the eventual winner of the Main Event, will automatically qualify for the Second Annual $1 Million National Championship. Here's a look at the players who have qualified:
National Championship Qualifiers
| Player | Qualified |
|---|---|
| Adam Teasdale | Harrah’s Atlantic City Main Event Champion |
| Brandon Fish | Harrah’s Atlantic City Casino Champion |
| Cary Marshall | Harveys Lake Tahoe Main Event Champion |
| Daniel Gilmer | Harveys Lake Tahoe Casino Champion |
| John Crncic | River Rock (Vancouver) Main Event Winner |
| Sandra Wong | River Rock (Vancouver) Casino Champion |
| Josh Williams | Horseshoe Horseshoe Hammond Main Event Winner |
| Mike Leah | Horseshoe Hammond Casino Champion |
| Dan Heimiller | Horseshoe Southern Indiana Main Event Winner |
| Jonathan Taylor | Horseshoe Southern Indiana Casino Champion |
| Quan Nguyen | Bossier City Casino Champion |
| Jeff Gibralter | Bossier City Main Event Champion |
| Kyle Cartwright | IP Biloxi Main Event Winner |
| Cory Wood | IP Biloxi Casino Champion |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yossi Azulay | 165 | 0 | 12 | $79,218 |
| Charles “Woody” Moore | 150 | 0 | 7 | $46,997 |
| Rex Clinkscales | 145 | 0 | 6 | $35,499 |
| Caufman Talley | 142.5 | 2 | 5 | $82,963 |
| Aaron Massey | 142.5 | 1 | 5 | $55,252 |
| Carter Myers | 125 | 1 | 6 | $49,713 |
| Donna Delfin | 112.5 | 1 | 3 | $26,908 |
| Ashly Butler | 112.5 | 1 | 4 | $25,415 |
| Ari Engel | 105 | 1 | 4 | $68,762 |
| Trevor Deeter | 105 | 1 | 6 | $33,098 |
*Leading up to the WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon stop.
Here's a look at the remaining schedule for the 2012-13 WSOP Circuit:
| Date | Event Location |
|---|---|
| Jan. 3-14, 2013 | The Bicycle Casino (Los Angeles) |
| Jan. 10-21, 2013 | Choctaw Durant (Dallas/Oklahoma) |
| Jan. 24 - Feb. 4, 2013 | Harrah’s Tunica (Mississippi) |
| Feb. 7-18, 2013 | Caesars Palace (Las Vegas) |
| Feb. 14-25, 2013 | Palm Beach Kennel Club (Florida) |
| Feb. 28 - March 11, 2013 | Caesars Atlantic City |
| March 14-25, 2013 | Horseshoe Cleveland |
| March 27 - April 8, 2013 | Foxwoods (Connecticut) |
| April 4-15, 2012 | Harrah’s Cherokee (North Carolina) |
| April 11-April 22, 2013 | Horseshoe Council Bluffs (Iowa) |
| April 25 - May 6, 2013 | Harrah’s Philadelphia |
| May 9 - May 20, 2013 | Harrah’s New Orleans |
| May 21-23, 2013 | Harrah’s New Orleans (National Championship) |
For more information on the 2012-13 WSOP Circuit season, visit WSOP.com. Also, be sure to follow our live updates from the WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Atlantic City in our Live Reporting Section.
*Photos courtesy of WSOP.com.
Follow the WSOP Circuit Harrah's Rincon Main Event by clicking here.
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