Preliminary Results from the 2011-2012 WSOP Circuit Harrah's New Orleans
For the past year, the 2011-2012 World Series of Poker Circuit has hosted 17 stops across the country and one in South Africa. Now, the final stop on the schedule is taking place at Harrah��s New Orleans, providing the last chance for players to qualify for the 2nd Annual $1 Million National Championship. This weekend, the stop culminates with a $1,600 Main Event where the winner will automatically earn a seat in July��s National Championship.
Prior to that, there have been a slew of preliminary events where players have been racking up points for the National Leaderboard. One of these events was Event #1: $355 No-Limit Hold��em, which attracted 945 players and became the largest poker tournament ever held in New Orleans by surpassing the previous record of 833 players set on May 18, 2005.
After four days of intense play, a stacked final table was set with Yung ��Andy�� Hwang, Charles ��Woody�� Moore, and Josh Evans eventually making it to three-handed play. Moore has proven himself time and again on the Circuit, having won last year��s WSOP Circuit Horseshoe Southern Indiana Main Event and making multiple final tables this year, but he came up short of his second gold ring. The good news is that in addition to his $23,853 payday, Moore��s third-place finish earned him enough points to qualify for the National Championship for the second year in a row.
That left Hwang and Evans to do battle heads up, which lasted about 45 minutes. In the final hand, Evans moved all-in with A?6? only to run into Hwang��s K?K?. The board ran out an uneventful Q?J?2?6?3?, and Evans was dispatched in second place for $32,317 with enough points qualify him for a seat in the National Championship.
Meanwhile, Hwang collected the $52,249 first-place prize and his first WSOP Circuit gold ring. What��s more, he earned enough points to join Evans and Moore near the top of the National Leaderboard and essentially locked up a spot in the National Championship.
Here's a look at the WSOP Circuit Harrah��s New Orleans events completed thus far:
WSOP Circuit Harrah��s New Orleans Ring Event #1: No-Limit Hold��em Re-Entry
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $300+$55 | 945 | $274,995 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yung Hwang | Sugar Land, TX | $52,249 |
| 2 | Josh Evans | Plano, TX | $32,317 |
| 3 | Charles ��Woody�� Moore | Las Vegas, NV | $23,853 |
| 4 | Steve Hesse | Houston, TX | $17,847 |
| 5 | Lacey Coffey | Houston, TX | $13,521 |
| 6 | Dwayne Vetter | Houston, TX | $10,372 |
| 7 | Jose Serratos | Detroit, MI | $8,054 |
| 8 | Todd Cowan | Metairie, LA | $6,333 |
| 9 | John Finnan | Metairie, LA | $5,037 |
WSOP Circuit Harrah��s New Orleans Event #2: No-Limit Hold'em
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $500+$65 | 320 | $160,000 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | John Fagg | Terre Haute, IN | $36,472 |
| 2 | Vafa Kamali | Purvis, MS | $22,550 |
| 3 | Frank Alpandinar | Baton Rouge, LA | $16,378 |
| 4 | Brent Ronquille | Lafitte, LA | $12,097 |
| 5 | Clifford Fisher | Addison, TX | $9,082 |
| 6 | Robert Alvarado | San Antonio, TX | $6,926 |
| 7 | Clyde Duet | Cut Off, LA | $5,326 |
| 8 | Rufus Yates | New Iberia, LA | $4,218 |
| 9 | Gary Lambert | Quincy, IL | $3,366 |
WSOP Circuit Harrah��s New Orleans Event #3: Pot-Limit Omaha
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $300+$55 | 167 | $50,100 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | John Harris | Dallas, TX | $13,121 |
| 2 | Stephen Su | Houston, TX | $8,106 |
| 3 | Robert Cote | Cypress, TX | $5,783 |
| 4 | Ronald Mapes | Miramar Beach, FL | $4,198 |
| 5 | Adam Laskey | Fargo, ND | $3,103 |
| 6 | Uyen Tran | Round Rock, TX | $2,336 |
| 7 | Michael ��Carwash�� Schneider | Covington, GA | $1,789 |
| 8 | Carter Myers | Breckenridge, MI | $1,395 |
| 9 | Howard Andrew | Walnut Creek, CA | $1,107 |
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 |
WSOP Circuit Harrah��s New Orleans Event #5: No-Limit Hold��em
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $300+$55 | 440 | $132,000 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jonathan Tamayo | Humble, TX | $28,168 |
| 2 | Robert Cole | Cypress, TX | $17,407 |
| 3 | Christy Pham | Lake Mary, FL | $12,719 |
| 4 | Justin Fossen | Pearl, MS | $9,444 |
| 5 | Dennis Crowley | Pearland, TX | $7,121 |
| 6 | David Smith | Walls, MS | $5,450 |
| 7 | John Dolan | Bonita Springs, FL | $4,233 |
| 8 | Thomas Manning | Waco, TX | $3,334 |
| 9 | Gloria Whimper | Conyers, GA | $2,663 |
WSOP Circuit Harrah��s New Orleans Event #6: No-Limit Hold��em Six Handed
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $300+$55 | 335 | $100,500 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | William Foxen | Cold Spring Harbor, NY | $22,421 |
| 2 | Adam Zschau | Bloomington, IL | $13,861 |
| 3 | Peter Sullivan | Roscoe, IL | $10,112 |
| 4 | Preston Derden | Houston, TX | $7,500 |
| 5 | Brandon Bowyer | Riverside, CA | $5,650 |
| 6 | Peter Ippolito | East Meadow, NY | $4,321 |
WSOP Circuit Harrah��s New Orleans Event #7: No-Limit Hold��em
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $300+$55 | 395 | $118,500 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | James Calcagno | San Antonio, TX | $25,287 |
| 2 | Joshua Schon | Colleyville, TX | $15,626 |
| 3 | George Bursavich | Baton Rouge, LA | $11,418 |
| 4 | James Manning | Waco, TX | $8,478 |
| 5 | Raymond Luong | Tucker, GA | $6,393 |
| 6 | La Sengphet | Carrollton, TX | $4,893 |
| 7 | Josh Pender | Rockhill, SC | $3,800 |
| 8 | Raphael Latson | Pearland, TX | $2,993 |
| 9 | Soojung Kim | Ocean Springs, MS | $2,390 |
WSOP Circuit Harrah��s New Orleans Event #8: No-Limit Hold��em
| Buy-in | Entrants | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|
| $1,000+$80 | 232 | $232,000 |
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacob Naquin | Destin, FL | $56,260 |
| 2 | Ryan Tosoc | Chicago, IL | $34,773 |
| 3 | Nicolas Gellepis | Tallahassee, FL | $25,308 |
| 4 | Huy Nguyen | Oklahoma City, OK | $18,716 |
| 5 | Dominic Gabaldon | Iowa City, IA | $14,058 |
| 6 | Daniel Weinman | Atlanta, GA | $10,723 |
| 7 | Brett Schwertley | Omaha, NE | $8,303 |
| 8 | Chris Conrad | Tampa, FL | $6,526 |
| 9 | Leroy Spires | Las Cruces, NM | $5,205 |
With several events yet to be determined, the race for the WSOP Circuit Harrah��s New Orleans Casino 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 |
|---|---|
| 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 |
| Charles Flett | Palm Beach Casino Champ |
| James Harnden | Palm Beach Main Event Winner |
| Tuan Phan | Harrah��s AC Main Event Winner |
| Hao Le | Harrah��s AC Casino Champ |
| Joseph Kuether | Harrah��s Rincon Main Event Winner |
| Jonas Mackoff | Harrah��s Rincon Casino Champ |
| Scott Stanko | Council Bluffs Main Event Winner |
| Michael Nellis | Council Bluffs Casino Champ |
| Nikolas Stone | Harrah��s St. Louis Casino Champ |
| Tripp Kirk | Harrah��s St. Louis Main Event Winner |
| Kevin McColgan | Harrah��s Philadelphia Casino Champ |
| Christopher Bonn | Harrah��s Philadelphia 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 | 240 | 1 | 9 | $82,321 |
| Alexandru Masek | 187.5 | 1 | 11 | $147,528 |
| Daniel Blakeman | 172.5 | 1 | 9 | $152,521 |
| Kyle Cartwright | 162.5 | 1 | 9 | $91,082 |
| Stephen Kats | 160 | 1 | 11 | $57,506 |
| Mark ��P0ker H0�� Kroon | 157.5 | 1 | 7 | $62,973 |
| Michael Sanders | 155 | 0 | 6 | $157,516 |
| Benjamin Kramer | 155 | 1 | 12 | $62,232 |
| Michael Cooper | 155 | 0 | 9 | $57,051 |
| Rex Clinkscales | 155 | 0 | 10 | $47,986 |
*Leading up to the WSOP Circuit Harrah��s New Orleans stop.
*Photos courtesy of Eric Harkins and ImageMasters.
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 Harrah��s New Orleans.
