Christophe Bouziane claimed the champion title of the 2016 WSOP Circuit Caribbean $365 NL Hold’em Turbo Event and went home with the first-place prize of $7,140. Bouziane prevailed over opponent Hank Sitton in an intense head-to-head battle on the final table.
As many as 68 players participated in the final ring event which took place in Casino Royale, located on the island of Sint Maarten. Only the top seven players earned a portion of the $20,400 prize pool.
American Hank Sitton started as the chip leader of the nine-handed final table. Gerald Mortensen was the first player to leave the game while several others managed to survive showdowns on the bubble with two big blinds or less. It was Aroon Maharaj, who became the bubble boy after he went all in with an ace-nine. Opponent Pierre Legrand responded with an eight-five in the big blind. When another five appeared on the board, Maharaj left the game empty-handed.
After several intense showdowns, the field was reduced to the final seven players to qualify for a portion of the prize pool. Players Eric Herbert, Pierre Legrand, Mark Ali and Richard London all dropped out of the game in a quick succession.
American Kevin Eyster’s poor timing caused him to leave the table at third place after he pushed from the small blind with king-six. After his compatriot Sitton responded with ace-three, Eyster, who had previously won a WSOP bracelet and a WSOP Circuit ring, had to settle for the third-place prize of $2,930.
Bouziane and Sitton started their head-to-head battle almost even in chips. Sitton’s three-bet shove allowed his French opponent to double with ace-king and the American had less than one big blind. It did not take long for Bouziane to triumph over his opponent.
A few hands more were played when Bouziane responded to Sitton’s eight-nine with jack-deuce and sent him to the runner-up position with a second-place prize of $4,400. Bouziane was awarded the coveted WSOP Circuit ring and added the first-place prize of $7,140 to his total live earnings of $169,282.
Bouziane’s victory over Sitton marks the conclusion of the final WSOP Circuit ring event at the two-week Caribbean festival for this year. The festival was brought to an end after the last two Side Events, a $250 NlHE Event and a $135 Survivor Event, were held on November 16.
