Event #7 $365 No-Limit Hold’em Eight Max kicked off on August 9. It was held at Harrah’s Cherokee and attracted a total of 326 entrants who accumulated a prize pool of $97,800. As many as 35 players survived Day 1 and Ricky Daniel started Day 2 as a chip leader, followed by Curtis King. However, they were eliminated in 11th and 2nd place, respectively. It was Rob Stephens who emerged victorious and collected the first Circuit ring in his poker career as well as $23,472 of the accumulated prize pool.
The winner described himself as a man focused on his family and career. He works as a Physician Assistant and spends his free time with his wife and children. He accidentally decided to take part in the event as he had a few days off of work.
What makes $365 No-Limit Hold’em Eight Max event even more notable for him is that it has been the second tournament he played as a professional. Prior to coming to Cherokee, he participated in a WSOP event a couple of years ago, but he was eliminated at a quite early stage. He has acquired his poker skills via playing cash games with friends.
Stephens shared that he had played his first live cash game a few weeks before the first tourney he took part in. He simply wanted to feel the atmosphere of the real casino. He bought in for $200 and left the casino with a $1000 profit. Basically, that event summed up his professional experience.
Stephens also added that upon entering the tournament, he has set 5 goals. The first one was to make it to Day 2, then collect at least $1000 of the prize pool. The next target was the final table, followed by the ambition of getting third place or better and the last objective was winning the event. He went on to say that once he accomplished his fourth goal, he was determined to become the winner. Stephens concluded that being a winner was an amazing feeling, but he was also very tired of the long hours of playing.
The other players who formed Top 10 in the tournament were Jason Tulloss and Merton Toler who occupied 10th and 9th place and took $2,013 each. Christopher Shaw, Matthew Goins and Perry Shiao took 8th, 7th and 6th place, respectively. Juan Mora was eliminated in 5th place, followed by William Heinig’s 4th place. William Byrnes was the bronze medallist who collected $10,654 for his efforts. After heads-up play against Rob Stephens, Curtis King became the runner-up and got a consolation prize of $14,521.
