Potawatomi Hotel & Casino in Milwaukee, Wisconsin is currently the venue where WSOP Circuit fans can go to and try their luck against fellow players and poker enthusiasts. Seven gold ring events have already been completed at the casino since the WSOP Circuit arrived for the latest stop on its 2016/17 calendar, with the $365 No-Limit Hold’em Monster Stack being the most recent one.
Eric Guth, a player from Wisconsin with not particularly rich WSOP Circuit cash history, emerged the winner over the tournament’s field to scoop his first-ever gold ring. Guth also collected $34,310 in prize money for his deed. And the player’s accomplishment involved beating up a massive field of 531 other entries.
The $365 buy-in Monster Stack event kicked off on Wednesday, February 8, and was played over two days at Potawatomi Casino. The tournament featured twelve 30-minute levels and nine 40-minute ones. All levels played afterwards were 50-minute ones.
Day 1 was concluded with 30 players left and eight-time gold ring winner Valentin Vornicu as the chip leader. The player had 1.313 million in chips at the time. Guth was not among the top 5 chip stacks when the remaining survivors returned for Day 2 play, but managed to improve his position over the course of action. By the time there were only ten players left and the unofficial final table was set, the eventual winner had accumulated 639,000 in chips, holding the eighth biggest stack.
Rudi Patitucci, an Illinois-based political consultant, was Guth heads-up opponent. However, the player was not given much chance by the eventual champion and had to settle for the $21,216 runner-up prize in the end.
Start-of-the-day chip leader and final table headliner Vornicu finished 6th in the event, despite facing players with much less WSOP Circuit experience than him. He collected $6,591 for his efforts.
As already noted, the $365 No-Limit Hold’em Monster Stack drew 532 entries. The wide interest in the event eventually generated a prize pool of $159,600. The top 54 spots were paid. Once the bubble burst, all 54 remaining players were guaranteed a minimum cash of $613. Michael Berry was the first player to leave the field with a payout.
As the WSOP Circuit Potawatomi festival is entering its ninth day, players are certainly gearing up for the $1,675 Main Event with a guaranteed prize pool of $750,000. Day 1A of the tournament is set to kick off today at 11 am local time. Players who fail to enter the event today will be able to do so on Day 1B that is set to be played tomorrow.
