If consistent female poker pros from the past several years should be named, Loni Harwood will certainly be one of the first picks. Five years ago, the player scooped her first WSOP Circuit gold ring at Palm Beach Kennel Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. She has added two more gold rings and two WSOP gold bracelets ever since, and has accumulated more than $1.5 million in overall WSOP winnings.
Harwood has just captured her latest WSOP Circuit piece of jewelry. The New York-born poker professional topped the field of a $365 buy-in multiple starting flight tournament that was completed on Monday night as part of the ongoing WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club festival. Here it is interesting to note that Harwood won her first gold piece exactly five years ago.
The player entered the $365 buy-in event on Day 1B. She survived through Day 2 to begin play as the holder of one of the ten largest chip stacks. At the time the bubble burst and shortly after, Harwood had positioned herself as one of the chip leaders. And although she had a bit of a hard time at one point, she quickly regained composure and momentum to kick off the final table as a leader.
From that moment on, she did not relinquish her lead even for a second. During four-handed play Harwood was in control of 70% of all chips in play. The moment of victory came when she clashed against former golf pro and one-time WSOP Circuit gold ring winner Andrew ‘A.J.’ Kelsall and finished off her final opponent in no time.
Harwood added $61,156 to her previous WSOP Circuit winnings. Kelsall collected $37,772 for his runner-up finish.
The latest tournament Harwood won attracted a 1,117-person field to generate $335,100 in prize money. Payouts were distributed to the top 118 places.
In her first post-victory words, Harwood told interviewers that it was her father who introduced her to poker. She started playing when she was 15, then went to college where she played even more. Eventually, the player found herself to be playing the game she loves for a living.
Harwood’s overall live tournament earnings currently amount to more than $2 million. She has been a constant presence at WSOP Circuit events over the past several years, but she has also taken part in other major tournaments to have been held around the States.
