Wednesday, March 1, 2017 4:51 PM Local Time
Brandon Wittmeyer
Las Vegas, Nev. (1 March, 2017) — Brandon Wittmeyer now has another piece of jewelry to add to his trophy case. Already the owner of a World Series of Poker bracelet, Wittmeyer earned his first WSOP Circuit ring Tuesday night when he won the $2,200 High Roller event at the Rio Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
Wittmeyer, a 32-year old professional gambler originally from Chicago, earned $77,840 for his first-place finish.
He came very close to just barely missing out on the ring. When the tournament was down to just two players – Wittmeyer and Kainalu Mccue-Unciano – Wittmeyer at one point faced an enormous deficit. Mccue-Unciano had him outchipped almost 10-1. However, he made a huge comeback, and Mccue-Unciano was forced to settle for a runner-up finish, earning $48,113.
He won his first piece of WSOP hardware, his bracelet, in the 50/50 event at the 2015 WSOP.
Rounding out the final table were Gary Bolden, Viet Vo, Arkadiy Tsinis, Long Nguyen, Nadezhda “Nadya” Magnus, and Jared Jaffee. This is Magnus’s second consecutive WSOP Circuit high roller final table. She won the high roller event at Potawatomi a couple weeks ago.
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Event #13 was the penultimate event to play to completion at the WSOP Circuit at the Rio. The $2,200 event drew a field of 139 entries, generating a prizepool worth $278,000. The final 16 players finished in the money. Full results are available on the Results Tab, above.
The tournament began at 4:00 p.m. on Monday, February 27. The final day began at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, February 28, and the last hand was dealt around 2:15 a.m.
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 2:18 AM Local Time
It took hours for Kainalu McCue-Unciano to grind his way into a commanding chip lead, and it took Brandon Wittmeyer just a few hands to undo it all.
On the final hand of the match, McCue-Unciano moves all in for about 400,000, and Wittmeyer (pictured above) calls to put him at risk.
McCue-Unciano:
Wittmeyer:
The flop is bad news for McCue-Unciano, and the turn leaves him drawing stone dead. The two men are already exchanging handshakes and congratulations as the meaningless fills out the board, officially anointing Wittmeyer as the High Roller champion. The 2016 WSOP bracelet winner collects his first gold ring and the top prize of $77,840.
McCue-Unciano (below) finishes as the runner-up, earning $48,113.
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 2:10 AM Local Time
Brandon Wittmeyer had chipped his way closer to even over the course of the pots subsequent to his last double, and he's just moved in front for the first time in this match.
The pot begins with Wittmeyer opening the button to 100,000, and Kainalu McCue-Unciano defends his big blind. The flop is . McCue-Unciano checks, Wittmeyer continues for 80,000, and McCue-Unciano calls. Both players check through the . The river brings the and all the fireworks. McCue-Unciano leads for 200,000, and Wittmeyer moves all in for 1,340,000.
The shove sends Wittmeyer deep into the tank, and he thinks for long enough that the clock is called. Just a fraction of a second before the countdown reaches zero, McCue-Unciano plunks a stack of chips into the pot to signify a call.
"I have a flush," Wittmeyer announces.
"Flush is good," McCue-Unciano sighs.
Wittmeyer shows to prove his claim, doubling up with a flush to take a huge chip lead.
Brandon Wittmeyer - 3,050,000 (61 bb)
Kainalu McCue-Unciano - 425,000 (9 bb)
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 1:53 AM Local Time
Brandon Wittmeyer opens the button to 100,000, and Kainalu McCue-Unciano three-bets to 550,000. It's almost enough to cover Wittmeyer, and he spends maybe 90 seconds pondering.
"I have one of those hands," he says. "But I don't have a lot of chips. I'm going to have to get it in sometime." Eventually, he moves all in for 660,000, and McCue-Unciano calls to put him at risk.
Wittmeyer:
McCue-Unciano:
The flop adds four more outs to Wittmeyer's list as he picks up a gutshot straight draw. The turn is the blank , putting McCue-Unciano one card from the win. The river is the , though, and Wittmeyer fills his straight to double-up.
Brandon Wittmeyer - 1,330,000 (27 bb)
Kainalu McCue-Unciano - 2,145,000 (43 bb)
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 1:36 AM Local Time
Level: 27
Blinds: 25,000/50,000
Ante: 5,000
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 1:34 AM Local Time
Kainalu McCue-Unciano open-shoves the button for 360,000 effective, and Brandon Wittmeyer quickly calls all-in to put himself at risk.
McCue-Unciano:
Wittmeyer:
The board runs out , and Wittmeyer's high cards are good enough to give him a double-up.
Brandon Wittmeyer - 730,000 (18 bb)
Kainalu McCue-Unciano - 2,745,000 (69 bb)
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 1:30 AM Local Time
The two finalists have yet to play a sizable pot, but Kainalu McCue-Unciano is winning the battle of small ones. He's opened up a lead of closer to 6:1 after a few orbits of back and forth, and it feels likely an all-in confrontation is coming soon.
Kainalu McCue-Unciano - 2,970,000 (74 bb)
Brandon Wittmeyer - 505,000 (13 bb)
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 1:09 AM Local Time
Kainalu McCue-Unciano is heads-up with Brandon Wittmeyer for the High Roller title at Rio Las Vegas. The former begins the duel with a lead of nearly 3:1.
Kainalu McCue-Unciano - 2,540,000 (64 bb)
Brandon Wittmeyer - 935,000 (23 bb)
The runner-up will earn close to $50,000 this morning, with more than $75,000 and the series' final gold ring reserved for the winner.
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 1:06 AM Local Time
Gary Bolden (pictured) moves all in for about 300,000 on the button, and Kainalu McCue-Unciano calls from the big blind to put Bolden at risk.
Bolden:
McCue-Unciano:
The board runs out , and McCue-Unciano wins the pot with kings up. Bolden is eliminated.
Gary Bolden - Eliminated in 3rd place ($34,311)
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 1:02 AM Local Time
Gary Bolden raises to 145,000 in the small blind, and Brandon Wittmeyer defends his big.
The flop is . Bolden continues for 100,000, Wittmeyer raises all in for 360,000, and Bolden calls to put him at risk.
Bolden:
Wittmeyer:
Bolden's ace has him ahead, but Wittmeyer is drawing live at jacks and diamonds. The turn is the blank , but the on the river fills Wittmeyer's flush, giving him a double-up.
Brandon Wittmeyer - 1,025,000 (26 bb)
Gary Bolden - 325,000 (8 bb)
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 12:57 AM Local Time
Level: 26
Blinds: 20,000/40,000
Ante: 5,000
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 12:43 AM Local Time
Gary Bolden raises from the small blind, and Brandon Wittmeyer three-bet shoves for 335,000 in the big. Bolden calls to put him at risk.
Bolden:
Wittmeyer:
Wittmeyer has to sweat every street of the board, but Bolden can't quite get over the hump. Wittmeyer doubles up with a pair of kings.
Brandon Wittmeyer - 685,000 (23 bb)
Gary Bolden - 735,000 (25 bb)
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 12:41 AM Local Time
In a battle of the blinds, Gary Bolden ends up all in for 530,000 against Kainalu McCue-Unciano.
McCue-Unciano:
Bolden:
The board runs out , and Bolden doubles up with aces up.
Gary Bolden - 1,075,000 (36 bb)
Kainalu McCue-Unciano - 2,060,000 (69 bb)
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 12:39 AM Local Time
"Looks like we got our work cut out for us, Gary," Brandon Wittmeyer says in between hands. He's looking around the table, noticing the huge chip lead that Kainalu McCue-Unciano has amassed in the recent levels.
"We?" Gary Bolden pipes up. "You got your work cut out for you. You're looking at all his chips, and I'm the best player here." Cue the laughs all around at this good-natured final table.
McCue-Unciano begins three-handed play with more than twice as many chips as his two opponents have combined.
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 12:36 AM Local Time
Viet Vo (pictured) opens the button to 65,000, and Kainalu McCue-Unciano three-bet shoves from the big blind. Vo instantly calls all-in for about 600,000 total, putting himself at risk.
Vo:
McCue-Unciano:
It seems McCue-Unciano is going to be hard to beat this evening. The flop comes , and all Vo can do is shake his head at the sight of his opponent's trip sevens. The turn is the , the river the , and McCue-Unciano improves to sevens full to win the big pot.
Vo is eliminated.
Kainalu McCue-Unciano - 2,410,000 (80 bb)
Viet Vo - Eliminated in 4th place ($24,956)
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 12:16 AM Local Time
Level: 25
Blinds: 15,000/30,000
Ante: 5,000
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 12:03 AM Local Time
The four remaining players are on a 15-minute break while the yellow T1,000 chips are colored up and raced off. Here's how they'll stack up when they return to 15,000/30,000 blinds with a 5,000 ante:
Kainalu McCue-Unciano - 1,345,000 (45 bb)
Gary Bolden - 895,000 (30 bb)
Viet Vo - 760,000 (25 bb)
Brandon Wittmeyer - 475,000 (16 bb)
Wednesday, March 1, 2017 12:02 AM Local Time
Brandon Wittmeyer opens the button to 50,000, and Kainalu McCue-Unciano three-bets to 150,000 in the small blind. Witrmeyer calls.
The flop is . McCue-Unciano continues for 100,000, and Wittmeyer calls. Both players check through the turn. The river is the . McCue-Unciano moves all in for about 480,000 effective, putting his opponent to the test for his full remaining stack. Wittmeyer gives it just a cursory look before sliding his cards into the muck, and McCue-Unciano wins the pot to move back into a comfortable chip lead.
Kainalu McCue-Unciano - 1,330,000 (55 bb)
Brandon Wittmeyer - 480,000 (20 bb)
Tuesday, February 28, 2017 11:49 PM Local Time
Kainalu McCue-Unciano opens the button to 48,000, Gary Bolden calls in the small blind, and Viet Vo defends his big blind to create three-way action.
The flop is . It checks to McCue-Unciano who continues for 60,000, and only Bolden calls. Heads-up, the turn is the , and both players check. The river is the , and Bolden leads for 161,000. McCue-Unciano calls.
Bolden shows , winning the pot with a flush. He's now the chip leader, a position that all four remaining players have held at one point or another at this final table.
Gary Bolden - 995,000 (41 bb)
Kainalu McCue-Unciano - 825,000 (34 bb)
Tuesday, February 28, 2017 11:34 PM Local Time
Arkadiy Tsinis (pictured) moves all in for 206,000 under the gun, and Kainalu McCue-Unciano calls on the button to put him at risk.
Tsinis:
McCue-Unciano:
It seems Tsinis has had this problem for the last two days straight, and this occurrence ends up spelling the end of his tournament. The board runs out , and McCue-Unciano locks up the pot one card early with aces up. Tsinis is eliminated.
Kainalu McCue-Unciano - 875,000
Arkadiy Tsinis - Eliminated in 5th place ($18,506)