Friday, February 9, 2018 2:03 PM Local Time
Level: 5
Blinds: 100/200
Ante: 25
Friday, February 9, 2018 2:02 PM Local Time
There is about 2,200 in the pot and a board reading . A player in middle position bets 1,100. Blake Battaglia is the only other player in the hand. Battaglia raises to 3,500. His opponent calls.
The river is the . Both players check. The original bettor shows . Battaglia emits some frustration at the two pair. He, very quickly, flashes an ace before tossing his two cards to the muck.
Blake Battaglia - 20,900
Battaglia has already hit big this season. The Chicago, Illinois resident topped the Horseshoe Hammond Main Event back in October, winning $332,020.
Friday, February 9, 2018 1:51 PM Local Time
Earlier in the day Keith Gundrum lost a chunk of his stack after his opponent flopped a royal flush. Now, it has folded to Gundrum in middle position who moves all in for just under 2,000. Travis Lauson quickly calls from the small blind, and the players table their cards.
Gundrum:
Lauson:
The flop comes , increasing Lauson's lead when he flops a pair of aces. He increases his lead to two pair when the turn comes the . The river is the , and Gundrum is eliminated from play, with the option to re-enter one additional time this flight.
Travis Lauson - 31,500
Keith Gundrum - Eliminated
Friday, February 9, 2018 1:18 PM Local Time
| Level: | 4 | | Blinds: | 100/200 | |
Friday, February 9, 2018 1:01 PM Local Time
Players are now on their first break of the day. They will return in 15 minutes to play Level 4, with 100/200 blinds.
Friday, February 9, 2018 12:57 PM Local Time
The board reads . Jamey Kramer checks in the small blind, and Timothy Gundrum bets 5,000 in the cutoff. Kramer pauses for a few seconds before tossing in a chip to call.
Gundrum thinks that Kramer folded, so he turns over his hand, exposing for two pair.
"What are you doing," Kramer asks.
"Oh shoot," Gundrum says, making is obvious he thought that the hand was over prior to exposing his cards.
The floor is called over, and it's determined that the river will be delt, and that Gundrum will just have to play with his cards face up.
The river is the , and Kramer quickly announces that he is all in.
Gundrum pauses, and slowly mucks his cards, leaving himself only 1,500 behind. Kramer then shows , having fopped a royal flush.
"I would have gotten the rest of your chips had you not exposed your hand, right?" Kramer asks Gundrum.
Gundrum nods in agreement, and Kramer says, "Well, this way you are still alive."
"It's not everyday that someone flops a royal flush," a player at the table says as the pot is pushed over to Kramer.
James Kramer - 38,000
Timothy Gundrum - 1,500
Friday, February 9, 2018 12:50 PM Local Time
Kevin Saul opens to 400 with the button in front of him. Lee Rzentkowski three bets to 1,275 in the small blind. The big blind gets out of the way and Saul calls.
The flop comes . Rzentkowski bets 1,3000 and Saul calls.
The turn is the . Rzentkowski fires again, this time for his entire stack. The all-in bet of around 10,000 is enough to get Saul to lay down his hand.
A new hand his dealt, but the same two players are facing off again. With about 4,000 in the pot, the board reads . Saul checks. Rzentkowski bets 3,600. Saul sticks around with a call.
Both players check the river card. Rzentkowski turns over his hand, showing for a pair of eights. Saul mucks and Rzentkowski rakes in his second pot in two hands.
Lee Rzentkowski - 24,800
Kevin Saul - 21,700
Friday, February 9, 2018 12:25 PM Local Time
The board reads , when Craig Varnell bets 700 from under the gun. Niel Mittelman calls in the hijack.
The turn is the . This time Varnell bets 1,200, and Mittelman calls.
The river is the , and Varnell quickly bets 2,300.
"Twenty three hundred?" Mittleman questions the dealer. The dealer confirms, and Mittelman tosses out the chips to call.
Varnell turns over , having flopped a flush, and Mittleman quickly mucks without showing.
Craig Varnell - 19,000
Niel Mittelman - 18,500
Friday, February 9, 2018 12:22 PM Local Time
| Level: | 3 | | Blinds: | 75/150 | |
Friday, February 9, 2018 12:19 PM Local Time
Byron Ziebell has entered the Day 1A field. Ziebell is the defending Casino Champion from last years inaugural Potawatomi Circuit. The Wisconsinite cashed four times last season, including a first-place finish for his first gold ring.
So far this series, Ziebell has cashed three times with one final table.
Byron Ziebell - 20,000
Friday, February 9, 2018 11:58 AM Local Time
There is around 650 in the pot, and the board reads .
A player in late position bets 225, and Craig Trost pauses, smiles, and says, "I guess I am getting taken to value town here."
He waits a few more seconds before tossing in a chip and says, "Alright," turning over for two pair with an ace kicker.
The player to his right shows for two pair with a weaker kicker, and says, "The story here is that the player to my left sucks."
Everyone at the table giggles, and Trost says, "I was always calling," with a big smile on his face.
Craig Trost - 18,000
Friday, February 9, 2018 11:50 AM Local Time
There is around 700 in the pot and three players to see the flop.
A player in early position bets 400, and it folds to Keith McClelland in the small blind who calls. Kevin Saul raises to 2,100 in the big blind, and the player in early position folds. With action back on McClelland,he raisees to 5,400. Saul pauses before calling the raise.
The turn is the , and both players check. Both Saul and McClelland both check the river as well.
McClelland shows for a set of twos, but Saul turns over for a flush to take the pot.
Kevin Saul - 29,000
Keith McClelland - 7,000
Friday, February 9, 2018 11:49 AM Local Time
| Level: | 2 | | Blinds: | 50/100 | |
Friday, February 9, 2018 11:49 AM Local Time
The board reads and there are two players in the hand. The big blind checks it to Richard Bai in the hijack. Bai bets 175. His opponent calls.
The lands on the river. A check comes from the big blind again. Bai reaches for chips and bets 1,025. The big blind calls. Bai flips over . His opponent mucks and Bai wins the pot.
Richard Bai - 35,100
Friday, February 9, 2018 11:23 AM Local Time
With play just underway in the Potawatomi Main Event, a few familiar faces have braved the elements of a slightly snowy day here in the Midwest.
Tied for first place in World Series of Poker Circuit rings is Maurice Hawkins, with ten to his name. Hawkins is no stranger to the Midwest, having won the Council Bluffs WSOP Main Event the last two years in the row. With Main rings peppered all over the country, Hawkins is hoping to add his 11th ring here in the Potawatomi Main.
Niel Mittelman, Sam De Silva, Craig Varnell and Craig Trost are a few of the additional friendly Circuit regulars to register early in today's Main Event, with Janet Fitzgerald seated across the room in the morning mega event and expected to play the Main at the conclusion of the satellite.
Friday, February 9, 2018 11:03 AM Local Time
Cards are in the air for Flight A of the Potawatomi Main Event.
Friday, February 9, 2018 11:03 AM Local Time
| Level: | 1 | | Blinds: | 25/50 | |
Friday, February 9, 2018 4:47 AM Local Time
Friday, February 9, 2018 4:46 AM Local Time
The World Series of Poker Circuit series at Potawatomi is on the home stretch. This weekend is sure to bring a lot of hype, because the Main Event of the has arrived. Friday kicks off with the first starting leg of Event #10: $1,675 No-Limit Hold'em Main Event. The second starting leg will run the following day.
Here is an exact starting flight schedule for Event #10:
- Flight A: Friday at 11 a.m.
- Flight B: Saturday at 11 a.m.
The Main Event allows players to play in both flights. Eliminated players are allowed one re-entry per flight. Once a player bags chips in Flight A, they are not allowed to play in Flight B, unless they opt to forfeit their chip stack at the end of the initial flight.
Players will receive double the normal starting stack, providing them 20,000 in tournament chips to begin with. Another perk of the tournament is a structural increase in points given out to everyone who finishes in-the-money. Points earned in the Main Event could be vital in the race for Casino Champion. Between the Casino Champion and winner of the Main Event, there are two automatic bids for the 2017/18 Global Casino Championship up for grabs.
The Day 1 survivors from each of the two starting flights will combine Sunday, February 11th at 12:00 p.m. for Day 2 of the tournament.
Here is a quick rundown of the Main Event:
- Buy-in: $1,675
- Players start with 20,000 tournament chips
- Blinds start at 25/50
- Two separate starting flights
- Registration remains open until the start of Level 13 (~8:45 pm)
- Players are allowed one re-entry per flight
- Levels 1-15 are 40-minutes long, Levels 16+ are be 60-minutes long
- There will be a break every two hours
- Day 2 resumes Sunday at 12:00 pm, combining survivors from Flights A and B
- All players who earn a cash will receive Casino Championship points
- The winner automatically qualifies for the 2017/18 Global Casino Championship
Follow along with this page for live updates during Main Event action.