Friday, August 23, 2019 9:42 PM Local Time
Poker Dealer Max Wiosna Ships a Ring in Event #4: $400 NLH Turbo
While PokerNews is only live reporting the High Roller and Main Event tournaments at the World Series of Poker Circuit Foxwoods stop, there have been plenty of other side events playing out all week long.
One of them was Event #4: $400 NLH Turbo, a tournament that drew 322 runners and created a $106,260 prize pool. Among those to finish in the top 49 and make the money were Jason Pardy (14th - $1,317), Cheryl Lanigan (22nd - $818), Steven Sanzaro (27th - $733), Mike Azzaro (33rd - $573), Roland Israelashvili (41st - $573), Hiroaki Harada (47th - $552).
In the end, it was 29-year-old poker dealer Max Wiosna of Vernon, Connecticut coming out on top to win $23,664 and his first gold ring.
"It's kinda surreal. I work a lot at MGM Springfield, so I don't get a lot of time to play," explained Wiosna. "I just do it for fun. I used to try to have too much fun, and it kinda hurt my bankroll."
He added: "I needed a job and the casino was opening up last August, so I just decided to take the class and see where it would go."
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|
| 1 | Max Wiosna | Vernon, Connecticut | $23,664 |
| 2 | Christopher Leach | Fairfax Station, Virginia | $14,621 |
| 3 | Jason Blodgett | Manchester, New Hampshire | $10,456 |
| 4 | Kirk Spano | Muskego, Wisconsin | $7,598 |
| 5 | Matthew Zola | Riverside, Connecticut | $5,610 |
| 6 | Hoby Shapiro | Woodbury, New York | $4,219 |
| 7 | David Espinola | Dracut, Massachusetts | $3,230 |
| 8 | Kevin Sniffin | Roxbury, Connecticut | $2,508 |
| 9 | Michael Cervone | Merrick, New York | $2,010 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 9:34 PM Local Time
Updated Chip Counts
| Ralph Macri | 175,000 | 19,000  |
| Stanley Lee | 170,000 | 117,000 |
| Michael Wang | 120,000 | 0  |
| Matthew Wantman | 115,000 | 85,500 |
| Maurice Hawkins | 71,000 | 22,000 |
| Allen Kessler | 58,000 | -9,000 |
| Roland Israelashvili | 40,000 | -18,000 |
| Chico Pho | 28,000 | 28,000 |
| Vincent Moscati | 27,000 | 27,000 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 9:26 PM Local Time
Rossitto Fires Out Opponent
On the turn the board read , Michael Rossitto bet 5,100 over to his opponent who called. The river was the . Rossitto fired again, this time for 8,500.
This bet caused his opponent to think it over for several moments before tossing his cards into the muck and Rossitto took in the pot.
| Michael Rossitto | 61,000 | 3,000 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 9:16 PM Local Time
Ostapchenko Shoves on the Big Stack
On the river the board read . Andrew Ostapchenko moved all in into a pot of roughly 75,000.
Scott Efron considered the shove but folded fairly quickly as Ostapchenko collected the pot.
| Scott Efron | 225,000 | -45,000 |
| Andrew Ostapchenko | 125,000 | -10,000 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 9:06 PM Local Time
Level 12 started
Level: 12
Blinds: 800/1,600
Ante: 1,600
Friday, August 23, 2019 9:03 PM Local Time
Pahuja Continues to Climb
Mukul Pahuja opened to 2,200 from the cutoff, Paul Cioffi three-bet to 7,500 and Pahuja called to see the flop. Pahuja checked to Cioffi who bet 8,000 and Pahuja then check-raised all in. Cioffi quickly threw his cards into the muck, sending the pot to Pahuja.
| Mukul Pahuja | 120,000 | 120,000 |
| Paul Cioffi | 34,500 | -14,000 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 8:50 PM Local Time
Efron Nails River to Score Huge Pot
Scott Efron moved all in for his remaining 126,000 after his opponent bet 23,000 on a wet flop of . His opponent thought for a while without deciding. He counted out the call and assessed Efron who began to say something out loud before being told by the dealer to remain quiet.
After several moments the call was made. Efron turned over the and saw the bad news as his opponent had the for two pair. The turn was the and the river came the to give Efron what was likely the largest pot of the day thus far.
| Scott Efron | 270,000 | 270,000 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 8:39 PM Local Time
Pahvua Triples on the Turn
The flop showed and there was around 8,000 in the middle when Mukul Pahuja moved all in for 28,900. His neighbor opponent called and the button opponent moved all in over the top for 74,500 total.
The third player ducked and the remaining two tabled their hands. Pahuja was behind after seeing the of his opponent, but Pahuja still had outs as he was holding for a flush draw and the landed on the turn, giving Pahuja a flush and the best hand.
A river changed nothing as he took down the pot with his turned flush, pulling in the pot for a complete triple up.
| Mukul Pahvja | 105,500 | 105,500 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 8:33 PM Local Time
Garshofsky Comes From Behind to Bust Opponent
Mitch Garshofsky had his opponent covered and at risk preflop holding against . A deuce hit the flop to send Garshofsky into the lead and he would not look back as a the turn and river kept his pair of twos ahead to bust his opponent.
| Mitch Garshofsky | 63,000 | 2,000 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 8:26 PM Local Time
Level 11 started
Level: 11
Blinds: 600/1,200
Ante: 1,200
Friday, August 23, 2019 8:11 PM Local Time
Giulino Extracts All of Moscati's Chips
The flop showed and there was around 9,000 in the pot. Action checked to Joseph Giulino who bet 3,800 and a small blind opponent check-called. Vincent Moscati check-raised to a massive 25,000 and Giulino was the only person to call.
A fell as the turn card and Moscati moved all in for this remaining 6,300. Giulino snap-called and the two tabled their cards.
Vincent Moscati:
Joseph Giulino:
Moscati needed to hit to keep his hopes alive, but an changed nothing, missing Moscati who was eliminated from the tournament to the likes of Giuilino and his pocket ladies.
| Joseph Giulino | 152,000 | 89,000 |
| Vincent Moscati | 0 | -38,000 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 8:07 PM Local Time
Lee Shoves Out Opponent
On the turn the board read . Stanley Lee bet 8,500 and was called by his opponent. The river came the . his opponent checked immdiately. Lee took his time before moving all of his chips into the middle to cause his opponent to snap fold and hand the pot to Lee.
| Stanley Lee | 53,000 | 18,000 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 7:57 PM Local Time
Updated Chip Counts
| Michael Wang | 120,000 | -3,000 |
| Bob Ricciuti | 115,000 | 63,000 |
| Andrew Dubuque | 95,000 | 48,000 |
| Allen Kessler | 67,000 | 9,000 |
| Roland Israelashvili | 58,000 | -25,000 |
| Gregory Neal | 47,000 | -48,000 |
| Dave Stefanski | 40,000 | -3,000 |
| Vincent Moscati | 38,000 | 8,600 |
| Stanley Lee | 35,000 | 35,000 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 7:48 PM Local Time
Bob Ricciuti Claims Event #3: $600 NLH Title for $134,413
While PokerNews is only live reporting the High Roller and Main Event tournaments at the World Series of Poker Circuit Foxwoods stop, there have been plenty of other side events playing out all week long.
One of them was Event #3: $600 NLH, a tournament that drew 1,754 entries over five starting flights and created a $903,310 prize pool.
Among those to finish in the top 264 and make the money were Mike Wang (14th - $9,846), Andrew Cooper (28th - $3,974), Benjamin Sears (37th - $2,529), Stephen Silverman (59th - $1,896), Daniel Weinman (80th - $1,535), Mike Azzaro (106th - $1,174), and Dan Barry (121st - $1,174).
In the end, local favorite Bob Ricciuti from Johnston, Rhode Island took it down in front of his big rail for $134,413 and his first gold ring.
"I have a reputation for being bitter because I've been around a long time and I've never gotten a big payday. People that know me know the real me. They'll see you when you're busting a tournament, and the whole world is looking at you at your weakest moment. So, it feels like vindication. It feels really nice," said an emotional Ricciuti.
He added: "For the first couple of years I was playing professionally we were struggling. My daughter was young. But here I am 13 years later and I'm still grinding it out. I'm always fighting for my life – I'm fighting for my family."
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|
| 1 | Robert Ricciuti | Johnston, Rhode Island | $134,413 |
| 2 | Corbin Avery | Claremont, New Hampshire | $83,105 |
| 3 | Rafael Polanco | N/A | $63,683 |
| 4 | Albert Arcand | Boston, Massachusetts | $49,140 |
| 5 | Dennis Gokman | Jersey City, New Jersey | $38,210 |
| 6 | Jovy Ounthongdy | East Hartford, Connecticut | $29,900 |
| 7 | John Phan | Seattle, Washington | $23,576 |
| 8 | Daniel Lee | Medford, Massachusetts | $18,789 |
| 9 | Steven Wojcik | N/A | $15,215 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 6:30 PM Local Time
Dinner Break
Players are now on a 75 minute dinner break.
Friday, August 23, 2019 6:25 PM Local Time
Updated Chip Counts
| Andrew Ostapchenko | 135,000 | 5,000 |
| Michael Wang | 123,000 | -19,000 |
| Roland Israelashvili | 83,000 | 53,000 |
| Michael Rossitto | 58,000 | 23,500 |
| Mitch Garshofsky | 56,000 | 4,000 |
| Vincent Moscati | 29,400 | -3,600 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 6:25 PM Local Time
Updated Chip Counts
| Andrew Ostapchenko | 135,000 | 5,000 |
| Michael Wang | 123,000 | -19,000 |
| Roland Israelashvili | 83,000 | 53,000 |
| Michael Rossitto | 58,000 | 23,500 |
| Mitch Garshofsky | 56,000 | 4,000 |
| Vincent Moscati | 29,400 | -3,600 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 6:21 PM Local Time
Li Colletcs
Guang Li was seen taking in a pot as his was the winning two pair hand on a board that showed which boosted his stack to above 100,000.
| Guang Li | 112,000 | 112,000 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 6:13 PM Local Time
Smith Takes an Exit to Christensen
A player opened to 1,600 from the hijack, Erik Christensen called on the button and Guy Smith moved all in for 6,000 in the small blind. Both of his opponents called and the flop came down .
Action checked to Christensen, he fired in a bet and his opponent instantly mucked. Christensen tabled for two pair and Smith turned over .
The board ran out and Smith failed to connect, losing to the full house of Christensen as he was eliminated from the tournament.
| Erik Christensen | 65,500 | |
| Guy Smith | 0 | -46,000 |
Friday, August 23, 2019 5:49 PM Local Time
Scott Robbins Wins WSOPC Foxwoods $250 Seniors Event for $18,811
While PokerNews is only live reporting the High Roller and Main Event tournaments at the World Series of Poker Circuit Foxwoods stop, there have been plenty of other side events playing out all week long.
One of them was the $250 Seniors Event, a tournament that drew 464 entrants and created a $92,800 prize pool.
Among those to cash but fall short of making the final table were Merle Connors (11th - $1,373), Walter Kuhl (15th - $1,122), Scott Robinson (21st - $779), Kevin Rigney (25th - $575), Ed Maley (29th - $510), John Testa (31st - $454), Alexander Liao (35th - $417), Scott Baldyga (38th - $380), Pierre Saba (42nd - $380), Scott Solomon (49th - $361), William Cera (55th - $352), Alan Stuart (69th - $334), and Michael Muniz (70th - $334).
In the end, it was Scott Robbins coming out on top to win the $18,811 first-place prize and accompanying WSOP Circuit gold ring.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|
| 1 | Scott Robbins | Millbury, Massachusetts | $18,811 |
| 2 | Thomas Dragone | Trumbull, Connecticut | $11,628 |
| 3 | Malcolm Mason | Waterbury, Connecticut | $8,491 |
| 4 | Alfred Borges | Taunton, Massachusetts | $6,283 |
| 5 | Scott Inman | Wallingford, Connecticut | $4,705 |
| 6 | David Strain | Granby, Connecticut | $3,582 |
| 7 | Tedford Armistead | Acton, Massachusetts | $2,756 |
| 8 | Richard Diotalevi | Milford, Massachusetts | $2,153 |
| 9 | James Rafferty | Salem, New Hampshire | $1,738 |