Tuesday, January 22, 2008 9:38 PM Local Time
That concludes our coverage of the 2008 Grand Tunica WSOPC Main Event Championship; we hope you enjoyed yourselves.
After three days of poker that could easily be described as "unusual," the 2008 WSOP Circuit Event - Tunica has drawn to a close. Day 1 saw 14 hours of play with 151 eliminations. Day 2 brought us to the other end of the spectrum, where we lost 20 players in just under five hours to set up the final table. Today started slow and many wondered if it would ever end, but things picked up considerably after the dinner break and a champion was crowned in just under nine and a half hours of play.
The PokerNews crew is headed to Europe next week for the European Poker Tour German Open in Dortmund, beginning Tuesday, January 29th. This €8,000 buy-in event expects to attract some of Europe's finest, including the likes of Katja Thater, Luca Pagano, Dario Minieri and recent PCA winner Bertrand Grospellier. We hope to see you then!
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 9:25 PM Local Time
After three grueling days of tournament poker, Bart Tichelman of Atlanta, Georgia has emerged the victor. A self-described amateur, Tichelman could be overheard commenting on a regular basis how playing and succeeding in this tournament was the most fun he's ever had. Posing here with his wife LeslieAnn, the smile could not be pried from Tichelman's face. Along with a once-in-a-lifetime story, Tichelman takes home $428,210, a WSOP Circuit Championship ring, and a seat in the 2008 WSOP Main Event. Congratulations Bart!
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 9:25 PM Local Time
On just the second hand of heads-up play, Bart Tichelman had the button and announced, "Raise." Before Tichelman had announced the size of the raise, Donald Nicholson moved all in. Tichelman called and the players showed:
Tichelman:
Nicholson:
The flop was decent for Tichelman as it came
. The
on the turn however was the best card Tichelman could see. It meant Nicholson was drawing dead and he had captured the title. Amongst the chaos, the dealer put down the meaningless
on the river. Donald Nicholson is our runner-up and will take home $236,163 for his strong finish.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 9:22 PM Local Time
With the elimination of Giovanni Marcacci, play is now heads-up.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 9:12 PM Local Time
Giovanni Marcacci had the button in seat 4 and raised to 200,000. Bart Tichelman reraised from the small blind to 500,000 total. Marcacci made the call and it was heads-up to the flop of
.
Tichelman was first to act and he moved all in. Marcacci stood up and paced around the stage, baffled. After about two minutes, Marcacci eventually called. The players showed:
Marcacci:
Tichelman:
Marcacci was in the lead but Tichelman was far from dead with an open-ended straight draw and an overcard. The turn came the
catapulting Tichelman into the lead. Marcacci needed an eight to win the pot, but the river brought the
. Tichelman stacked the pot and has an enormous chip lead headed into heads-up play. Marcacci was eliminated in third place and leaves with $129,760.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 9:05 PM Local Time
Shuffle up and deal!
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 9:04 PM Local Time
The break has been extended while the players have a discussion.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 8:48 PM Local Time
Here are the players' current chip counts:
Bart Tichelman - 1,800,000
Giovanni Marcacci - 1,235,000
Donald Nicholson - 570,000
Average stack - 1,200,000
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 8:46 PM Local Time
The players are on a short break to change the batteries in their electronic microphones. Play will resume in approximately five minutes.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 8:41 PM Local Time
At this point, the three players remaining seem less inclined to tangle with each other without a premium holding. This could be due to the considerable monetary difference between third and second-place money, or it could just be due to a cold run of cards for all involved. Either way, a large majority of hands are being won with a preflop raise from the button or small blind.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 8:33 PM Local Time
Giovanni Marcacci had the button in seat 4 and folded. Bart Tichelman called from the small blind and Donald Nicholson checked his big blind option. It was heads-up to the flop of
. Tichelman bet 100,000 and Nicholson called. Fourth street brought the
. Tichelman didn't slow down, this time betting 200,000. Nicholson asked for a count on Tichelman's chips and it was determined that Tichelman had 975,000 in addition to the bet of 200,000. Nicholson pondered briefly and then called. The river came the
. Tichelman pushed all in for his remaining 975,000. Nicholson thought for roughly three minutes before finally folding. Tichelman threw his cards into the muck and stacked the pot.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 8:14 PM Local Time
Donald Nicholson had the button in seat 8 and he raised to 100,000. Giovanni Marcacci called from the small blind while Tichelman passed. The two took a flop of
heads-up. Marcacci checked and Nicholson moved all in for 510,000. Marcacci thought for about a minute before finally calling. The players showed:
Marcacci:
Nicholson:
The turn came the
, a brick for Marcacci. He would need to catch an ace or five on fifth street to eliminate Nicholson. The
on the river was no help for Marcacci and Nicholson doubled through him.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 8:06 PM Local Time
With the elimination of John Devia, play is now three-handed.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 8:00 PM Local Time
Bart Tichelman had the button in seat 7 and raised to 150,000. Action folded to John Devia in the big blind, who moved all in. Tichelman, who had Devia well-covered, made the call. The players showed:
Devia:
Tichelman:
The flop was not what Devia had in mind, coming
. The
gave Devia a bit of hope, but that hope was short-lived when the
hit the river. Tichelman took down the pot and the once-dominant Devia was out the door in fourth place $103,808 richer.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 7:58 PM Local Time
Tournament Director Brooks Turk has gotten into the comedic habit of referring to Donald Nicholson as "The Donald" when announcing the action. Recently, after excessive laughter from the gallery, Turk said, "He's going to meet me out in the parking lot and rough me up for this." The crowd giggled and a dealer coordinator could be overheard yelling: "Tell him to get in line!"
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 7:49 PM Local Time
John Devia had the button in seat 3. Ben Sabrin moved all in from the cutoff seat for just over 400,000. Giovanni Marcacci reraised all in. The other players folded and the players showed:
Marcacci:
Sabrin:
The flop was dry for Sabrin, coming
. The turn left him a tiny bit of hope as it dropped the
. The river came the case
and Marcacci's three of a kind was best. Marcacci took down the pot and sent Sabrin home in fifth place. Sabrin earned a cool $77,856 in the process.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 7:47 PM Local Time
With the increase in blinds and antes, there is now 85,000 in the pot before the cards are dealt.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 7:45 PM Local Time
Everyone seated at the table is guaranteed over $75,000 USD.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 7:44 PM Local Time
Shuffle up and deal!
Tuesday, January 22, 2008 7:38 PM Local Time
Here are the players' current chip counts:
Bart Tichelman - 1,275,000
Giovanni Marcacci - 980,000
Donald Nicholson - 590,000
Ben Sabrin - 410,000
John Devia - 350,000