News
SEVEN YEARS IN THE MAKING
TUNICA, MS – Jonathan Elliott, a 35-year old chemical operator from Soddy Daisy, TN is the newest owner of a Circuit Event gold ring after winning the $340 buy-in no-limit hold’em event #2 of the World Series of Poker Circuit Events at Harrah’s Tunica.
Event #2 attracted a field of 293 players vying for a first place prize of $19,401 and the ring.
Elliott was the chip leader coming into the final table and maintained his lead for much of the evening.
| Name | Hometown | Seat | Chip Count |
| Jeff Houston | Fort Madison, IA | 1 | 70,000 |
| Jim Mink | Houston, TX | 2 | 378,000 |
| Joe McArthur | Palatine, IL | 3 | 115,000 |
| Houston White | Nashville, TN | 4 | 450,000 |
| Jonathan Elliott | Soddy Daisy, TN | 5 | 647,000 |
| Donald Holford | Norris, IL | 6 | 540,000 |
| Kevin Buck | Lockport, IL | 7 | 185,000 |
| Jack Armstrong | Burlington, IA | 8 | 270,000 |
| Josh Kassinger | Dexter, MO | 9 | 372,000 |
Ninth Place
Shortly after tripling up his 34k stack to 118k with pocket aces, Joe McArthur was the first elimination after moving all-in pre-flop with 
. Kevin Buck was the benefactor after calling with 
. An 8 on the turn left McArthur drawing dead. Ninth place paid $1,653.
Eighth Place
After about an hour of final table play, the eight remaining players stuck a deal during the break. While details were not disclosed, they decided to play it out for the ring.
Halfway through the next level, a monster hand developed when Jack Armstrong moved all-in pre-flop. Josh Kassinger and Donald Holford made the call and saw a flop of 
. Holford moved all-in with 
and Armstrong made the call turning over a flopped set of 8’s. Armstrong was far ahead of both of his opponents with 
.
After a 
on the turn came the whammy.
An 
on the river gave Kassinger quads, sending Holford out in 7th and a dismayed Armstrong to the rail in 8th. 7th and 8th places officially paid $2,404 and $1,949 respectively
Sixth Place
The sixth place finisher was Jeff Houston. All-in, Houston was eliminated after his 
was outflopped
by Jim Mink’s 
. The 50-year old farmer from Iowa officially collected $3,602.
Fifth Place
Joshua Kassinger was the next player escorted to the payout table. After seeing his stack dwindle to just over 150,000, Kassinger moved all-in with 
and was unable to improve on Houston White’s 
. Kassinger took home $4,800 for fifth
Fourth Place
A few hands after players returned from dinner break, Kevin Buck moved all-in with pocket 10’s. Mink made the call with A-K suited. An ace on the flop and blanks on the turn and river ended Buck’s tournament run. Buck is a 32-year old musician whose music can be heard at www.kevinmbuck.com. Fourth place officially paid $6,006.
Third Place
Houston White was eliminated in third place after his pocket 10’s were unable to hold up against Kassinger’s 
. The 24-year old from Nashville was officially picked up $8,402
Second Place
Heads-up play began shortly before 10:00 pm with Elliott holding nearly a 5-1 chip lead over Mink. With blinds and antes at 20,000/40,000/5,000, mink raised pre-flop to 80,000 and Elliott moved all-in. Mink made the call with his remaining chips, turning over A-2 suited. Elliott showed A-K. The jack-high board missed both players, giving Elliott his first Circuit Event ring and an official payout of $19,401. Mink officially took home $11,804 for second.
"Yeah a bit disappointed, I really wanted that ring," said Mink, an oilfield consultant from Houston, TX who has been chasing his first Circuit Event ring since 2005. This was his third Circuit final table appearance.
Mink’s WSOP history was in stark contrast to Elliott’s, whose win also marked his first Circuit Event cash ever.
"I’m stoked," said Elliott. "I’ve been playing Hold’em about seven years, but this is my first Circuit cash."
Still to come are 17 more events and daily (single-day) non-ring $230 and $340 buy-in events which begin at 4 pm and 7pm. The WSOP Circuit at Harrah’s Tunica runs through February 10th.
