Sunday, February 17, 2019 10:54 PM Local Time
Ronald Boehlert Wins Event #13, $250 No-Limit Hold'em ($14,230)
Ronald Boehlert, of Conway, SC, has earned his first gold Circuit ring by winning Event #13 at Circuit Coconut Beach, $250 No-Limit Hold'em Seniors. Boehlert, 64, earned a winner's prize of $14,230 in this event open only to players age 50 and up.
According to Boehlert, a native of New York who now lives in the Myrtle Beach (SC) area, he'd never really dreamed of winning a ring, though he has a solid family poker connection. His stepson, David Davenport, won the main event at the Circuit Council Bluffs (IA) stop in April of 2018. Naturally, Boehlert's victory here gives him some dinner-table bragging rights as well.
Boehlert enjoys playing affordably-priced poker events, and this one was right in his comfort zone. He drove his Harley-Davidson down from South Carolina and stayed at the nearby home of his brother-in-law, Dan D'Amico. D'Amico also played this event, and he was on hand to rail Boehlert's win.
Boehlert is, to say the least, a Harley enthusiast. For his card capper, he uses a well-worn "Harley Owner Group" brass challenge coin, a memento of his days as a Harley rally coordinator in New York State. He carries the coin with him everywhere he goes.
Not only was this win Boehlert's first WSOP cash, it was only his second recorded tournament cash of any sort, though many of the tourneys he favors don't have results published in online databases. It's also a rare treat for Boehlert to be able to attend a major tourney, as his home in South Carolina is hundreds of miles away from the nearest poker-dealing casino.
"I can't believe I won a WSOP ring!" was Boehlert's mantra after the event was over, as his excitement bubbled over. But he'll be believing and remembering it from now on.