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Wednesday, March 23, 2016 11:23 PM Local Time
Joe Rodriguez is the champion of Event #8 at Harrah’s Atlantic City, defeating a field of 165 entries to win his first gold ring. In addition to the jewelry, Rodriguez earned the top prize of $13,860 and 50 points toward the race for seats in the WSOP Global Casino Championship.
The champ is a 26-year-old pro from Long Island, and he’s been playing poker full time for about two years. “My friend introduced me to the game when I was 19, and I thought it was stupid at first,” he said. “After playing for a little bit, though, I found out there’s a lot more to it. It’s a hard game.”
It certainly can be. Rodriguez’s luck ran afoul midway through Day 1 when a nasty two-outer knocked him back down to starting stack. He proceeded to bluff off half of his remaining chips a couple orbits later, dropping all the way down to 4,500 chips. Things turned around in the second half of the day, though, and by the time the field was reduced to six players, Rodriguez was second in chips and breathing down the neck of the leader.
The final table began on Tuesday afternoon, and Rodriguez’s strategy played out well. “I just watched everyone take each other out,” he said. Just over an hour after play began, Rodriguez was heads up with DJ MacKinnon for the ring, facing a significant chip disadvantage. MacKinnon was in a familiar spot too, two seasons removed from a runner-up finish in the same six-max event right here at Harrah’s.
“Against a player like DJ?” Rodriguez shook his head. “I didn’t think I ever really had a chance. I just knew that I had to keep going. It took me a while to figure him out. At first, I thought he was really, really tight, but I just had to adjust to him heads up.”
Early in the duel, Rodriguez found a lucky double with ace-eight against ace-king, drawing nearly even and setting the tone for what would be a grueling heads-up match. Nearly five hours later, they were still battling, having traded the chip lead back and forth several times.
As is so often the case in tournament poker, it all came down to flip, with Rodriguez holding ace-king and MacKinnon pocket tens. An ace on the turn all but ended MacKinnon’s hopes for his second gold ring, and a safe river card secured Rodriguez’s win.
Wednesday, March 23, 2016 8:39 PM Local Time
It took five hours of heads-up battling, but Joe Rodriguez has just defeated DJ MacKinnon to win his first gold ring. A recap of his victory will be published shortly.
Joe Rodriguez - Winner ($13,860)
DJ MacKinnon - 2nd place ($8,568)Wednesday, March 23, 2016 3:29 PM Local Time
For the second time in three seasons, DJ MacKinnon is heads up for the ring in the six-max event here at Harrah's. He finished as the runner-up last time, but he enters this duel with a commanding chip lead over Joe Rodriguez.
DJ MacKinnon - 1,270,000
Joe Rodriguez - 380,000
Binds are 5,000/10,000 with a 1,000 ante, so there's still plenty of play left for this battle.
Wednesday, March 23, 2016 3:26 PM Local Time
Wednesday, March 23, 2016 3:02 PM Local Time
Wednesday, March 23, 2016 2:33 PM Local Time
Wednesday, March 23, 2016 2:24 PM Local Time
Wednesday, March 23, 2016 2:02 PM Local Time
The six remaining players have taken their seats at the final table, and Day 2 is underway.
Wednesday, March 23, 2016 12:32 AM Local Time
After yet another deep run, Chris Reslock is eliminated in seventh place, reducing the field to the final table and signaling the end of Day 1. Here's how the table is set up as play concludes:
Seat 1: Sean Kline - 147,000 (25 bb)
Seat 2: DJ MacKinnon - 268,000 (45 bb)
Seat 3: Alexander Andujar - 265,000 (44 bb)
Seat 4: Joe Rodriguez - 362,000 (60 bb)
Seat 5: Rex Clinkscales - 376,000 (63 bb)
Seat 6: Sundiata DeVore - 233,000 (39 bb)
Clinkscales and MacKinnon are both ring winners in the hunt for their second, while the others are each seeking the first of their respective careers.
Blinds will be 3,000/6,000 with a 1,000 ante when play resumes, and the average stack of more than 45 big blinds should allow for plenty of play at the final table. Everyone left is guaranteed to earn at least $2,285, with a gold ring and a top prize of $13,860 awaiting the eventual winner. Cards go in the air at 2:00 p.m.
Tuesday, March 22, 2016 9:33 PM Local Time
Right near the tail end of Level 15, the field is reduced to 18 players, and they're now in the money. Everyone remaining is guaranteed to earn at least $614, and they're in the process of redrawing for new seats around the final three tables. Action continues until the final table is set or until the end of Level 21, whichever comes first.
Tuesday, March 22, 2016 7:27 PM Local Time
Registration is closed for Event #8, and the numbers are in. This six-max event attracted 165 players, generating a prizepool worth $49,500. That money will be shared by the final 18 players, with a min-cash worth $614. A gold ring awaits the winner, along with a top prize of $13,860.
A full breakdown of the payouts can be found in the Prizepool tab.
The board shows 33 players remaining as the field returns from their dinner break. Blinds are 800/1,600 with a 200 ante, so the average stack is just north of 30 big blinds.
Tuesday, March 22, 2016 1:57 PM Local Time
Level 4 is just coming to a close, and the players are heading out for their first break of the day. The number of entries is still blank on the clock, but a quick count sees 22 tables in play with 12 open seats. That means about 120 players have joined so far with late registration available until the end of the next break.
Tuesday, March 22, 2016 12:03 PM Local Time
The eighth event on the calendar this series is the six-max event, and it's just getting underway inside the ballroom at Harrah's. Players begin with 10,000 in chips, and levels are 30 minutes apiece to begin. Late registration is available until the start of Level 9.
Cards are in the air.