WSOP Circuit Main Event Edges Near €185,652 First-Place Prize, Gold Ring

The temperature in Rozvadov, Czech Republic is at an all-time high since poker action has witnessed quite the tension in the past couple of days. King’s Casino welcomes poker players from all four corners of the world registering for participation in the WSOP Circuit Main Event, whereas one of the latest events to grant a coveted WSOPC Rings was the Oktoberfest tournament, crowning Michael Strauch.

World Series of Poker is well-known around the world as a premium poker congregation regardless of the location and the time of year. This is the reason why thousands of poker enthusiasts have already made their way to the picturesque town of Rozvadov which is situated in the vicinity of Germany. The heart of Europe has seen many a poker festivals through the years, bringing generous payouts during the WSOP Circuit as well.

Oktoberfest Has Its Impact on King’s Casino Too

Friday witnessed the long-anticipated Final table of the poker tournament which was seeking the fifth player to bag a shiny ring. Only as many as 25 players made it to this final stage and they were more than ready to fight for the end. Once poker action reached eliminations point, Jens Peter Thomsen was the first one to leave the race with the minimum payout for the day amounting to €2,227.

At the very beginning of poker action, Strauch occupied the runner-up position chip count-wise with some 7,350,000 to his name. He managed to maintain this advantage and climb one step further to the throne bringing him some €83,851. The chip leader Waldemar Eckstein, on the other hand, dropped dramatically throughout the day to the 14th position on the official leader board and bagged only €4,115 for his deep run in the tournament.

Runner-up position at the end of the day was claimed by the player who could not outplay Strauch in the heads-up duel. Frederick Forsyth is the participant who had to settle for the consolation prize of €47,508. This is how the poker event came to its conclusion, but this did not mean an end to riveting poker action at King’s Casino.

Main Event Increases the Heat

As tradition dictates, the culmination of every poker congregation comes with the Main Event. This tournament is usually projected to draw the largest crowd throughout its multiple starting flights and the numerous levels of action on the felt. The first starting flight of this year’s Main Event attracted some 226 players to their appointed seats.

Arturs Scerbaks from Latvia climbed all the way to the top of the unofficial rank list with a chip stack of 222,000. Martin Kabrhel also made his way into the tournament and amassed 150,000 to his name during Friday’s action. Saturday witnessed additional 334 players making their way into the event, motivated by the guaranteed prize pool of €1,000,000.

Jan Wieckenberg is the player who made it to the top of Day 1b with 218,000 to his name. Eyal Bensimhon, another familiar name also entered in an attempt to add one more WSOPC Ring to his collection. When all was said and done, two starting flights resulted in a total of 675 entries and an overall prize pool of €961,875.

Only the top 71 positions on the official rank list were eligible to a cash payout of the Main Event, meaning that Oleg Mandzjuk was the player bagging the minimum cash payout of the culminating event. He claimed some €3,655 for his good performance during the tournament. Following extensive action over Day 2, Austrian player Andreas Mages was the individual eliminated last with a bagful of €7,310.

This is how poker action has now boiled down to the last 20 survivors. The chip leader among them is Russian player Aleksandr Merzhvinskii who has a chip count of 2,545,000 heading into the last day of this culminating tournament. He has the biggest chance of winning the 12th WSOPC Ring if he proves he’s wort of it and maintains his leading position.