At 1:00 today, there were only 39 players with a chance to become the next WSOPC $1,700 Main Event champion at the Tulsa Hard Rock in Oklahoma. Day 1a and 1b combined saw a total of 376 entrants generate a prize pool of $569,640, with the eyes of the contenders fixed upon the first place prize of $112,945. After 10 levels of play today, just two of that initial field of 39 remain with shot to take down the title.
5-time WSOPC ring winner Jesse Jones (12,255,000) came into the final table with the overall chip lead and he maintained it for the entire duration until a brief moment during the heads up match. Hailing from Springfield Missouri and a staple of cash games all around the south and midwest, he has secured his highest finish ever in a WSOPC Main Event no matter what happens tomorrow. This year alone he won his fifth ring for $179,655 over in Cherokee, then followed it up with a third place finish in the main event in Cherokee later that week for a career best $184,167. Can this fourth WSOPC Main Event final table turn into Jones' first WSOPC Main banner?
Starting the final table second in chips and remaining second in chips at day's end is 9-time WSOPC ring winner Dave Alfa (2,805,000). Alfa's week has already been fruitful at the Hard Rock Tulsa. His first day he bagged up the Monster Stack, won the $600 Black Chip Bounty for his eighth ring during the off day, then won his ninth the next day in the Monster Stack. Alfa won his first WSOPC Circuit Main in 2019 at Choctaw for a career best score of $320,998 and is looking to become the newest member of the multiple Main Event champion club. Last week it was Matt Higgins' turn to make his tenth WSOPC ring a Main Event in Tunica, is it Alfa's turn tomorrow?
WSOPC Tulsa Main Event Final Table Results
- $112,945
- $74,405
- Debbie Lee - $50,316
- Scott Hall - $34,954
- Jeffery Sowell - $24,964
- Tyler Barnes - $18,343
- Jimmie Taylor - $13,878
- Luke Prestholt - $10,822
- Stephan Guy - $8,705
Day 2 Action
The first level of the day saw a flurry of eliminations that included Bryan Campanello (38th-$4,838), WSOP bracelet winner Michael Perrone (35th-$4,838), Rodney Spriggs (33rd-$4,838), and Zechariah Armendariz (30th-$4,838). Despite starting the day as one of the big stacks, Arturo Toscano (28th-$4,838) found himself falling to Jesse Jones after his two pair got counterfeit on the end, bring the field down to three tables.
After that, Jones continued his dominating performance at the final two tables. Connor Steinbrook (26th-$5,080) and John Montgomery (25th-$5,080) both fell in the same hand to Jones' kings. At the other table, Dave Alfa began his ascension up the counts as his ace-queen knocked out Jerry Harrell (23rd-$5,080) after avoiding Andre Allen's (19th-$5,080) ace-king. Lou Barlow (18th-$5,080) and Michael Renfro (16th-$5,517) both fell to Luke Prestholt who also began to climb up the counts.
WSOPC Council Bluffs Main Event champion Ryan Brown (14th-$5,517) saw his ace-queen cracked by Alfa's seven-five while Hanunyah Fish's (13th-$5,517) eight-six couldn't crack Tyler Barnes' ace-queen. Robert Noce (12th-$6,209) moved all in with pocket nines on the turn against Jones only to see he was drawing dead and Bryce Laymance (11th-$7,231) jammed his ace-two into Jones' aces. With Laymance's elimination, the final table of ten was set.
Final Table Action
Debbie Lee began the final table with one of the shorter stacks, but a quick double against Victor Hayes would see a flipping of the script with Hayes falling to the shortest stack. He would move his final chips in with pocket nines against Alfa's queens and would find a nine on the flop, but Alfa's four-flush came in on the turn. No pairing of the board on the river would see Alfa narrow the gap between himself and Jones while Hayes was eliminated in tenth place for $7,231.
Jones and Alfa clashed in a sizable three-bet pot that also included Stephan Guy that would see a further narrowing of the stacks while Guy would be pushed down to the shortest stack. He would move in his last chips holding ace-six on the button and get looked up by both Jones and Barnes. Jones bet Barnes out on the turn after his king-queen turned the nut-straight and Guy collected $8,705 for his ninth place finish.
Prestholt would be next to go as his stack dwindled and he found himself in a pot holding nine-five suited up against Lee and Alfa. The flop would bring Prestholt a pair and a flush draw, up against Lee's top pair with ace-five. Lee moved in on the turn to see Alfa fold and no flush came home for Prestholt. Lee would climb into third on the leaderboard and Prestholt's run finished in eighth place, good for $10,822.
Next to go would be Jimmie Taylor in seventh place. The Oklahoma poker player would collect a career high score at the final table for $13,878, but he would not be able to increase his take any further. His pocket nines wouldn't survive against Jeffery Sowell's king-queen as a queen high board would spell the end for Taylor just before the dinner break.
It would be a double up against Sowell for Barnes to boost his stack up, but his good fortune came to an end in a three-bet pot with Jones. Barnes' ace-seven would flop top pair against Jones' pocket sixes, but Jones would turn a seven-high straight. The river brought Barnes a wheel and he called only to see the bad news and Barnes collected $18,343 for his sixth place finish.
Sowell's momentum at the table would also come to a halt at the hands of Jones when he moved in his final chips with pocket fours and Jones called with ace-king. A king-high board bring the pot to Jones and give him over half of the chips in play while Sowell finished in fifth place, collecting $24,964 for his efforts.
Start of day chip leader Scott Hall hung around as one of the shorter stacks for the majority of the final table, finding multiple ladders as he did it. His laddering would come to an end when he limp-jammed pocket tens in the small blind against Lee's queen-ten in the big blind. A queen on the turn would give the pot to Lee and the WSOPC Ameristar Main Event champion finished in fourth place for $34,954.
From cracking pocket tens to busting to them, next to go was Lee who jammed her pocket fours over Dave Alfa's open. Alfa called and his tens found a set on the turn to leave the pot locked up for Alfa to set the stage for heads up, while Lee finished in third place for $50,316, just a few days after finishing in 7th place at the WSOPC in Tunica.
The players will resume play tomorrow at 12:00 pm with blinds at 50,000/100,000, with a 100,000 big blind ante. Levels will last one hour each and play will continue until a winner is crowned.
That will conclude today's coverage of the WSOPC in Tulsa, be sure to check back into Poker.Org tomorrow for coverage of the eventual winner.
