April 24-27
Months since Preston McEwen's first WSOP Circuit ring at a $135 Deepstack in Tunica in 2018.
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1ST
Preston McEwen
$105,270
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2ND
Charles Hopper
$69,641
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3RD
Dave Alfa
$47,284
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4TH
Justin Donato
$32,969
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5TH
Levi Carden
$23,623
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6TH
Richard Sinclair
$17,408
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7TH
Cody Stanford
$13,204
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8TH
Dylan Lemery
$10,317
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9TH
Bradley Wilkerson
$8,312
Preston McEwen won his 10th ring on Monday after one of the fastest WSOPC Main Event finales in recent memory in Tunica, where everything was over in less than 50 minutes.
McEwen came into the day already in control after a huge late-night surge on Day 2, where his pocket tens held in a massive flip to knock out two players and bring the field down to the final five. From there, he never let up.
“Today, just unreal sun run,” McEwen said. “Everything seemed to be clicking. It all came together this week.”
Home casino advantage
The run continued right into the final day. During the final five, McEwen picked up two more key eliminations in tough spots, first busting Levi Carden when he turned a full house against trips, then sending Dave Alfa out in a flush over flush cooler. In a short amount of time, the field was nearly gone, and McEwen had complete control.
For McEwen, the win is a big one on multiple levels. It marks his 10th Circuit ring, putting him into the rare double-digit club, and it also gives him a second Tunica Main Event title at a place that means a lot to him.
“I grew up playing in this casino. This is what I consider my home casino,” he said. “To take down my second Main back on home turf feels really good.”
It hasn’t all been smooth sailing to get here. Like most long-time Circuit grinders, McEwen has dealt with plenty of swings, but this week everything lined up at once.
“The past year has been kind of rough,” he said. “You just have to trust the process, and when it’s time to run hot, capitalize on it. I’m just lucky it all came together this week.”
The final table moved quickly, and no one was able to slow him down. Charles Hopper battled his way to a runner-up finish for $69,641 after just sitting back and mostly watching McEwen eliminate players. He was incredibly short when Alfa got cooled off in third, but he couldn’t mount the comeback against the freight train that was McEwen.
In the end, it was a clean and controlled finish from McEwen, capping off a run where he built momentum late on Day 2 and carried it straight through to the title.
The WSOP Circuit is also wrapping up in Lake Tahoe today before all eyes turn to Texas next week for the first WSOPC Main Event in the state's history. Tune into PokerOrg next week for all of the sights and sounds from around the big festival in the Lone Star State.
