Previewing the 2012-2013 World Series of Poker Circuit Harrah's Rincon

December 14 2012, Chad Holloway

The eighth stop of the 2012/2013 World Series of Poker Circuit presented by Southern Comfort 100 Proof at Harrah’s Rincon kicked off on Dec. 6 with the first of 12 ring events. Many of those tournaments have concluded throughout the week, but the stop won’t climax until this weekend’s $1,675 Main Event, which you can follow by clicking here.

In the meantime, we thought we’d set the stage by taking a look at the preliminary events thus far, which included a historic performance by Alexandru Masek, who won his record-tying fifth gold ring in Event #1 $365 No-Limit Hold’em. The 27-year-old law school graduate from San Diego moved into a three-way tie alongside Mark “Pegausus” Smith and Kyle Cartwright.

“I feel really good. I feel like I'm on cloud nine right now,” Masek told WSOP officials shortly after his win. “I feel like I got close quite a few times (to winning the fifth), and that's tournament poker. Now, it's great to finally get number five to come out.”

Masek navigated a field of 205 players to make the final table, which turned out to be a nine-hour affair. What’s more, the winner of the same event the previous year, Randy Paguio, was also at the final table. Fittingly, the two experienced players made it to heads-up play. That meant WSOP Circuit history would be made because either Masek would win ring number five, or Paguio would go back-to-back. As fate would have it, lady luck favored Masek, who took home $15,989 for the win.

“When I won before, I don't think back then I realized how hard it is to win,” Masek said. “[The drought of not winning] made me realize just how good I ran when I was winning.”

Check out Masek’s postvictory interview with the WSOP’s Nolan Dalla:

Here's a look at the WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon events completed thus far:

WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #1 No-Limit Hold’em

Alex Masek, winner of Event #1.

WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #2 No-Limit Hold’em

Mike Souza, winner of event #2.

WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #3 H.O.R.S.E.

Matthew Schultz, winner of Event #3.

WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #4 No-Limit Hold’em

Michael Wynn, winner of Event #4.

WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #5 No-Limit Hold’em

Donna Delfin, winner of Event #5.

WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #6 No-Limit Hold’em

Jimmy Nguyen, winner of Event #6.

WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #7 No-Limit Hold’em Six Handed

Valentin Vornicu, winner of Event #7.

WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Ring Event #8 No-Limit Hold’em

Nancy Birnbaum, winner of Event #8

With several events yet to be determined, the race for the WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon Champion is undetermined. Whoever captures that title, along with the eventual winner of the Main Event, will automatically qualify for the Second Annual $1 Million National Championship. Here's a look at the players who have qualified:

National Championship Qualifiers

In addition to the qualifiers, players who earn enough points on the National Leaderboard will be able to buy in to the National Championship:

WSOPC National Leaderboard Top Ten*

*Leading up to the WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Rincon stop.

Here's a look at the remaining schedule for the 2012-13 WSOP Circuit:

For more information on the 2012-13 WSOP Circuit season, visit WSOP.com. Also, be sure to follow our live updates from the WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Atlantic City in our Live Reporting Section.

*Photos courtesy of WSOP.com.

Follow the WSOP Circuit Harrah's Rincon Main Event by clicking here.

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