Recapping the 2012-2013 WSOP Circuit Harrah's Tunica Prelims

The 2012/2013 World Series of Poker Circuit presented by Southern Comfort 100 Proof has been rolling along here in the first month of 2013. The Bicycle Casino and Choctaw Durant stops are already in the books, and since Jan. 24, Harrah’s Tunica in Mississippi has been playing host to several ring events. The stop will culminate this weekend with the $1,675 Main Event. There are sure to be some interesting story lines emerging from that tournament, and we thought we’d set the stage by taking a look at the Harrah’s Tunica winners thus far.

One of the feel-good stories that emerged early on was Sean Maurer’s win in Event #2 $365 No-Limit Hold’em for $43,880. The 22-year-old Illinois factory worker, who has only played cash games, was playing his first live tournament and managed to top a field of 611.

Maurer began the final table second in chips, and he seemed to stay toward the top as play progress. One by one his opponents fell, including final table chip leader Ben DeForrest, who was eliminated in sixth place. After three-and-a-half hours of play, only Maurer and Mark Bell, a 43-year-old poker player from Louisville, Kentucky, remained. The heads-up battle lasted only 30 minutes before Maurer clinched victory after his held up against his opponent’s .

“I’m speechless right now. I can’t even describe how I feel right now,” Maurer told WSOP officials after his win. “My job doesn’t pay big money, but it's steady, and I don’t have the stress of playing professionally,” he added when asked what the win means for his future. “I’ll keep playing tournaments like this one but I’m going back to work on Monday. But I’ll be walking in with a big smile.”

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

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

Buy-in	Entrants	Prize Pool
$300+$65	435	$130,500

Place	Player	Hometown	Prize
1	John Holley	Destin, FL	$28,707
2	Mark Maletic	Canton, MI	$17,741
3	Richard McCrary	Huntsville, AL	$12,964
4	Ray Green	Pleasant View, TN	$9,626
5	John Malone	Memphis, TN	$7,258
6	Carl Brewington	Nashville, TN	$5,555
7	Douglas Mackinnon	East Amherst, NY	$4,314
8	Kory Kilpatrick	Athens, GA	$3,398
9	John Prather	Nashville, TN	$2,714

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

Buy-in	Entrants	Prize Pool
$300+$65	611	$183,300

Place	Player	Hometown	Prize
1	Sean Maurer	Grayville, IL	$43,880
2	Mark Bell	Jeffersonville, IN	$23,809
3	Kevin Praytor	Odenville, AL	$17,410
4	Ryan Turner	Rochester, IL	$12,919
5	Ber Xiong	Lawrenceville, GA	$9,720
6	Benjamin Deforrest	Ballwin, MO	$7,414
7	Donna Heard	Truman, AR	$5,734
8	Calvin Simpson	Nashville, IN	$4,495
9	Paul Mckanna	Nashville, TN	$3,571

WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Tunica Ring Event #3 No-Limit Hold’em Re-Entry

Buy-in	Entrants	Prize Pool
$300+$65	1,271	$381,300

Place	Player	Hometown	Prize
1	Lee Sawyer	Kennett, MO	$67,681
2	Sean Small	Douglasville, GA	$41,943
3	Daniel Rivera	Baton Rouge, LA	$30,782
4	Justin Brown	Bloomington, IN	$23,259
5	Duy Tran	Brentwood, TN	$17,750
6	Robert Norris	Richland, WA	$13,662
7	Brandon Shane	Sagamore Hls, OH	$10,638
8	Michael Bozarth	Hawesville, KY	$8,381
9	Jeff Huffman	Noblesville, IN	$6,680

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

Buy-in	Entrants	Prize Pool
$300+$65	306	$91,800

Place	Player	Hometown	Prize
1	Aaron Kerns	Sullivan, IN	$21,571
2	David Reed	Ontario, CA	$13,339
3	Jeffrey Hoffman	Wichita Falls, TX	$9,688
4	Ronald Brassard	Nashua, NH	$7,156
5	Steven Williams	Little Rock, AR	$5,372
6	Sean McDonald	St. Louis, MO	$4,097
7	Peter Sullivan	Roscoe, IL	$3,174
8	Stuart Breakstone	Memphis, TN	$2,495
9	Bobby Byram	Osceola, AR	$1,991

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

Buy-in	Entrants	Prize Pool
$300+$65	300	$90,000

Place	Player	Hometown	Prize
1	John Loiacano	Mooresville, NC	$21,595
2	Carter Myers	Breckenridge, MI	$13,349
3	Marc Nellist	Loganville, GA	$9,686
4	Robert Hankins	Murfreesboro, TN	$7,146
5	Nicholas Melville	N/A	$5,360
6	Erin Slaughter	Rowlett, TX	$4,084
7	Nicolas Vaca-Rondon	Bogota, Colombia	$3,161
8	Ricky Stanton	Bolivar, MO	$2,484
9	Ronald Bowers	Cape Girardeau, MO	$1,982

WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Tunica Ring Event #6 NLHE Six-Handed

Buy-in	Entrants	Prize Pool
$300+$65	283	$84,900

Place	Player	Hometown	Prize
1	Shawn Fakhimi	Fayetteville, AR	$22,071
2	John Holley	Destin, FL	$13,640
3	Douglas Ashmore	Houston, TX	$9,470
4	Calvin Kincade	Paragould, AR	$6,644
5	Kat Bowen	Gladewater, TX	$4,712
6	Philip Boyd	High Ridge, MO	$3,377

WSOP Circuit Harrah’s Tunica Ring Event #7 No-Limit Hold’em

Buy-in	Entrants	Prize Pool
$300+$65	339	$101,700

Place	Player	Hometown	Prize
1	Thomas Zenthoefer	Evansville, IN	$23,389
2	Samuel Price	Chattanooga, TN	$14,461
3	Robert Ward	Saint Charles, MO	$10,549
4	Henry Montgomery	Lexington, KY	$7,825
5	Michael Wissler	St. Louis, MO	$5,895
6	Harold Mahaffey	Anderson, SC	$4,508
7	Robert Manley	Fort Worth, TX	$3,498
8	Richard Moon	Rowlett, TX	$2,754
9	Ronald Bowers	Cape Girardeau, MO	$2,199

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

National Championship Qualifiers

Player	Qualified
Jeff Fielder	Choctaw Durant Main Event Champion
Andrew Robinson	Choctaw Durant Casino Champion
Baptiste Chavaillaz	Bicycle Casino Main Event Champion
Nathan Bjerno	Bicycle Casino Casino Champion
Jonathan Chehanske	Harrah’s Rincon Main Event Champion
Valentin Vornicu	Harrah’s Rincon Casino Champion
Adam Teasdale	Harrah’s Atlantic City Main Event Champion
Brandon Fish	Harrah’s Atlantic City Casino Champion
Cary Marshall	Harveys Lake Tahoe Main Event Champion
Daniel Gilmer	Harveys Lake Tahoe Casino Champion
John Crncic	River Rock (Vancouver) Main Event Winner
Sandra Wong	River Rock (Vancouver) Casino Champion
Josh Williams	Horseshoe Horseshoe Hammond Main Event Winner
Mike Leah	Horseshoe Hammond Casino Champion
Dan Heimiller	Horseshoe Southern Indiana Main Event Winner
Jonathan Taylor	Horseshoe Southern Indiana Casino Champion
Quan Nguyen	Bossier City Casino Champion
Jeff Gibralter	Bossier City Main Event Champion
Kyle Cartwright	IP Biloxi Main Event Winner
Cory Wood	IP Biloxi Casino Champion

In addition to the qualifiers, players who earn enough points on the National Leaderboard will earn a spot into the National Championship:

WSOPC National Leaderboard Top Ten*

Player	Points	Rings	Cashed	Earnings
Rex Clinkscales	217.5	0	9	$59,432
Yossi Azulay	165	0	12	$79,218
Wendy Freedman	150	1	5	$55,755
Charles “Woody” Moore	150	0	7	$46,997
Caufman Talley	142.5	2	5	$82,963
Aaron Massey	142.5	1	5	$55,252
Joshua Pender	132.5	1	9	$46,558
Austin Buchanan	127.5	0	9	$50,334
Trevor Deeter	127.5	1	8	$37,898
Alex Masek	127.5	2	6	$37,163

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

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

Date	Event Location
Feb. 7-18, 2013	Caesars Palace (Las Vegas)
Feb. 14-25, 2013	Palm Beach Kennel Club (Florida)
Feb. 28 - March 11, 2013	Caesars Atlantic City
March 14-25, 2013	Lodge Casino Black Hawk (Colorado)
March 27 - April 8, 2013	Foxwoods (Connecticut)
April 4-15, 2012	Harrah’s Cherokee (North Carolina)
April 11-April 22, 2013	Horseshoe Council Bluffs (Iowa)
April 25 - May 6, 2013	Harrah’s Philadelphia
May 9 - May 20, 2013	Harrah’s New Orleans
May 21-23, 2013	Harrah’s New Orleans (National Championship)

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 Choctaw Durant in our Live Reporting Section.
*Photos courtesy of WSOP.com.

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