Main Event
Day 3 Completed
2012-13 World Series of Poker Circuit Event - Horseshoe Council Bluffs
Main Event
Day: 3
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
2012-13 World Series of Poker Circuit Event - Horseshoe Council Bluffs
Prize Pool
$550,800
Entries
367
Level
32
Blinds
40,000 / 80,000
Ante
10,000
Blair Hinkle Wins the 2012-13 WSOP Circuit Council Bluffs for 2nd Time; Banks $121,177
Level 32
: 40,000/80,000, 10,000 ante
After three days of intense play, the 2012/2013 World Series of Poker Circuit Horseshoe Council Bluffs came to an end Monday as the final ten players of a 367-player field returned to battle to a winner. After seven levels of play, Blair Hinkle emerged victorious to capture the title for the second time in three years, not to mention the $121,177 first-place prize and a seat into the season-ending National Championship.
Action recommenced in Level 26 (10,000/20,000/3,000) and it didn't take long for the first elimination of the day, less than a half an hour in fact. It happened on a 
flop when Phil Mader checked from the big blind and Sean Small bet 102,000. Mader moved all in for right around 300,000 and Small couldn't call fast enough.
Mader: 
Small: 
Small was ahead with pocket kings, but Mader was drawing very much alive to an open-ended straight draw. The 
turn gave him even more outs, but the 
river was not one of them. Mader exited in tenth place for $9,275 and the official final table was set.
Less than 30 minutes later, Tim Hughes opened for 40,000 under the gun and Blair Hinkle called from the hijack. The rest of the players folded and it was heads up to the flop, which fell 
. Hughes bet 40,000, Hinkle called, and the 
turned. This time Hughes checked and Blair bet 85,000. Hughes woke up with a check-raise to 185,000, Hinkle called, and the 
completed the board on the river.
Hughes returned to checking and Hinkle took the opportunity to bet 210,000. Hughes quickly check-raised all in for 468,000 and Hinkle seemed shocked. "Jesus," he said. "I guess I have to call." He did just that and was glad he did as his 
straight easily downed Hughes 
. Hughes, a 48-year-old business owner from Fort Pierre, South Dakota, was eliminated in ninth place for $11,457.
After the eliminations of Ben Smith and Sterling Savill in eighth and seventh place respectively, Trevor Deeter followed them out the door.
It happened in Level 28 (15,000/30,000/5,000) when action folded to Mark Bonsack in the small blind and he raised to 80,000. Deeter then moved all in for 575,000, Bonsack snap-called and their cards were turned up:
Deeter:
Bonsack: 
Bonsack's ace high was leading for the moment, and the 
flop left Deeter in need of either a king or eight. Unfortunately for him, he would not get lucky as the appeared on the turn followed by the on the river river. Deeter, a 29-year-old native of Longhorne, Pennsylvania, finished in sixth place for $23,448.
Later on in the same level, Bonsack opened from the button only to have Cord Garcia shove his short stack of 425,000 all in from the big blind. Bonsack called with the 
and Garcia turned over the 
. Garcia, who was sporting a Run Good Gear hoodie, was in dire straits after the flop came down 
, giving Bonsack a set. Garcia needed runner-runner, and while the 
gave him a gutshot draw, it didn’t come in as the 
came on the river. Garcia, a 23-year-old poker pro from Houston, TX, was eliminated in fifth place taking home $30,365.
During four-handed play, Hinkle opened under the gun for 90,000 and received calls from Brendan Waite and Small in the small and big blinds respectively. All three players checked the 
flop, and then Waite led out for 135,000 on the turn. Small called, Hinkle folded, and the completed the board on the river. Waite slowed down with a check and Small thought for about 25 seconds before betting 375,000. Waite responded with an all-in check-raise to 1.17 million and Small made a relatively quick call. Waite tabled the for a rivered full house, and Small slammed down his cards, the 
, in frustration. After the chips were pushed, Waite took over the chip lead while Small fell to the short stack.
On the first hand of Level 30 (25,000/50,000/5,000), Hinkle opened for 110,000 under the gun and Bonsack shoved for 580,000. The blinds folded and Hinkle made a quick call.
Hinkle:
Bonsack:
Bonsack was in big trouble and needed some help. According to the PokerNews Odds Calculator, Hinkle was a 70.61% favorite, and Bonsack had just a 28.97% chance of surviving the hand. The 
flop dropped Bonsack's chances to 16.46%, but the 
turn gave him some hope by delivering him a flush draw and bumping it up to 25%. The dealer burned one last time and put out the 
.
There is no denying his poker prowess at the Horseshoe Council Bluffs. Last year he final tabled the Main Event and ultimately finished in fifth place for $25,127, and not only did he make the final table again, he managed to win a ring in between. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to make it two as he was felled in fourth place for $40,627. He also left with the consolation prize of being the Casino Champion, which locked him up a seat in the National Championship for the second year in a row.
By the middle that same level, Small had dwindled to 800,000 and moved all in under the gun. Hinkle folded the small blind, and then Waite squeezed out his cards in the big. "Call," he said as he rolled over the 
. Small's face dropped a bit and he tabled the inferior 
. Both players had a king, which meant Small's best chance of survival was a ten.
The 
flop was dry, though Small's supporters began calling for a diamond. "Three of diamonds," Small requested. The dealer put out a three, but it was not a diamond. Instead, the 
turned. Small began to rise in preparation for his exit, which he made in third place after the blanked on the river. The hand gave Waite a 4.35-million-to-2.95-million chip lead headed into heads-up play.
Hinkle managed to take the chip lead in a huge pot that took place early in the match, but Waite battled back. The two jockeyed back and forth until Hinkle pulled ahead once again and delivered the final blow, which you can read about in the post below!
WSOP Circuit Horseshoe Council Bluffs Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Blair Hinkle | $121,177 |
| 2nd | Brendan Waite | $74,881 |
| 3rd | Sean Small | $54,716 |
| 4th | Mark Bonsack | $40,627 |
| 5th | Cord Garcia | $30,635 |
| 6th | Trevor Deeter | $23,448 |
| 7th | Sterling Savill | $18,209 |
| 8th | Ben Smith | $14,343 |
| 9th | Tim Hughes | $11,457 |
| 10th | Phil Mader | $9,275 |
Brendan Waite Eliminated in 2nd Place ($74,881)
Level 32
: 40,000/80,000, 10,000 ante
It's over! Blair Hinkle has done the improbable and won the WSOP Circuit Horseshoe Council Bluffs Main Event for the second time in three years!
In what would be the final hand, Brendan Waite limped from the button and Hinkle checked his option, bringing about a flop of 
. Two checks followed, the turned, and Hinkle led out for 125,000. Waite raised to 325,000, Hinkle called, and the 
completed the board on the river.
Hinkle checked, Waite bet 420,000, and Hinkle woke up with an all-in check-raise. Waite had about 1.3 million behind and thought long and hard before spiking in a call. It was the wrong choice. Hinkle tabled the for a straight, which bested the 
of Waite. The local pro was denied his second gold ring, but he had a $74,881 payday to help ease the pain.
Hinkle Picking Up Steam
![[user249964]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
Level 32
: 40,000/80,000, 10,000 ante
Blair Hinkle opened to 165,000 from the button as has been the case most of this round, and Brendan Waite made the call. Both players checked the 
flop, and when the came on the turn, Waite check-called a bet of 200,000. Waite again check-called Hinkle's river bet of 275,000 when the hit. Hinkle turned over giving him a pair of jacks. Waite sent his hand to the muck.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
5,650,000 | 555,000 |
|
1,650,000 | -600,000 |
Whittling Waite Down
Level 32
: 40,000/80,000, 10,000 ante
There haven't been any crazy hands as of late, but slowly but surely Blair Hinkle is whittling Brendan Waite down by swiping blinds here in there.
In a recent hand, Hinkle opened for 165,000 on the button only to have Waite three-bet to 420,000 from the big blind. Not to be outdone, Hinkle moved all in and put the pressure on Waite, who had 2.25 behind. The local pro, who won a ring here at Council Bluffs back in 2010, thought for nearly three minutes before flashing the 
and folding.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
5,095,000 | 900,000 |
|
|
2,250,000 | -900,000 |
Premo Niyati Wins Final Ring of Council Bluffs
Level 32
: 40,000/80,000, 10,000 ante
While all eyes have been on the Main Event today, the final event of the stop was playing out nearby in the Whiskey Roadhouse. Event 12 $365 No-Limit Hold’em saw 14 players return, including the all-time WSOP Circuit ring winner Alex Masek who started fourth in chips. Unfortunately he couldn't snag number seven.
We turn to the WSOP's Lukas Willems for details on that event:
Pejman “Premo” Niyati won the 12th and final ring event Monday night at Horseshoe Casino in Council Bluffs. Event 12, a $365 No-Limit Hold’em tournament, played out in the shadow of the Main Event, a tournament Niyati finished 8th in last year. He was, of course, just a spectator of the championship tournament this year, but he had a good seat — the two seat at table 26.
The Event 12 finale began with Alexandru Masek in the spotlight. The 28-year-old pro is the winningest player in WSOP Circuit history with a total of six gold rings and was within reach of number seven Monday, beginning the final table third in chips.
“Eventually you’re going to be the Bill Russell of poker. You’re not getting your 11th ring tonight,” Niyati joked to Masek.
As the cards would have it, Niyati was right. Masek never made much of a run at ring number seven and eventually got his last few big blinds holding a useless 10-high. The disappointment was obvious on the face of the six-time champion as he exited the tournament 7th, well short of a record-extending title.
“He’s a solid player and a really good kid,” Niyati said of Masek. “I just have a lot of respect for his game and I think he’ll do real big things one day in some bigger tournaments. Hopefully I’ll be there to be some competition for him.”
Monday belonged to Niyati as he outlasted gold ring champion Sean Burson heads-up in a duel that extended more than two hours. The victory marked the first official WSOP Circuit championship for Niyati and awarded him $10,752 and 50 points toward the WSOP National Championship Presented by Southern Comfort 100 Proof.
Niyati previously won a ring in a preliminary event and gave that trophy to his father. He says ring number two, though, will stay in his possession.
“I see other guys on the tour wearing theirs, but I’ll probably hold on to mine. Maybe throw it in a lock box or something,” Niyati said.
Niyati, Burson and Masek were joined in the money by Bradley Cundall (15th), Travis Northrope (14th) and LouAnn Merwick (11th). The victory marks Niyati’s first cash of the 2012-2013 WSOP Circuit.
“It feels great to come out here and play a couple tournaments and not really get there, then register the very last one and play my butt off,” he said.
First Post-Dinner Blood Goes to Hinkle
Level 32
: 40,000/80,000, 10,000 ante
In the first hand back from the dinner break, Blair Hinkle opened for 165,000 on the button and Brendan Waite defended from the big blind. The latter player proceeded to check-call bets of 175,000 and 325,000 on the 
flop and turn respectively, and then both players checked the 
river.
Waite tabled the , but it was no good as Hinkle held the 
for deuces and queens.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
4,195,000 | 795,000 |
|
|
3,150,000 | -795,000 |
Cards Are Flying
Level 32
: 40,000/80,000, 10,000 ante
Player are back from the dinner break and cards are in the air.
Level: 32
Blinds: 40,000/80,000
Ante: 10,000
Dinner Break
Level 31
: 30,000/60,000, 10,000 ante
The players have agreed to take a one-hour dinner break. Cards will be back in the air at approximately 10 p.m. CST.