Derek Bowers Wins Inaugural RGPS JACK Cleveland Main Event ($86,560)

Derek Bowers

After a marathon day of poker, Derek Bowers of Alliance, Ohio is the first-ever champion of the RunGood Poker Series Cleveland Main Event, an $800 buy-in tournament that attracted 712 entries.

He defeated Donald Mullen in a short heads-up match to conclude a nearly 16-hour day of poker at the JACK Cleveland Casino to claim a $86,560 first-place prize, the RunGood Series champions ring, and a trip to Las Vegas plus entry into the RunGood Pro-Am this December.

The $86,560 is the second-largest score of Bowers’ career, which has seen him now amass over $800,000 in tournament earnings after his win this weekend. It’s his first recorded live win since 2014 according to the Hendon Mob.

“It feels good. It feels good to just win a tournament," he said. "It’s been a long time and it feels good to just get the monkey off my back.”

RGPS Cleveland $800 Main Event Final Table Results

PlaceNameCountryPrize
1Derek BowersUnited States$86,560*
2Donald MullenUnited States$61,410*
3Paul Campbell (OH)United States$60,000*
4Nicholas LanziUnited States$33,895
5Anthony CarboneUnited States$25,545
6Michael VolkUnited States$19,155
7Raymond EzzieUnited States$14,735
8Joe GugliottaUnited States$11,790
9Stephen Stock JrUnited States$8,840

*denotes adjusted payouts

Bowers came into Day 2 with the second-largest stack in play after claiming the chip lead on Day 1c with 565,000 chips. He’d turn that into over 21 million chips and the title by the time the night was done.

With two tables remaining, Bowers still sat second in chips behind only Paul Campbell, who fell in third place, but he still had to work his way through a talented remaining field that included two-time WSOP bracelet winner Sean Troha, who fell in 14th place, and Western New York star DJ MacKinnon, who bowed out in 11th.

Sean Troha
Sean Troha

Once the final table was reached, Bowers got right to work on building himself a chip lead as he immediately eliminated Stephen Stock Jr.

His stack would swing a bit as the night wore on, but he seemed fresh throughout play even deep into the night as play concluded at 3:30 a.m. local time.

“I’m fine. I could probably play another day if I had to. I’ve played four days straight before. It’s been a long time, but yeah, I think I could.”

As play got down to four-handed, that’s when Bowers took control, first eliminating Nicholas Lanzi with an aces-versus-queens preflop cooler, then with the lead he used his stack well, scooping two million chips uncontested after a rare four-bet at the final table.

Following Campbell’s elimination in third place, Bowers had an over 3-1 chip lead heads-up and made short work of Mullen to claim the title and the ring.

Bowers’ win concludes PokerNews’ coverage of the inaugural RGPS Cleveland Series which has been a tremendous success here at the outstanding JACK Cleveland Casino.

RGPS JACK Cleveland Winners

Derek Bowers Wins Inaugural RGPS JACK Cleveland Main Event (,560) 101
"Boston" Rob Mariano
DateTournamentEntriesPrize PoolWinnerPrize
Sunday, September 25$420 Opener NLH392$139,160Jack Corrigan$30,735
Sunday, September 25$300 NLH171$41,040Tyler Mitchell$6,795
Sunday, September 25$300 PLO67$16,080Nathan Walter$5,000
Monday, September 26$200 Seniors (50+)189$30,080Charles Brunn$4,684
Monday, September 27$300 Limit Omaha Hi-Lo66$15,840Mathew George$5,555
Tuesday, September 27$200 Ladies Event81$12,960Maria Jones$4,170
Tuesday, September 27$200 Ambassador Bounty206$32,960“Boston” Rob Mariano$8,615
Thursday, September 29$250 PokerGO Studio Ticket243$50,000Ryan Mayer$12,250
Sunday, October 2$800 Main Event712$491,280Derek Bowers$86,560
Sunday, October 2$400 Black Chip Bounty104-Michael Ritz$5,105

Survivor's “Boston” Rob Mariano Wins RGPS JACK Cleveland Bounty Ring Event

Stay tuned to PokerNews for the RunGood Series’ next stop in Tunica, Mississippi beginning Tuesday and running through until October 9th. Click here for a look at the full RGPS Tunica schedule

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  • Derek Bowers (@derekbowers2) won the inaugural @RGPokerSeries @JACKClePKR for $86,560.

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