$5,150 Circuit Championship Main Event
Day 3 Completed
2009 World Series of Poker Circuit - Council Bluffs
$5,150 Circuit Championship Main Event
Day: 3
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
2009 World Series of Poker Circuit - Council Bluffs
Buy-in
$5,000
Prize Pool
$313,950
Entries
67
Level
16
Blinds
8,000 / 16,000
Ante
2,000
Congratulations to Jesse Hale, WSOP-C Council Bluffs Champion! ($113,020)
![[user66118]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
Sixty-seven players took their seats on Day 1, and more than half of them were shown the door before play concluded for the night. When the rest of the field went home, Hale walked across the room to finish out the Pot-Limit Omaha event that he was playing concurrently throughout the day. He would go on to take third place in that event, picking up a bit more spending money, but playing deep into the morning.
Returning on Day 2, Hale began play near the top of the leader board. Things were a bit streaky for him though, and his chip stack would slide as the night wore on. Still, he managed to survive to the final table, beginning today in the middle of the pack.
Day 3 saw the trend continue, as Hale was once again running up and down the board. He had finally worked his stack up to respectability three handed before a big confrontation with John McDonald left our future champion crippled. Hale was determined though, and from that point on, it was his table. He managed to dispense with the pesky McDonald a bit later, cracking aces with a baby full house. Down to just two, Dennis Meierotto would put up a fine fight, but he was just out-gunned by Hale. After more than an hour of trading jabs heads up, the bigger punches started flying, and Meierotto could do nothing to stave off the attack.
Apart from being the victor, Jesse Hale was the life of the party at the final table today. He kept everyone's spirits light, sometimes spontaneously bursting into song, other times riling up the spectators with a bit of self-deprecating humor. His jovial spirit and eagerness to win certainly make him a deserving champion. Hale would like to express his love for his wife Angela, as well as his unborn daughter, Kayla Dawn. The Hale family has plenty of reasons to be happy this week. From all of us here at PokerNews, congratulations to Jesse Hale, WSOP Circuit Council Bluffs champion!
Dennis Meierotto Eliminated in 2nd Place ($62,790)
. Dennis Meierotto checked his option first and then Hale followed right behind with a check.The turn brought the
and Meierotto announced "All in." Hale checked his hand and then asked for a count. The dealer broke down the chips and let Hale know the total all-in bet was for 136,000.Hale stared at his cards as he held them up in front of his face. After about a minute went by, Hale announced "Call!"
Showdown:
Hale:
Meierotto:
Hale needed to dodge a five or a six on the river to take down the event. The dealer slowly burned and slowly turned over the last card... the
! That would be it, Hale's hand held up and Meierotto was eliminated in 2nd place, earning $62,790 for his finish.Jesse Hale, the skydiving instructor and coach from Texas, took home first place along with $113,020, the gold championship ring, and a buy in to the 2009 WSOP Main Event in Las Vegas!
Hale Gettting Closer
Hale currently sits with 1,155,000.
Chip Chipping Away
. There's about 50,000 in the pot already, and Hale is first to act. He checks, and Meierotto opts to bet 40,000."He hasn't shown me a bluff yet. I can't believe this," said Hale, jokingly indignant. "He has a queen. He has the... queen of spades... and the jack of diamonds." Thinking he was beat, Hale stuck it in there anyways, calling the 40,000.
"I don't have anything," mumbled Meierotto. Hale could beat that, tabling
for bottom pair. With that good call, Hale has knocked his opponent down under 250,000 in chips, steadily working away at Meierotto's stack.
Updated Chip Counts
Dennis Meierotto - 280,000
Chop it up, Two Times
and both players checked. The turn brought the and Meierotto checked. Hale bet 40,000 and Meierotto called. "Jack of clubs!" yelled out Hale before the the
was placed on the river. Both players checked. Hale showed and Meierotto showed 
. Chop it up.A few hands later, Meierotto minraised to 32,000 and Hale called without looking at his cards. The flop came down
and Hale checked. Meierotto bet 20,000. "I gotta look now," said Hale before looking."I smooth call," he said after looking.
The turn was the
and Meierotto bet 20,000 again after Hale had checked in the dark. Hale called. The river went check, check after the 
hit the felt.Hale showed
and Meierotto showed 
. Chop it up one more time boys.
A Few More Chips for Hale
The dealer spread out the first three community cards:
. Hale checked, Meierotto bet 20,000, and Hale called.Fourth street revealed the
. This time, Hale check-called a whopping 30,000 from his opponent.Fifth street was the
. Hale checked again, and this time Meierotto checked behind him.In his standard fashion, Hale announced his cards before showing them down "Nine. Recently acquired." He turned over
, adding, "And the open ender."Meierotto pursed his lips, then flashed his
. Hale had gotten there on the river, and he snags another little chunk of chips from the man across the table.
Ace High No Good
The board came out
, with Meierotto betting 20,000 and Hale calling on each street. When Hale called the river bet, Meierotto glumly said, "Ace high.""Jack!" Hale replied, tabling the winning
to pad his chip lead slightly.
Level: 16
Blinds: 8,000/16,000
Ante: 2,000