The World Series of Poker Circuit Harrah’s St. Louis started on Sunday with 449 players. Today, the final nine reconvene to play down to a winner. Remaining in the field are a mix of poker players from grizzled veterans to young guns. It is of the latter variety that our chip leader, Kyle Cartwright (2,875,000), belongs. Cartwright is no stranger to the WSOP-Circuit. He won two rings back in February at the Harrah's Tunica stop, winning the Casino Championship and qualifying for the National Championship in the process. If he wins today, the National Championship spot usually awarded to the winner will be thrown back into the National Leaderboard prizepool and award the seat to another points qualifier.
However, there are eight other players dead set on letting that happen. Today, we'll find out who becomes the WSOP-Circuit Harrah's St. Louis Champion and lays claim to the $142,290 first-place prize.
WSOP-Circuit Harrah’s St. Louis Final Table
Seat
Player
Chips
1
Kyle Cartwright
2,875,000
2
Mitch Franks
460,000
3
Nick Jivkov
206,000
4
Ron Segni
983,000
5
Asheesh Boyapati
1,138,000
6
Chris Viox
346,000
7
Troy Weber
1,006,000
8
Steve Goff
1,270,000
9
Phil Stelzer
637,000
The final table is set to begin any minute. As always, the PokerNews Live Reporting Team will be there to bring you all the action, eliminations, and stories straight from the tournament floor.
Kyle Cartwright, a 23-year old player from Bartless, Tennessee, is no stranger to the World Series of Poker Circuit. Back in February, Cartwright played his first live tournaments at Harrah's Tunica and took home rings in just his third and fourth tournaments. Those events were Event #20 $345 NLHE and Event #44 $345 NLHE totaling $56,789 in winnings, and also earned him the title of "Casino Champion" while simultaneously qualifying him for the National Championship in May.
Cartwright, who says his favorite player is Kenny Tran, enters the final table as the massive chip leader with more than double his nearest opponent.
Mitch Franks is a 41-year old engineer from Tupelo, Mississippi. He is married with three children, a thirteen-year old and seven-year old twins. He started playing poker 15 years ago, but it wasn't until this past year that he really hit his stride and made eight final tables.
Franks, an avid fan of Mississippi State University athletics where he earned his engineering degree, also enjoys playing another game . . . fantasy baseball. However, when it come to poker, Franks admits: "It's all about the hardware, baby!"
Nick Jivkov was born in Bulgaria but now resides in Des Plaines, Illinois. He is a former owner of a transportation company, but now makes his living as a full-time poker player. The 32-year old is married with two daughters, five-year old Mia and one-year old Sofia.
Jivkov, who won a WSOP-Circuit ring back in November at the IP Biloxi stop, currently sits in 12th place on the National Leaderboard and will likely earn a spot in the National Championship $1 Million Freeroll next month; however, he can lock up a spot with a victory here today.
If you're a fan of general contractors, then you'll likely be a fan of Ron Segni . . . because that is exactly what he does! The 53-year old from El Cajon, California has been married for 26 years and has two children: a 21-year old son named Miles and a 19-year old daughter named Kimberly.
Segni started playing poker with friends in 2005 and has a peculiar superstition . . . he doesn't like poker racks under the table. Segni, whose favorite player is Phil Ivey, joked prior to the tournament: "Both my kids are away in college. I need to win today to pay next year's tuition."
Asheesh Boyapati is a 25-year old software engineer who final tabled the Chicago Poker Classic, ultimately finishing in seventh place. He didn't start playing poker until 2010 after being introduced via home games, but he has already found considerable success.
Boyapati, whose favorite player is Tom "durrrr" Dwan, starts the final table third in chips.
Chris Viox is without a doubt the most experienced player at the table. The 35-year old from Glen Carbon, Illinois plays online under the name "PiMaster" and has considerable success. In 2009 he took down a WCOOP title followed by a SCOOP title in 2010. Both those win were preceded by a UBOC victory in 2007. To top it all off, Viox has transitioned from the virtual felt to live play which included two third-place finishes at the World Series of Poker (2006 PLH & 2008 Razz).
Viox is currently married with two children: Ellie (8) and Joe (5). He has his work cut out for himself here today, starting the final table as the second short stack.
Troy Weber of West Terre Haute, Indiana, began playing poker in 2000 and admits he learned through trial and error. The 40-year old is married with a daughter named Taylor and a son named Tanner. Aside from hunting and golf, Weber enjoys spending time with his family.
Weber is no stranger to the WSOP-Circuit with $40,488 in winnings dating all the way back to the 2006/2007 season. However, with an eighth-place finish or better, Weber can ensure his biggest cash to date.
Steve Goff is 25-years old and hails from Eureka, Illinois. He finished in sixth place earlier in the circuit stop in Event #23 $345 NLHE for $6,689. Goff, who started playing poker when he was 20 and whose favorite player is 1998 WSOP Main Event Champion Scotty Nguyenn, begins the final table second in chips.
Phil Stelzer is 69-years old and hails from Columbia, Missouri. As such, he is affectionately known as "Columbia" Phil. He has been playing poker since 1950 when he used to play for baseball cards. He is married with five children and twelve grandkids (he has two sets of twin grandchildren born eight days apart).
Stelzer's poker ambition is to be a WSOP Champ, much like his favorite player Stu Ungar, and he has a golden opportunity before him here today. Thanks to a fourth-place finish in Event #2 $345 NLHE, Stelzer is in contention for the "Casino Championship" title, which would qualify him for the National Championship $1 Million Freeroll next month in Las Vegas. With an early Steve Goff elimination, all Stelzer would need to do is finish in fourth place or higher. Can he do it?
