Level: 5
Blinds: 200/300
Ante: 300
2019 World Series of Poker Circuit Horseshoe Southern Indiana
$1,700 Main Event
Day: 1b
Raghavan Three-Bets, Wins
Level 5
: 200/300, 300 ante
Eric Emerson raised to 900 from middle position, and was called by the player next to act. Chicago poker pro Ravi Raghavan paused for a moment before cutting out a three-bet to 3,600 from the cutoff, and both Emerson and the player next to act called.
Action checked to Raghavan on the 
flop, and he bet another 3,600. Both of his opponents quickly folded and Raghavan took down the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
42,000
4,000
|
4,000 |
|
||
|
|
21,000
-5,900
|
-5,900 |
Pupillo Already Over Six-Figures
Level 5
: 200/300, 300 ante
A player limped in from under the gun, and three-time WSOPC ring winner Nick Pupillo raised to 1,200 from middle position. Kenton New called in the cutoff, as did the under the gun player.
Action checked to Pupillo on a 
flop, and Pupillo bet 1,400. Both of his opponents folded, and Pupillo added the small pot to his already mammoth stack.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
105,000
66,500
|
66,500 |
|
||
|
|
24,000
-2,700
|
-2,700 |
Esquivel Mashing the Button
Level 5
: 200/300, 300 ante
A player opened to 1,100 from the cutoff, and Michael Esquivel, who finished in ninth-place two weeks ago at the WSOPC Potawatomi Hotel and Casino $1,700 Main Event, three-bet to 2,800 from the button. Action folded back to the cutoff, who called.
The cutoff checked the 
flop over to Esquivel, who continued for 2,500. The cutoff folded and Esquivel took down the pot.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
34,000
4,000
|
4,000 |
Whittinghill Can't Best Pupillo
Level 5
: 200/300, 300 ante
Wayne Whittinghill raised to 4,000 from the cutoff, and Nick Pupillo thought for a few moments before tossing in a call on the button.
The 
flop was checked by Whittinghill, and Pupillo bet 4,200. Whittinghill flung his 
face-up to the muck, and Pupillo showed Whittinghill 
.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
115,000
10,000
|
10,000 |
|
|
||
|
45,000
-12,000
|
-12,000 |
Binkley Binks
Level 5
: 200/300, 300 ante
Stephen Binkley got his last 12,000 in from the small blind, and was at risk against a player in middle position.
Stephen Binkley:
Opponent: 
Binkley got no help on the 
flop, but the 
turn gave Binkley top pair and the lead. The 
river changed nothing, and Binkley doubled up.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
26,000
1,000
|
1,000 |
Level: 6
Blinds: 200/400
Ante: 400
Family Man Matthew Dunn Captures First Gold Ring
Level 6
: 200/400, 400 ante
The PokerNews Live Reporting Team is at the Horseshoe Southern Indiana in the Louisville area to live report the $1,700 Main Event; however, that is just one of more than a dozen gold ring events that have taken place over the past week. As such, we thought we’d profile some of the preliminary tournaments and those who struck it big.
For instance, Event #4: $400 No-Limit Hold’em 6-Handed had 160 runners compete for a $52,800 prize pool. That was paid out to the top 24 players including Mark Boggs (10th - $1,205), Jerod Smith (13th - $802), Kayeen Elliskemp (20th - $688), and Kevin Sherrill (24th - $611).
In the end, 33-year-old Matthew Dunn from Fort Wayne, Indiana came out on top to win the title $13,828 in prize money, and his first gold ring.
“I definitely thought I was going to win. Got to have confidence in this game,” he said after a two-hour heads-up match. “It was a battle really, I was short, then she was short and back and forth. I just kept my cool and grinded.”
He added: “I am not sure yet, we extended our stay a couple more days, but I have two young kids waiting on me at home.”
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Matthew Dunn | Fort Wayne, Indiana | $13,828 |
| 2 | Renee Gibbon | Downers Grove, Illinois | $8,546 |
| 3 | Merton Toler | Princeton, West Virginia | $5,740 |
| 4 | Simon Samokovski | South Point, Ohio | $3,963 |
| 5 | David Thurston | Fort Wayne, Indiana | $2,815 |
| 6 | Alan Percal | Weston, Florida | $2,058 |
| 7 | John La Rose | Perryville, Missouri | $1,551 |
| 8 | Randall Jones | Canton, Georgia | $1,551 |
| 9 | Alan Lipson | Cary, North Carolina | $1,205 |
Gamino's Set Good For a Double KO
Level 6
: 200/400, 400 ante
Aaron Gamino checked a 
flop from the small blind, and the under the gun player bet 5,000 into a pot of 6,400. A middle position player called, and next to act, Alan Cutler jammed for 14,300. Gamino check-raised to 80,000, enough to cover the remaining field. The under the gun player tank-folded what he later claimed to be 
, and the middle position player shrugged, then called off his last 16,000.
Alan Cutler:
Opponent: 
Aaron Gamino: 
Gamino's set was in command over the inferior set of the middle position player and top pair of Cutler, and he would hold on a 
turn and 
river to earn the big pot and the double knockout.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
125,000
88,500
|
88,500 |
|
Busted |
More Day 1b Photos
