James Duke Achieves Gold in Event #7: $400 NLH Double Stack
While PokerNews is here offering live updates from the Main Event and High Roller, we’d be remiss if we didn’t tell you about the full schedule of side events that have been playing out over the past week at the World Series of Poker Circuit Choctaw Durant.
In Event #7: $400 NLH Double Stack, 353 runners created a $116,490 prize pool that was paid out to the top 54 players. Among those to cash but fall short of the final table were Michael Lech (10th - $1,753), Justin Kruger (14th- $1,438), Lauren Bunch (26th - $780), Will Berry (29th - $701), and Bart Bogard (35th - $602).
In the end, it was Texas native James Duke securing a $25,400 victory along with his first ring.
“It’s just so exciting. I’ve been trying for 14 years to win a damn ring,” Duke said with a laugh following his triumph. “It means a lot to me to win here at Choctaw because the players are so tough here. They’re great players and they’re friendly and the dealers are all great; The floor crew’s great. So, I’m pretty excited about it.”
The win brings Duke's WSOP cashes to a total of 40 with $750,000 in earnings. A vast majority of that sum ($614,368) was earned by Duke in 2014 when he took third place in the Millionaire Maker, a tournament that encompassed nearly 8,000 players.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | James Duke | Houston, Texas | $25,400 |
| 2 | Benjamin Thomas | Baton Rouge, Louisiana | $15,698 |
| 3 | Andrew Robinson | Georgetown, Texas | $11,282 |
| 4 | Maurice Hawkins | West Palm Beach, Florida | $8,235 |
| 5 | Gerald Cunniff | Saint Paul, Minnesota | $6,107 |
| 6 | Jeremy Ross | The Colony, Texas | $4,603 |
| 7 | Cody Pettit | Yukon, Oklahoma | $3,526 |
| 8 | Pedro Arroyos | Lubbock, Texas | $2,746 |
| 9 | Sidney Savitt | South Euclid, Ohio | $2,175 |