$3,250 High Roller
Day 2 Completed
2020 World Series of Poker Circuit Thunder Valley
$3,250 High Roller
Day: 2
JC Tran Wins the WSOP Circuit Thunder Valley $3,250 High Roller for $49,035
Level 24
: 10,000/25,000, 25,000 ante
JC Tran says he considers himself a "washed-up pro," but he was in top form this weekend en route to winning his third career World Series of Poker Circuit gold ring.
Tran outlasted a field of 47 entries, including WPT Raw Deal host Tony Dunst heads-up, and took down the WSOP Circuit Thunder Valley $3,250 High Roller title for $49,035. The win marks the second time Tran has won the event, and with the victory, the longtime tournament pro adds to a resume that includes more than $13 million in career earnings.
"I’ve always compared poker to golf. If you don’t play a lot, you can probably still get lucky, get a decent round here and there," Tran said. "That’s kind of where I’m at. When I had all my success, I played volume. I played prelims up to mains."
"These, I kind of pop in and out. I consider myself a washed-up pro. I still got it a little bit here and there. Every now and then I pull a little nice, close run."
Tran said that while he doesn't put in the volume he used to, he enjoys playing at Thunder Valley Resort, which requires just a 25-minute drive for Tran to the Lincoln, California venue.
Final Table Action
| Place | Winner | Country | Prize (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | JC Tran | United States | $49,035 |
| 2 | Tony Dunst | United States | $30,305 |
| 3 | Joshua Shaw | United States | $19,779 |
| 4 | Ben Underwood | Canada | $13,552 |
| 5 | Noel Rodriguez | United States | $9,773 |
| 6 | Roger Bailey | United States | $7,437 |
| 7 | Dapo Ajayi | United States | $5,992 |
| 8 | Darren Rabinowitz | United States | $5,127 |
With eight places paid and the tournament running eight-handed throughout, the official final table was the cutoff point for getting paid in the High Roller.
Tran emerged victorious from a formidable lineup, including Dunst, who came up just short in his bid to win his first career WSOP Circuit ring. After a two-hour heads-up battle, the final hand came down to Dunst with ace-ten offsuit against Tran's pocket queens, with Tran's premium pair holding up.
"I actually haven’t had too many hours with Tony. He played really well," Tran said. "It came down to me having queens and he had ace-ten. Tony’s a great player, I have a lot of respect for him. He’s similar to me in some ways, he doesn’t play a ton of these tournaments, because he’s doing stuff with WPT and whatnot."
Joshua Shaw (3rd - $19,779) was on the short stack for most of three-handed play, finally bowing out after his open shove with jack-nine suited came up short against Dunst's ace-king.
Other tough opponents at the final table included Noel Rodriguez (5th - $9,773), Dapo Ajayi (7th - $5,992), and Darren Rabinowitz (8th - $5,127).
The day began with 23 players in the hunt, with the money bubble bursting during Level 16, the fourth level of play on Day 2.
Big Names Come Out for the High Roller
In addition to the loaded final table, other notables coming through the Thunder Valley Poker Room for the High Roller included Brett Murray, Ian Steinman, Joe Kuether, Bryan Piccioli and Andreas Kniep.
Ajayi came into Day 2 as the chip leader and was near the top of the leaderboard for most of the day en route to the money finish. Steinman, one of the shortest stacks in the room coming into Day 2, was out early, as were Murray and Kniep.
The 47 entries brought the total prize pool to $141,000.
PokerNews coverage of the WSOP Circuit here at Thunder Valley continues with the $1,700 Main Event, which you can follow here.
Tony Dunst Eliminated in 2nd Place ($30,305)
Level 24
: 10,000/25,000, 25,000 ante
Tony Dunst limped, JC Tran raised to 80,000, Dunst three-bet all in, and Tran called, having Dunst covered.
Tony Dunst: 
JC Tran: 
Board: 
Tran's pocket queens held up against the ace-ten of Dunst, and Dunst takes home $30,305 for the runner-up finish.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
1,880,000 | 605,000 |
|
Busted |
Tran Shoves River, Folds Out Dunst
Level 24
: 10,000/25,000, 25,000 ante
JC Tran opened to 60,000, and Tony Dunst called.
Dunst check-called bets for 65,000 on the 
flop, and 150,000 on the 
turn.
Tran shoved the 
river, having Dunst covered. Dunst, with 605,000 left behind, tanked for a couple minutes, then folded.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,275,000 | 325,000 |
|
|
605,000 | -325,000 |
Level: 24
Blinds: 10,000/25,000
Ante: 25,000
Back to Even
Level 23
: 10,000/20,000, 20,000 ante
No big pots have materialized in Level 23, but after winning several small pots Tony Dunst has brought the heads-up match back to even.
Each player will be working with about 35 big blinds when Level 24 begins at 10000/25000/25000.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
950,000 | -257,000 |
|
|
930,000 | 257,000 |
Tran Pushes the Lead
Level 23
: 10,000/20,000, 20,000 ante
JC Tran opened to 45,000, and Tony Dunst called.
Both players checked the 
flop. Dunst bet 75,000 on the 
turn, Tran raised to 155,000, and Dunst called .
Tran bet 300,000 on the river, and Dunst folded.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,207,000 | 182,000 |
|
|
673,000 | -182,000 |
Dunst Climbing Back
Level 23
: 10,000/20,000, 20,000 ante
Tony Dunst is chipping up slowly but surely, winning a chain of several small pots to pull closer in the heads-up match against JC Tran.
Dunst, at one point down to around 560,000 chips, is back up to the 855,000 mark as the final two continue to battle.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,025,000 | -295,000 |
|
|
855,000 | 295,000 |
Tran Raises River, Dunst Folds
Level 23
: 10,000/20,000, 20,000 ante
JC Tran limped, Tony Dunst raised to 70,000, and Tran called.
Dunst bet 50,000 on the 
flop, and Tran called. Both players then checked the 
turn.
Dunst bet 120,000 on the 
river, Tran raised to 330,000, and Dunst folded. The pot puts Tran at his highest chip mark of the tournament, at over 1.3 million.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,320,000 | 248,000 |
|
|
560,000 | -247,000 |
Level: 23
Blinds: 10,000/20,000
Ante: 20,000