2020 WSOP Global Casino Championship
Day 1 Completed
2020 WSOP Global Casino Championship
2020 WSOP Global Casino Championship
Day: 1
AJ "RandyLerch" Kelsall Wins 2020 WSOP Global Casino Championship ($275,632)
On Sunday, the 2019/20 World Series of Poker Circuit Season – one that had been interrupted by the pandemic – came to an end with the annual Global Casino Championship, which for the first time was held online at WSOP.com.
Players qualified for the $1 million guaranteed tournament by either winning a WSOPC stop Main Event or finishing as Casino Champ. In addition, any player that won a ring during the season or finished in the top 100 of last year’s WSOP Player of the Year race had the option to buy-in directly for $10,000. Seven players opted to do just that meaning the total field stood at 130 players with a $1,070,000 prize pool up for grabs.
After 11 hours of play, three-time ring winner AJ "RandyLerch" Kelsall emerged victorious to capture a $275,632 first-place prize and his first gold bracelet. Kelsall won his first ring back in 2015 and added two more this past season. He qualified for the Global Casino Championship as an at-large points qualifier after finishing fourth on the leaderboard with 332.5 points from 30 cashes totaling $214,326 in winnings.
Prior to the win, Kelsall had just over $1 million in lifetime WSOP-related earnings. His best live score was $124,731 for winning the 2014 Winter Poker Open at Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Bay.
As for the bracelet win, Kelsall called it a “dream come true.”
2020 Global Casino Championship Final Table Results
| Place | Player | How they Qualified | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AJ "RandyLerch" Kelsall | At-Large Qualifier | $275,632 |
| 2 | Michael "annie_r_u_ok" Trivett | Planet Hollywood Main Event Champ | $170,344 |
| 3 | Brad "bd3303" Albrinck | At-Large Qualifier | $120,161 |
| 4 | Michael “miw210x” Wang | Horseshoe Baltimore Casino Champ | $87,098 |
| 5 | Shawn “Saygoodnight” Daniels | WSOP.com Finale Champ | $64,735 |
| 6 | Sam “BickDutt69” Cosby | At-Large Qualifier | $49,541 |
| 7 | Eric "powwow" Ethans | At-Large Qualifier | $39,055 |
| 8 | Frank "spaghettiii" Marasco | WSOP.com Finale Champ | $31,672 |
With only 20 players getting paid, most players left empty-handed including Roland “prngls12” Israelashvili, Melisa “MellieScoops” Singh, and all-time WSOPC ring winner Maurice “BUPPIE” Hawkins, just to name a few.
Among those to cash but fall short of the final table were David “TheClubber” Larson (20th - $16,264), Scott “stpauli111” Hall (19th - $16,264), Richard “unclebets” Bai (18th - $16,264), Matt “RubberFist” Stout (17th - $16,264), Brian “JackBogle” Altman (16th - $17,869), Chris “SSNinjaCA318” Audrain (15th - $17,869), Charlie “Badrabbit” Dawson (14th - $17,869), Faisal “desigolfer” Siddiqui (13th - $20,330), Jason “VooDooDuDu” Tang (12th - $20,330), Ken “kdonarski” Donarski (11th - $22,898), Mike “mouth123” Matusow (10th - $22,898), and final table bubble boy Daniel “DNegs” Negreanu (9th - $26,643).
Kelsall began the final table in the middle of the pack and held strong before dispatching Shawn “Saygoodnight” Daniels in fifth place, the result of ace-king holding against ace-five all in preflop.
With three players remaining, Kelsall was the short stack but before long claimed the lead. He then won a race with pocket fours against ace-jack to send Brad “bd3303” Albrinck to the rail in third place, good for $120,161, and that allowed Kelsall to take a more than 2:1 chip lead into heads-up play against WSOPC Planet Hollywood Main Event champ Michael "annie_r_u_ok" Trivett.
Trivett would soon double into the lead, but just when it looked as if Kelsall was destined for second place, he doubled himself to reclaim the lead. In the final hand of the tournament, Trivett would flop bottom two pair and Kelsall a double gutshot straight draw. The chips got in and Kelsall turned a wheel before fading the river to close it out. Trivett had to settle for a runner-up finish for $170,344 in prize money.
While the new WSOP Circuit season would normally be underway by now, the pandemic has prevented things from starting as usual. As such, details surrounding upcoming WSOPC stops are to be determined.
Michael "annie_r_u_ok" Trivett Eliminated in 2nd Place ($170,344)
In an exciting final hand, Michael "annie_r_u_ok" Trivett and Andrew "RandyLerch" Kelsall got it all in on a flop of 
.
Michael "annie_r_u_ok" Trivett: 
Andrew "RandyLerch" Kelsall: 
Trivett flopped two pair but Kelsall had a double gutshot straight draw, which he hit on the 
turn. The 
river was no help to Trivett and he was eliminated in second place.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
7,800,000 | 2,215,648 |
|
|
Busted |
Heads-Up Chip Counts
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
5,584,352 | -238,104 |
|
|
2,215,648 | -1,366,425 |
Brad "bd3303" Albrinck Eliminated in 3rd Place ($120,161)
Blinds: 40,000/80,000/8,000
In blind-versus-blind preflop action, Andrew "RandyLerch" Kelsall moved all in from the small blind and Brad "bd3303" Albrinck, who was an At-Large Points Qualifier, called off from the big blind.
Andrew "RandyLerch" Kelsall: 
Brad "bd3303" Albrinck: 
Albrinck hit one of his two overs on the 
flop, but unfortunately for him, Kelsall also flopped bottom set. The 
turn and 
river runout kept Kelsall in the lead and eliminated Albrinck in third place.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
5,822,456 | 3,200,387 |
|
|
Busted |
Michael "miw210x" Wang Eliminated in 4th Place ($87,098)
Blinds: 25,000/50,000/5,000
Michael "mix210x" Wang, who qualified after finishing as the Horseshoe Baltimore Casino Champ, moved all in from the button and was called by Michael "annie_r_u_ok" Trivett from his small blind.
Michael "mix210x" Wang":
Michael "annie_r_u_ok" Trivett: 
The board ran out 
, which kept Trivett's Ace-nine-high in the lead to eliminate Wang in fourth place for $87,098.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
3,582,073 | 1,141,464 |
|
|
Busted |
Shawn "Saygoodnight" Daniels Eliminated in 5th Place ($64,735)
Blinds: 25,000/50,000/5,000
Two-time WSOPC ring winner Shawn "Saygoodnight" Daniels, who qualified after winning the WSOP.com Season Finale High Roller for $75K, moved all in for around 330,000 under the gun and Andrew "RandyLerch" Kelsall called out of the small blind.
Andrew "RandyLerch" Kelsall: 
Shawn "Saygoodnight" Daniels: 
Daniels had a kicker problem and it didn't get resolved as the board ran out 
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,622,069 | 166,102 |
|
|
Busted |
Five-Handed Chip Counts at the Break
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,455,967 | 1,830,013 |
|
|
2,440,609 | 176,000 |
|
|
1,445,858 | -114,997 |
|
|
1,111,464 | -302,373 |
|
|
346,102 | -1,543,738 |
Sam "Bickdutt69" Cosby Eliminated in 6th Place ($49,541)
Blinds: 25,000/50,000/5,000
The short-stacked Sam "Bickdutt69" Cosby, a former poker reporter, raised all in for 210,772 from the hijack and Brad "bd3303" Albrinck flatted the button. Both blinds folded and Cosby discovered the bad news.
Sam "Bickdutt69" Cosby:
Brad "bd3303" Albrinck:
Cosby ran into the granddaddy of all hands and was drawing dead after the turn when the board ran out .
Cosby, who was an at-large points qualifier, took his leave in sixth place for $49,541.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,560,855 | 563,437 |
|
|
Busted |
Eric "powwow" Ethans Eliminated in 7th Place ($31,672)
Blinds: 20,000/40,000/4,000
After a preflop raise from Shawn "Saygoodnight" Daniels three players saw a flop of 
.
Daniels continued for 100,000, Eric "powwow" Ethans moved all in, and Michael "Annie_r_u_ok" Trivett moved all in behind, which got a fold from Daniels.
Eric "powwow" Ethans:
Michael "Annie_r_u_ok" Trivett:
The 
turn and river completed the runout and eliminated Ethans from the tournament.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,264,609 | 1,280,419 |
|
|
Busted |