Lucille Hargett felt pretty good about her hand on a board that read 10♠A♦8♣10♣6♥, but Ryan Jones had just as good of a feeling about his.
Lucille Hargett: 10♦6♦
Ryan Jones: A♣10♥
Jones' tens over aces topped Hargett's tens over sixes, and knocked her out of the tournament. She planned to reenter the field.
Steven Buckner, known to many in the poker world as “Cuz” for his lively antics at the table, is here today lending his support to this charitable event. Born in a Navy hospital while his father was serving in the Navy, Buckner has long been committed to giving back, regularly participating in charity tournaments that support veterans and cancer awareness causes.
Looking ahead, Buckner is excited to compete in the upcoming Seniors and Super Seniors events, joking, “I’m as old as f@#$%.” Despite his humor, Buckner made it clear that he's still here with one goal in mind: to win.
Level: 6
Blinds: 400/800
Ante: 800
Ryan Jones, the early chip leader, entered the tournament thinking about his friend, Master Sergeant Mike Riley, who was killed in action six years ago this week in Afghanistan.
"I play this event each year in honor of my boy, my brother, and one of the best Special Operators I could have ever served with and beside," Jones posted on X (formerly Twitter).
Jones finished 50th in the event last year and is off to a great start.
"It's always good to get off to a good start, and with the week I've had, I needed it," Jones said. "I've been getting sucked out on, hand after hand. This is a good sign."
This tournament holds special meaning for Marsha Wolak as her father was in the Navy, and her brothers served in the Army in Vietnam, where one of them had a close call with death but luckily survived. Wolak stated that she appreciated the entry fee, which includes $40 for each participant to go to the veterans, and believes that this is a very worthwhile charity.
Hailing from Florida, Wolak won a bracelet in the Women's Event in 2011 and envisioned this new bracelet on her arm as soon as it was announced that it would be red, white, and blue.
Wolak travels to the World Series every year and participates in a multitude of tournaments, but her favorites remain the Main Event and the Mini Main Event, both featuring the freezeout format.
Level: 5
Blinds: 300/600
Ante: 600
Three years ago, James Todd brought a woman he was dating to Las Vegas for the WSOP. After he won a bracelet in the Salute to Warriors event that year, he married her.
He also bought a few new toys, but marrying Shannon is the best thing to come from his triumph.
"Her energy was so great during that run, how could I not marry her?" said Todd, who took home $161,256 when he won in 2022.
Todd has played in more tournaments than he used to, but he doesn't tell many who he is or brag about his poker accomplishments. His tablemates today have no idea they're playing with a champion.
"It hasn't come up," Todd said with a smile.
While his chips have been in the tournament for two hours, Kevin Song has now joined them and is playing.
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