Asher Conniff Wins WSOPC Bally’s Main Event for $193,147; Stanley Lee Named Casino Champ
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The 2019 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Circuit wrapped up its stop at Bally’s in Las Vegas on Monday night with the conclusion of the $1,700 Main Event, a tournament that drew 607 runners and created a prize pool of $919,605.
One individual to play in the Main Event, albeit by mistake, was social media star Catherine “catrific” Valdes, who registered for a $400 side event but was unintentionally seated in the big one. Eventually, it came to light and there was some fallout, which you can read all about in this PokerNews The Muck piece.
After three days of play, poker pro Asher Conniff, 30, emerged victorious to win the tournament for $193,147, his first gold ring, and a seat into the 2019 WSOP Global Casino Championship.
“I feel really good. A little relieved. A little tired and a little hungry. But more than anything, happy and excited."
“I feel really good,” Conniff told WSOP officials after the tournament. “A little relieved. A little tired and a little hungry. But more than anything, happy and excited. It always feels good to win a tournament, especially one with 600 people.”
Prior to the win, Conniff had just over $2 million in lifetime earnings including a career-best $973,683 for winning the 2015 World Poker Tour World Championship. That came 11 days after he won that stop’s Event #1: $560 NLH Deep Stack for $203,231.
WSOPC Bally’s Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Asher Conniff | Brooklyn, New York | $193,147 |
| 2 | Josh Suyat | Kahului, Hawaii | $119,447 |
| 3 | Justin Young | Henderson, Nevada | $87,344 |
| 4 | Stanley Webb | Mitchellville, Iowa | $64,813 |
| 5 | William Wolf | San Diego, California | $48,766 |
| 6 | James Fricker | Las Vegas, Nevada | $37,198 |
| 7 | Simon Deadman | Notthingham, UK | $28,765 |
| 8 | Daniel Park | Henderson, Nevada | $22,548 |
| 9 | Stanley Lee | West Hartford, Connecticut | $17,913 |
The top 63 Main Event finishers made the money including Kevin Calenzo (12th - $14,419), Jesse Sylvia (16th - $9,701), Tony Dunst (27th - $5,885), Zach Donovan (47th - $3,264), Sean Yu (58th - $3,007), and Ryan Leng (63rd - $3,007).
Bally's WSOPC Main Event Final Table Action
According to updates from the event, Conniff began the final day as chip leader among the returning 11 players. He maintained it until play was whittled down to the final three players, at which point he fell to the short stack.
It wound up being an up-and-down battle for the trio, and eventually Conniff raised to 275,000 and called when Justin Young three-bet to 850K. He then called a bet of 550,000 on the A?10?7? flop. On the 6? turn, Young bet 1.6 million and again Conniff called.
When the 4? completed the board on the river, Young moved all in for 2.665 million and Conniff called with the A?9? for top pair. It was good as Young showed J?9?.
Heads-up play was a much shorter affair and ended when Josh Suyat got his chips all in holding king-queen only to run it smack dab into Conniff’s ace-queen. Suyat failed to get lucky and had to settle for second place and $119,447 in prize money.
WSOPC Bally’s Side Event News
In addition to the Main Event, there were over a dozen side tournaments at the WSOP Circuit Bally’s stop, and some fairly well-known poker pros took a couple of them down.
In Event #5: $400 No-Limit Hold'em Multi-Flight, Stanley Lee topped a 492-entry field to win $33,506 and his first gold ring.
“It feels great, but it’s just another day at the office,” the 32-year old professional poker player from Connecticut told WSOP officials after the win.
Lee went on to make two more final tables finishing fifth in the Monster Stack for $8,254 and ninth in the Main for $17,913, which gave him enough points to win the stop’s Casino Championship for a seat into the 2019 WSOP Global Casino Championship.
Meanwhile, the aforementioned Event #8: $400 No-Limit Hold’em Monster Stack attracted 462 runners and offered up a $152,460 prize pool. The tournament was ultimately won by Justin Harvell, who was awarded a $32,805 first-place prize and his second career ring.
It marked Harvell’s second WSOPC Monster Stack victory having won the Seminole Coconut Creek’s event back in February.
"The first [ring] was a huge breakthrough and relief," said Harvell. "It's nice to get number two. We're counting now and adding on. It feels good."
Here’s a look at all those who won rings at the most recent Las Vegas stop.
WSOPC Bally’s Ring Winners
| Event | Winner | Entries | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1: $250 No-Limit Hold'em Turbo | Andrew Dubuque | 193 | $10,045 |
| #2: $400 No-Limit Hold'em | Taylor Hart | 175 | $15,600 |
| #3: $400 No-Limit Hold'em | Adrian Garcia | 166 | $14,801 |
| #4: $600 No-Limit Hold'em Double Stack | Kindah Sakkal | 229 | $29,497 |
| #5: $400 No-Limit Hold'em Multi-Flight | Stanley Lee | 492 | $33,506 |
| #6: $400 No-Limit Hold'em | Robbie Calhoun | 194 | $16,654 |
| #7: $400 Pot-Limit Omaha | Kevin Meeusen | 164 | $14,612 |
| #8: $400 No-Limit Hold’em Monster Stack | Justin Harvell | 462 | $32,805 |
| #9: $250 Seniors Event | Bob Chow | 264 | $12,950 |
| #10: $400 No-Limit Hold'em | Tal Avivi | 167 | $14,887 |
| #11: $250 Tag Team | Darren Attebery & Brandon Miller | 68 teams | $2,380 each |
| #12: $1,700 Main Event | Asher Conniff | 607 | $193,147 |
| #13: $400 No-Limit Hold’em | Jarod Minghini | 123 | $11,371 |
| #14: $400 No-Limit Hold’em Turbo | Michael Fernandez | 132 | $12,205 |
The next WSOPC stop is already underway at Horseshoe Council Bluffs just across the river from Omaha, Nebraska. PokerNews will bring you a recap of the stop’s $1,700 Main Event upon its completion.
Photos courtesy of WSOP Circuit.
