Previewing the 2011-2012 World Series of Poker Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club

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Feb 25, 2012 5 min read Last updated Feb 26, 2012

The World Series of Poker Circuit has returned to West Palm Beach, Florida, for one of the biggest stops of the year. The 12-event series kicked off on February 16 and will culminate in a $1,600 Main Event on Saturday, Feb. 25. Of course the PokerNews Live Reporting Team will be providing coverage of the Main Event, but we thought we’d set the stage with a look back at the preliminary events.

Without a doubt, the most notable preliminary tournament was Event #1: $555 No-Limit Hold’em, which drew an astounding 2,607 players, the second-largest turnout in WSOP Circuit history, and created a prize pool of $1,250,345, the largest-ever outside of Main Events.

Caesars Interactive Entertainment Media Director, Nolan Dalla described the scene during Event #1: “There were unavoidable lines. There were scalpers — yes, selling places in line to get a seat in the tournament. There was a near riot during one of the opening days. There was also a calm and cozy peace that prevailed over the sprawling tournament area once cards finally flew into the air and competition began, with poker tables terraced along the atrium-like windows facing out towards circling greyhounds and throngs of horseplayers screaming for their favorite ponies, appearing on simulcast.”

It took five days of play, including three separate starting days, for the tournament to finish, but before that happened, the final 30 players had to play down to a winner. One man who was looking for his first piece of WSOP gold was Harrison Gimbel, whom you may recall won the 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. Unfortunately, Gimbel’s run came up a bit short in seventh place, for which he earned $32,214, and his first WSOP Circuit cash.

When all was said and done, a 50-year-old nail technician by the name of Anh Lu emerged victorious to capture the $182,750 first-place prize, which was the biggest payout for a WSOP Circuit prelim event. In what would be the final hand of the tournament, Lu held a 2:1 chip lead over Charles Flett in heads-up play, which lasted just 10 minutes. Flett was all-in with K♠Q♠, but was behind the J♥J♦ of Lu. The J♠10♣3♣ flop gave Lu a set, and it held as neither the 7♣ turn nor 4♦ river completed Flett’s open-ended straight draw.

Here's a look at the WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club events completed thus far:

WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #1: No-Limit Hold’em Re-Entry

WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #2: No-Limit Hold'em

WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Event #3: H.O.R.S.E.

WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #4: No-Limit Hold’em

WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Event #5: No-Limit Hold'em Six Handed

WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #6: No-Limit Hold’em Six Handed

WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #7 No-Limit Hold’em

WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #8 No-Limit Hold’em

WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Ring Event #9 No-Limit Hold’em

With several events yet to be determined, the race for the WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club Casino Champion is undecided. Whoever captures that title, along with the eventual winner of the Main Event, will automatically qualify for the Second Annual $1 Million National Championship. That event is limited to 100 players, and so far only a handful of players have qualified:

National Championship Qualifiers

In addition to the qualifiers, players who earn enough points on the National Leaderboard will be able to buy in to the National Championship:

WSOPC National Leaderboard Top Ten*

*Leading up to the WSOP Circuit Palm Beach Kennel Club stop.

Don’t miss your chance to qualify for the National Championship. There are still plenty of opportunities to play, including any of the remaining stops on the WSOP Circuit schedule.

Remaining 2011-2012 WSOPC Schedule

Get all the latest PokerNews updates on your social media outlets. Follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook today! In the meantime, see who qualifies for the National Championship this week by following our Live Reporting Team’s coverage from the Palm Beach Kennel Club.

_{*Photos courtesy of Eric Harkins and ImageMasters.}

PR & Media Manager for PokerNews, Podcast host & 2013 WSOP Bracelet Winner.

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