Reginald “Shawn” Roberts Captures Third Heartland Poker Tour Title in Oklahoma
This past weekend, the Heartland Poker Tour (HPT) was at Indigo Sky Casino in Wyandotte, Oklahoma, for their latest $1,650 Main Event, a tournament that attracted 89 players and created a prize pool of $125,160. The quality of the field could not be denied — it was reflected largely by a stacked final table — but in the end it was Reginald "Shawn" Roberts that emerged as the last man standing to capture his third career HPT Title and $40,051.
"It's awesome to come back here and win it back-to-back," said Roberts, a business owner from Springfield, Missouri who also won the HPT Indigo Sky back in 2013.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Reginald "Shawn" Roberts | Springfield, MO | $40,051 |
| 2 | John Land | Frisco, TX | $25,032 |
| 3 | Daniel Snowden | Arkansas City, Kansas | $16,396 |
| 4 | Deborah Phillips | Ozark, MO | $11,890 |
| 5 | Craig Casino | Winfield, IL | $8,761 |
| 6 | James Darnaby | Tulsa, OK | $6,884 |
| 7 | Greg Raymer | Raleigh, NC | $6,008 |
| 8 | Ronald Hines | Cullman, AL | $5,382 |
| 9 | Gil George | DeSoto, TX | $4,756 |
The final nine players accounted for a total of 19 HPT final table appearances and eight titles to their name. Two of those final table appearances were attributed to Gil George of DeSoto, Texas. George managed to make his third final table, but his run came to an end about an hour into the day when he got all in with ace-queen against Craig Casino’s pocket queens. The queens held up and George exited in ninth place for $4,756.
After Ronald Hines, who was making his first HPT final table, bowed out in eighth place, 2012 HPT Player of the Year Greg "Fossilman" Raymer followed him out the door in seventh place. Raymer, who began the final table on the short stack, laddered up to a $6,008 payday.
From there, former champ James Darnaby pushed the last of his chips into the middle holding king-queen and was called by "Cowboy" John Land’s pocket tens. Land flopped a set and Darnaby hit the rail in sixth place for $6,884.
Casino, the HPT's all-time money leader, was competing at his second consecutive televised table after an eight-place finish in Colorado two weeks back. Casino, a certified arborist, began the final table as the chip leader but had to settle for fifth place and $8,761. The cash also moved him atop the all-time HPT leaderboard for number of cashes.
Business owner Deborah Phillips, the only woman to enter the Main Event, exited in fourth place for $11,890, and then Daniel Snowden of Arkansas City, Kansas fell in third place when he ran pocket sixes into Land’s pocket nines. The semi-retired dentist took home $16,396 for his efforts, and left Land and Roberts to do battle heads up.
The duo would play for more than 60 hands, during which time the chips flowed back and forth. According to updates from the event, the final hand of the tournament took place in Level 23 (12,000/24,000/3,000) when Land limped and Roberts raised to 125,000. Land called and then moved all in after Roberts bet 300,000 on the 7♦6♠4♥ flop. Roberts called and the cards were turned up.
Roberts: 7♠3♠
Land: A♠5♠
Roberts held top pair with a gutshot straight draw, and Land held an over with an open-ended straight draw. The 5♣ turn completed Roberts' straight, and Land watched helplessly as the 2♣ completed the board on the river. Land finished in second place for $25,032, and capped off the 13-hour day with back-to-back HPT Indigo Sky titles.
The HPT will next be in Kansas City for another 10-day series before heading south to Vicksburg, Mississippi. For a full look at the upcoming schedule of events, visit HPTpoker.com.
For more on the HPT Indigo Sky Casino, check out the HPT wrap-up video:
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