WSOP.com Online Circuit Awards 13 Rings and $1.7 Million
Table Of Contents
While the World Series of Poker Circuit rolls along with concurrent stops at Bicycle Casino in Los Angeles and Harrah's Atlantic City, a third stop was ongoing during both of those for an unprecedented hail of rings available to poker players in the U.S.
The WSOP.com Online Circuit wrapped up on Sunday with the conclusion of the $525 Main Event, and just like the first iteration that took place in the fall, this one met and exceeded expectations from the WSOP staff.
The series, which featured 13 ring events, surpassed every guarantee despite the fact that the guarantees were bumped up after the October series. In total, $1,719,280 was awarded as both entries and prize pools increased relative to last year.
"The online circuit events are proving to be exceptionally popular with players," said WSOP Head of Online Poker Bill Rini. "We experimented a bit with limiting the number of re-entries in certain events and we're seeing that this is a popular option, resulting in even bigger prize pools than in some of the unlimited re-entry events."
Here's a look at the two series side-by-side for an easy comparison, with 2019 numbers followed by 2018 in parentheses. All events are no-limit hold'em unless otherwise noted:
| Event | 2019 Guarantee (2018) | 2019 Entries (2018) | 2019 Prize pool (2018) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 — $200 KO | $20,000 ($12,500) | 387 (373) | $75,716 ($74,142) |
| 2 — $215 4x Reentry | $75,000 ($25,000) | 585 (531) | $117,000 ($106,200) |
| 3 — $320 Six-Max Reentry | $75,000 ($35,000) | 428 (389) | $128,400 ($116,700) |
| 4 — $250 Turbo Reentry | $50,000 ($25,000) | 356 (294) | $83,660 ($69,089) |
| 5 — $320 Double-Stack 4x Reentry | $75,000 ($50,000) | 358 (396) | $107,400 ($118,800) |
| 6 — $320 Monster Stack 4x Reentry | $100,000 ($100,000) | 612 (579) | $183,600 ($173,700) |
| 7 — $215 Deep Turbo Reentry | $50,000 ($25,000) | 407 (324) | $81,400 ($64,800) |
| 8 — $1,000 Six-Max High Roller Reentry | $100,000 ($75,000) | 191 (214) | $182,404 ($204,370) |
| 9 — $215 Reentry | $50,000 ($30,000) | 419 (459) | $83,800 ($91,800) |
| 10 — $320 Reentry | $75,000 ($40,000) | 386 (377) | $115,800 ($113,100) |
| 11 — $215 Six-Max Pot-Limit Omaha Reentry | $40,000 ($25,000) | 295 (297) | $59,000 ($25,000) |
| 12 — $320 Double Stack 4x Reentry | $75,000 ($50,000) | 387 (383) | $116,100 ($114,900) |
| 13 — $525 Main Event 4x Reentry | $250,000 ($200,000) | 770 (682) | $385,000 ($341,000) |
As one can see, guarantees went up across the board with the exception of the $100,000 Monster Stack, sometimes significantly so. Not every event was up, as attendance dipped slightly in Event #5, Event #8, Event #9 and Event #11.
But on the whole, the WSOP team is happy with the results, with VP of Corporate Communication Seth Palansky saying the strategy of raising guarantees proved "successful."
Series Results
Of that $1.7 million awarded, the most significant chunk — more than 20 percent — came in the $525 Main Event.
There William Romaine of Riverside, Connecticut shipped the biggest score of the series when he defeated a field of 770 to snag $92,400 and his first gold ring. Romaine previously had only about $20,000 in WSOP cashes.
He topped a final table that included Joe Cappuccio, Brad Albrinck, U.S. online titan Anthony Maio and AJ Kelsall. Others among the 100 paid included Tim Reilly, Brett Richey, Matt Berkey, Kevin MacPhee, Chance Kornuth and Steve Gross.
WSOP.com Online Circuit Main Event Official Final Table
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | William Romaine | Riverside, Connecticut | $92,400 |
| 2 | Jeffrey Orem | -- | $48,895 |
| 3 | Joe Cappuccio | Hammonton, New Jersey | $31,955 |
| 4 | Brad Albrinck | Cincinnati, Ohio | $24,255 |
| 5 | Anthony Maio | New Hope, Pennsylvania | $20,405 |
| 6 | Alexander Condon | Sioux City, Iowa | $16,555 |
| 7 | Joseph Curcio | New York, New York | $12,320 |
| 8 | Marc Farro | -- | $8,085 |
| 9 | AJ Kelsall | Tampa, Florida | $5,390 |
Despite falling a little short in the Main, Maio didn't walk away from the series ringless as he did take down the pot limit Omaha event for $15,390 and his first Circuit ring. Also among the players taking gold were Matt Stout and Ralph Perry.
Here's a full list of ring winners from the WSOP.com's second Online Circuit series:
| Event | Winner | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| $200 KO | Sean Seifert | -- | $9,604 |
| $215 NLHE | Finian Anuforo | Sayville, New York$29,250 | |
| $320 Six-Max | Keith Donovan | New Milford, New Jersey | $34,026 |
| $250 Turbo | Jed Hoffman | Reno, Nevada | $22,170 |
| $320 Double Stack | Brian Wood | Houston Texas | $27,924 |
| $320 Monster Stack | Matt Stout | Las Vegas, Nevada | $44,982 |
| $200 Deep Turbo | Joshua Reynolds | Fairlawn, Virginia | $21,164 |
| $1,000 Six-Max High Roller | Tanner Bibat | Dunwoody, Georgia | $50,161 |
| $215 NLHE | Alexandre Moreira | -- | $21,788 |
| $320 NLHE | Charles Ambrogi | Dublin, Ohio | $30,687 |
| $215 Six-Max PLO | Anthony Maio | New Hope, Pennsylvania | $15,930 |
| $320 Double Stack | Ralph Perry | -- | $30,186 |
Future of the Online Circuit
Originally, the WSOP scheduled a one-off online ring event last February, won by Anthony Spinella. It proved to be a precursor to the full-blown online Circuit "stops" that took up two spaces on the schedule for the 2018-19 Circuit season.
Unfortunately, just as the WSOP seems to be finding its stride with online ring events, a massive cloud of uncertainty has hit the U.S. online poker market. The revised Department of Justice opinion has cast doubt on the future of the shared liquidity market.
That shared liquidity was likely one of the driving forces behind the online ring events, as it made possible much bigger prize pools, comparable to many live Circuit stops, by giving access to a much larger player pool.
The WSOP is currently grappling with the issue, having scheduled nine online bracelet events without confirming whether individuals from New Jersey will be able to play once again.
"We anticipate holding more online Circuit events but dates have not been finalized yet," Rini said.
