Tiffany Michelle Gets Gold at WSOP Lake Tahoe; Minghini Calls Shot in Main Event

Connor Richards
Editor & Live Reporter U.S.
4 min read
Tiffany Michelle and Jarod Minghini

The latest World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC) stop at Harveys Lake Tahoe is wrapping up this week and awarded several Circuit rings across more than a dozen events.

Among the latest Circuit ring winners are California's Tiffany Michelle, a poker presenter and longtime grinder who took down WSOPC Event #14 $400 No-Limit Hold'em for $11,602 and her first Circuit ring, and Jarod Minghini, who won the $1,700 buy-in Main Event for $153,368 and his fourth ring.

Tiffany's Gold Ring

Tiffany Michelle
Tiffany Michelle

Michelle is no newcomer to the poker industry and has long been a presenter for PokerNews, WSOP, 888poker and other outlets.

Michelle first made a name for herself when she finished 17th in the 2008 WSOP Main Event for $334,534, which makes up a significant chunk of her $406,263 in Hendon Mob-reported live earnings.

The poker commentator made the trip to WSOPC Lake Tahoe and ended up winning Event #14: No-Limit Hold'em, a $400 buy-in event that drew 130 runners and generated a prize pool of $42,900. Michelle found herself heads-up against Sacramento's Sean Drake, a WSOP bracelet winner who bowed out in second for $7,168.

After the victory, Michelle wrote on Twitter that she had traveled to the Lake Tahoe stop to "create some content" and "get in the action." Making the trip to western Nevada surely paid off for the longtime poker presenter.

WSOPC Event #14 $400 No-Limit Hold'em Final Table Results

 PLACEPLAYERHOMETOWNPRIZE (IN USD)
 1Tiffany MichelleNewhall, CA$11,602
 2Sean DrakeSacramento, CA$7,168
 3Julian RuvalcabaN/A$4,923
 4Gary PisarekCebu$3,476
 5Rex ClinkscalesLas Vegas, NV$2,526
 6Patrick TestoniSanta Cruz, CA$1,890
 7Erik HomanN/A$1,457
 8Jeffrey DayBerkeley, CA$1,160
 9Jeff TroegerCalifornia$953

Winning for Bobby

The WSOPC Lake Tahoe stop culminated with the $1,700 buy-in Main Event, which attracted 513 runners to generate a prize pool of $777,195. The top prize of $153,368 went to South Lake Tahoe native Jarod Minghini, who defeated San Diego's Jonathan Smith in a short heads-up battle that lasted just one hand.

According to WSOP live updates, Smith moved all in with ace-eight in the first hand of heads-up play and Minghini called with king-nine before making two pair and eliminating the fellow Californian.

Jarod Minghini
Jarod Minghini

It was an emotional victory for Minghini, who told WSOP his brother, Bobby, had passed away just weeks before. Minghini called his shot among friends early in the tournament and said he would win his fourth Circuit ring for Bobby, which is exactly what he ended up doing.

“As dumb as it sounds, I expected to win this tournament," he told WSOP. "Bobby was with me the whole way. From the end of dinner break on Day 1 I just started spinning it up from there. All of Day 2 I was just chip leading all day long, winning every hand.”

Minghini's previous rings were earned in 2019 WSOPC Bally's $400 event that brought him $11,371, a 2019 WSOPC Thunder Valley $1,125 event for $37,782 and a 2018 WSOPC Thunder Valley $365 Pot-Limit Omaha event for $9,180.

Jarod Minghini
Jarod Minghini

WSOPC Event #11: $1,700 Main Event Final Table Results

 PLACEPLAYERHOMETOWNPRIZE (IN USD)
 1Jarod MinghiniSouth Lake Tahoe, CA$153,368
 2Jonathon SmithSan Diego, CA$94,782
 3Jesse TinsleyN/A$68,615
 4Taylor HartNewberg, OR$50,396
 5Casey McCarrelWalnut Creek, CA$37,564
 6Scott StewartLakewood, CA$28,419
 7Rayo KniepGermany$21,829
 8John SoaresSan Francisco, CA$17,027
 9Brandon ZuidemaCorona, CA$13,490

Other Winners

Other winners at the WSOPC Lake Tahoe stop include Taylor Pollard, who won Event #1: $400 No-Limit Hold'em Double Stack for $15,838 and San Francisco's Albert Gorelik, who took down Event #7: $400 No-Limit Hold'em 6-Handed for $18,205.

The WSOPC Lake Tahoe stop wrapped with Event #16: $400 No-Limit Hold'em Double Stack, which saw Texas' Wadih Kaawar getting through a field of 166 runners to win $13,894.

A full list of winners at the WSOPC Lake Tahoe stop is available in the table below.

WSOPC Lake Tahoe Ring Winners

 TOURNAMENTENTRIESPRIZE POOLWINNERHOMETOWNPRIZE
 WSOPC Event #1: $400 No-Limit Hold'em Double Stack199$65,670Taylor PollardConcord, NV$15,838
 WSOPC Event #2: $250 LADIES EVENT59$11,800Rachel ChoN/A$4,019
 WSOPC Event #3: $400 No-Limit Hold'em 8-Handed178$58,740Rex ClinkscalesLas Vegas, NV$14,898
 WSOPC Event #4: $400 No-Limit Hold'em424$139,920Thomas MasinterN/A$27,513
 WSOPC Event #5: $250 SENIORS EVENT312$62,400Wade SmithDenim Springs, LA$13,671
 WSOPC Event #6: $600 No-Limit Hold'em Mystery Bounty172$88,580Oscar AlvarezCalifornia$18,304
 WSOPC Event #7: $400 No-Limit Hold'em 6-Handed235$77,550Albert GorelikSan Francisco, CA$18,205
 WSOPC Event #8: $400 Pot-Limit Omaha129$42,570Christopher ProbstNovato, CA$11,510
 WSOPC Event #9: $400 No-Limit Hold'em Monster Stack394$130,020Allan ShefferStateline, NV$26,680
 WSOPC Event #10: $400 No-Limit Hold'em214$70,620Terence ReardonQuincy, MA$16,585
 WSOPC Event #11: $1,700 Main Event513$777,195Jarod MinghiniSouth Lake Tahoe, CA$153,368
 WSOPC Event #12: $400 No-Limit Hold'em171$56,430Westley CannonEdina, MN$14,177
 WSOPC Event #13: $400 No-Limit Hold'em169$55,770Christopher FunariMedia, PA$14,007
 WSOPC Event #14 $400 No-Limit Hold'em130$42,900Tiffany MichelleNewhall, CA$11,602
 WSOPC Event #15: $250 SENIORS EVENT208$41,600David PageLas Vegas, NV$9,858
 WSOPC Event #16: $400 No-Limit Hold'em Double Stack166$54,780Wadih KaawarArlington, TX$13,894

Photos courtesy of WSOP

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Connor Richards
Editor & Live Reporter U.S.

Connor Richards is an Editor & Live Reporter for PokerNews and host of the Life Outside Poker podcast. Connor has been nominated for two Global Poker Awards for his writing.

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