Blair Hinkle Wins at Grand Casino to Claim Second RGPS Main Event Title fo $35,985
On Sunday night, Blair Hinkle won his second RunGood Poker Series (RGPS) Main Event, this one coming at Grand Casino and Resort in Shawnee, Oklahoma. He won $35,985 and the championship ring after defeating a field of 314 players. His previous win came back in May in the RGPS Tulsa Hard Rock.
It was the first-ever RGPS event at Grand Casino and Resort and several of the RGPS faithful traveled to support the new stop. Some of them even made the final table including Jon Bennett, Mason "Uncle Ron" Hinkle, and Justin Gardenhire.
All three of the Hinkle brothers bagged for Day 2, but Grant Hinkle fell early in the day while his brothers made the final table together.
Dan Lowery, Ray Henson, and Bart Bogard were also in attendance over the weekend. Lowery and Bogard both couldn't find a bag, while Henson found his way into the money with a 24th-place finish. Kami Hudson, Megan Moore, Pam Belote, and Shelly Wise also played the event, with Hudson finishing in 22nd place and Wise in 33rd.
Day 2 started with 63 players returning and competing for their shot at the RGPS championship ring. The play was quick and the field reached the final table somewhere around 7 p.m. local time.
Final Table Payouts
| Place | Player | Prize (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Blair Hinkle | $35,985 |
| 2 | Jon Bennett | $22,786 |
| 3 | Kendal Dexter | $15,259 |
| 4 | Stanley Curry | $10,642 |
| 5 | Mike Latham | $7,982 |
| 6 | Mason Hinkle | $6,260 |
| 7 | Jaymie Jordan | $5,290 |
| 8 | Justin Gardenhire | $4,382 |
| 9 | Bob Holmes | $3,772 |
Final Table Action
The final table action started with Bob Holmes finishing in ninth place. He ran pocket jacks into Blair Hinkle's aces after four players limped and Hinkle raised from the big blind. Holmes shoved and Hinkle snap-called.
Gardenhire was the eighth-place finisher after losing a race against Kendal Dexter. Gardenhire was the only player at the final table that was not eliminated by the eventual champ.
Then it was Jaymie Jordan finishing in seventh place. He was the Day 1a chip leader and eventually got it in ahead against Blair Hinkle when he raised all-in with two pair. Hinkle called and made trips on the river to send Jordan out the door.
Mason Hinkle was the sixth-place finisher after being eliminated by his brother when he shoved pocket threes on the button and Blair called with ace-deuce. Uncle Ron treys couldn't hold and he headed for the payout desk.
Mike Latham whittled down to only 135,000 and shoved with ten-high. Hinkle had Big Slick, called, and flopped a pair. Latham was ousted in fifth place.
Hinkle continued his rampage when he eliminated Stanley Curry in fourth place. It was Hinkle's pocket tens that beat out Curry's ace-high to bring it down to three-handed play.
The final three players battled for quite a while before Hinkle called a shove from Dexter and had him outkicked with each holding an ace.
After that, it didn't take long for Hinkle to finish the tournament and bust Jon Bennett when he got ace-ten in against Bennett's pocket fours. An ace on the turn would seal Bennett's fate in second place.
Hinkle wrapped up a dominating performance and claimed his second RGPS Main Event title and a $35,985 first-place prize. Hinkle rode the wave of momentum from early on in Day 2 when he hit a one-outer to win over 800,000 and never looked back.
That will do it for the first-ever RGPS stop at Grand Casino and Resort. The next RGPS stop is Bossier City, Lousiana from October 1-6. PokerNews will be bringing you updates from all the tournaments between now and then as well as Main Event coverage from RGPS Bossier City.