It took Maurice Hawkins just one month to re-take the lead on the all-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) Circuit ring list after being tied by Josh Reichard in April. The Florida grinder won a historic 15th Circuit ring earlier this week at WSOP Harrah’s Cherokee with a victory in a $2,200 buy-in High Roller event for $54,599.

Hawkins held the top spot on the ring list for several years before Reichard won his 13th and 14th rings earlier this year to tie Hawkins.

Just four weeks later, Hawkins has bumped Reichard from the top spot to maintain his status as the most decorated WSOP Circuit player in poker history.

WSOPC Event #16: $2,200 No-Limit Hold’em High Roller

For several years, no one could touch Hawkins as he sat comfortably above the rest on the all-time ring list with 14 rings, in front of Valentin Vornicu with 12 rings.

Multiple players went on surges this year to close the gap. Ari Engel won a 12th ring in March to tie Vornicu, while Daniel Lowery picked up a staggering three rings and Reichard won two rings to reach respective totals of 13 and 14.

Hawkins now re-takes the lead after a heads-up victory against fellow Floridian Toby Boas ($33,744), while other players who made deep runs include Cherokee regular Irene Carey (4th - $16,327) and bracelet winner Will Givens (7th - $6,877).

Hawkins, a controversial figure in poker, won his 14th ring at WSOPC Choctaw in 2020 and has had several close calls since then, including a fourth-place finish in Event #11: 400 No-Limit Hold’em at this very stop. It may only be a matter of time before Hawkins adds a 16th ring to further close the gap, or before Reichard wins a 15th to do the opposite.

Jones Wins Cherokee Main Event a Second Time

Hawkins wasn’t the only big winner at WSOPC Harrah’s Cherokee, which ran May 4-15. Earlier in the series, Spencer Smith won his third and fourth rings, denying Lowery a 14th ring in the process.

The $1,700 Main Event drew a huge field of 1,205 runners for a prize pool of $1,663,301. North Carolina’s Ryan Jones took it down for a career-best $302,131 and his third Circuit ring after defeating heads-up opponent Jonathan Lewis, who is turn took home $186,733.

Incredibly, it was not Jones’ first Main Event victory in the Smokey Mountains. In 2015, he took down the $1,675 buy-in WSOPC Harrah’s Cherokee Main Event for $235,804, while his second ring came from a victory in the 2017 WSOPC Rio Las Vegas Main Event for $269,327.

The victory made Jones the first player to ever win the Harrah’s Cherokee Main Event twice, according to WSOP.

WSOPC Harrah’s Cherokee Main Event Final Table Results

Other players who picked up rings at the WSOPC Harrah’s Cherokee stop include Georgia’s Matthew Higgins (WSOPC Event #8: $400 No-Limit Hold’em Monster Stack - $99,121), North Carolina’s Matthew Torma (WSOPC Event #13: $400 No-Limit Hold’em - $27,732) and Ohio’s Shane Melert (WSOPC Event #18: $400 No-Limit Hold’em Last Chance Big 30K - $20,081).

A full list of ring winners at WSOPC Harrah’s Cherokee is available in the table below.

WSOPC Harrah’s Cherokee Ring Winners

_{Photos courtesy WSOP}

Ludovic Geilich is the latest player to enjoy the sweet taste of success on the Grosvenor UK Poker Tour (GUKPT) after the popular Scotsman triumphed in the £1,000 GUKPT Edinburgh Main Event over the weekend.

Geilich’s first major live victory since he took down the €1,100 No-Limit Hold’em Open event at the PartyPoker LIVE MILLIONS Barcelona festival in April 2018 came with £79,590 in prize money, cementing third place in Scotland’s all time money listing, and closing the gap on David Vamplew in second.

£1,000 GUKPT Edinburgh Main Event Final Table Results

Lin Chen Conquers GUKPT Blackpool Main Event After Three-Way Chop

The £1,000 GUKPT Edinburgh Main Event drew in a 366-strong crowd, who created a £310,220 prize pool that the top 34 finishers shared.

Team Grosvenor’s Katie Swift cashed in the Main Event, her 32nd place finish yielding £2,230.

Others who finished in the money places included Matthew Eardley, Brandon Sheils, Yucel “Mad Turk” Eminoglu, Colin Gillion, and John Bousfield, the latter falling in 13th place for £4,030.

Six of the nine finalists saw their £1,000 investment swell into five-figure scores. Ireland’s Geoff Kearney went into the final table as the shortest stack, and was the first player eliminated from it. The last of Kearney’s chips went into the middle with pocket eights, and he lost a coinflip against Geilich’s king-queen courtesy of a queen on the flop. Kearney collected a career-best £5,580.

Robbie Bull was the next to fall when his 35 big blind four-bet jam with king-jack of hearts lost to the dominating ace-queen in the hands of Craig Smith. Bull had to make do with a £6,510 score, which pushed him over the $450,000 in live career earnings.

Man Moc Wins Largest-Ever GUKPT First Place Prize; Bests His Brother’s Previous Best

Seventh place and £7,760 went to Timothy Chung, who you may recall won the £1,250 GUKPT London Main Event for £185,560 in February 2022. Chung’s last 14 big blinds were committed with ace-jack, but Smith found ace-queen and called. As it did in Bull’s exit, Smith’s ace-queen held, and the final table lost a dangerous player.

The surviving six players locked in at least £10,550 for their efforts, but Michael Kane would not collect any additional funds. Kane three-bet shoved with pocket tens for 22 big blinds, only for Geilich to wake up with pocket kings and make the cold call. The five community cards provided no drama, and Kane was out of there.

James McLean busted in fifth for £14,270 in an exciting hand involving Abdul Mukit. With blinds at 15,000/30,000, McLean jammed for 500,000 with ace-eight, and Mukit called with pocket nines. McLean soared into the lead with an ace on the turn, only for the nine of clubs to gift Mukit a set on the river!

Smith’s tournament ended in a fourth-place finish worth £21,710, a career-best for the Edinburgh native. Smith attempted to apply maximum pressure to Geilich by four-betting all-in with pocket fives. Ordinarily, the move could have worked, but Geilich was holding pocket queens and going nowhere. An ace-high board all but eliminated Smith, and he busted a few hands later, while Geilich improved to a commanding chip lead.

The heads-up stage was reached when Lin Chen bowed out in third for £34,130. Chen has been in incredible form of late, and won the £1,250 GUKPT Blackpool Main Event for £65,310 in March. Perhaps his confidence got the better of him because he ran a huge bluff against Mukit, but Mukit was having none of it. A short-stacked Chen then pushed with king-ten and lost a coinflip against Geilich’s pocket sevens.

Geilich wasted little time in brushing aside Mukit, resigning the runner-up to a £55,840 score, and claiming the £79,590 top prize and winner’s trophy for himself.

2023 GUKPT Edinburgh Side Event Results

It was not only the GUKPT Edinburgh Main Event that took place at the festival because there were several key side events.

Arian Hassnkashani banked £43,800 by being the last player standing in the £1,500 High Roller event. There was also an outright victory for Team Grosvenor’s Jamie Nixon in the £550 GUKPT Cup, a result that added £23,480 to Nixon’s coffers.

GUKPT Heads to Luton From May 26

GUKPT regulars do not have time to rest on their laurels because the fifth leg of the 2023 schedule kicks off on May 26 at the Grosvenor G Casino in Luton.

Luton has always been a popular stop for the GUKPT, and some of the United Kingdom’s best-known players have returned home with the Main Event title in tow. Stay tuned to PokerNews to discover if another superstar walks away with the GUKPT Main Event trophy.

Last year, PokerNews sent a team down south for a weeklong “Texas Road Trip” to visit various cardrooms and local historical poker spots. On Monday, we did the same thing by sending PokerNews Community Manager Jesse Fullen and US Live Reporting Executive Matt Hansen to Philadelphia for the start of our “East Coast Road Trip.”

Over the course of the next week, we will be updating this piece daily documenting our adventures, which will include visits to live poker rooms, checking out the online poker sites in both New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and even meeting up with some notable East Coast players. You can also follow along on PokerNews social media.

PA Best Online Poker Sites: Play Online Poker in Pennsylvania

Day 1 – Live Poker Rooms in Philadelphia

After traveling from Las Vegas to Philly on Sunday, Matt and Jesse got a good night’s rest before checking out the live poker rooms in the “City of Brotherly Love.” First up was Parx Poker Room, which houses a massive 48 tables. It was there we were welcomed by Director of Poker Operations Bill Entenman, an industry veteran.

He started in poker after watching Rounders when he was 21. Since then, he has worked in every position you can imagine in a poker room starting as a dealer before taking a floor position. Two decades later, he’s been at Parx for several years and has seen lots of change over his tenure.

He told us some great stories about local players such as Matt Glantz and Shaun Deeb, and he also shared his love for the game. While tournaments haven’t come back to Parx yet post-pandemic, daily tournaments appear to be coming back in June 2023.

If you’re in the area north of Philadelphia, you have to check out Parx – they currently have a Bad Beat Jackpot sitting at $424,000 – and tell them PokerNews sent you! Here’s a look at the Parx Poker Room:

From there, the crew headed to Rivers Philadelphia, formerly known as Sugar House Casino. Their 28-table enclosed poker room is gearing up for their $1,100 Ultra Rush Event this weekend. The $200K GTD tournament kicks off with Day 1a on Thursday, May 18 at 6:15 p.m. Days 1b and 1c will take place at 11:15 a.m. on Friday and Saturday respectively, and the survivors from all flights will return at 11:15 a.m. on Sunday, May 21 to play down to a winner.

The last stop of the day was over at Live! Philadelphia, which is home to a 29-table poker room with plenty of tournaments on their calendar.

Day 2 – Stay Tuned

Executive Editor U.S.

Executive Editor US, PokerNews Podcast co-host & 2013 WSOP Bracelet Winner.

More action from the Amateur Poker Association & Tour (APAT) is right around the corner as the tour’s UK Championship Of Amateur Poker (UKCOAP) is set to begin at Dusk Till Dawn, Nottingham from tomorrow, with the series culminating on May 21.

The UKCOAP is one of the best events of the APAT season, as it allows amateur players to test their abilities, experience diverse poker variants, and vie for prestigious titles. With varying buy-ins and formats, participants can choose the events that best suit their preferences and challenge themselves in the realm of amateur poker.

Six Championship Events Planned for Nottingham

The UKCOAP offers an exciting lineup of six championship events and the well-attended APAT High Roller. Poker enthusiasts have plenty of opportunities to showcase their skills and compete for prestigious titles.

Kicking off the series is the APAT UK PLO Amateur Poker Championship on May 17. Players can test their Omaha skills in this Pot-Limit Omaha event with a buy-in of £60. With the popularity of PLO on the rise, participants can anticipate intense action and challenging gameplay.

On May 18, two championship events begin. The first is the APAT UK Amateur Poker Championship, which guarantees a substantial £50,000 prize pool. There are several Day 1 flights and you can enter this No-Limit Hold’em tournament for £120. The event promises fierce competition as players compete for their share of the impressive prize pool.

Simultaneously, the APAT UK Triple Stud Amateur Poker Championship commences on the same day. With a buy-in of £60, this tournament offers a unique blend of three poker variants – Stud Hi, Stud Hi-Lo, and Razz. Participants will need a versatile skill set and adaptability to excel in this multi-format event.

On May 19, the APAT UK HORSE Amateur Poker Championship takes center stage. HORSE combines five different poker variants (Hold’em, Omaha, Razz, Stud, and Stud Hi-Lo) in rotation. With a buy-in of £120, players will showcase their proficiency in various games and compete for the championship title.

Moreover, the APAT High Roller event, held on May 19, offers a high-stakes competition for those seeking a greater challenge. This prestigious tournament features the largest buy-in of the series, attracting experienced players looking to demonstrate their prowess and compete for significant rewards.

The APAT ROE (NLHE/PLO) Amateur Poker Championship rounds out the series on May 20. This tournament combines two popular poker variants, No-Limit Hold’em and Pot-Limit Omaha, in rotation. With a buy-in of £60, players will engage in a strategic battle, utilizing their skills across multiple formats.

Finally, the festival culminates on May 21 with the APAT UK Bounty Hunter Championship. In this thrilling tournament, players pay a buy-in of £120, with £50 of that amount becoming their personal bounty. Knocking out opponents earns players their bounties, adding an extra layer of excitement and rewards to the competition.

Full UKCOAP Schedule

Play APAT Online Events on GGPoker

Did you know that you can play online APAT events on GGPoker? The two brands recently joined forces and will work together to support the growth of amateur poker at a grassroots level. GGPoker’s advanced platform and extensive player base will offer APAT members opportunities to develop their skills, compete in prestigious events, and connect with poker enthusiasts worldwide.

As part of the collaboration, GGPoker will host exclusive online events for APAT members, including Championship tournaments and qualifiers for live events. Additionally, APAT’s World Championship of Amateur Poker (WCOAP) will be played exclusively online at GGPoker. This partnership will allow APAT members and GGPoker players to compete for prestigious National Amateur Championship titles, Medals, and Bracelets, as well as earn a National Amateur Ranking.

2023 Amateur Poker Association & Tour (APAT) Remaining Live Schedule

The Nottingham event marks the midway point of Season 16’s calendar, with future stops taking place at Edinburgh, Cardiff and Czechia. There are also another two series to take place in Nottingham in August and November 2023.

They often say that some poker players have all the luck, and you could make a case for British grinder “d5t6y7” in that statement. Less than a month ago, d5t6y7 finished tenth in the 888poker $100,000 Mystery Bounty Main Event but not before they pulled out the $10,000 top mystery bounty prize.

Fastforward to May 15, and d5t6y7 did it again. Not only that, but they took down the tournament too!

This week’s $100,000 Mystery Bounty main Event saw the 965-strong field reduced to a final table of nine on Day 1. Usually, the biggest mystery bounty prizes have been won by this stage, but not this time around because there was a $3,000 and a $10,000 bounty still waiting to be won.

$100,000 Mystery Bounty Main Event Final Table Results

“DiouL2” of Brazil busted in ninth for a $981 score, and another Brazilian in “SeiryokuZen” joined them on the rail with $2,393 in tow.

Then came the exit of “juncanaru98” in seventh. They open-shoved for 9.2 big blinds with ace-deuce of spades from under the gun, and the action folded to “KJJJIDIele” in the cutoff. KJJJIDIele held an overwhelming chip lead and was using their massive stack with deadly aggression. They continued that aggression by moving all-in with ace-ten of clubs, resulting in the other active players folding, including d5t6y7 who mucked ace-jack. d5t6y7 would have won the pot because the board ran five-queen-jack-ace-four. KJJJIDIele saw a golden envelope open in front of them, an envelope containing $3,000!

Ukraine’s “Freedan” saw their tournament end in sixth place for $2,224, “Adhmor8” fell in fifth for $3,039, and “p1uzera” bowed out in fourth for $3,199. None of those eliminated players’ envelopes contained the $10,000 mystery bounty payment!

Neither did the envelope on the head of third-place finisher “Iadutska” who collected $4,558, meaning the heads-up duo were not only fighting for the first place and the not-so-small matter of more than $2,100 difference in prize money, but one of them had a $10,000 mystery bounty on their head!

888poker LIVE Barcelona Runs May 10-22; Will There be a Spanish Main Event Champion?

KJJJIDIele started the heads-up battle with a 62.6 big blind to 58 big blind advantage over d5t6y7 but the stacks were reversed on the first hand with KJJJIDIele getting frisky with queen-five of clubs and folding to a four-bet.

The chip lead exchanged hands a few times over the next 15 minutes, but neither player could pull away from the other. That was until d5t6y7 flopped twp pair with nine-deuce and got fully paid off by KJJJIDIele, who couldn’t lay down their pair of aces.

d5t6y7 now held an eight-to-one chip advantage over KJJJIDIele, and the writing was on the wall for the latter. The final hand occurred soon after and saw KJJJIDIele limp with king-eight, and call when d5t6y7 raised to three big blinds. A ten-king-ten flop saw d5t6y7 fire a 1.5 big blind bet, and KJJJIDIele called. An eight on the turn was greeted with a 3.1 big blind bet, a 10.4 big blind shove from KJJJIDIele, and a call from d5t6y7. It was king-eight for KJJJIDIele and king-jack for d5t6y7. A seven on the river busted KJJJIDIele in second place for $10,771, and they handed an envelope containing $10,000 to the tournament’s champion, d5t6y7.

Learn more about the $2M Gtd XL Spring Series

$2 Million Guaranteed XL Spring Series Starts May 21

It is all hands to the pump right now at 888poker with the online poker giant hosting the $2 million guaranteed XL Spring series from May 21, in addition to having its live poker team in Spain for the 888poker LIVE Barcelona festival.

The first of 32 numbered XL Spring series events shuffles up and deals at 6:30 p.m. BST on May 21, while the 888poker LIVE Barcelona Main Event runs from May 17-22, and you can follow all of the Barcelona Main Event action right here at PokerNews.

Grab Yourself the Best 888poker Welcome Bonus

You can head into the $2 million guaranteed XL Spring Series armed with the best 888poker welcome bonus. Download 888poker via PokerNews, and you’re guaranteed to receive a welcome offer that will blast your bankroll into orbit. Here’s to seeing you at an XL Spring Series final table.

Bulgaria has itself a PartyPoker MILLIONS Online KO champion, and Yulian Bogdanov is the player who brought home the bacon. Bogdanov came out on top in the MILLIONS Online KO 6-Max Championship and turned his $215 investment into a $32,631 haul.

The tournament drew in 1,111 entrants across several starting flights, resulting in a guarantee-busting $222,200 prize pool. Only 165 of those entrants progressed to Day 2, with each locking in a min-cash for their efforts plus any scalps they collected along the way.

Big names littered the Day 2 payout list. Endrit Geci, the 2021 MILLIONS Online Main Event champion cashed in this event. As did such luminaries as Jerry Odeen, Marton Czuczor, Irish legend Andy Black, Niklas Astedt, Ioannis Angelou Konstas, Team PartyPoker’s Patrick Leonard, Kenny Hallaert, Benjamin Chalot, and the United Kingdom’s Tom Hall.

Seven PartyPoker players made up the final table. With bounties included, each was guaranteed a four-figure haul.

Finland’s Elias Suhonen was the first finalist to find themselves with fresh air where their chips once stood. Suhonen saw $2,317 land in his PartyPoker account.

Brazilian Gustavo Cerjeira busted in sixth for $4,289 before Team PartyPoker’s Matt Staples ran out of luck and had to make do with a fifth-place finish worth $6,043.

Fourth place and $7,581 went to Henrique Coutinho, with Eugenio Peralta busting in third for $12,587, which sent the tournament into the heads-up stage.

Bogdanov was only a single elimination away from capturing the title, but the talented Brit John Adderley stood in his way. Both players guaranteed themselves more than $14,000 from the main prize pool, but the final bounty payment was worth more than that, so everything was still to play for.

Unfortunately for Adderley, he fell at the final hurdle and received a $17,848 consolation prize. Meanwhile, Bogdanov reeled in a score worth $32,631, giving him plenty of ammunition for the rest of the MILLIONS Online KO Series, which concludes at the end of May.

MILLIONS Online KO 6-Max Championship Final Table Results

Brazilian One-Two in the Sunday Party

A field of 1,522 players bought into the MILLIONS Online KO edition of the Sunday Party, and created a $152,200 prize pool. There was a notable absentee from the field in Patrick Leonard. Having won back-to-back Sunday Party events, we would have thought Leonard was raring to go in this tournament. Perhaps he took a backseat to allow someone else to win?

The nine-handed final table had five Brazilian players seated around it, and two of those Samba stars navigated their way to the heads-up section of the event.

Guilherme Rimbano found himself in a one-on-one battle with fellow countryman Lazaro Tupy. There was little difference in the main prize pool payouts, with both Brazilians securing more than $8,600 for their efforts. Both players had been active throughout the tournament, and were both guaranteed to add more than $5,000 worth of extras to their hauls.

When the dust settled, it was Rimbano who held all of the chips, and he scooped a total prize worth $17,471, leaving Tupy to collect $13,650.

This weekend’s Sunday Party, at 7:05 p.m. BST on May 21, boasts a $200,000 guaranteed prize pool, making it the biggest Sunday Party since the tournament launched a few weeks ago.

MILLIONS Online KO Sunday Party Final Table Results

Big Names Progress in the Main Event

Two MILLIONS Online KO Main Event flights are in the bag, and those Day 1s have seen 374 players whittled to a more manageable 57. The current top ten has some phenomenal talent in it, and the field is only going to become tougher with each subsequent flight that takes place.

Antonio Ortega of Malta is the early chip leader, having turned his one million starting stack into 23,619,050 chips. Ortega also has $1,750 locked in from bounties already, meaning he is freerolling towards one of the tournament’s bigger prizes.

Also currently in the top ten are Steven Van Zadelhoff (12,561,583), Patrice Brandt (9,999,370), and Jerry Odeen (9,354,655).

Further down the chip counts, you find Jack Sinclair (7,068,279), Tomi Brouk (6,208,257), former MILLIONS Online Main Event winners Jon Van Fleet (5,571,344) and Benjamin Chalot (5,555,137), Team PartyPoker’s Jaime Staples (5,158,107), and Swedish superstar Simon Mattsson (4,593,511).

There are Day 1s at 7:05 p.m. BST on May 21 and May 28, plus additional flights at 4:05 p.m. BST and 6:05 p.m. BST on May 29.

MILLIONS Online KO Main Event Top 10 Chip Counts

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