Amateur Ben Hopkins Wins November Nine Reunion Event At Foxwoods Resort Casino

The nine players who made the final table of the 2010 World Series of Poker main event reunited Tuesday for the first time ever to participate in a 30-player $15,000 freeroll event at Foxwoods Resort Casino. They were joined by a group of 18 randomly selected amateurs, Publisher Kasey Thompson, ESPN commentator Lon McEachern and Foxwoods Spokesman and poker pro Bernard Lee.

Three of the November Nine players made their way to the final table of the reunion event: Michael Mizrachi, Matt Jarvis and reigning world champion Jonathan Duhamel. But when the last card was dealt it was one of the amateurs who came out on top. Rhode Island’s Ben Hopkins previously finished 7th place in an $80 turbo event at Foxwoods, earning his place among other hopefuls in a random drawing offering seats in the reunion event. The 26-year-old capitalized on being selected and outlasted some serious competition on his way to winning the whole thing.

Along the way, Hopkins even eliminated Duhamel. Holding 55 he called Duhamel’s preflop all-in bet. Duhamel held AJ and hit the flop of AJ4. The 3 turn gave Hopkins a straight draw but instead he found a set on the 5 river to crush Duhamel’s flopped two pair.

In heads-up play, Hopkins earned a 3:1 chip lead before he called the all in of Matt Jarvis. Hopkins held AQ over the KJ of Jarvis. A board of 109474 missed both players, giving Hopkins the win and the $5,000 top prize, the largest cash of his career.

Despite the fact that he didn’t win the event, Jarvis did earn an additional $45,000 from prop bets with fellow November Nine players. Jarvis, of British Columbia, also won his last-longer bet with Duhamel, of Montreal. As a result, Duhamel now has to wear a Vancouver Canucks jersey for three events in the upcoming WSOP.

Here’s a look at the final table results:

1. Ben Hopkins — $5,000
2. Matt Jarvis — $3,000
3. Bill Raynor — $2,000
4. Anthony Palladino — $1,000
5. Jonathan Duhamel — $1,000
6. Bernard Lee — $1,000
7. Michael Mizrachi — $500
8. Joseph Washington — $500
9. Rich Grygeil — $500
10. Mark Walsh — $500

Bernard Lee Announces New Charity

Prior to the November Nine reunion event, Bernard Lee announced the creation of a new charity program, The Full House Charity Program. The program will donate a minimum of $20,000 each year to New England organizations focusing on children’s needs. Lee himself will donate $500 for every full house he gets in poker tournaments, and Vermont-based Cabot Creamery Cooperative has signed on as the lead sponsor.

Here’s a look at the remaining Foxwoods Mega Stack XIX schedule:

Feb. 10 – $400 NLHE ($75,000 Guaranteed)
Feb. 12 – $1,200 NLHE ($150,000 Guaranteed)

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