Hong Lin Leads Card Player Poker Tour Oasis of the Seas Main Event

Day 1 of the $1,100 Card Player Poker Tour Caribbean Cruise main event began at 12 pm local time as the ship sailed the path from the Bahamas to St. Thomas.

Allison “Allie McDeal” Hollander, host of the bestbet Jacksonville Poker Show, CPPT St. Maarten final tablist Mark Stephen Edwards, Card Player Publisher and two-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner Barry Shulman and WSOP bracelet winner and CPPT all-time money winner Allyn Shulman were among the 30 entrants.

After 12 levels of play Florida’s Hong Lin emerged as the chip leader over the final nine players. Lin shot up the leaderboard when two tables remained after his pocket Aces eliminated a player holding pocket Kings in a massive pot.

The final ten players were condensed into a single table with the elimination of Or Eshkar, who lost the last of his chips holding Ace-Jack against an opponent’s Ace-King. Patty Egan was then eliminated when she put the last of her chips in the middle holding 77 and Bob Thaemert called with 1010. The board ran out QJ353 and with Egan’s bust-out, the official final table was set.

Barry Shulman will return to the final table with the second largest stack in play, followed by David Eller and Thaemert. William Bryan and Gary Thorneycroft will return to the short stacks.

The much awaited tournament drew a prize pool of $29,400 and $13,230 will go to the winner. Players began with 20,000 in chips and had the option to add on an additional 10,000 for $40. Blinds began at 50-100 with 40-minute levels meaning players could start with up to 300 big blinds if they chose the add-on option.

The cruise is the only stop on the CPPT to take place outside a land-based casino, making it one of the most unique and entertaining stops of the year. The joint partnership between the CPPT and Card Player Cruises gives players a chance to make a bona-fide family vacation while enjoying amazing poker action.

“Our card room is probably the friendliest card room you will ever be in and you’ll hear a lot of laughter,” said Card Player Cruises partner Linda Johnson. “Most of our players are recreational players and everybody has a good time. It’s just great to have such a friendly place to come and play poker.”

George Lebin, who is a regular player at bestbet Jacksonville in Jacksonville, Florida –home to an annual CPPT stop – said the option of cruising and poker is the perfect fit for him and his wife.

“She loves going around the ship, just picking up a conversation with anybody and doing her thing and I enjoy playing poker,” Lebin said. “So that’s why this is so great for us.”

Card Player Cruises partner Jan Fisher reiterated the sentiment.

“It’s a full service vacation with wonderful people and you will make friends for life,” Fisher said. “We’ve had people meet their future partners here, we’ve had wedding ceremonies on the ship. We’ve had recommitment ceremonies, we’ve had a little bit of everything. It’s just a wonderful way to travel and enjoy our partnership with Card Player Media.”

The day before the main event began the Oasis of the Seas docked in Nassau, Bahamas, giving passengers a chance to enjoy local food, sandy beaches and high-end shopping. Passengers were also able to learn about the region’s legendary Pirate history at the Nassau Pirate Museum. After leaving the port, the ship set sail for a day and a half, making for the perfect occasion to begin the main event.

The final table will take place Thursday at 12 pm local time.

Check out the video below the final table chip counts.

Final Table Chip Counts

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