Will Berry Wins 2017 World Series of Poker Circuit Hard Rock Tulsa Main EventOklahoma-Based Poker Pro Defeats Field of 574 To Win $180,806 |
|
Will Berry is a poker pro based out of Norman, Oklahoma. The 25-year-old has found plenty of live tournament success in his home state in recent years, having made both the 2016 and 2017 WSOP Circuit Choctaw main event final tables. He finished fourth and ninth in those events, respectively. Berry managed to navigate a field of 574 entrants in the 2017 WSOP Circuit Hard Rock Tulsa $1,675 no-limit hold’em main event to make his third consecutive WSOPC main event final table in Oklahoma. This time Berry was determined to walk away the victor.
Three consecutive wsopc Oklahoma main events FTs
Seems like a good day to stop messing around and win one— Will Berry (@willb4y) March 27, 2017
In the end Berry achieved his goal, emerging victorious with the title, his first gold ring and the first-place prize of $180,806.
“I’m a little relieved,” Berry told WSOP reporters after coming out on top. “I’ve played a lot of these tournaments and never managed to finish better than fourth place. So to finally win one feels great.”
Berry came into the final table in third chip position. He was able to chip up early on in the final table and then went on to eliminate Collin Grubaugh in 5th place ($45,659) and Tony Lay in 4th place ($60,683) to further close the gap between Berry and chip leader Daniel Lowery.
Lowery eliminated Jose Anaya in third place ($81,778) to set up the final showdown. Lowery took a 5-to-2 chip lead into heads-up play against Berry, but the Oklahoman was able to quickly close the gap. By the time the final hand arose Berry had taken the lead. With blinds of 50,000 – 100,000 with an ante of 10,000 Lowery raised from the button and Berry moved all-in from the big blind. Lowery called for his last 2.3 million with the A9 only to see that he was up against berry’s AJ. The board ran out Q1047J to give Berry the winning pair of jacks, securing the pot and the title in the process.
Lowery was awarded $111,835 as the runner-up.
Here is a look at the payouts and POY points awarded at this final table:
Place | Player | Earnings (USD) | POY Points |
1 | William Berry | $180,806 | 840 |
2 | Daniel Lowery | $111,835 | 700 |
3 | Jose Anaya | $81,778 | 560 |
4 | Tony Lay | $60,683 | 420 |
5 | Collin Grubaugh | $45,659 | 350 |
6 | David Brown | $34,827 | 280 |
7 | Garry Simms | $26,932 | 210 |
8 | Hank Sitton | $21,112 | 140 |
9 | Phuong Phan | $16,772 | 70 |