Anderson Is First WSOPC Regional Champion

As we reported earlier in the week, the WSOP Circuit’s first Regional Championship started on Monday at the Horseshoe in Hammond, IN. The event finished off the Hammond leg of the circuit and marked the first time that the WSOP-C awarded a Regional title. The competition was incredibly tough, but after three days of blood, sweat and tears Thursday’s final table consisted of: Brandon Adams, Jim Anderson, Anthony Hartmann, Curt Kohlberg, Bernard Lee, Mark Owens, Gabe Patgorski, David Sands and Shannon Shorr.

It was an interesting mix of players and the more recognizable pros – like Adams, Lee and Sands – were early favorites, but the amateurs held their own. Gabe Patgorski, a relative unknown, entered the final table action with a seemingly insurmountable 1-million chip lead. Mark Owens went out first only a few hands in and set the tone for a hard and fast final table. This wasn’t going to be repeat of last year’s Main Event; the field thinned from nine to two in nearly record time.

When Anderson forced Kohlberg out in fourth, it put him within firing range of Patgorski. Anderson wasted no time challenging the chip leader and doubled up after going all in against Patgorski with a pair of jacks. Now Anderson was on top and Patgorski seemed to be flailing, but Lee got caught in the crossfire and exited the championship in third.

Anderson came into the heads-up portion with five million chips to Patgorski’s much-diminished stack of two million. While Patgorski made a valiant effort to rebound, ultimately it wasn’t long before Anderson got an opportunity to finish Patgorski off. In that final hand, Patgorski went all-in pre-flop with A-J suited. Unbeknownst to him, Anderson was holding a pair of pocket rockets. Anderson’s heroic hand held up, sending Patgorski out of the tournament in second place.

The Regional Championship set another record by attracting 226 players willing to part with the $10,000 buy-in. Anderson’s share of the $2.1 million pot was $525,449, and for his hard-won second place finish Patgorski took home $324,770. This year’s Horseshoe Hammond stop was all about Cinderella stories with amateurs like Jewell and Anderson taking top honors and likely elevating themselves to a whole new level in the game. It’s been an especially good year for Anderson who also claimed his first two WSOP cashes in Vegas this summer. His payout for the Regional Championship is more than ten times his total previous career earnings.

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