Soheb Porbandarwala wins the WSOP.com Online Circuit Main Event
Soheb Porbandarwala wins the WSOP.com Online Circuit Main Event (photo: WPT)

WSOP.com played host to the WSOP.com Online Circuit series over the past two weeks. The series awarded 13 gold WSOP Circuit rings in 13 days, culminating in the $525 Main Event that played out on Sunday, March 8, 2020. The Main Event attracted 508 entries and generated a prize pool of $396,500, with Soheb ‘tommyconway6’ Porbandarwala winning for $95,160.

The entire series generated 5,482 entries and awarded $1.769 million in prize money. In addition to Porbandarwala winning the Main Event, Bryan ‘Pellepelle’ Piccioli, Lacey ‘ReySol’ Jones, Daniel ‘centrfieldr’ Lupo, Anthony ‘Flawlessbink’ Maio, Darren ‘avocadotoast’ Rabinowitz, and Daniel ‘juice’ Buzgon all won events.

Maio was one of eight players to cash five times in the 13-event series. Maio won Event 4: $320 No Limit Hold’em Double Stack for $29,484. James ‘PRPirate420’ Vales, Andrew ‘WATCHGUY42’ Lichtenberger, John Allan ‘Beastro’ Hinds, Ryan ‘LoveMy11Cats’ Belz, Michael ‘RUA11’ Michnik, David ‘dave419’ Nodes, and James ‘BagelBud’ Lillis were the others to cash five times apiece.

Porbandarwala was the series’ biggest winner, thanks to his big Main Event score. Four others each earned more than $50,000 total from their results during the series. Those four players were Rabinowitz, Lupo, Todd ‘Google_Man’ Rodenborn, and Daniel ‘StayActive’ Chan.

Event 1: $200 NL Knockout

Entries: 387
Prize Pool: $73,917

The first event of the series was a $200 buy-in No Limit Hold’em Knockout tournament. It attracted 387 entries and generated a prize pool of $73,917. Topping the field to win the first gold ring of the festival was former WSOP Main Event sixth-place finisher Bryan ‘Pellepelle’ Piccioli. He scooped $8,804 for the win.

Finishing in ninth place was Krista ‘Pollux’ Gifford. She’s the reigning WSOP.com Player of the Year and is the big frontrunner in the 2020 WSOP.com Player of the Year race. The winner of the 2020 WSOP.com Player of the Year title is set to receive a cash prize of $10,000, an exclusive Player of the Year ring, a $1,000 entry and a $500 entry to WSOP.com online gold bracelet events for the 2021 WSOP, and a ticket to the 25-Seat Scramble satellite for the 2021 WSOP.

  1. Bryan ‘Pellepelle’ Piccioli – $8,804
  2. James ‘PRPirate420’ Vales – $4,930
  3. Daniel ‘Dirtyjerzy13’ Cortes-McGhan – $2,993
  4. Gary ‘busted_out’ Niekerk – $2,289
  5. Jeffrey ‘J_Tanouye’ Tanouye – $1,937
  6. Joshua ‘808Grinder’ Suyat – $1,585
  7. Justin ‘M.A.O.L.I.’ Chock – $1,197
  8. Corey ‘Corgasm’ Paggeot – $810
  9. Krista ‘Pollux’ Gifford – $528

Event 2: $215 NL

Entries: 587
Prize Pool: $117,400

Coming out on top in Event 2: $215 No Limit Hold’em was Lacey ‘ReySol’ Jones. She topped a field of 587 entries to win $29,350 and her first WSOP Circuit gold ring.

Finishing just outside of the final table were Lauren ‘sycamore22’ Roberts in 11th place and Calvin ‘projector52’ Anderson in 14th place. Both Roberts and Anderson won $1,408.

  1. Lacey ‘ReySol’ Jones – $29,350
  2. Anthony ‘Silkworms’ Balacich – $16,436
  3. William ‘bigbill2137’ Daloisi – $9,979
  4. Matthew ‘Mattyb0y’ Schorr – $7,631
  5. Sang ‘youngkoi’ Lee – $6,457
  6. Tony ‘KDtheGOAT35’ Sandquist – $5,283
  7. Brian ‘Bmack1335’ McKinney – $3,992
  8. Ryan ‘Adopt_aDogg0’ Leng – $2,700
  9. Bobby ‘HLD1TYM’ Sanoubane – $1,761

Event 3: $320 NL 6-Max

Entries: 410
Prize Pool: $123,000

Daniel ‘centrfieldr’ Lupo, who is one of the top-ranked online poker players in the United States and New Jersey, finished atop the field in Event 3: $320 No Limit Hold’em 6-Max. Lupo took home $32,595 for his efforts. If you recall, Lupo was the winner of a WSOP gold bracelet in 2019. He won that bracelet in similar fashion to how he won this WSOP Circuit gold ring, by playing online at WSOP.com.

  1. Daniel ‘centrfieldr’ Lupo – $32,595
  2. Shawn ‘Loanmonster’ Silber – $19,065
  3. Adam ‘wsop1959’ Krach – $10,886
  4. Ryan ‘Hagzzz021’ Hagerty – $8,364
  5. Thayer ‘Rasta_Raf’ Rasmussen – $7,134
  6. Michael ‘iowamike5’ Lang – $5,904

Event 4: $250 NL Turbo

Entries: 357
Prize Pool: $83,895

Event 4: $250 No Limit Hold’em Turbo drew 357 entries and created a prize pool of $83,895. The winner of the event was Ross ‘BlueTang’ Gottlieb, who came out on top to the tune of $22,232. Gottlieb defeated Guy ‘PhilLaak’ Dunlap in heads-up play to win the event.

Shankar ‘Burgersssss’ Pillai, who won the WSOP.com Winter Championships Main Event for $69,250, finished in sixth place for $4,027.

Finishing in 16th place was Gifford.

  1. Ross ‘BlueTang’ Gottlieb – $22,232
  2. Guy ‘PhilLaak’ Dunlap – $13,004
  3. Jaime ‘mooseman1710’ Reyes – $7,425
  4. Arian ‘4632647’ Stolt – $5,705
  5. Michael ‘Albatross17’ Comisso – $4,866
  6. Shankar ‘Burgersssss’ Pillai – $4,027
  7. David ‘DBABA’ Baba – $3,020
  8. Steven ‘FreshCakes’ Grybas – $2,013
  9. Qi ‘LINSANITY’ Ha – $1,426

Event 5: $320 NL Double Stack

Entries: 378
Prize Pool: $113,400

Anthony ‘Flawlessbink’ Maio, one of the best and most consistent players in the United States, binked a victory in Event 4: $320 No Limit Hold’em Double Stack for $29,484. Maio topped a final table that included the top-ranked US and New Jersey player, David ‘dehhhhh’ Coleman, who finished in seventh place.

  1. Anthony ‘Flawlessbink’ Maio – $29,484
  2. Jon ‘pacrush’ Letzkus – $17,010
  3. Jason ‘heybuddyyyyy’ DeWitt – $9,979
  4. David ‘DTC13’ Clarke – $7,711
  5. John ‘JSelz’ Cosgrove – $6,464
  6. Peter ‘Zdvol632’ Simicic – $5,330
  7. David ‘dehhhhh’ Coleman – $4,082
  8. Derek ‘tt42748’ Bickerstaff – $2,722
  9. Sam ‘Njsam’ Lofty – $1,928

Event 6: $320 NL Monster Stack

Entries: 669
Prize Pool: $200,700

In Event 6: $320 No Limit Hold’em Monster Stack, it was Daniel ‘StayActive’ Chan who came out on top. Chan topped a field of 669 entries to win $49,172.

Shawn ‘SayGoodNight’ Daniels, a WSOP.com Online Circuit Main Event winner in the past, finished fourth for $16,859. David ‘YoungPitts’ Baker, also known as ‘Bakes’ in the world of poker, took seventh for $6,623.

  1. Daniel ‘StayActive’ Chan – $49,172
  2. Frank ‘thewholefunk’ Funaro – $27,596
  3. James ‘jerzrep’ Nadolski – $16,859
  4. Shawn ‘SayGoodNight’ Daniels – $12,845
  5. Thomas ‘Zebra_Debra’ Sabatino – $10,838
  6. John ‘notyourfault’ Alesi – $8,831
  7. David ‘YoungPitts’ Baker – $6,623
  8. Jarred ‘GodsBigToe’ Gabin – $4,415
  9. Michael ‘Pierogi’ Ziemba – $2,910

Event 7: $215 NL Turbo Deepstack

Entries: 410
Prize Pool: $82,000

In Event 7: $215 No Limit Hold’em Turbo Deepstack, PocketFiver Aram ‘X69Podheiser’ Zobian grabbed first place, the gold ring, and $20,910 in prize money. If Zobian’s name rings a bell, it’s likely because you saw him finish in sixth place in the 2018 WSOP Main Event for $1.8 million.

Sam ‘texasmolly’ Grizzle finished third for $7,052, and Daniels reached another final table, taking seventh for $2,870.

  1. Aram ‘X69Podheiser’ Zobian – $20,910
  2. Matthew ‘shortmat31’ Galluzzo – $11,890
  3. Sam ‘texasmolly’ Grizzle – $7,052
  4. David ‘Any2beatsU’ Gonzalez – $5,412
  5. Michael ‘49erSuited’ Cohen – $4,592
  6. Desmond ‘Deezz_Nutzz’ Haynes – $3,772
  7. Shawn ‘SayGoodNight’ Daniels – $2,870
  8. Aaron ‘SagevSal’ Henderson – $1,886
  9. Samuel ‘SpewBot420’ Taylor – $1,312

Event 8: $1,000 NL High Roller 6-Max

Entries: 193
Prize Pool: $184,315

Well-known poker player Darren ‘avocadotoast’ Rabinowitz won Event 8: $1,000 No Limit Hold’em High Roller 6-Max, topping a field of 193 entries to win the $51,608 top prize. The win was one of three cashes during the series for Rabinowitz, who also finished 10th in Event #3: $320 No Limit Hold’em 6-Max for $1,599 and fifth in Event #10: $320 No Limit Hold’em for $6,635.

Rabinowitz defeated Ryan ‘GoFeltAfiSh’ Eriquezzo in heads-up play. Eriquezzo won $29,859. Zobian, winning of Event 7: $215 No Limit Hold’em Turbo Deepstack, finished in fifth place for $11,612 and Piccioli, winner of Event 1: $200 No Limit Hold’em Knockout, finished sixth for $,9769.

  1. Darren ‘avocadotoast’ Rabinowitz – $51,608
  2. Ryan ‘GoFeltAfiSh’ Eriquezzo – $29,859
  3. Alexander ‘losingplayer’ Farin – $17,141
  4. Brent ‘grebnrets’ Roberts – $13,455
  5. Aram ‘X69Podheiser’ Zobian – $11,612
  6. Bryan ‘Pellepelle’ Piccioli – $9,769

Event 9: $215 NL

Entries: 534
Prize Pool: $106,800

Daniel ‘juice’ Buzgon won Event 9: $215 No Limit Hold’em. He finished in first place from a field of 534 entries to score $15,486.

Finishing in second place was James ‘PRPirate420’ Vales, who earned his second runner-up finish of the series. He also placed second to Piccioli in Event 1: $200 No Limit Hold’em Knockout.

  1. Daniel ‘juice’ Buzgon – $27,234
  2. James ‘PRPirate420’ Vales – $15,486
  3. Eric ‘CircleBall’ Baldwin – $9,185
  4. Ranajoy ‘rjsk0531’ Sarker – $7,049
  5. Gordon ‘veilleux’ Vayo – $5,981
  6. Anthony ‘AK_AZwildcat’ Kuck – $4,913
  7. Michael ‘HankdaTank’ St. John – $3,738
  8. Daniel ‘RedsoxNets5’ Sewnig – $2,456
  9. Timothy ‘tbone111’ Mcgowan – $1,709

Event 10: $320 NL

Entries: 388
Prize Pool: $116,400

Capturing the gold ring in Event 10: $320 No Limit Hold’em was Nicole ‘uniquexcoles’ Garvin, topping a field of 388 entries to take home $30,264. Rabinowitz, Lichtenberger, and Shannon ‘Aulophobia’ Shorr also reached the final table.

One of the top-ranked online poker players i the US, David ‘bewater’ Goodman, finished in seventh place and took home $4,190.

  1. Nicole ‘uniquexcoles’ Garvin – $30,264
  2. Stephen ‘NJ_Treeve’ Ma – $17,460
  3. John Allan ‘Beastro’ Hinds – $10,243
  4. Matthew ‘shortmat31’ Galluzzo – $7,915
  5. Darren ‘avocadotoast’ Rabinowitz – $6,635
  6. Frank ‘Spaghettiii’ Marasco – $5,471
  7. David ‘bewater’ Goodman – $4,190
  8. Andrew ‘WATCHGUY42’ Lichtenberger – $2,794
  9. Shannon ‘Aulophobia’ Shorr – $1,979

Event 11: $215 PLO 6-Max

Entries: 269
Prize Pool: $53,800

Kevin ‘vamonospest’ Lutz was the victor in Event 11: $215 Pot Limit Omaha 6-Max. Lutz won $14,526. Shorr finished in seventh for $2,044. This was the only non-hold’em event on the schedule.

  1. Kevin ‘vamonospest’ Lutz – $14,526
  2. Filipe ‘Fammm’ Marinho – $8,474
  3. Qi ‘LINSANITY’ Ha – $4,842
  4. Kevin ‘DegenLen’ Sullivan – $3,766
  5. Kai ‘mrpineapple’ Yang – $3,228
  6. Eric ‘powwow’ Ethans – $2,690
  7. Shannon ‘Aulophobia’ Shorr – $2,044
  8. Eric ‘NJ_Thenatura’ Starker – $1,291
  9. Paul ‘DRYOUNGBLOOD’ Cogliano – $915

Event 12: $320 NL Double Stack

Entries: 392
Prize Pool: $117,600

The final event before the $525 Main Event was Event 12: $320 No Limit Hold’em Double Stack. Matthew ‘Mendey’ Mendez defeated Steven ‘FreshCakes’ Grybas in heads-up play to win the title and $30,576 in prize money.

Lichtenberger finished in fourth place for $7,997.

  1. Matthew ‘Mendey’ Mendez – $30,576
  2. Steven ‘FreshCakes’ Grybas – $17,640
  3. Frank ‘thewholefunk’ Funaro – $10,349
  4. Andrew ‘WATCHGUY42’ Lichtenberger – $7,997
  5. Scott ‘Shaderade’ Stewart – $6,703
  6. Eric ‘powwow’ Ethans – $5,527
  7. Matt ‘Impervious’ Zoorob – $4,234
  8. Chad ‘lcauto’ Wassmuth – $2,822
  9. Jonathan ‘Yonotan’ Magal – $1,999

Event 13: $525 Main Event

Entries: 508
Prize Pool: $396,500

The final event of the WSOP.com Online Circuit was the $525 Main Event. It drew 508 entries and created a prize pool of $396,500. The guaranteed prize pool of $300,000 was easily surpassed.

Soheb ‘tommyconway6’ Porbandarwala finished in first place, taking home $95,160. Also at the final table was Lupo, who took fourth for $24,979.50, and Jesse ‘MrJesseJames’ Sylvia, who finished eighth for $8,326.50.

  1. Soheb ‘tommyconway6’ Porbandarwala – $95,160
  2. Todd ‘Google_Man’ Rodenborn – $50,355.50
  3. Ryan ‘RyanDepaulo’ Depaulo – $32,909.50
  4. Dan ‘centrfieldr’ Lupo – $24,979.50
  5. Daniel ’ttttttttwo’ Tu – $21,014.50
  6. Daniel ‘RedsoxNets5’ Sewnig – $17,049.50
  7. Jed ‘jchak’ Hoffman – $12,688
  8. Jesse ‘MrJesseJames’ Sylvia – $8,326.50
  9. Kevin ‘vamonospest’ Lutz – $5,551