Full Tilt pro Cunningham beats strong final table to claim the WSOP Circuit title
Friday 2nd May 2008
With a first place prize of just under $500,000, the final table of the World Series of Poker Circuit event at Caesars Palace was loaded with professionals, none better known than Allen Cunningham. Cunningham began the day around the middle of the chip counts, but slowly guided his way to the victory which brings him close to $10 million in tournament winnings.
As an indication of how tough the table was, it was a former WSOP-C champion who went out in ninth, after Doug Le’s stack was first crippled by the A-J of Motoyuki Mabuchi then taken completely when Le tried A-J himself, only to run into Ben Fineman's set of nines.
Next out was WSOP Main Event final tablist Ralph Perry, perhaps best known as the player Tony G told to get on his bike at the Intercontinental Poker Championships some years back. Perry left – without the use of wheels – when his pocket jacks were unfortunately one spot behind Cunningham’s pocket queens to send him out in eighth place.
The eliminations of Tom Hover in seventh and Blair Hinkle in sixth might have slowed the ‘big-name’ casualties down a little, but normal service was resumed with the elimination of Justin Bonomo in fifth. On the short stack, Bonomo moved all in with Kc-3c, getting a call from Cunnningham holding A-Q. The board didn’t help either player, and Cunningham’s ace high was good enough to take the pot and send Bonomo home with $96,612 for his troubles.
Ben Fineman then took out Mabuchi in fourth place and Kelly Samson in third, setting up a heads-up match against Cunningham where the Full Tilt pro would have to fight back from an almost 4:1 chip deficit.
The fight back began in earnest when Cunningham hit top pair on a queen-high board to get a double-up from Fineman’s pocket sevens. Just a couple of hands later, Cunningham had taken the chip lead, and the final hand saw the five-time bracelet winner add a WSOP Circuit ring to his collection of jewellery when Cunningham turned a flush just as Fineman made a broadway straight. Fineman earned $257,637 for his runner-up finish and Cunningham won the first place prize of $499,162.
