Event 1: John DePersio Captures His Second WSOP Circuit Title

September WSOP Circuit
Seminole Casino Coconut  Creek
Event 1
$400 No Limit Hold’em (Re-Entry)
$50,000 Guaranteed
Entries: 243
Prize Pool: $80,190
September 13, 2018

John DePersio wins Event 1 WSOP Circuit ring

The WSOP Circuit Coconut Creek series kicked off with a big opening tournament that cruised past its $50,000 guaranteed prize pool. There were 243 entries in the one-day ring event and Coco Poker regular John DePersio dominated late to win the first title of the series along with $19,649.

Those 243 entries pushed the prize pool over $80,000 and the tournament paid out the last 27 spots. The stacks were deep and the structure paced to give them plenty of play for their buy-in. There were still 72 players around when registration closed after the dinner break but they quickly played down to the bubble.

Two-time WSOP bracelet winner and former WPT Player of the Year Ben Zamani took care of the money bubble in a cooler with kings versus queens. He knocked one player out in the three-way pot and the remaining 27 players were in the money.

Plenty of local regulars cashed in the first tournament of the series including Carey Pickus, Andrew Blake, Luke Doolittle, Errol Rosen, Michael Kopjanski, John Gorsuch, and WSOP bracelet/WSOP Circuit winner Tristan Wade.

None of them would make it to the final table where DePersio entered with a big chip advantage. He knocked Zamani and former Seminole Hard Rock Poker Player of the Year Ory Hen out in one hand and followed that up with a knockout of Haim Toorgeman, the second biggest stack.

It was not a wire-to-wire win for DePersio. Both Michael Ortiz and Rodney Moret-Rojas spent some time with the lead but big hands kept coming DePersio’s way at opportune times. Ortiz took a bad beat from Moret-Rojas to finish in third place and the heads-up battle began with near identical stacks.

Both DePersio and Moret-Rojas were going for their second career WSOP Circuit ring and it was DePersio taking the top prize when he cracked kings for the title. Moret-Rojas picked up his first ring earlier this year during our first WSOP Circuit series but had to settle for the $12,139 second-place prize.

DePersio added another ring to his collection and he continues a nice run. He has only cashed in three WSOP Circuit events but all finished at a final table and two with a title.

Congratulations to John and thanks to all the players for a great start to the series.

Event 1 results:

1st: John DePersio – $19,649 + WSOPC ring
2nd: Rodney Moret-Rojas – $12,139
3rd: Michael Ortiz – $8,770
4th: Tom Bielecky – $6,454
5th: Nagui Yassa – $4,835
6th: Jorge Gomez – $3,685
7th: David Moreno – $2,855
8th: Haim Toorgeman – $2,248
9th: Ory Hen – $1,798
10th: Ben Zamani – $1,460
11th: Chris Conrad – $1,460
12th: John Gorsuch – $1,460
13th: Jean Mimy – $1,204
14th: Michael Kopjanski – $1,204
15th: Kenneth Isaacs – $1,204
16th: Tristan Wade – $1,009
17th: Harvey Freedman – $1,009
18th: Luke Doolittle – $1,009
19th: Theo Tran – $858
20th: Charlies Rizzo – $858
21st: Andrew Blake – $858
22nd: Evan Kahan – $740
23rd: Errol Rosen – $740
24th: Brian Tansy – $740
25th: Matthew Bianchini – $648
26th: Michael Pasaribu – $648
27th: Carey Pickus – $648