Wes Holland Triumphs At HPT Daytona Beach Kennel Club

Florida resident Wes Holland has won the 2014 Heartland Poker Tour Daytona Beach Kennel Club, after defeating a field of 227 players on his way to claiming the title, and collecting the $80,993 first place prize.
The $1,650 Main Event was held in The Sunshine State and attracted a talented field of players to create a prize pool worth $337,500. Amongst the notable names seeing a return on their money was Aaron Massey (23rd), Greg Raymer (18th), 2010 WSOP Main Event finalist John Racener (13th), and Amanda Musumeci (11th).
By the time the final table of nine had been reached, the remaining competitors represented seven different states, although Florida fielded three finalists in the guise of Saum Sharifi, Dalton Mills, and Wes Holland. Interestingly, it would be these Floridian who subsequently finished in the top three positions.
First to exit the final table was Texan Ed Buchanan in 9th ($8,775), a big fan of the Heartland Poker Tour, who later commented; “I love HPT. I record all the programs. I got it on my DVR. I don’t miss a single episode.”
As the other players fell by the wayside, Saum Sharifi (K-Q) subsequently eliminated Massachusetts’ Keith Romanovitz (A-4) in 4th ($23,963) to leave the three Florida residents to battle it out for the title.
Sixty hands later and Dalton Mills (Q-5) took care of Saum Sharifi (A-3) in 3rd ($33,750) to usher in the heads-up phase of the competition against Wes Holland, with Mills holding a 2-1 advantage over his last opponent. Before long, however, Mills lost his chip lead with the defining hand coming after Mills (Q-J) and Holland (A-Q) went all-in preflop. The dealer then put out an 8-5-2-Q-10 board to consign Dalton Mills to a runner-up finish worth $49,950, while Wes Holland was crowned the champion.
Final Table Results:
1 Wes Holland      $80,993
2 Dalton Mills     $49,950
3 Saum Sharifi     $33,750
4 Keith Romanovitz $23,963
5 Gionni DeMers    $18,563
6 Chris Lindh      $15,188
7 Joe Froehle      $12,656
8 Jeremiah Pierce  $10,631
9 Ed Buchanan       $8,775