2010 WSOP Circuit Bluffs Main Event Won By Blair Hinkle
September 2, 2010 8:15 amBlair Hinkle has just won the 2010 WSOP Circuit Bluffs Main Event, after besting a field of 251 players to capture the title and take down the first place prize of $88,553.
The 24 year-old pro from Kansas City, Missouri won a WSOP bracelet in 2008 at the $2,000 No-Limit Hold’em event, and the addition now of a WSOP Circuit ring adds further testimony to the skill of this young talent.
Throughout his short but action packed career, Hinkle has now amassed $1,153,518 from live tournament wins, as well as $723,923 on the online arena.
Going into the final day of the $10,000 buy-in WSOPC event, 13 players remained and the final table was only set after Bernard Lee was knocked out in 10th spot.
Starting the final table as second chip leader, Hinkle soon found himself in pole position after eliminating a short-stacked John Wakeen in 7th place ($10,131) holding Js-9c to Hinkle’s Kd-Qd.
However, hearts must have sunk around the table after danger man Dwyte Pilgrim kept his tournament hopes alive through a double-up against Hinkle holding A-2 to Pilgrim’s A-K.
As the action continued, Hinkle called Charles Moore’s pre-flop Ad-Kd all-in push holding pocket 9’s. The stakes couldn’t have been much higher with both men on roughly equal stacks, but with the board running out Jc-8s-5d-8h-Qc, Moore found himself out in 5th place ($21,795) while Hinkle was now sitting on a 1.7 million stack.
A short-stacked Dwyte Pilgrim then moved all-in on the button holding Ac-10h on a 10s-9c-2s-7d board. Unfortunately for him, HInkle on the small blind was holding 8s-6c and had made a straight to eliminate Pilgrim in 3rd place for a $39,531 pay-day.
Going into the heads-up battle, Shiva Dudani and Hinkle went at it for more than an hour and a half before Shiva, chasing a flush, bluffed all-in on the river when he missed only to be called by Hinkle with two pair.
Shiva Dudani earned $54,715 for his impressive run in the tournament, while Hinkle not only collected the $88,553 top prize, but was awarded a seat at the 2011 WSOP Circuit National Championship next May.