Jasthi Kumar Defends Title in $600 Big Blind Ante NLHE & Wins 2nd WSOPC Gold Ring

Attracting a field of 181 entrants, Event #9: $600 Big Blind Ante No-Limit Hold’em at the 2018 World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC) Harveys Lake Tahoe collected a prize pool of $93,215. Laying claim to the lion’s share of the kitty was Indian-origin Jasthi Kumar (cover image) who achieved back-to-back victories at the event.

In 2017, Kumar, who is an IT Professional, had bested a field of 228 entrants in Event #9: $580 No-Limit Hold’em and banked $28,502 (₹20.78 Lakhs) for his victory, along with his maiden WSOPC gold ring. He repeated the feat yet again when he defeated Mack Ham heads-up to win his second WSOPC ring along with a payday of $24,238 (₹17.67 Lakhs). With 21 WSOP cashes to his name, Kumar’s current winnings stand at $341,054 (₹2.48 Crores).

Talking about his second WSOPC title win, Kumar said, “I feel really great. When I made it to the final table I thought ‘ok, I’ve got a good chance to make it back-to-back this time. I was second in chips… I had confidence that I could do it this time again.”

The top 21 spots were assured payouts and the list included notables like Stephen Bierman (11^th for $1,768), Samuel Renshaw (14^th for $1,456), Jeffrey Sager (17^th for $1,217) and Ivan Zarate (21^st for $1,033).

Unofficial Final Table Chip Counts

1. Mack Ham – 965,000

2. Jasthi Kumar – 592,000

3. Derek Sudell – 575,000

4. Matthew Pena – 430,000

5. Brian Shemer – 330,000

6. Jacob Dahl – 232,000

7. Iris Angeleri – 203,000

8. Kevin Johnson – 108,000

9. Ed Singelyn – 107,000

10. Paul Richardson – 78,000

Following the elimination of Paul Richardson, who finished 10^th for $1,768, the nine-handed final table commenced.

Following the eliminations of Kevin Johnson (8^th for $2,734) and Edward Singelyn (9^th for $2,181), the bags were brought out with seven players still left in the fray.

Seven-Handed Chip Counts

1. Mack Ham – 1,736,000

2. Jasthi Kumar – 665,000

3. Brian Sherrier – 376,000

4. Jacob Dahl – 288,000

5. Derek Sudell – 276,000

6. Iris Angeleri – 197,000

7. Matthew Pena – 81,000

Final Day Recap

The final day opened with Mack Ham in a dominating chip lead with a massive stack of 1,736,000, with all the returning runners assured a min-cash $3,482.

The first elimination of the day came in the form of Derek Sudell (7^th). He was followed by Matthew Pena (6^th), Brian Sherrier (5^th), Jacob Dahl (4^th) and the lone female player at the final table Iris Angeleri (3^rd).

The heads-up play was conducted between Mack Ham and Jasthi Kumar. The defending champion Kumar rose to the occasion and successfully defended his title and took home his second WSOPC gold ring, along with the first-place prize money of $24,238.

Final Table Results (USD)

1. Jasthi Kumar – $24,238

2. Mack Ham – $14,971

3. Iris Angeleri – $10,810

4. Jacob Dahl – $7,939

5. Brian Sherrier – $5,931

6. Matthew Pena – $4,507

7. Derek Sudell – $3,482

8. Kevin Johnson – $2,734

9. Edward Singelyn – $2,181

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