Chris Karambinis wins $168,039 after taking down one of the largest non-branded poker fields held on American soil.
The organisers of the Chicago Poker Classic (CPC) have shown their innovative side after their $5,000 Double Qualifier Bonus event attracted 3,092-entries and came so close to hitting the $1m guarantee put up by the casino.
The $350 No-Limit Hold’em (NLHE) Re-Entry event was the first of 10-events scheduled to be held at the Sixth Annual Chicago Poker Classic in Hammond, and it turned out to be a monster.
It was the third high profile win for Karambinis since he started playing live tournament poker back in 2011.
In 2012, he defeated 207 players to take the $15,795 first-prize in a $365 NLHE Six-Handed event in Southern Indiana, and he made it gold ring number two when in Sep 2013 he overcame 106 players to capture the $15,902 first-prize in the $580 Pot-Limit Omaha (PLO) Triple Chance event.
His third victory, obtained after defeating Oleg Badmayev in heads-up action, carries with it a live tournament career high score of $168,000; smashing his previous best of $36,485 earned in 2012 when he came second in a $1k event at the Binions Poker Classic, where he shared table space with Kyle Julius (6th) and Steve Brecher (8th).
Event #1 featured eight starting flights and players who qualified for Day 2 on more than one occasion received a $5,000 bonus for doing do. A total of 11-players achieved this feat, and the Hammond staff ponied up the additional cost, as well as the $50,400 needed to close up the guarantee.
There was also a very special prize for the player who forfeited the most chips en route to Day 2, and the winner of a $10,000 WSOP Main Event seat, and $2,000 in cash, was Minnesota resident Matthew Kirby.
Final Table Standings
1st: Chris Karambinis – $168,039
2nd: Oleg Badmayev – $103,104
3rd: Igor Hot – $66,895
4th: Jared Palmer – $46,208
5th: Shawn Rice – $32,806
6th: Javier Figueroa – $24,114
7th: Ryne Johnson – $17,723
8th: Aaron Garrison – $14,512
9th: Nick Jivkov – $11,882
Chicago Poker Classic Schedule
Event 2: $500 NLH – May 3-4, 12 p.m.
Event 3: $400 PLO – May 4, 5 p.m.
Event 4: $350 NLH – May 5, 1 p.m.
Event 5: $600 NLH – May 6, 12 p.m.
Event 6: $500 HORSE – May 7, 12 p.m.
Event 7: $350 NLH – May 8, 12 p.m.
Event 8: $1,500 Main Event – May 9-10, 12 p.m.
Event 9: $250 NLH Re-Entry – May 10-11, 1 p.m., 4 p.m., 7 p.m.
Event 10: $350 NLH Turbo – May 12, 12 p.m.
