TUNICA, MS – Lee Sawyer, a 30-year-old amateur from Kenneth, MO who works in a family-owned convenience store emerged victorious Monday after securing the win in Event #3, the $365 No-Limit Hold’em Re-Entry Event at Harrah’s Tunica.
The event drew 1,271 entries, making it the second largest tournament in the eight-year history of the Harrah’s Tunica WSOP Circuit Events. Considering the massive field and his relative inexperience, Sawyer’s win in Event 3 was an astonishing feat.
Although elated, it was evident by the weary look on his face and the sweat dripping from his brow that the last three days had taken its toll on Sawyer
“It feels great, but it’s been a grind. These last few have been some long days,” said Sawyer after the win.
Indeed they were. Because of the massive number of entries, a third day of play had to be added to the schedule.
The final ten players took their seats shortly after 2:00 pm local time and were soon down to the official final table of nine:
| Name | Hometown | Seat | Chip Count |
| Justin Brown | Bloomington, IN | 1 | 1,600,000 |
| Duy “Dewey” Tran | Brentwood, IN | 2 | 1,565,000 |
| Sean Small | Atlanta, GA | 3 | 1,980,000 |
| Lee Sawyer | Kennett, MO | 4 | 1,620,000 |
| Brandon Shane | Columbus, OH | 5 | 2,500,000 |
| Jeff Huffman | Noblesville, IN | 6 | 400,000 |
| Daniel Rivera | Baton Rouge, LA | 7 | 565,000 |
| Bob Norris | Madison, AL | 8 | 1,000,000 |
| Mike Bozarth | Hawesville, KY | 9 | 955,000 |
After five hours of play, heads up was down to Sawyer and Sean Small of Atlanta, GA. Small was unable to overcome a colossal 10-1 chip deficit against Sawyer and in short time, was forced to settle for 2nd place, worth $41,943.
Looking ahead, Sawyer said he was unsure if he would be playing more tournaments in the future and that he was planning to return back to work the following day. He did hint at a return later in the week to take a shot at earning Casino Champion honors at Harrah’s Tunica.
John Holley, the winner of Event #1 here at Harrah’s, added a min-cash to his opening event victory, putting him just ahead of Sawyer and Event #2 winner, Sean Maurer.
The Casino Champion is the player who earns the most points through the 12 events at Harrah’s Tunica. This player will earn an automatic seat to the WSOP Circuit National Championship to be held May 21 – May 23 at Harrah’s New Orleans. More information about the WSOPC National Championship can be found here. An explanation of the points system can be found here.
9 events are still to come. See the complete Harrah’s Tunica Circuit schedule and event results here. The WSOP Circuit Events at Harrah’s Tunica runs through February 4th. You can find the complete 2012-2013 WSOP Circuit schedule here.
Final table results
| 1 | Lee Sawyer | KENNETT, MO, US | $67,681 |
| 2 | Sean Small | DOUGLASVILLE, GA, US | $41,943 |
| 3 | Daniel Rivera | BATON ROUGE, LA, US | $30,782 |
| 4 | Justin Brown | BLOOMINGTON, IN, US | $23,259 |
| 5 | Duy Tran | BRENTWOOD, TN, US | $17,750 |
| 6 | Robert Norris | Richland, WA, US | $13,662 |
| 7 | Brandon Shane | SAGAMORE HLS, OH, US | $10,638 |
| 8 | Michael Bozarth | Hawesville, KY, US | $8,381 |
| 9 | Jeff Huffman | NOBLESVILLE, IN, US | $6,680 |