Ari Engel Earns his 8th career WSOP Circuit gold ring at Harrah’s Atlantic City
Atlantic City, N.J. (March 28, 2016) – Ari Engel has just won the Casino Champion title at the Harrah’s Atlantic City Circuit stop and did so by playing in only two events. He cashed and final tabled in both events that he played, including winning Event #7 - $580 No-Limit Hold’em for his eighth career WSOP Circuit gold ring.
Engel entered the AC series with seven career WSOP Circuit gold rings and was in a four-way tie for the second most Circuit gold rings all-time with Chris Reslock, Valentin Vornicu and Cory Waaland. They all trailed all-time gold ring winner Alex Masek, who had nine gold rings.
The first event of the series saw Reslock win his eighth career WSOP Circuit gold ring, bumping Engel down to third on the all-time gold ring list along with Vornicu and Waaland. Engel responded quickly. Just six days after Reslock won his eighth career gold ring, Engel shipped his eighth career gold ring to bring him back to a tie for second for most gold rings. Now Engel and Reslock only trail Masek by one gold ring.
Engel defeated a 123 player field to earn $17,221 in Event #7 - $580 No-Limit Hold’em. Engel’s second and final cash of the series came in the $1,675 Main Event. Engel’s second cash didn’t earn him a ring, but it did earn him a lot more money. He finished in fourth place to earn $40,937, bringing his series' total earnings to $58,158. The $40k he won in the Main Event also pushed his Circuit career tournament earnings over the half a million dollar mark.
Engel earned 90 Casino Championship points during the series, which was more than enough to earn the title as Casino Champion. Runner-up was Reslock with 72.5 points. Engel’s Casino Champion title will send him back to the Global Casino Championship (previously known as the National Championship). Last year Engel cashed in the National Championship for the first time in his career. He finished in 13th place to earn $20,594.
Joining Engel at the 2016 Global Casino Championship will be the Harrah’s Atlantic City Main Event winner, Robert Kuhn. Kuhn earned an automatic entry to the Global Casino Championship by winning the AC Main Event. The two players will compete for a minimum $1 million prizepool and a gold bracelet.
Engel is now in Los Angeles at the Bicycle Casino to try to earn his ninth career gold ring and tie Masek. He bagged chips in Flight B of the $1,675 Main Event and is returning for Day 2 Monday at noon. To follow all of the action of the Main Event at the Bike, including Engle's pursuit of ring number nine, check out the live updates page.
More information and full point standings for the year-long race are available on WSOP.com.
Engel’s Harrah’s Atlantic City cashes:
Event #7 - $580 No-Limit Hold’em – 123 entries – 1st place for $17,221
Event #9 - $1,675 Main Event – 370 entries – 4th place for $40,937