Tuesday, September 13, 2016 6:58 PM Local Time
Nate Bandy Bags Gold Ring in His First WSOP Circuit Tour
Event #5
No-Limit Hold'em
Buy-in: $300 (+$65)
Total Entries: 127
Prizepool: $38,100
Former football player, Nate Bandy, cruises through a field of 127 players to claim his first WSOP gold ring.
Biloxi, Mississippi (September 13, 2016) – Nate Bandy won his first career gold ring in Event #4: $365 No-Limit Hold'em Monday night by defeating a 127 player field. The tournament was scheduled as a two-day event, however Bandy only needed one day to claim his victory.
Being a former football player means Bandy is no stranger to competition. He played college ball at the University of Chattanooga Tennessee then professionally with the Scottish Claymores, an NFL Europe team. When asked if his competitive football background is a factor in his newfound poker career, Bandy offered some insight.
“One thousand percent; this, and golf, that’s all I can perform anymore so this is what I do,” Said Bandy. Familiar with the fortitude it takes to complete a grueling season, he understands the reality of tournament play. “It’s a marathon, not a sprint, especially in poker.”
Bandy is relatively new to live, tournament poker. Normally a cash game player, he only began playing live tournaments about eight months ago. He just started playing poker full-time after stepping away from his career at the D1 Sports facility in Chattanooga.
D1 Sports is a nationwide, athletic training company that boats a top-class group of professional athlete affiliations, such as Carmelo Anthony, Chipper Jones, and Peyton Manning. Both living in Chattanooga and associated with D1 Sports, Bandy and Manning have close ties. Maybe Bandy’s triumphant WSOP Circuit victory will inspire Peyton to take up a poker career in his retirement.
IP Biloxi is the fourth Circuit stop Bandy has participated in and he certainly made it a memorable one. On top of a gold ring and $10,668, Bandy was awarded 50 Casino Championship points. When asked if he will stay in Biloxi and make a run at being crowned the IP Casino Champion Bandy confidently responded with “Absolutely.” In fact, Bandy plans on continuing to follow the 2016/17 WSOP Circuit tour in hopes of qualifying for the Global Casino Championship.
here's a look at the final table results:
1st: Nate Bandy - $10,668
2nd: James Beetz - $6,595
3rd: Robert Coleman - $4,759
4th: Clinton Kripki - $3,497
5th: James Smith - $2,614
6th: Chris Edwards - $1,988
7th: Jason Tulloss - $1,537
8th: Jerry Lucas - $1,207
9th: Brandon Newsome - $964
Complete results can be found above, under the "Results" tab.