Ring Event #5: HORSE

Event #5
H.O.R.S.E.
Buy-In: $500 (+$80)
Total Entries: 101
Prize Pool: $50,500
October 19-20, 2015

Chicago-area pro bests three-time ring Josh Reichard to go wire-to-wire and earn $15,149.

Hammond, Ind. (October 20, 2015) — Jim Juvancic’s hot year continued Tuesday night at the Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, Ind. The Chicago-area pro, who kicked off 2015 with a victory in the property’s Chicago Poker Classic, kept up his winning ways besting 101 in a $580 HORSE tournament. On top of his first gold ring, the performance earned Juvancic $15,149, a $1,675 Main Event seat and 50 points toward the Casino Championship.

“With the quality of players it was really who got the better cards,” Juvancic said of the feat. “I was fortunate enough to do pretty well.”

As the Circuit’s newest champ alluded to, the Event #5 final table was one of the most stacked of the season. Five of the final eight players laid claim to a ring and three of them – Josh Reichard (third), Joshua Turner (fourth) and Hussain Sajwani (fifth) – were multiple-time winners. One of the ringless final tablists, Sachin Bhargava, owned a Chicago Poker Classic victory. Despite their laundry list of accomplishments, Juvancic, a newly-turned pro, maneuvered his start-of-day chip lead into the winner’s circle over the course of just a few hours.

Although he began the final day of play leading the 16 returning players, Juvancic held one of the shortest stacks by the time play consolidated to the unofficial final table.

“I hit a couple bumps in the road,” Juvancic said. “I wasn’t really happy with how I was playing in a couple hands. In games like HORSE, you’re never out of it […] I was patient. I didn’t try to get it in and force anything. I got my couple double ups and next thing you knew everything was clicking.”

One of Juvancic’s toughest tests came in the form of runner up Reichard. Reichard began the second day of play as the short stack. Much like Juvancic, he remained patient and eventually found himself heads up for his fourth career Circuit ring. In the end, he busted one spot shy hitting the rail second for $9,364.

“It wasn’t easy,” Juvancic said of the win. “With a final table like this, obviously you have to hit some hands.”

Juvancic is 28 years old and resides in Westchester, Ill. He’s been straying from cash games and instead focusing on tournaments for most of this year. He’s played events in such cities as Barcelona, Las Vegas, Atlantic City and Los Angeles. To date, his career earnings on the tournament felt top $180,000, a good chunk of which came following a sixth-place finish in a $1,500 bracelet event this summer.

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Event #5 was the fifth of 12 gold ring events on the WSOP Circuit schedule at the Horseshoe. The $580 HORSE event attracted 101 players. The total prize pool came to $50,500 and the top 12 finishers were paid.

The tournament began Monday, October 19 at 5 p.m. CT and Day 1 wrapped following Level 16. Day 2 resumed the following day at 3 p.m. with 16 players remaining and action concluded at about 8:45 p.m.

Final results:

1st: Jim Juvancic - $15,149 + Circuit gold ring and $1,675 Main Event seat
2nd: Josh Reichard - $9,364
3rd: Sachin Bhargava - $6,667
4th: Joshua Turner - $4,843
5th: Hussain Sajwani - $3,588
6th: Wendy Freedman - $2,708
7th: Michael Sanders - $2,083
8th: Nicholas Podkowirow - $1,632
9th: Peter Fricano - $1,301
10th: Michael Emalfarb - $1,055
11th: Nicholas Kost - $1,055
12th: William Higgins - $1,055

Jim Juvancic holds a healthy chip advantage over start-of-day short stack Josh Reichard heads up in Event #5, a $580 HORSE tournament. For Juvancic, a victory would mark his first Circuit win. For Reichard, meanwhile, this is old hat as a victory would mark his fourth on the tour.

Here's a closer look at where their duel stands:

Heads-up chip counts

Jim Juvancic - 914,000
Josh Reichard - 298,000

Remaining payouts

1st - $15,149 + Circuit gold ring and $1,675 Main Event seat
2nd - $9,364

Updated results

3rd: Sachin Bhargava - $6,667
4th: Joshua Turner - $4,843
5th: Hussain Sajwani - $3,588
6th: Wendy Freedman - $2,708
7th: Michael Sanders - $2,083
8th: Nicholas Podkowirow - $1,632
9th: Peter Fricano - $1,301
10th: Michael Emalfarb - $1,055
11th: Nicholas Kost - $1,055
12th: William Higgins - $1,055

As is customary with the Hammond Circuit series, the property is doing its part to pump the $1,675 Main Event full of players. In Wednesday's 12 p.m. time slot, ring events take a back seat to a $200 special event that features 18 Main Event seats added to the prize pool — a $30,150 value. If a player goes bust in that, a $200 second chance turbo begins at 5 p.m. with nine $1,675 Main Event seats added — a $15,075 value. That makes for a total of more than $45,000 in added value courtesy of the Horseshoe and those 27 seats are awarded on top of the cash prize pool.

Wednesday’s special events schedule:

-12 p.m. - $200 no-limit hold’em (18 Main Event seats added — $30,150 value)
-5 p.m. - $200 second chance turbo (nine Main Event seats added — $15,075 value)

Last year, the 12 p.m. event drew 684 entries while the 5 p.m. drew 264. Both tournaments are one-day events with unlimited re-entry and late registration is available for about three-and-a-half hours in the noon and for about three hours in the 5 p.m.

More information on these unique tournaments is available on the structure sheets just outside The Venue.

Day 2 resumes at 3 p.m. CT with 16 players remaining from 101 starting. Just the top 12 finish in the money with the tournament's winner earning $15,149 along with a Circuit gold ring, 50 points toward the Casino Championship and a $1,675 Main Event seat added to the prize pool courtesy of the Horseshoe.

Complete chip counts and chip counts arranged by table/seat are available under the "Reports" tab above.

Registration is closed in Event #5, a $580 HORSE tournament. The field topped out at 101 players generating a prize pool of $50,500. The top 12 players earn prize money with a min-cash worth $1,055. In addition to $15,149, the tournament's winner earns a Circuit gold ring, 50 points toward the Casino Championship and a $1,675 Main Event seat added courtesy of the Horseshoe.

Play is currently in the middle of Level 11 with the clock reading 64 players left. 2014 WSOP Player of the Year contender Brandon Shack-Harris and bracelet winner Owais Ahmed headline those still alive.

Day 1 is set to wrap following Level 16 (at about 3 a.m. local time) with Day 2 resuming Tuesday at 3 p.m. Complete chip counts and any updated results should they get that far will be posted in the morning.

Goodnight from the $580 HORSE.