The $1000 Seniors No-Limit Hold’em World Championship is always a popular one. And this year went a bit further insofar as the number of registered players set an all-time record. With 2,218 people meeting the age requirement of 50 and older in the field, it was set up to be a test of endurance for many of them in their 70’s and up. But more than anything, it proved to be a good time for many who brought years of experience and dreams of playing in the WSOP to the table.
Day 1 of the tournament eliminated many of the participants, leaving only 220 to return for the second day of play, among them names like Men Nguyen , Tom McEvoy, and Tom Franklin. But as Day 2 played out, those names took leave of the tournament. Those who stuck around, however, were intent upon playing until the wee hours of the morning – 4:30am to be close – when only nine players remained to compete for the bracelet.
The final table nine was seated with chip counts as follows:
Seat 1:
Marc Fluss
873,000
Seat 2:
Charles Wood
531,000
Seat 3:
Ed Clark
504,000
Seat 4:
Martyn Wilson
454,000
Seat 5:
Peter Silverstein
435,000
Seat 6:
Dale Eberle
1,414,000
Seat 7:
Fred Berger
518,000
Seat 8:
Dan Lacourse
1,364,000
Seat 9:
Jerry Yamachika
558,000
The first of the group to go came not long after the action began for the day. It began with a raise from Fred Berger and an all-in reraise from Marty Wilson for 439K. Berger thought for quite some time before making the call and showing 
, and Wilson turned over 
for what they call a race situation. The board was amazing for Berger – 
– and Wilson had to leave in 9th place for $34,312.
Then it was time for a little movement on the leader board. First, Jerry Yamachika doubled through Charles Wood to sit in third place with over 1 million in chips. And Wood took revenge upon Dan Lacourse to double up, though he was still looking at a lowly 260K and would have to move or chip up soon.
The next bit of action took place when Marc Fluss made an initial raise and Ed Clark moved all-in in the big blind. Fluss called quickly with 
, and Clark showed 
. The board came 
, and Clark was out in 8th place and a bonus of $49,450.
Peter Silverstein hadn’t been involved much but got involved with Berger and ended up crippled with only about 35K. When the big blind came around soon after, Silverstein was automatically all-in with 
, and Lacourse called with a dominating . The board started out well for the short stack with 
, but the turn and river gave it to Lacourse with and 
. Silverstein took 7th place and $64,588.
It was finally time for Wood to make that aforementioned move. Upon a raise by the ever-chip-accumulating Yamachika, Fluss and Wood called to see a flop of 
. All three checked, but when the turn brought a 
, Wood moved all-in, Yamachika folded, and Fluss check-called. Wood showed 
, and though Fluss’ hand was not reported, it was solid despite the 
on the river, and Wood was eliminated in 6th place with $84,771.
Berger had made some headway with a previous double-up through Fluss, but he was still short enough to warrant some aggression. A few hands later, Berger raised a pot pre-flop, but when Lacourse reraised, Berger pushed for his entire stack of 450K. Lacourse made the call with 
, and Berger had to show his 
. The board came , and the river card became irrelevant. Berger was out in 5th place with $106,974.
Yamachika was the next to move as the blinds and antes climbed. After a raise from Lacourse, Yamachika pushed for 610K with , and Lacourse called with . The dealer pulled 
from the deck, and Yamachika went out in 4th place with $131,194.
The tournament was moving at a rather quick pace, and before expected, a third place finisher was found. The pot began with Lacourse and Fluss easing into the flop of 
. Lacourse bet, and Fluss moved all-in with 
. Lacourse called with 
. The turn and river were and respectively, and Lacourse won the hand with the straight. Fluss was sent packing in 3rd place with $156,424.
Heads-up play began with Lacourse holding a substantial chip lead with 4.1 million to Dale Eberle’s 2.5 million.
Within moments, the game was on the line. Eberle raised, and Lacourse called. The flop came , Eberle bet, and Lacourse check-called. The on the turn prompted another bet from Eberle, but this time Lacourse check-raised all-in. Eberle called with 
for top pair, but Lacourse showed 
for trips. The river came an , and it was over. Dale Eberle took 2nd place and $235,141 in prize money.
Dan Lacourse won the event, the bracelet, and the $368,832 that came with it. Congrats!