We joined a very big pot just before the break with comedian and actor Kevin Hart deep into a battle with Ken Aldridge.
With 2,700 in the pot, the board of had already played out. But the bet from Hart on the river was a chunky 2,050. Ken Aldridge, who had position on the star of Get Hard and Central Intelligence and the hit 2016 tour What Now?, raised to 7,000.
"I only have a king," said Hart, and folded his hand. Aldridge turned over , the flopped nut flush, proving Hart's fold just as intelligent as the title of his hit movie.
Leo Yan Ho Cheng (pictured) and Mike Leah got involved in a big pot with massive repercussions for one of the two popular players.
We joined the action with 9,625 chips in the middle and just Cheng and Leah awaiting the flop of . Cheng was checked to by Leah, with the Canadian out of position, both in middle position. Cheng made it 2,000 and was called. The turn of Cheng made it 3,500 and again Leah called.
The river of saw Cheng checked to by Leah for a third time and he moved all-in for 6,875. Leah called pretty quickly and mucked to Cheng's winning hand of . When asked what he was holding, Leah told the table:
"Ace with a nut flush draw." Leah said, and he drops to 9,400 chips. Cheng is right back into contention after an early dip himself, as he now goes back over starting stack with 33,000.
A big hand developed between Daniel Koop and the infamous Cliff Josephy, who finished third in the 2016 WSOP Main Event for over $3.4 million before only cashing once since....when he won a $5,200 event at the Five Diamond Classic for $163,250!
The pot began to build preflop when Koop made it 400 from the dealer button, only for Josephy to raise to 1,500 in the small blind. That raise was called by Koop and the pair went heads up to a flop of . Josephy continued for 1,200 and got a quick call. The turn of got a check from each player, but on the river of , Josephy led out for 3,300. Koop couldn't call, and Josephy's win brings him back up to almost starting stack on 29,500.
Despite losing the pot, Koop remains around the top of the pecking order at 46,775.
The 2016 World Series of Poker Main Event attracted 6,737 players, but in the end it was Qui Nguyen who topped them all to become poker's latest world champion. However, had a coin flip gone differently with 12 players remaining, it could have very well been Wisconsin's Mike Shin who ran over the final table.
On Day 7 of the WSOP Main Event, Vojtech Ruzicka raised to 800,000 from the cutoff and Shin called from the small blind. Nguyen then three-bet to 2.7 million from the big blind, Ruzicka called, and Shin four-bet jammed for 14.1 million. Nguyen tanked for three minutes before making the call, and Ruzicka got out of the way.
Shin:
Nguyen:
Unfortunately for Shin, the board ran out and he was out in 12th place for $427,930. It was far and away the largest score of his career and brought his lifetime earnings up to $571,260, which vaulted him to 13th on Wisconsin's all-time money list.
"A little disappointed because obviously I was so close to it, but like I said before, if you'd have told me at the start of the tournament I'd get 12, I would have been stoked," Shin previously said of his elimination. "I try not to think about it. I don't think it's going to go away though. I think about that hand though, every single day, every single hour. I'm thinking about it at this moment."
Shin's disappointment in missing out on the November Nines seems to have disappeared, and he is more than excited to be having fun in the sun. That's because Shin left frigid Milwaukee, which is in the single digits, and is in action here on Day 1a of the PokerStars Championship Bahamas looking for his first PokerStars-related cash.
The quintessential yellow-garbed Ken Aldridge in the 2013 WSOP.
Image is everything, or so they say. In poker, cultivating a certain image can go a long way in helping players establish themselves in the public eye. Think Charlie Carrel’s multifarious wardrobe or Qui Nguyen’s raccoon hat while winning the 2016 World Series of Poker Main Event. Outfits or accessories can often define a player, as they do for Ken Aldridge of Pleasant Garden, North Carolina.
Nicknamed “Teach” for his days teaching the youth of the nation, Aldridge’s poker attire almost always consists of a yellow hat, matching yellow jacket, and a shiny gold bracelet. It’s no regular bracelet though, but rather a coveted WSOP bracelet from 2009 when he topped a field of 1,459 players to win the $1,500 No-Limit Hold’em Six-Handed event for $428,259, his largest career score.
Aldridge has also finished runner-up to Will “The Thrill” Failla in the 2011 World Poker Tour Legends of Poker Main Event for $365,800, and placed fifth in the 2015 WSOP Event #21: $10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo Championship for $97,122. All things considered, Teach, who is in action here on Day 1a, has $1,291,179 in live tournament earnings, which puts him 11th on North Carolina’s all-time money list.
If he cashes the Main Event for $12,500 or more, he’ll crack that State’s top ten money list. It’ll also mark his seventh cash here in the Bahamas. His previous best at this stop was a sixth-place finish in the 2013 PCA Event #18: $5,000 No-Limit Hold’em for $44,460.
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Atlantis Resort, home of the PokerStars Championship Bahamas
The inaugural PokerStars Championship Bahamas kicked off January 6th and runs all the way through January 14th at the Paradise Island's Atlantis Resort. While the PokerStars Championship Bahamas is new, its predecessor, the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure or simply the PCA, has been around for some time. A look back at the former champions in this elite event.
Year
Entrants
Prize Pool
Champion
Prize
2004
221
$1,657,500
Gus Hansen
$455,780
2005
461
$3,487,200
John Gale
$890,600
2006
724
$5,647,200
Steve Paul-Ambrose
$1,388,600
2007
937
$7,063,842
Ryan Daut
$1,535,255
2008
1,136
$8,562,976
Bertrand Grospellier
$2,000,000
2009
1,347
$12,674,000
Poorya Nazari
$3,000,000
2010
1,529
$14,831,300
Harrison Gimbel
$2,200,000
2011
1,560
$15,132,000
Galen Hall
$2,300,000
2012
1,072
$10,398,400
John Dibella
$1,775,000
2013
987
$9,573,900
Dimitar Danchev
$1,859,000
2014
1,031
$10,070,000
Dominik Panka
$1,423,096
2015
816
$7,915,200
Kevin Schulz
$1,491,580
2016
928
$4,500,800
Mike Watson
$728,325*
Back in 2004, the PCA was a WPT event which took place aboard the Royal Caribbean Voyager of the Seas cruise ship. Gus “The Great Dane” Hansen won the first PCA Main Event ever, topping a field of 221 entrants in the $7,500 Main Event to get his hands on $455,780.
Since 2005, the PCA took place at the Atlantis Paradise Island and it was John Gale who was triumphant on the island first, beating 460 other players in the $8,000 Main Event to win $890,600, which is still his largest live tournament score to date.
The first PCA Main Event to award a six-figure prize came 12 months later when Steve Paul-Ambrose outlasted 723 opponents to scoop $1,388,600 before Ryan Daut won a famous heads-up battle with Isaac Haxton in 2007 to win $1,535,255.
Daut’s victory was the final PCA flying under the World Poker Tour banner because, from 2008 on, the PCA became part of the European Poker Tour. Quite fittingly, the first EPT edition of the PCA was won by a European, Team PokerStars Pro Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier, who became the first player to secure a payout of at least $2 million from the PCA Main Event.
The largest first place prize was awarded in 2009 when a massive field of 1,347 players were outlasted by Poorya Nazari. Until his win, Nazari had only won $94,832 from live tournaments but his PCA victory added a colossal $3 million to his lifetime winnings. Nazari’s haul is officially the largest PCA Main Event score in the festival’s history, but rumors suggest that it was third-place finisher Benjamin Spindler (official payout $1,100,000) who was the biggest winner after a three-way deal was made.
Harrison Gimbel took down the 2010 PCA Main Event and returned home with $2,200,000 more than he arrived in the Bahamas with, before Galen Hall triumphed in 2011, which was the PCA with the most entrants on record at 1,560. Hall turned his $10,300 into a most welcome $2,300,000.
John Dibella was crowned the 2012 champion. Dibella won $1,775,000 and went on to play more poker in 2013 and 2014, winning approximately $370,000 before trailing off slightly since.
Bulgarian pro Dimitar Danchev enjoyed the biggest cash of his career when he topped a field of 987 in the 2013 PCA Main Event and collected $1,775,000. Since his huge win, Danchev has become a familiar face in the biggest tournaments around the world.
In 2014, a relatively unknown Polish player by the name of Dominik Panka entered the $10,300 PCA Main Event along with 1,030 other players. Several days later, Panka played some breathtaking poker and was the last man standing in the tournament, meaning he was rewarded with $1,423,096. Panka went on to win the €10,300 High Roller at EPT Deauville later that month, almost reach the final table of the EPT Barcelona Main Event later in 2014 and win almost €350,000 by finishing third in the EPT Malta Main Event in 2015.
The penultimate PCA Main Event, and the last Main Event to feature a $10,300 buy-in, was taken down by American Kevin Schulz. Schulz came out on top of a field of 816 players and padded his bankroll with $1,491,580.
Finally, Canadian superstar Mike Watson got his hands on an EPT title when he navigated his way through a talented final table at the 2016 PCA Main Event. He defeated Anthony Gregg heads up to become the last PCA Main Event champion, an accolade that came with a $728,325 prize.
had already played out. But the bet from Hart on the river was a chunky 2,050. Ken Aldridge, who had position on the star of Get Hard and Central Intelligence and the hit 2016 tour What Now?, raised to 7,000. 
, the flopped nut flush, proving Hart's fold just as intelligent as the title of his hit movie.
. Cheng was checked to by Leah, with the Canadian out of position, both in middle position. Cheng made it 2,000 and was called. The turn of 
Cheng made it 3,500 and again Leah called. 
saw Cheng checked to by Leah for a third time and he moved all-in for 6,875. Leah called pretty quickly and mucked to Cheng's winning hand of 
. When asked what he was holding, Leah told the table: 
. Josephy continued for 1,200 and got a quick call. The turn of 
, Josephy led out for 3,300. Koop couldn't call, and Josephy's win brings him back up to almost starting stack on 29,500. 
