The long-time WSOP Circuit grinder moves into second place with his latest victory
Maurice Hawkins moved into second place on the World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC) ring list after earning his 16th at the $1,700 buy-in WSOP Cherokee Main Event over 981 players to take the biggest cut of the nearly $1.5 million prize pool. Hawkins broke a three-way tie with Josh Reichard and Daniel Lowery with the win and trails only Ari Engel on the all-time list.
The battle for the lead on the WSOPC Circuit ring list has been hotly contested in the last few years, with some of the top players, including Hawkins, recently picking up momentum.
Engel extended the lead after winning his 17th ring in February and fell just short of his 18th after a second-place finish in a No-Limit Hold ’em PKO event for $3,546 in March. Reichard finished fifth at the WSOP Grand Victoria event in April, the same arena where he won $19,786 and his 15th ring last November.
Hawkins spent a long time holding the career WSOPC ring lead before Engel’s recent run and was challenged at the final table by several tough opponents, including five-time WSOPC ring winner Matt Higgins and bracelet winner James Calderaro. Higgins faced Hawkins in a heads-up battle to decide the championship but failed to pick up his sixth ring after finishing as runner-up for $160,176.
Hawkins ran deep in the WSOPC Cherokee Main Event in February, finishing third for $178,870. He reached another final table at the WSOPC Tunica, finishing second for $11,446.
