2012 WSOP Event 19

Wednesday June 13, 2012 : MARYLAND STUDENT WINS HIS FIRST WORLD SERIES OF POKER BRACELET (update)
 
24-year-old takes home over half-a-million dollars in Event 19
 
A 24-year-old student from Potomac, Maryland, Clifford Goldkind, cleaned up Event 19 – $1,500 buy-in No Limit Hold'em Monday to become the latest WSOP bracelet winner, collecting a $559,514 pay check for his time and trouble.
 
Goldkind, who only recently resumed his studies after service in the Israeli army, battled through a field of 2,302 entrants over three days to end up on a final table with Kenni Nguyen, Adria Balaguer, Patrick Smith, Gregg Wilkinson, Justin McGill, David Peters, Gary Burks and Barry Shulman.
 
The final table proved to be another fast-action affair, completing in just less than four hours after a quick heads up between Goldkind and the very voluble Kenni Nguyen saw the latter retire with the runner up prize of $347,036.
 
Goldkind's win was made all the more remarkable by the fact that he was a WSOP newbie, taking home the honours and some serious money on his first crack at the world's biggest live poker tournament.