2023 Tampa Poker Classic
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Tampa, Florida
Event 15
$400 T.O.E. (Re-Entry)
Entries: 60
Prize Pool: $20,100
September 14, 2023

Another marathon heads-up match marked the final battle in Event 15 to give Charlie Wells the top prize worth $6,460 and the SPS guitar pick trophy. The score tonight was the first tournament win for the mixed-game specialist from nearby Melbourne, Florida.

We caught up with him after the victory, and here is what he had to say about the win, “Amazing to tell you the truth. My buddy Jim Hagan got second last night in the O8, so we’ve had two late nights. Crushed both of the tournaments, it doesn’t get any better than that. It’s going to be a long drive back to Melbourne [laughs].”

“Oh yeah, for sure, I mean that’s the reason we came over here was for these two events. I feel really lucky, because I know there was a lot of good players in the tournament way better than me. This is the first time I’ve ever played deuce-to-seven triple draw, I’ve never even played the game before. It was fun though. My buddy [Hagan] coached me on the way over here on the two-hour drive from Melbourne [laughs]. It’s a lot of fun,” said Wells about his affinity for mixed games.

“I just tried to not get in conversations with him, because I don’t want to encourage more stories from him. Everybody talked to him, but I was just trying to focus on my game, and not listen to his stories. Because he has a million stories,” said Wells when he was asked about keeping his composure when the table talk was particularly heavy at the final table tonight.

“I was just trying to not lose concentration and not lose my chips. I was trying to pick spots where I knew he was weak. He liked to check when he was weak, and I was trying to exploit that a little bit,” said Wells when he was asked about the long heads-up match that ended play.

Wells certainly used the minutiae of the tournament in addition to playing well in the hands themselves to come up with the win and the trophy tonight.

Final Results:

1st: Charlie Wells – $6,460 + SPS Trophy
2nd: James Johnson – $4,210
3rd: Anthony Mazza – $2,800
4th: Filippos Stavrakis – $1,910
5th: David Brookshire – $1,330
6th: James Hagan – $950
7th: Nicola De Lazzari-Stacey – $700
8th: Edward Sojack – $700
9th: Jon Heneghan – $520
10th: Dale Phillips – $520