2008 November Niner wins first gold ring and takes Casino Championship points lead.
Biloxi, MS (September 10, 2013) — Ylon Schwartz made the most of his second final table appearance of the 2013 WSOP Circuit at IP Casino Resort and Spa, besting the nine-handed finale, earning a WSOP Circuit gold ring, $12,474 and taking the Casino Championship lead in the process.Schwartz is most-widely recognized for his fourth place finish in the 2008 WSOP Main Event. He was rewarded handsomely for that result, pocketing just short of $3.8 million, but didn’t let it slow him down. He’s recorded 21-WSOP related cashes in the years since including a gold bracelet victory at the 2012 WSOP. The one thing missing from his resume was a gold ring and he rectified that Tuesday night in Biloxi, MS.The win comes just four days after Schwartz finished runner-up in Event 1 and earned 37.5 points toward the Casino Championship. His Event 5 victory yielded 50 points toward the 12-day race bringing his total to 87.5 points, well ahead of the rest of the field.“It’s nice to get a freeroll,” Schwartz said of the WSOP National Championship. “I’ve invested a lot of money in WSOP events and it’s nice to get a little something back. I think all the players appreciate it.”Schwartz is one of two November Niners to make a final table appearance in 2013 at IP Biloxi. The other is John Dolan who finished fourth in Event 2. Given his recent results, one might think Schwartz is constantly studying, improving and adapting his game, but he feels drastically different.“[My game] has probably degraded [since the November Nine],” Schwartz said with a laugh. “I was hungry back then. Now things are a little more cushy. I drink a bit more wine and I own a bar. I’m probably a weaker player than I used to be.”Despite his laid back lifestyle following the seven-figure score, Schwartz’s game is good enough to put him in the elite company of Dolan, Michael Mizrachi and Dennis Phillips as the only four November Niners to record gold ring victories following their Main Event final table appearances.
Given his lead in the Casino Championship, Schwartz’s laid-back lifestyle may continue as he heads home to Austin, TX for some much-deserved rest and relaxation following a few months on the road. Event 5 was the fifth of 12 gold ring events on the WSOP Circuit schedule at the IP Casino Resort and Spa. The $365 No-Limit Hold’em event attracted 154 entries. The total prize pool came to $46,200 and the top 18 players were paid.Final table results:1st: Ylon Schwartz - $12,4742nd: Christopher Hall - $7,7093rd: Ray Parker - $5,5494th: John Nies - $4,0675th: Mahmood Streeter - $3,0336th: Mimi Roeder - $2,3027th: Tim Williams - $1,7778th: Allan Farber - $1,3949th: Robert Ward - $1,112Full results available on WSOP.com.