Tuesday, February 13, 2018 12:25 PM Local Time
Robert Tanner Satellites to Victory in Event #4
Local grinder turns $65 into a big payday, WSOP Circuit ring
Monday night, Robert Tanner found himself at a final table full of WSOP Circuit winners with cards that were struggling to cooperate. Tanner overcame a series of obstacles, though, outlasting the table to claim his first Circuit victory. He topped a total field of 256 entries in the $365 Turbo, winning his first ring and $18,810. It’s his largest result on record.
Tanner is a 54-year-old forensic accountant from just up the road in Wellington. He’s married with seven children, five in college and two on the way there soon. His wife was on the rail for the duration of the final table, and the two explained that poker plays an important role in their relationship. They’re both avid recreational players.
“In the last 10 years, we’ve had disagreements, but no arguments,” Tanner said. “We don’t fight because we’re very supportive [of each other].”
The happy couple decided to spend some quality time together in the hours before this event began. Mrs. Tanner explained: “I was like, ‘Honey, we’re going to spend time together. We’re going to the casino, and we’re playing the satellite.’”
They jumped in the $65 satellite at 9 a.m., and Tanner won his seat into the ring event. The rest of the story is evident.
Although he got the result he desired, he took a pretty difficult path to get there. Tanner had pocket aces and pocket kings cracked twice apiece on the way to victory. At one point, the frustrated hero had to take a step back and clear his head.
“I just had to walk away and get over it,” he said. “I just said to myself let me get to the break. Take a break and refocus. There’s always another hand.”
All’s well that ends well, right?
Tanner had enough of a chip cushion to fend off his share of bad beats, and he eventually found himself four-handed against three previous ring winners. Martin Ryan (5 rings), Mark Stephen Edwards (2), and David Gunas (1) all stood in between Tanner and his own ring.
Tanner eliminated Ryan in fourth place, and Gunas took care of Edwards in third to leave the two men heads-up just after midnight. They waged war with their short stacks for a good while before getting it all in with nearly identical counts. Tanner’s pocket fours held against Gunas’ deuces to leave the latter with just a single ante, and the match was over on the next hand.
Before the final table began, the players filled out information sheets for the staff. Mrs. Tanner did the paperwork for her husband. In the “interesting things” section, she wrote this: “The best part about life is living life.”
Tanner made an edit to his information in the postgame interview, though. “You know, I’d like to change that,” he said. “The best part of life is playing poker with your wife.”