Ari Engel broke the World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC) ring record on Saturday. His own record.
The Canadian born poker legend took down an $888 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em Crazy 8’s tournament on WSOP Online Pennsylvania, a Circuit event. He beat out a field of 61 entrants on his second bullet to take home $16,732, defeating “D.Lafferty” heads-up for the ring. And it was a big ring for Engel as it gave him a bit of separation from the close competition.
WSOP Online PA Circuit Event #9: $888 NLH Crazy 8’s Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ari “Ngindn” Engel | $16,732 |
| 2 | “D.Lafferty” | $10,811 |
| 3 | “Mr.Pink1992” | $7,722 |
| 4 | “Solenya” | $5,148 |
| 5 | “ImShard” | $3,861 |
| 6 | “ZetaPoker” | $2,831 |
| 7 | “orangetan” | $2,316 |
| 8 | “anlin0430” | $2,059 |
Engel Takes Down #18
Engel won his 17th Circuit ring in February in a $500 8-Max tournament online. In doing so, he extended his record, two ahead of Daniel Lowery, Maurice Hawkins, and Joshua Reichard. Hawkins has since won his 16th, but is now two rings behind Engel, who captured Number 18 on Saturday. Lowery and Reichard remain stuck on 15.
The $888 buy-in no-limit hold’em tournament took place in Pennsylvania on the WSOP Online site (formerly WSOP.com). The tournament had a $35,000 guaranteed minimum prize pool, but the pot ended up reaching $51,484. Only 33 players signed up, but there were 28 rebuys.
Engel plays under the screen name “Ngindn,” which he said represent the initials of his nieces and nephews, from oldest to youngest. The longtime poker star also has three World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet, and he is the only player with 15 or more Circuit rings to have won a bracelet.
Engel has $8.7 million in lifetime live tournament cashes, according to The Hendon Mob. Norman Chad, the longtime WSOP announcer and occasional Poker Hall of Fame nominee, referred to the Circuit legend as the “Shohei Ohtani of poker.” Ohtani is the first great hitter and pitcher in Major League Baseball history since Babe Ruth more than 85 years ago, although he isn’t pitching this year due an arm injury.
The comparison to Ohtani is fitting considering Engel has been successful both in WSOP and WSOPC events. Chad also pointed out this is Engel’s eighth ring since 2022, which alone would be good enough for the top 30 all time.