From November 12-22, Pearl River Resort in Philadelphia, Mississippi played host to the 2020 Pearl River Poker Open. The nine-event series catered to 3,492 entrants – including players from as far away as Michigan, New Hampshire, Arizona, and Missouri – and awarded $865,851 in prize money.
The series kicked off with Event #1: $250 NLH $100K GTD, which crushed its guarantee by drawing 1,735 entries to create a $333,120 prize pool. Of that, $46,600 was paid out in double bag bonuses.
The top 169th finishers got paid including Sean Small (6th – $11,248), Dan Lowery (11th – $3,488), Amy Pullens (25th – $1,774), Ruth Hall (34th – $1,367), Judge Leo Boothe (48th – $873), Randy Hollis (64th – $669), Preston McEwen (70th – $669), Tim Burden (115th – $494), Joe Saleh (142nd – $436), and “Captain” Tom Franklin (164th – $377).
In the end, Anthony Reynolds of Atlanta, Georgia defeated Thierry Quintin in heads-up play to win the title for $45,894.
Pearl River Poker Open Event #1 Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Anthony Reynolds | Atlanta, GA | $45,894 |
| 2nd | Thierry Quintin | Destin, FL | $28,629 |
| 3rd | Frank Boswell | Pell City, MS | $19,968 |
| 4th | Kenny Prendergrass | Brandon, MS | $17,062 |
| 5th | Eric Yim | Fairfax, VA | $14,156 |
| 6th | Sean Small | Douglasville, GA | $11,248 |
| 7th | Michael Owens | Chattanooga, TN | $8,342 |
| 8th | Thomas Pullens | Picayune, MS | $5,813 |
| 9th | Phyllis Pettit | Baton Rouge, LA | $4,012 |
Christopher Nunnally Wins Main Event
The series culminated with the $600 buy-in, $100K GTD Main Event, a tournament that started players with 20,000 in chips and played 40-minute levels. It proved a winning formula as each of three starting flights attracted enough runners to surpassed the guarantee by itself. All told, 671 entrants participated and created a $335,500 prize pool that was paid out amongst the top 63 finishers.
Among those to cash were Dan Lowery (6th – $15,936), Andrew Barfield (13th – $4,026), Tiffany Keathley (20th – $2,684), Donnie Phan (25th – $2,684), Joe Saleh (28th – $2,013), Logan Hoover (42nd – $1,510), Trace Henderson (49th – $1,308), Kelly Hebert (56th – $1,174), and Robert Hankins (61st – $1,174).
In the end, Christopher Nunnally and Matt Higgins struck a deal that saw the latter secure $50,000 in prize money and the former the title and $57,835.
2020 Pearl River Poker Open Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Christopher Nunnally | Birmingham, AL | $57,835 |
| 2nd | Matthew Higgins | Chatanooga, TN | $50,000 |
| 3rd | Jeffery Hewitt | Atlanta, GA | $27,679 |
| 4th | Dustin Steward | Biloxi, MS | $22,646 |
| 5th | Gerald Stogner | Kokomo, MS | $19,291 |
| 6th | Daniel Lowery | Ozark, AR | $15,936 |
| 7th | Joseph Hebert | Covington, LA | $12,581 |
| 8th | Shawn Calvit | Lafayette, LA | $9,226 |
| 9th | Kevin Henderson | Ft. Payne, AL | $5,871 |
2020 Pearl River Poker Open Winners
Below is a look at all those to capture titles during the series. One of the more interesting tournaments was Event #8: $125 Rookies NLH, which required players to have less than $10,000 in career lifetime earnings according to HendonMob.
| Date | Tournament | Entries | Prize Pool | Winner | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov. 15 | Event #1: $250 NLH $100K GTD | 1,735 | $333,120 | Anthony Reynolds | $45,894 |
| Nov. 16 | Event #2: $350 Big Monster Stack | 249 | $72,210 | Paul Strizhevsky | $7,000 |
| Nov. 17 | Event #3: $125 Celebrity Bounty | 153 | $15,300 | Joe Hebert | $2,946 |
| Nov. 18 | Event #4: $200 NLH $20K GTD | 192 | $29,760 | Gregory James | $4,347 |
| Nov. 19 | Event #5: $250 Monster Stack | 213 | $40,896 | Brian Walsingham | $10,021 |
| Nov. 20 | Event #6: $200 Seniors | 132 | $20,460 | Stephen Greene | $3,260 |
| Nov. 20-22 | Event #7: $600 Main Event | 671 | $335,500 | Christopher Nunnally | $57,835 |
| Nov. 21 | Event #8: $125 Rookies NLH | 76 | $7,600 | Terry Collins | $1,546 |
| Nov. 22 | Event #9: $200 Survivor NLH | 71 | $11,005 | 8 winners | $1,430 each |