NorthCoast Poker Pro,
Max Young wins 4 of 6 to win series and gold ring
by Gail Hand
Seaside is now officially on the World Series of Poker map!
Former Seaaside resident and talented poker player Maxwell Young won his first World Series signature ring this week on February 15th at the Palm Beach Kennel Club in West Palm Beach Florida.
Through six events, Young has finished in the money four times, including two final table appearances, plus one win. This week on February 15th, Max broke through the field of 166 professionals conquering a short-handed field for his first-career Circuit victory. The result was worth $13,944 in addition to the ring.
Max now resides in Portland but moved from the East Coast to Seaside to surf several years ago. He found a new hobby in poker as he began to settle into his new home. It eventually became his new career.
“I played poker just to be social and meet people in the town,” he said. “A player noticed some things in my game that he thought were really strong. He pushed me to do a little studying, and I realized I could make a lot of money.” That player was local accomplished professional poker player Mike Balesky, and the champ credits him along with fellow-Oregonians Armand Alvarado and Astoria resident Troy Stinnett for helping refine his game.
Max worked at a B & B in Arch Cape when Mike met him at a game and he noticed very quickly that he was paying a lot more attention than anyone else in the game. He started working with him and within 30 days he left his job and has been playing cards ever since. Troy, who is also an accomplished online champion then started working with him in the next few years refining his game. It’s a nice tight knit circle that helps all of them process the tough spots with each other.
Mike is surprised it’s taken Max this long to get his ring, now he’s on his way to becoming player of the year.
It was quite a performance for Young, who entered the final table in fifth place with seven players left. He went on quite a rush thereafter, eliminating the next three players, and taking a huge overnight lead into four-handed play. When Day 2 began, it was more of the same, with Young eliminating his last three opponents within a half hour. “I just realized I knocked everybody out at the final table,” he said, almost in disbelief. “I had to take advantage of the situation. Obviously I had a huge chip lead.”
The win gave Young another 50 points in the race for Casino Champion at this Florida venue, moving him into third place with 85 points. He’s earned more than $20,000 during the series’ first week at the Palm Beach Kennel Club. Here are his results so far:
Event #1: $365 Monster Stack – 50th place ($546)
Event #2: $365 Re-Entry – 13th place ($3,984)?
Event #4: $365 PLO8 – 6th place ($2,207)?
Event #6: $365 Six-Max – 1st place ($13,944)
You can follow Max’s poker journeys on Hendonmob.com, which lists all poker players who cash in tournaments all over the world. Max still lists Seaside as his hometown. Bravo Max, Bravo!
