Northern California Is Well Repped at the WPT Rolling Thunder Final Table

By Matt Clark

Every World Poker Tour event claims its share of local players who make a deep run, sometimes making the final table. WPT Rolling Thunder boasts three of those archetypes. Headlined by Ian Steinman (pictured above, left), Northern California poker is alive and well for today’s WPT final table.

Forged on the Battlefield

Thunder Valley is a factory of tournaments and churns out series after series each year. Along with the World Poker Tour, the property hosts WPTDeepStacks and the World Series of Poker Circuit. Additional tournaments are played across the calendar and provide locals with the chance to firm up their skills.

Steinman is a pro, but his fellow final tablists and recreational players Rayo Kniep (pictured above, middle) and David Larson (pictured above, right) are far from lacking in late-stage tournament experience. All three claim multiple cashes at Thunder Valley in recent months.

Kniep is only in his second year of playing poker but already has a second-place finish in a field 1,511 to his credit from a 2018 WSOP Circuit event.

Larson hails from San Jose and owns a résumé dotted with Thunder Valley payout receipts. He’s already locked up his best career score.

The largest tournament cash for Steinman happened only a few months ago in the WPTDeepStacks Championship. The Mountainview, California, native placed fourth at the live stream final table and collected $68,080.

According to Steinman, the unique flavor of poker incorporated by Northern Californians gives them an edge against the traveling circus of professionals.

“I think that it’s advantageous that [we] play a little bit of a different style that is more exploitable compared to the traveling pros,” Steinman said. “Part of having success in a place like this is being able to exploit in the right spots. I think you can still do that in these tournaments to a certain extent because you have the same guys who play the same tournaments.”

Familiarity Breeds Friendship

From the bubbly Kniep to the congenial Larson, the California crew play a game that is bonded in respect. Throughout the tournament, local players on break from smaller tournaments or cash games were around to rubberneck the rail and cheer for their particular favorite.

Eighth-place finisher Glenn Larson stuck around after being eliminated on the unofficial final table to cheer on Kniep. Steinman had fellow pro and Santa Cruz’s own Taylor Black in his corner late last night.

Pat Lyons chatted up players in the side event adjacent to the WPT Main Event following his ninth-place exit.

Amid the ostensible pressure of playing for almost $300,000 and a WPT title, expect to see a talkative final table during today’s live stream. For Kniep, he is living out his dream of playing at a WPT final table that included playing with Olivier Busquet on Day 2.

Kniep picked Joe McKeehen’s brain a few times on Day 3 and soaked up some knowledge from the 2015 WSOP Main Event champion.

Keep the Trophy Home

Steinman and Kniep are in the middle of the final table pack while Larson has some work to do to get out of his short-stacked hole. Thunder Valley is a poker heaven for many in this area. The WPT Rolling Thunder final table crowd knows who to root for once play kicks off.

Looking to win your way to a World Poker Tour event for your shot at becoming a WPT champion? Play for your chance on ClubWPT.com, where eligible VIP Members can play for over $100,000 in cash and prizes each month, including seats to WPT events, no purchase necessary.