Level 8 (500/1000/1000)
Total Day 1B Entrants: 141
It's difficult to know where to begin when describing Charles Aron (pictured). The Laramie, Wyoming resident is a regular in the RGPS, and chopped the Main Event heads-up with Seth Evans in Kansas City last May for a $40,284 payday. But the man's talent can't be nailed down to poker alone.
A U.S. Army veteran, Aron flew helicopters in Vietnam. He entered law practice and primarily works with family trusts and oil & gas law. He is the author of "A Thread in the Labyrinth," a commentary on why modern people are different from primitive savages and 17th-century aristocrats.
Essentially, Aron is a student of change, the ideology of change, and the ramifications of change in the modern world. But as time ticked by during the break, we asked Aron how he got into poker.
"Oh, I don't really remember. In the military, most likely. But it makes me laugh, because sometimes I'm at a table and I'll think, 'I've been playing poker longer than any of these people have been alive.'"
Aron goes on to tell us about a tournament he played in the 1980's. He's not sure if it was the Stardust or the Riviera or another long-gone casino, but one of them. It's a $300 or $500 buy-in tournament, and as the TD is reading off the rules, the announcement is made that it is the largest poker tournament ever held. The number of entries? 500. And Aron chuckles, "Can you imagine?"
"Puggy Pearson was playing in the tournament that day, and as the TD announced 'Shuffle up and deal,' Puggy yelled 'Rebuy!'"