Survivor winner Adam Klein runs deep at Run It Up Reno tourney

Millennials vs. Gen X winner Adam Klein works smart, not hard, at playing in the Run It Up Reno $1,100 Thursday Night Thrilla for $24,000 plus bounties.

Every October for the past several years, the poker organization Run It Up hosts a week of poker tournaments at the Peppermill Resort in Reno, Nevada. Not only does it attract newcomers and poker pros in a casual, fun setting, but each year, Rob Cesternino brings the Re-No It Alls post-Survivor recap podcast, often bringing a number of fan-favorite players and winners from past seasons.

The show itself was a huge success, but Millennials vs. Gen X winner Adam Klein found himself in an even better spot after the show, taking in a professional poker tournament called the Thursday Night Thrilla for a $1,100 entry fee. 183 entrants paid that entry fee, but only 20 places would earn money beyond bounties; $500 earned for knocking a player out of the tournament.

Much like Survivor, a knockout poker tournament requires to outwit, outplay and outlast the competition, with 20 players vying for more and more money out of the prize pool. One difference here is that Adam Klein was one of the bounty leaders, knocking out 10 players to earn $5,000 just from eliminations alone. He even doubled up in the final two tables after going all-in with an Ace-Jack offsuit, finding the Jack to beat the odds.

Unfortunately, the up-and-coming poker player could not run hot in making a comeback. He called in the middle of a four-way pot with three players all-in, putting in the 96o (off-suit) against a pair of sevens, K6o and K5s. Drawing to a queen on the final card draw, he could not hit, finishing in 13th place for $1,170 plus $5,000 earned by claiming 10 bounties.

That’s right, Adam Klein was responsible for directly voting out 10 players in a field of 183, effectively running like a post-merge run until the Final Tribal Council. It just so happens that this time, he wasn’t playing in the end against Hannah or Ken, but skilled poker players. Still, it was a great return on investment.

On Friday afternoon, Survivor winners Boston Rob Mariano, Tyson Apostol and Adam Klein were joined by Shirin Oskooi and Rob Cesternino for a charity $5,000 winner-take-all tournament. It came down to Boston Rob and Adam Klein, with Adam’s pair of Queens holding up against Boston Rob’s Ace-Jack off-suit in the final hand winning the tournament.

Adam Klein competed and won money for Cancer Q; an organization bringing those with cancer the resources and support they need. However, Adam showed a bit of support for Boston Rob’s Give Kids the World (a charity they’ve both helped out in the past), providing $1,000 of his $5,000 win to Boston Rob’s charity. Way to run hot, Adam Klein!