Tag: WSOP

The World Series of Poker Main Event came to a close on Wednesday night with German poker pro Koray Aldemir coming out on top. He takes home $8 million and the gold bracelet after topping a field of 6,650 players.

“It felt great. It’s the biggest final table in the world, so it’s a dream come true,” he said after winning the title. “Probably every poker player thinks about this moment when they watch this, believing ‘maybe I could be there one day.’”

Aldemir made his dream a reality after securing the championship after nine days of long hours at the tables. After the WSOP was held mostly online in 2020 at WSOP.com and GGPoker, this year’s series continued bringing back live poker in a big way.

Jack Oliver hits rail in 3rd

Getting to the title wasn’t easy. Despite bringing in a chip stack twice of his two opponents, Aldemir faced two tough players in the United Kingdom’s Jack Oliver and New Jersey’s George Holmes.

When play began, here’s how the chip stacks looked:

• Aldemir – 264,600,000
• Oliver – 77,300,000
• Holmes – 57,400,000

Oliver was the first player eliminated. After losing a few early pots and falling behind Holmes, he pushed the last of his 36 million chips in with A♣8♦ from the small blind. After some thought, George Holmes called from the bg blind with Q♠J♠.

A Jack landed on the turn, giving Holmes a pair and the pot when Oliver didn’t improve. The Englishman scored $3 million for third place and a great run through the Main Event.

Heads-up battle for the title

That elimination left Aldemir and Holmes battling for the title. The Oliver elimination pushed Holmes’ stack to 137.4 million. He still faced an uphill climb however, with Aldemir holding 262 million.

The matchup featured two completely different types of poker players. Aldemir is a poker pro and high roller regular with more than $13 million in live tournament winnings.

A recreational player, Holmes plays in a weekly home game with friends and has a regular job. Coming into the event, he had only one career tournament cash from the 2019 Main Event for $50,855.

Both had friends and family cheering them on throughout the matchup. Holmes’ wife was also on the rail. Seeing him on PokerGO was her first time seeing him play poker.

The matchup featured plenty of back and forth play. Holmes went on a nice run early to cut deeply into Aldemir’s lead. He wasn’t afraid of making some big moves and an occasional bluff.

Closing out the battle

Later in the match, Holmes even took the chip lead. Aldemir never seemed to lose control or get shaken however. A seasoned pro, he waited for his own run of cards and was eventually rewarded.

In the final hand, Aldemir held a slight chip lead. Holmes put in a raise to 6 million with K♣Q♠ with Aldemir calling 10♦7♦.

He was in good shape when the flop came 10♥7♠2♥. Aldemir checked and Holmes again bet 6 million. Aldemir then showed some strength with a raise to 19 million.

Holmes called and both players saw a K♠ on the turn. Aldemir then put in a hefty bet of 36.5 million. Holmes thought just a bit and called with his pair of Kings. This brought the pot to more than 100 million.

The 9​​​♠ came on the river and Aldemir checked. Holmes’ all-in shove may have been unexpected and his 133 million went into the pot.

Despite holding two pairs, Aldemir faced a tough decision. Losing the hand meant he’d only have about 10 million chips left.  After some deep thought, he called and it was all over.

Holmes took home $4.3 million for second place and played well throughout the final table.

“Unbelievable, I still can’t put it into words,” Holmes said afterward. “It’s been a grueling week and a half. This guy was amazing, tough all night. Good game, well played.”

2021 WSOP Main Event results

1. Koray Aldemir – $8,000,000
2. George Holmes – $4,300,000
3. Jack Oliver – $3,000,000
4. Joshua Remitio – $2,300,000
5. Ozgur Secilmis – $1,800,000
6. Hye Park – $1,400,000
7. Alejandro Lococo – $1,225,000
8. Jareth East – $1,100,000

WSOP heading to Vegas Strip next year

The WSOP also made some other news this week. During Tuesday’s coverage on PokerGO, the WSOP announced that the festival would once again be played in the summer next year.

The WSOP will once again return to the summer, but is shifting to the Vegas Strip for the first time in its 53-year history. The series moves to the Bally’s and Paris properties on Las Vegas’s famed gaming and entertainment mecca.

Plans call for the series to run from May 31 to July 19 following a 17-year run at the Rio. Players won’t have to wait too long with only about six months until cards are back in the air.

Vince Vaughan announced as new WSOP ambassador, master of ceremonies

Along with the new location announcement, WSOP officials also welcomed actor, comedian and card player Vince Vaughn on board this week. He’ll serve as a series ambassador and master of ceremonies for the 2022 series..

“As we approach the final table, we look back on yet another successful Main Event that exceeded expectations,” WSOP Vice President Ty Stewart said in a news release. “We are absolutely thrilled with this year’s turnout, both domestically and internationally. As we close out this chapter at the Rio, we are excited to have the iconic Vince Vaughn usher in a new era of WSOP at Bally’s and Paris next summer.”

On Tuesday, the star of “Wedding Crashers” and “Swingers” hit the stage to voice the official “shuffle up and deal.” He also joined the PokerGO broadcast team during the final table action.

Vaughn has been a regular card player for much of his life and plans on playing in the WSOP next summer.

“I have such a strong connection to Las Vegas and am honored to be selected as the master of ceremonies for what is set to be the most anticipated WSOP tournament ever,” Vaughn said. “Poker has long been one of my favorite sports, so to be a part of something as historic as the WSOP finally moving to the Strip is an absolute dream. Vegas Baby, Vegas!”

The full 2022 WSOP schedule is expected to be released in January.

More WSOP tournaments continue

The Main Event may be over, but even more WSOP events are in the works. Players will find 10 events left on the schedule, including two online bracelet tournaments.

That includes one online tournament for players only on the WSOP.com Pennsylvania platform.

Thursday’s action sees an $800 NLHE Deepstack and the $250,000 Super High Roller kicking off. Check back to PokerScout next week for a look at some recent winners in other events.

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The World Series of Poker Main Event reached the final table on Tuesday after seven days of play in Las Vegas. The final nine players now return to action on Tuesday later in the afternoon to play down to the final four with a champion crowned on Wednesday.

The winner scores the championship bracelet and $8 million with all players at least earning $1 million. The final table includes several international players with Germany’s ​​Koray Aldemir leading the pack.

Aldemir returns with 140 million chips, a deep stack of 175 big blinds. After a long day, Aldemir looked forward to resting up.

“The focus is on sleeping well,” he told WSOP.com after Day 7. “That’s going to be kind of important. It’s of course a big final table, but it’s still poker. So I’ll try to play well. Just normal poker. I’ll try to play it like any other final table and see where it brings me.”

In other events, several other international players were making big runs and winning bracelets. Here’s a look at the latest news.

Event 67: $10,000 Main Event

When play began in the Rio on Tuesday, 36 players returned to the action. After six starting flights and Day 2 registration, the event brought in 6,650 players for a $62 million prize pool.

The last man standings can look forward to a bracelet sporting 10 karats of yellow and white gold encrusted with 2,230 rubies and white and black diamonds.

Beyond Aldemir, a few other players from outside the US return. Argentina’s Alejandro “Papo MC” Lococo sits third in chips. The freestyle rapper has a big following in Latin America and recently signed as a PokerStars ambassador.

“What I enjoy most about poker is the different emotions that you experience while playing,” Papo told PokerScout in August. “Beyond this, poker has helped me get to know wonderful people and visit wonderful places. It’s given me great friends and amazing stories.”

DIOS 🔥🦅 Me voy a dormir🔥🦅 https://t.co/lShTE5cm8R

— BESTIA Papo MC 🔥🦅 (@PapoMcArg) November 16, 2021

Two players from the United Kingdom also return. Jack Oliver is fifth in chips with 24.5 million and ​​Jareth East returns as the short stack in ninth with 8.3 million.

Turkey’s Ozgur Secilmis enters the final table in sixth with 24.5 million. Here’s a look at the final nine players:

1. Koray Aldemir (Germany), 140,000,000
2. George Holmes(US), 83,700,000
3. Alejandro Lococo (Argentina), 46,800,000
4. Joshua Remitio (US), 40,000,000
5. Jack Oliver (UK), 34,000,000
6. Ozgur Secilmis (Turkey), 24,500,000
7. Chase Bianchi (US), 14,100,000
8. Hye Park (US), 13,500,000
9. Jareth East (UK), 8,300,000

Poker fans looking to follow the final table can check out PokerGO beginning at 4:30 pm (ET) on Tuesday. The four-player action continues on Wednesday at the same time.

Event 71: $1,500 Bounty Pot Limit Omaha

France’s Mourad Amokrane transitioned from final table chip leader to winner in this event. He scored his first bracelet and $132,844 with Matt Mamiya taking runner-up for $82,100. The tournament brought in 860 entries for a $1.1 million prize pool.

Event 72: $1,500 Mixed NLHE; Pot Limit Omaha

Several international players scored big in this event, which brought in 846 players for a $1.1 million prize pool. Japan’s Motoyoshi Okamura took down the tournament for his first bracelet and $209,716. Brazilian rounder Rafael Mota finished runner-up for $129,621.

“Winning the bracelet has been a dream of mine,” Okamura told WSOP.com afterward. “This is my first time playing the WSOP, and I will surely be back next time.”

Others in the top five were:

• 3rd – Nicolas Yunis (Chile), $91,989
• 4th – Leonid Yanovski (Israel), $91,989
• 5th – Mike Takayama (Philippines), $48,428

Two more online bracelets awarded

WSOP.com featured two more bracelet events on Sunday as the end of the series gets closer. Estonia’s Aleksejs “APonakov” Ponakovs took down the first one, the $7,777 Lucky 7s High Roller. He won his first bracelet and $432,491 for the effort.

Canada’s Jaroslaw “johnnyloveit” Jaskiewicz took the runner-up spot for $267,232 in an event featuring 183 entries for a $1.3 million prize pool.

In the $777 version of the Lucky 7s, Bulgaria’s Yuliyan “Dr.Feelg00da” Kolev came out on top for his first bracelet and $146,163. The tournament produced 1,122 entries for a $785,400 prize pool.

More tournaments on the horizon

The action at the Rio continues this week with several other events as the series winds its way to a conclusion on Nov. 23. Here’s a look at events in the coming days.

• 77: $1,500 Fifty Stack NLHE – Nov. 16
• 78: $10,000 Razz Championship – Nov. 16
• 79: $1,979 Poker Hall of Fame Bounty – Nov. 17
• 80: $3,000 Six-Handed PLO – Nov. 17
• 81: $800 NLHE Deepstack – Nov. 18
• 82: $250,000 Super High Roller – Nov. 18

* Lead image courtesy PokerGO

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A few international players came up big over the last week at the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas. Russia’s Anatolii Zyrin took down one of the biggest events of the series, the $400 Colossus.

A Frenchman also scored big in the Super Seniors event. Finland saw a winner crowned as well with Eelis Parssinen (pictured above) taking his first bracelet.

In other news, the $10,000 Main Event also kicks off Thursday, which brings the first of six starting flights. Here’s a look at some of the headlines from the WSOP.

Event 55: $400 COLOSSUS

This event produced a colossal field of 9,399 entries for a $3.1 million prize pool with a Russian player scoring gold. Anatolii Zyrin won his second bracelet and took home $314,705.

His previous bracelet came in 2019 in a $1,500 Omaha Mix event for $199,838 and he now has $2.2 million in live tournament winnings.

The final table was held in the King’s Lounge area. That produced some different dynamics with player’s friends even closer to the action to cheer them on. The location received nice reviews from payers and fans.

Event 58: $1,000 Super Seniors NLHE

The seniors events at the WSOP have become some of the most popular tournaments at the festival. The Super Seniors championship is open to players 60 years old and over. The event brought in 1,893 players for a $1.7 million prize pool.

It was a French super senior taking the top spot this year. Jean-Luc Adam scored his first bracelet for a payday of $255,623.

Adam currency lives in the Caribbean island of Saint Martin, where he won a WSOP Circuit ring in 2019. His son Cedric also won a ring during that series and taught his father how to play poker. The elder Adam was in a state of shock after winning the title.

“I’m dreaming,” Adam told WSOP.com. “It’s very strange, a strange sensation. I felt good for all of the tournament and I felt very relaxed. I never think about first place, but only play every hand.

“It’s a very nice moment. I like to play for pleasure. I like to have emotion … it’s a very strange sensation for me because I don’t realize that it’s a world championship. It’s very unbelievable, I don’t understand now. It’s too soon, I just finished the tournament. I can’t realize exactly everything now.”

Event 64: $5,000 Mixed NLHE; PLO

This event combines two of poker’s most popular variants and saw Finland’s Eelis Parssinen  rise to the top. He scored his first bracelet and $545,616 in an event with 579 entries for a $2.7 million prize pool.

The online poker pro doesn’t play many live tournaments, but has now found a bracelet in only his fifth WSOP event. The win came after a massive comeback.

With just 40 players remaining, Parssinen was left with only a single big blind. He’d even texted his friends that he was out of the tournament before staging a massive rally.

Some other big WSOP winners

Shaun Deeb took down Event 53: $25,000 High Roller PLO for $1.3 million. A couple of international players came in just behind him. Hong Kong’s Ka Kwan Lau took runner-up for $773,708. Bulgaria’s Veselin Karakitukov finished fifth for $276,870.

Event 56: $10,000 Six-Handed NLHE Championship brought a runner-up finish for Russia’s Nikita Kuznetsov. That brought a nice score of $445,892. Israel’s Ariel Mantel took third for $293,578 with South Korea’s Joonhee Yea finishing fifth for $137,303.

Winamax team pro Joao Vieira made a run at his second bracelet in Event 57: $10,000 Limit 2-7 Lowball Triple Draw Championship. However, he finished fifth for $54,993.

The tag team events always make for a run atmosphere at the Rio. After an Israeli team won the $1,000 version in 2019, another team from the country came close this year. Tomer Wolf and David Landell finished runner-up in Event 59 for $70,074, both just missing out on their first bracelet.

In Online Event 6: $666 NLHE, a Canadian player found a deep run in this Halloween event. “Sucra71” finished in second place for $71,000.

Another Russian made a deep run in Event 62: $1,500 PLO Hi-Lo 8 or Better with Alexander Orlov scoring fifth for $42,823.

PokerGO adds to Main Event streaming schedule

The $10,000 Main Event begins Thursday and PokerGO will be streaming the entire event as well as some of the final few tournaments. The series recently added two additional starting flights after travel restrictions were relaxed for some international passengers.

Poker fans around the world can follow the Main Event action via PokerGO. Here’s a complete look at the platform’s coverage plans.

PokerGO WSOP Main Event streaming schedule

Player of the Year update

The battle for Player of the Year continues playing out with some big names at the top. Phil Hellmuth and Anthony Zinno both held the No. 1 position at times, but Jake Schwartz now finds himself in that spot.

While he hasn’t won an event yet, Schwartz has several deep runs including a runner-up and two third-place finishes. Here’s a look at the standings and point totals as of Nov. 4:

1. Jake Schwartz, 2,711.43
2. Kevin Gerhart, 2,643.28
3. Anthony Zinno, 2,627.88
4. Phil Hellmuth, 2,598.59
5. Shaun Deeb, 2,518.89

Looking ahead

Along with the Main Event, several other events are currently running. Event 63: $500 Salute to Warriors serves as a fundraiser for the USO and has reached the final  table.

Two international players are still alive in that event, which should wrap up Thursday. South Korea’s Chulhan Choi sits sixth in chips with Ukraine’s Hlib Kovtunov one spot behind. Both players are seeking their first bracelet.

Event 65: $1,000 Mini Main Event continues with Day 2 on Thursday with Russia’s Giorgiy Skhulukhiya second in chips. Here’s a look at some upcoming events.

• 67: $10,000 Main Event – starting flights A-F running Nov. 4-9
• Online Event 7: $3,200 WSOP.com NLHE High Roller Eight-Max – Nov. 7
• 68: Little One for One Drop – three starting flights running Nov. 8-10

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