Chad Eveslage Wins 2021 World Poker Tour Venetian $5,000 Main Event For $910,370

Chad Eveslage is batting a thousand at reside closing tables in 2021. The poker professional from Muncie, Indiana has now made three Card Player Player of the Year certified closing tables this 12 months and has managed to return away with the title each time. Eveslage’s newest triumph got here within the 2021 World Poker Tour Venetian $5,000 buy-in no-limit maintain’em major occasion. Eveslage outlasted the huge subject of 1,199 entries within the occasion to safe his first WPT major tour title and the highest prize of $910,370.

“This whole tournament I kept going all in and winning,” Eveslage informed WPT reporters when requested about his victory. “I think I’m really good but anybody would have won with my luck. It feels like I’m in the Twilight Zone, where the guy is in the casino and he can’t lose.”

In addition to the title and the cash, Eveslage was additionally awarded 1,920 POY factors because the champion of this occasion. He had beforehand received a $1,100 buy-in no-limit maintain’em aspect occasion on the WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open sequence to earn $101,572 and 840 factors again in January. He went on to take down the $25,500 buy-in no-limit maintain’em excessive curler occasion on the WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown competition for an additional $767,576 and 1,008 factors. With his hat-trick of titles, Eveslage has shot up the rankings and into second place on the 2021 POY leaderboard, which is sponsored by Global Poker.

The closing day of this occasion started with Eveslage atop the leaderboard. Arguably the story of the ultimate desk was the truth that three feminine gamers made the highest six, a feat that had not been achieved within the 19-year historical past of the WPT previous to this occasion. Kyna England, Daniela Rodriguez, and Kitty Kuo have been the three shortest stacks to begin the day, however all of them had a shot at turning into the second feminine participant to win an open WPT major tour occasion, following within the footsteps of 2017 WPT Playground $3,500 CAD no-limit maintain’em major occasion champion Ema Zajmovic.

Kitty Kuo was in the end the primary to fall. The Taiwanese poker professional hoped to enhance on her second-place end within the 2018 WPT Bobby Baldwin Classic major occasion for $248,380, however misplaced two huge arms early to hit the rail just some orbits into the ultimate desk. Kuo misplaced with pocket jacks going through ace-ten suited to fall to the underside of the chip counts, and shortly after that was all-in with Okay4 and known as in two spots. Eveslage ended up making prime pair along with his J10 to remove Kuo in sixth place ($192,855). The rating elevated her profession event earnings to only shy of $2.5 million.

Daniela Rodriguez was the brief stack to begin the day. She bought off to a robust begin, as she was the participant who doubled by way of Kuo’s pocket jacks. Despite that early win, Rodriguez was the subsequent participant to be knocked out. She bought her final chips within the center in a traditional race scenario, together with her AOkay up towards the 66 of Eveslage. The flop introduced a six to provide Eveslage a set and an enormous lead, which he by no means relinquished. Rodriguez earned $252,945 for her fifth-place displaying on this occasion.

2021 L.A. Poker Classic major occasion winner Mike Liang entered the ultimate desk with just some huge blinds lower than Eveslage, who then opened up a lead after scoring the primary couple knockouts of the day. Liang overtook the lead with out sending any opponents to the rail. Shortly after shifting into the highest spot, Liang earned his first elimination on the closing desk when his AJ beat out the Q10 of Timothy McDermott, who shoved for round 12.5 huge blinds when it folded it him within the small blind. Liang known as from the large blind and made aces and fives by the river to ship McDermott packing in fourth place ($335,200). Liang took a large lead into three-handed play because of this.

Kyna England’s run on this occasion got here to an finish when she ran A8 into the pocket tens of Eveslage. England picked up the nut flush draw on the flip, however failed to enhance any additional on the river and was eradicated in third place ($448,755). This was by far the most important rating of her event profession, surpassing the $73,782 she earned because the third-place finisher within the Mid-States Poker Tour Riverside $1,100 major occasion earlier this 12 months.

Heads-up play started with the 2 gamers inside a handful of massive blinds of one another, with every having greater than 117 huge blinds when their closing showdown started. It took simply two arms for the decisive pot of the event to happen. Eveslage raised to 500,000 from the button with Q9. Liang three-bet from the large blind to 1,850,000. Eveslage known as and the flop got here down J1010. Liang guess 1,300,000 along with his flopped journeys and Eveslage known as along with his open-ended straight draw. The Okay on the flip noticed Liang guess 3,500,000. Eveslage known as along with his turned straight. The 8 river elicited an all-in shove from Liang, and Eveslage known as for his event life along with his king-high straight to beat Liang’s journeys and safe the huge pot.

Liang was left with simply 11 huge blinds after the hand. Liang managed one double up, however was in the end eradicated because the runner-up when his A9 bumped into the pocket queens of Eveslage. The board got here down Okay43J8 and Liang was awarded $606,890 for his second-place displaying.

Here is a take a look at the payouts and POY factors awarded on the closing desk:

Photo credit: World Poker Tour / Joe Giron.