Istvan Briski was the final participant standing within the penultimate World Poker Tour foremost occasion of 2023. The 30-year-old Hungarian outlasted a area of 1,447 complete entries within the WPT Rock ‘n’ Roll Poker Open $3,500 buy-in no-limit maintain’em foremost occasion at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood to earn his first WPT title and the highest prize of $647,300.
“It’s amazing to be a WPT champion,” Briski told the tour’s reporters after coming out on top. “I ran really well in the tournament. I made it all the way and I’m very happy.”
This was the second-largest recorded payday of Briski’s match profession, trailing solely the $833,404 rating he made because the fifth-place finisher within the 2022 World Series of Poker Online $5,000 foremost occasion.
Briski now has greater than $2.2 million in lifetime match earnings to his title, with 4 six-figure scores made alongside the way in which.
This newest deep run additionally noticed Briski stroll away with 1,440 Card Player Player of the Year factors. When mixed with the 440 factors he earned because the third-place finisher within the $777 buy-in Lucky 7’s occasion at this yr’s WSOP, Briski’s level complete has grown to 1,880. That’s good for 224th place within the 2023 POY standings introduced by Global Poker.
The sturdy turnout for this occasion noticed the $3 million assure simply surpassed, with $4,630,400 in complete prize cash in the end paid out among the many 181 finishers. Plenty of notables ran deep on this occasion, together with three-time WPT champion Brian Altman (72nd), three-time bracelet winner and WPT champion Chance Kornuth (69th), bracelet winner and _WPT champion Alex Foxen (59th), four-time bracelet winner and three-time WPT champion Anthony Zinno (forty seventh), bracelet winner Kyle Julius (twenty eighth), three-time bracelet winner and two-time WPT champion Chad Eveslage (nineteenth), and WPT winner Alessio Isaia (seventeenth).
After two beginning flights and three extra days of play, the sphere had been narrowed to only six contenders, with Briski within the lead and Sandy Sanchez in second chip place. 2018 WPT Lucky Hearts Poker Open foremost occasion champion Darryll Fish was the primary to fall on the ultimate day. He open-shoved from the small blind for simply shy of eight massive blinds with Q-7 and bumped into the pocket kings of Briski within the massive blind. Fish turned two pair, however was drawing lifeless to Briski’s flopped set of kings. Fish earned $157,800 because the sixth-place finisher, rising his profession match earnings to greater than $5.2 million within the course of.
Matt Bond’s run got here to an finish when his A-9 suited clashed with the pocket jacks of bracelet winner Fred Goldberg. Bond turned an open-ended straight draw, however a brick on the river noticed him head to the rail to gather his $206,900 in prize cash.
Goldberg was contending for the chip lead early in four-handed play, however quickly misplaced a giant one to Canadian poker participant and content material creator Rayan Chamas, identified to many as ‘Beriuzy’. He ultimately was whittled right down to fewer than six massive blinds. His A-2 bumped into the pocket jacks of Briski, which improved to a full home by the flip. Goldberg was awarded $274,000 for his efforts, bringing his lifetime earnings to over $3.3 million.
A preflop conflict of pocket pairs led to the subsequent knockout. Sanchez three-bet shoved from the massive blind excessive of Chamas’ open with pocket fives. Chamas known as with pocket nines and held to remove Sanchez in third place. The $366,500 he earned for his efforts was the most important rating but on his match resume.
Heads-up play started with Chamas holding 41,500,000 to Briski’s 30,900,000. The last two got here to a deal to redistribute the remaining prize cash, with $600,000 for second place and $647,300 for the eventual champion. First place would additionally safe a $10,400 seat into the season-ending WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas which begins on Dec. 12.
Briski quickly doubled up with turned journeys towards the highest pair of Chamas to take a 5:1 lead. Chamas managed one double-up, however was quickly all-in once more with 108 going through the Q4 of Briski. The board ran out A72Ok5 and Briski’s queen excessive performed to earn him the pot and the title.
Chamas elevated his recorded match earnings to just about $1.6 million due to his runner-up end.
Here is a have a look at the payouts and POY factors awarded on the last desk:
Place | Player | Earnings | POY Points |
1 | Istvan Briski | $647,300 | 1440 |
2 | Rayan Chamas | $600,000 | 1200 |
3 | Sandy Sanchez | $366,500 | 960 |
4 | Fred Goldberg | $274,000 | 720 |
5 | Matt Bond | $206,900 | 600 |
6 | Darryll Fish | $157,800 | 480 |
Photo credit: WPT / Joe Giron.