Masato ‘World Wide’ Yokosawa is among the most profitable poker vloggers on the planet. The Japanese skilled participant’s YouTube channel has 945,000 subscribers, with pages filled with movies concerning the 32-year-old’s life on the circuit with many sporting view counts within the hundreds of thousands.
Yokosawa has discovered loads of success on the felt alongside the best way, together with profitable the World Poker Tour Korea essential occasion title again in 2013. The Tokyo resident’s newest triumph noticed him come out on high within the third occasion of the 2025 PokerGO Tour Kickoff sequence pageant. Yokosawa beat a discipline of 112 entries within the $5,000 no-limit maintain’em match to earn $142,800 and his first PGT trophy.
Thanks to this victory, Yokosawa has surpassed $1.7 million in recorded match earnings. His largest payout but got here again in 2023, when he completed forty fifth within the World Series of Poker essential occasion for $188,400.
The 480 Card Player Player of the Year factors that got here with this win have been sufficient to maneuver Yokosawa into seventieth place within the 2025 POY standings offered by Global Poker. He additionally secured 286 PGT factors, sufficient to maneuver into second place within the early season-long standings.
The high 16 finishers earned a chunk of the $560,000 prize pool on this occasion, with 9 gamers busting inside the cash earlier than the top of day 1 motion. Just seven gamers returned to the PokerGO Studio at ARIA Resort & Casino Las Vegas for day 2, with Yokosawa main the best way.
Pocket aces featured prominently all through this closing desk. Yokosawa picked up A
A
towards the Q
Q of two-time bracelet winner Justin Saliba to attain the primary knockout of the day. Then, after eliminating Michael Vanier (sixth – $28,000), Neil Warren coolered Yokosawa proper again, with A
A besting OkOk.
The Ultimate Cooler for Masato Yokosawa! Aces vs. Kings at PGT Kickoff!
: https://t.co/34Dxw3w9PM pic.twitter.com/ZkYREgtDsr
— PokerGO (@PokerGO) January 23, 2025
Ten-time bracelet winner Erik Seidel’s run on this occasion got here to an finish when his pocket sixes have been unable to outrun the Q-7 suited of Blake Vogdes. Seidel earned $36,400 because the fifth-place finisher. The Poker Hall of Fame member now has greater than $48.4 million in lifetime cashes below his belt.
Despite scoring that knockout, Vogdes was the following to fall. He misplaced a basic preflop race with Q10 towards the three3 of Warren to move residence with $50,400.
Yokosawa received the following key pot with the hand of the day: pocket aces. He limped from the small blind for 250,000 complete with AA and referred to as a elevate to 700,000 from Nicholas Seward, who held Ok10. The flop got here down 1032 and Yokosawa check-called 325,000 along with his overpair. The 2 paired the board and Yokosawa check-called once more, this time for 825,000. The 5 on the top noticed Yokosawa transfer all-in. Seward made the short name with tens up and was eradicated in third place ($64,400).
Heads-up play started with 8,600,000 for Yokosawa and 5,400,000 for Warren. That hole grew forward of the ultimate hand. Warren shoved for 3,325,000 from the button with A6 and Yokosawa referred to as with A2. The board got here down 54242 and deuces filled with fours gave Yokosawa the pot and the title. Warren walked away with $89,600 because the runner-up.
Masato Yokosawa takes down his first Las Vegas victory for $142,800 at PGT Kickoff! pic.twitter.com/MvTi7hRAKq
— PokerGO (@PokerGO) January 24, 2025
Here is a take a look at the payouts and rankings factors awarded on the closing desk:
| Place | Player | Earnings | POY Points | PGT Points |
| 1 | Masato Yokosawa | $142,800 | 480 | 286 |
| 2 | Neil Warren | $89,600 | 400 | 179 |
| 3 | Nicholas Seward | $64,400 | 320 | 129 |
| 4 | Blake Vogdes | $50,400 | 240 | 101 |
| 5 | Erik Seidel | $36,400 | 200 | 73 |
| 6 | Mike Vanier | $28,000 | 160 | 56 |
| 7 | Justin Saliba | $22,400 | 120 | 45 |
Photo credit: PokerGO / Antonio Abrego.
