Ka Kwan Lau Wins Largest Pot-Limit Omaha Tournament in World Series of Poker History

The 2023 World Series of Poker $25,0000 buy-in pot-limit Omaha occasion attracted an astounding subject of 449 entries, making a $10,551,500 prize pool to set the report for the biggest PLO occasion in WSOP historical past (by prize cash). This identical occasion drew 264 entries in 2022, which implies there was a 70 p.c enhance in year-over-year turnout.

After 4 days of intense four-card motion, Spain’s Ka Kwan Lau emerged victorious together with his first WSOP bracelet and the $2,294,756 high prize. This win got here simply two years after Lau completed second in the 2021 operating of this identical occasion. He additionally final-tabled this occasion in 2019, inserting eighth that 12 months. The pot-limit Omaha specialist now has almost $4.6 million in recorded match earnings, with greater than $3.2 million of that coming from cashes in this match alone.

In addition to the title and the cash, Lau additionally earned a bevy of rankings factors for this huge victory, together with 2,520 Card Player Player of the Year factors. This was his first certified final-table end of the 12 months, however this win was adequate by itself to catapult him into thirty eighth place in the 2023 POY standings offered by Global Poker. The 800 PokerGO Tour factors he secured introduced his whole in that high-stakes-centric race to 945, which is at present good for thirteenth place on the PGT leaderboard.

Below is a glance again on the eight-year-history of this occasion:

Lau got here into the fourth and closing day of this occasion because the chip chief among the many remaining 5 contenders. The cash bubble had burst approach again on day 2, with monsters of the sport like three-time bracelet winner Paul Volpe (thirty eighth), five-time bracelet winner Josh Arieh (thirty seventh), two-time bracelet winner Joao Vieira (twenty ninth), three-time bracelet winner Yuri Dzivielevski (twenty seventh), two-time bracelet winner Andriy Lyubovetskiy (twenty third), three-time bracelet winner Dan Zack (twenty second), two-time bracelet winner Ben Lamb (nineteenth), three-time bracelet winner Chad Eveslage (18th), three-time bracelet winner Dash Dudley (thirteenth), bracelet winner Isaac Haxton, bracelet winner Dylan Weisman (tenth), three-time bracelet winner Chance Kornuth, and six-time bracelet winner Jeremy Ausmus (eighth) among the many 68 gamers that made the cash however didn’t advance to day 4.

Mads Amot was the primary to fall on the ultimate day. He bought all-in after a flop of OkQ3 with OkQQ10 for center set. He was up in opposition to a completely huge draw for Lau, whose AQJ10 gave him a flush draw and a wrap straight draw. The 7 on the flip saved Amot forward, however the 8 on the river gave Lau a successful flush. Amot earned $505,588 for his fifth-place displaying.

The subsequent key pot noticed World Poker Tour champion Roger Teska get all-in with high two pair on the flip, solely to search out himself trailing the flopped wheel of Sergio Martinez Gonzalez. The river introduced a clean and Teska was knocked out in fourth place ($701,522). This was the second-largest money but for Teska, trailing solely the $2,000,000 he earned because the champion of the Caribbean Poker Party MILLIONS World $25,000 buy-in no-limit maintain’em occasion.

Andjelko Andrejevic’s run in this occasion got here to an finish when his QQ73 bumped into the AA108 of Martinez Gonzalez. The board ran out AQJOk8 and Martinez Gonzalez’s broadway straight earned him the pot. Andrejevic took dwelling $989,464 because the third-place finisher. This was his second-largest money ever, with the biggest being a $1.1 million payday for a win in an Asia Pacific Poker Tour $500,000 HKD ($64,500 USD) buy-in excessive curler again in 2015. The WPT champion from Serbia now has greater than $5.5 million in lifetime cashes to his identify.

With that, Martinez Gonzalez edged into the chip lead going into heads-up play in opposition to Lau. Martinez Gonzalez was in a position to lengthen his result in greater than 3:1 earlier than Lau scored an important double-up with an eight-high straight besting his opponent’s seven-high straight to surge forward.

The two traded the lead once more, however Lau was ultimately in a position to take management and had a wholesome chip benefit by the point the ultimate hand rolled round. Martinez Gonzalez potted from the button with AA74 and Lau repotted with AOkQ10. Martinez Gonzalez four-bet shoved and Lau referred to as. The board got here down 10969J and Lau rivered a king-high straight to win the pot and the title. Martinez Gonzalez earned $1,418,270 because the runner-up finisher.

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

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Winner picture credit score: WSOP / Spenser Sembrat. Andrejevic picture credit score: PokerGO / Enrique Malfavon.