Qing Liu has gained the 2021 World Poker Tour Venetian $5,000 buy-in no-limit maintain’em predominant occasion, defeating an enormous discipline of 937 entries to seize his first WPT title and the highest prize of $752,880.
Liu has been on an unimaginable within the early months of the brand new 12 months. Before taking down this enormous occasion, he had already made 5 remaining tables with one being a title run in a $600 buy-in occasion in the course of the DeepStack Extravaganza held at Venetian in February. Liu’s wild experience isn’t but performed, both, as he’s among the many remaining six gamers on the delayed remaining desk from the 2020 WPT Gardens Poker Championship that was scheduled to play out the day after this WPT Venetian predominant occasion remaining desk. Liu will enter the ultimate desk in sixth place with a shot at successful two WPT titles in as many days.
Liu was awarded 1,824 Card Player Player of the Year factors for his victory on this event. Combined with the 907 factors he had already earned, Liu has vaulted into the outright lead within the 2021 POY race, which is sponsored by Global Poker. He at the moment sits 1,111 factors forward of second-ranked Ilyas Muradi, and is already assured so as to add at the least 340 POY factors to that benefit, even when he have been to complete sixth in his upcoming remaining desk.
This occasion started with two beginning flights that have been held on Mar. 5-6. By the time registration formally closed, 937 entries had been made to set the report for the biggest $5,000 buy-in predominant occasion discipline in WPT historical past. It took two extra full days of motion after the beginning flights to slim that sea of gamers all the way down to a remaining desk of six.
The chip chief to start the ultimate day was 2015 World Series of Poker predominant occasion winner Joseph McKeehen. The 29-year-old from North Wales, Pennsylvania has been one of the profitable predominant occasion champions of the post-boom poker period, having cashed for greater than $9.3 million in tournaments outdoors of his win within the huge dance. McKeehen has additionally gained two further WSOP bracelets lately. This was his fifth WPT remaining desk end, together with his first WPT predominant occasion title remaining elusive.
The remaining desk was supposed to start at 2:00 p.m. native time on Tuesday, Mar. 9, however there was an hour delay on account of a well being scare for one of many remaining six. Austrian Roland Rokita was reportedly taken to the hospital earlier within the day, in keeping with a social media put up from two-time bracelet winner and high-stakes star Fedor Holz. While it initially appeared that he wouldn’t be nicely sufficient to play, Rokita was finally in a position to return to play out the occasion. Information concerning the decision of his well being situation has not but been made public.
Trace Henderson was the primary participant eradicated on the remaining desk. He bought the final of his brief stack all-in preflop with pocket nines and was racing in opposition to the Q10
of Liu. The pocket pair failed to carry up and Henderson hit the rail in sixth place ($155,865). Kou Vang was the following to be eradicated, together with his A
Ok
being unable to outrun the pocket eights of McKeehen. Vang took house $204,430 because the fifth-place finisher.
Jack Hardcastle was on the lookout for his second WPT title of the 12 months, having gained the WPT Montreal Online $3,200 buy-in predominant occasion in January for $447,859. He had entered the day because the shortest stack, however managed to outlive to the ultimate 4. His run got here to an finish when McKeehen moved all-in from the small blind with Ok10
. Hardcastle referred to as off the final of his seven huge blind stack with Q
8
from the large blind. Neither participant improved and Hardcastle was despatched house with $271,050 for his fourth-place displaying.
McKeehen had greater than twice as many chips as his nearest opponent when three-handed play started. Roland Rokita’s run on this occasion got here to an finish when his pocket fives failed to carry up from the large blind going through a small-blind shove from McKeehen, who held J
8
. McKeehen turned a jack-high straight to depart Rokita with none outs heading into the river. Rokita cashed for $363,235 because the third-place finisher.
With that McKeehen took simply shy of a 2:1 chip lead into heads-up play in opposition to Qing Liu. On simply the fifth hand of heads-up play, Liu took down a large pot with out showdown to edge into the lead. He by no means regarded again from there. By the time that the ultimate hand was dealt, McKeehen had slid to simply 11 huge blinds. Liu moved all-in from the button with Ok4
and McKeehen referred to as with Ok
7
. The board ran out 6
4
2
9
6
and Liu made sixes and fours to safe the pot and the title.
McKeehen took house $491,960 because the runner-up finisher, rising his profession event earnings to $17,478,840. The 1,520 POY factors he earned on this occasion have been sufficient to see him climb into third place within the 2021 POY race in the meanwhile. Rokita and Hardcastle additionally joined the highest twenty on account of making the ultimate desk.
Here is a take a look at the payouts and POY factors awarded on the remaining desk:
Place | Player | Earnings | POY Points |
1 | Qing Liu | $752,880 | 1,824 |
2 | Joseph McKeehen | $491,960 | 1,520 |
3 | Roland Rokita | $363,235 | 1,216 |
4 | Jack Hardcastle | $271,050 | 912 |
5 | Kou Vang | $204,430 | 760 |
6 | Trace Henderson | $155,865 | 608 |
Liu and Rokita photograph credit: Joe Giron / WPT.