Nine of the ten largest scores on Ren Lin’s poker event resume have been recorded in 2023. His most up-to-date can also be his largest, as Lin took down the 2023 WPT Alpha8 at Wynn Las Vegas $50,000 buy-in excessive curler occasion for a career-best $1,045,781 payday.
Lin outlasted a 69-entry discipline within the high-stakes affair to lock up his first seven-figure money and his third title of the yr. He additionally earned 612 Card Player Player of the Year factors for his third title and twenty sixth final-table end of the yr. With 9,380 whole factors and greater than $5.9 million in POY earnings, Lin is now the fifth-ranked participant within the POY standings offered by Global Poker.
Lin was one in all 9 gamers who cashed on this high-roller occasion, with greater than $3.3 million in whole prize cash awarded. The second and closing day of the event started with 13 contenders remaining.
A brief-stacked Alex Foxen was knocked out by Lin on the bubble, along with his pocket nines being rivered by Q-4. Other massive names quickly adopted, together with Justin Bonomo (ninth – $108,761) and Isaac Haxton (eighth – $125,494). This was Haxton’s twenty seventh final-table end of the yr. With seven titles gained, $15.9 million in POY earnings, and 10,013 POY factors, Haxton is the second-ranked participant within the 2023 POY standings. Only Bin Weng (12,256) has amassed extra factors.
Brad Owen was enjoying a $50,000 buy-in occasion for the primary time on this event. The WPT ambassador and widespread poker vlogger managed to outlive to the ultimate desk, however finally bowed out in seventh place after dropping most of his stack with pocket tens in opposition to the pocket kings of two-time bracelet winner Martin Kabrhel. It was the biggest event rating but for Owen, who now has $868,000 in profession scores.
After Nikita Kuznetsov (sixth – $192,424) and WPT champion Seth Davies (fifth – $249,314) have been despatched packing, Lin doubled up with A-3 besting the A-10 of Biao Ding. He obtained quick once more throughout four-handed play, however discovered one other double with a full home to revive the well being of his stack.
Lin then gained a key flip with Q-10 outrunning the pocket fours of Ding. Lin flopped a queen and held from there to get rid of Ding in fourth place ($334,650). This was the 18th closing desk of the yr for the Chinese participant. He climbed to 18th within the POY standings because of this newest deep run.
Kabrhel went on to complete third, along with his pocket sevens dropping a preflop showdown in opposition to the A-8 of bracelet winner and ten-time Triton champion Jason Koon. Kabrhel took dwelling $468,510 for his efforts, rising his lifetime earnings to over $12 million within the course of.
Lin held 7,425,000 to Koon’s 6,375,000 when heads-up play started. After some twists and turns, Lin remained forward when the ultimate hand in time for the ultimate hand to reach. Koon shoved for simply shy of 12 massive blinds on the button with J
9
and Lin referred to as with A
2
. The board got here down Q2710 and Lin made a pair of deuces to win the pot and the title.
Koon cashed for $669,300. This was his 18th closing desk of the yr, with six titles gained. His 8,592 POY factors put him in eighth place within the standings with the top of the yr quickly approaching.
Here is a glance at the payouts and POY factors awarded at the ultimate desk:
| Place | Player | Earnings | POY Points |
| 1 | Ren Lin | $1,045,781 | 612 |
| 2 | Jason Koon | $669,300 | 510 |
| 3 | Martin Kabrhel | $468,510 | 408 |
| 4 | Biao Ding | $334,650 | 306 |
| 5 | Seth Davies | $249,314 | 255 |
| 6 | Nikita Kuznetsov | $192,424 | 204 |
| 7 | Brad Owen | $152,266 | 153 |
| 8 | Isaac Haxton | $125,494 | 102 |
| 9 | Justin Bonomo | $108,761 | 51 |
Photo credit: WPT / Hayley Hochstetler.
