Day 24 of the 2021 World Series of Poker was a big bracelet day. Several tournaments reached their conclusions and delivered shiny gold bracelets to players. Two of those winners picked up their third career WSOP jewelry, and one took his first.
It was a very busy day, another weekend at the WSOP, and a positive way to enter the third week of the series. Let’s just get right into it.
Event 40: $10K HORSE Championship
The final day of this event found Kevin Gerhart in the chip lead and eyeing his third career WSOP gold. He had already cashed in several tournaments this series but really wanted to win it. So, he did. He took his chip lead directly to the winner’s circle, and he told PokerGO News:
“It’s so awesome just having 30 people here all cheering me on at the same time. When the last hand was dealt, just the eruptions from everyone…I can’t describe it. Every bracelet has gotten better. … It really is just a bunch of hard work over the years, just grinding up the ranks. Eat, sleep, breathe poker every day forever. I don’t want to do anything else. I just love the game and all my family and friends. It’s such a great experience.”
The third and final day of this tournament brought eight players to the table. It was a grind from the start, even during heads-up play. But Carlos Chang was the original chip leader and stayed aggressive in the key moments. He lost some ground during heads-up play, but a double-up helped him find his way to his first bracelet. Chang told PokerNews:
“I think this is my biggest cash. Yes, this is my fourth final table. I told myself, this year, if I make a final table, I will win the bracelet. And it happened! I am pretty excited. I was focused all day and yesterday.”
Another all-star final table ended with one of them picking up a third career bracelet. While Bradley Ruben had only ever played two other Razz tournaments, he overcame a significant chip deficit and battled against players like David Baker and Yuri Dzivielevski. And he claimed victory, telling PokerNews:
“My theory is, if you play a game that you haven’t played much before, it’s more enjoyable. You’re kind of like a kid; you’re in awe of it. That’s helped me a lot in this tournament and the one I got third in in 2017. … I’ve always had the motivation, like after winning the first one, I wanted to win a second one to legitimize it. And then I’m like, alright, I’ve gotta win a third one, and I need to win my first live one. So, I always had the motivation, and I’ll keep finding ways to motivate myself.”
Thousand of players ponied up the grand to play in this deepstacked tournament, setting a prize pool that exceeded $3.5M. Day 2 will bring all of the first flight survivors together to play into the money.
Event 43: Day 1B of 5
$1K buy-in
NLHE Double Stack (1RE)
Total entries:
3,991
(Day 1A = 1,937 + Day 1B = 2,054)
Registration still open?
no
Total prize pool:
$3,551,990
Players paid:
599
Minimum payout:
$1,602
Winner payout:
$446,983
Chip leader:
Terry Presley
Players remaining:
1,064
Day 1B start:
10am Sunday
Event 44: $3K LHE
Only ten players finished the second day of Limit Hold’em action in this event. The last few tables saw eliminations of players like JJ Liu, Joe McKeehen, and Nick Schulman. Ultimately, a strong field emerged for the final day to play for the bracelet.
Event 44: Day 2 of 3
$3K buy-in
LHE 6-Handed
Total entries:
162
Registration still open?
no
Total prize pool:
$432,540
Players paid:
25
Minimum payout:
$4,830
Winner payout:
$109,692
Chip leader:
Kenny Hsiung
Kenny Hsiung = 1,171,000 chips
Players remaining:
10
Kevin Erickson = 1,139,000 chips
Restart:
4pm Sunday
Ryan Hansen = 1,115,000 chips
John Hoang = 783K chips
Steve Chanthabouasy = 744K chips
Kosei Ichinose = 499K chips
Justin Moeller = 378K chips
Ken Deng = 321K chips
John Cavanagh = 207K chips
Ray Henson = 151K chips
Event 45: $10K PLO 8-Handed Championship
Many players tweeted that this was their personal “main event.” It is a pro-favorite, and several hundred players entered to show their seriousness about it. Registration remains open until the start of Day 2, though, so the prize pool has yet to be set. It will be a tough day for many player but an exciting one nonetheless.
Event 45: Day 1 of 4
$10K buy-in
PLO 8-Handed Championship
Total entries:
317
Registration still open?
yes
Total prize pool:
TBD
Players paid:
TBD
Minimum payout:
TBD
Winner payout:
TBD
Chip leader:
Chris Sandrock
Players remaining:
131
Restart:
2pm Sunday
Highlight of the Day
Most WSOP winner photos are fairly standard. Players pose with their winning cards, the bracelet and chips, and they hold up the number of fingers that correspond with the number of bracelets they’d won. Carlos Chang took a different tact in his winner photos. He truly displayed his excitement and sense of fun in his winner photos, all unique and memorable.
Comments