Joe McKeehen went wire-to-wire to win the 2015 World Series of Poker Main Event on Tuesday. McKeehen, a poker professional from Pennsylvania, won $7.68 miliion for his victory.
The 25-year won the final hand when his ace-10 became a pair of 10s on the flop. The final hand put Joshua Beckley of New Jersey out of the event. Beckley had gone all-in with a pair of fours on the last hand.
When asked about his historic win, Joe McKeehen had an understated reply: "It was just my days for three days in a row."
Joe McKeehen's Dominance
The winner came into the November Nine, the marketing name for the WSOP Main Event's final table, with an overwhelming lead. When the day started, the Pennyslvanian held 67% of the chips at the table. While strangers things have happened, it would have taken a massive run of bad luck or massively reckless play for Joe McKeehen to lose his lead.
Neil Blumenfield Finished in 3rd Place
61-year old Neil Blumenfield, a fan favorite due to his age, finished in 3rd place when his pair of twos lost to McKeehen's pair of Queens. Blumenfield was the first player eliminated in the night session of the November Nine, which features a 3-player matchup.
After he was eliminated, Neil Blumenfield talked to the media. He discussed a common sentiment of people who nearly reach the ultimate goal, but come up short: regret at certain decisions. Blumenfield said, "I'm not happy with how I played today, but obviously it was a great run. If you had asked me four months ago about finishing third, I would have been very excited about that."
Winning Prize Money at the WSOP
Of course, only one is going to walk away the winners, though the other are not likely to think of themselves losing. Each member of the final table wins at least $1 million for their efforts.
That didn't seem to impress Neil Blumenfield, a former tech executive from San Francisco, who said of the WSOP Main Event, "There's actually a lot of similarities between startup software and poker. In both cases, only the top 10 percent cash, and among that 10 percent, only the top one or two really make any money at all."
Max Steinberg Finished in 4th
27-year-old Max Steinberg of Las Vegas finished in 4th place. Despite the eventual champion's huge chip lead, the Rio All-Suites Casino-Hotel had the well-dressed Max Steinberg as a 2-to-1 favorite to win the gold bracelet.
After he was eliminated, Max Steinberg spoke of the odds, which he attributed to his popularity with the crowd--thus the betting public. He said, "[It] is absolutely absurd. It doesn't make any sense at all. So, clearly people wanted me to win, and I'm really grateful for that and I put my best foot forward. Poker is always a passion for me, so I will definitely be playing it. As for whether I'll be playing it more, I don't know yet."
Svi Stern Offends Fans with Methodical Play
The 37-year-old Israeli, Ofer Svi Stern, came into the final table as number two in chip, but finished in 5th place. He was in 2nd place for much of the day, but lost the spot in a face-off with Josh Beckley in a key hand.
By that time, Ofer Svi Stern had offended many of the viewing public with his methodical style of decision-making. When he was questioned after being eliminated, Stern said, "I do realize sometimes it may seem like it takes too long. But if you need to take a moment to make the right decision you should take it. You have a lot at stake."
6th through 9th Place at the WSOP Main Event
Stern's role in the event underscored one theme: thought an American claimed the bracelet, this was the most international final table at the World Series of Poker Main Event. The youngest member of the November Nine, 23-year-old Tom Cannuli of New Jersey, was eliminated in 6th place. The oldest member of the final nine, 72-year-old Pierre Neuville of Belgium, was eliminated in 7th place.
The 25-year-old competitor from Italy, Federico Butteroni, finished in 8th place. That left the 26-year-old Patrick Chan, a New Yorker, as the 9th-place finisher. Of the 8 people eliminated from the November Nine, Joe McKeehen eliminated six of them.
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