October 05, 2021
Matthew Pitt
$10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship – Frankie O’Dell$10,000 No Limit Hold’em Main Event – Hossein Ensan$10,000 Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship – Robert Campbell$10,000 Seven Card Stud Championship – John Hennigan$10,000 Razz Championship – Scott Seiver$10,000 Pot Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship – Nick Schulman$10,000 No Limit Hold’em 6-Handed Championship – Anuj Agarwal$10,000 No Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw Championship – Jim Bechtel$10,000 Limit Hold’em Championship – Juha Helppi$10,000 Limit 2-7 Lowball Triple Draw Championship – Luke Schwartz$10,000 Heads Up No Limit Hold’em Championship – Sean Swingruber$10,000 H.O.R.S.E. Championship – Greg Mueller$10,000 Dealers Choice 6-Handed Championship – Adam Friedman
The $10,000 buy-in events at the World Series of Poker (WSOP) are considered Championship Events. These big buy-in tournaments attract the very best poker players in the world, which leads to the tournaments being considered more prestigious. Winning a WSOP Championship Event is no mean feat; you do not take one down through luck alone.
The first $10,000 Championship Event of the 2021 WSOP got underway yesterday with Event #9: $10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship attracting 126 players. With that tournament about to shuffle up and deal, PokerNews takes a look back at the reigning Championship Event champions, and where better to start than with the 2019 $10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo.
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$10,000 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship – Frankie O’Dell
Frankie O’Dell
Frankie O’Dell came out on top of a 183-strong field in 2019 to win his third WSOP bracelet. It was also his third bracelet in an Omaha Hi-Lo event, with him having won a $1,500 buy-in vent in 2003 and a $2,000 buy-in event in 2007.
O’Dell defeated Owais Ahmed heads-up to secure the $443,641 top prize after contending with the likes of Robert Mizrachi, Robert Campbell, David Benyamine, and Shaun Deed at the final table.
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1Frankie O’DellUnited States$443,641 2Owais AhmedUnited States$274,192 3Robert MizrachiUnited States$194,850 4Nick GuagentiUnited States$140,522 5Robert CampbellAustralia$102,868 6Jake SchwartzUnited States$76,456 7David BenyamineFrance$57,709 8Edmond VartughianUnited States$44,245 9Shaun DeebUnited States$34,467
$10,000 No Limit Hold’em Main Event – Hossein Ensan
Hossein Ensan
Of course, the biggest Championship Event of any WSOP is the Main Event. Last year’s Main Event was an online/live hybrid, but 2019 saw 8,569 players exchange $10,000 at the cage of the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino and create a monster-sized $80,548,600 prize pool.
Germany’s Hossein Ensan got his hands on the lion’s share of the pot, namely $10 million, after defeating Italian high-stakes guru Dario Sammartino heads-up; Sammartino collected $6 million for his runner-up finish.
The Main Event, however, was perhaps best remembered for Garry Gates’ impressive fourth-place finish. Gates has been part of the poker media for many years and had the entire community in his corner. Gates’ run ended in fourth, a finish worth $3 million.
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1Hossein EnsanGermany$10,000,000 2Daario SammartinoItaly$6,000,000 3Alexander LivingstonCanada$4,000,000 4Garry GatesUnited States$3,000,000 5Kevin MaahsUnited States$2,200,000 6Zhen CaiUnited States$1,850,000 7Nick MarchingtonUnited Kingdom$1,525,000 8Timothy SuUnited States$1,250,000 9Milos SkrbicSerbia$1,000,000
$50,000 Poker Players Championship – Phil
Hui
While the Main Event is the WSOP Championship Event for the people, the $50,000 Poker Players Championship is most certainly the event for the pros. It commands a buy-in of $50,000, which 74 players paid in 2019.
Main Event runner-up Dario Sammartino went deep but busted in ninths, with Phil Ivey and David Oppenheim crashing out in eighth and seventh place respectively. It was Phillip Hui who was the last man standing, and he got his hands on his second bracelet and 1,099,311 in cash, by far his largest-ever score.
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1Phil HuiUnited States$1,099,311 2Josh AriehUnited States$679,426 3John EspositoUnited States$466,407 4Bryce YockeyUnited States$325,989 5Shaun DeebUnited States$232,058 6Daniel CatesUnited States$168,305
$10,000 Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship – Robert Campbell
Robert Campbell
Australian Robert Campbell won the $10,000 Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo event, which helped him become the 2019 WSOP Player of the Year. Campbell overcame 150 opponents, including Mike Matusow at the final table, to win $385,763.
It was Campbell’s second bracelet of the series having won the $1,500 Limit 2-7 Lowball Triple Draw event a fortnight earlier.
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1Robert CampbellAustralia$385,763 2Yueqi ZhuUnited States$238,420 3Mike WattelUnited States$164,647 4Mike MatusowUnited States$116,255 5Ryan HughesUnited States$83,971 6Qinghai PanUnited States$62,079 7Andrey ZhigalovRussia$46,999
$10,000 Seven Card Stud Championship – John Hennigan
John Hennigan
John “World” Hennigan has an almost supernatural ability to win big buy-in events. He is the reigning $10,000 Seven Card Stud Championship champion after he took it down in 2019 for $245,451. Hennigan defeated Daniel Negreanu heads-up in that tournament as he won his sixth WSOP bracelet.
Three of Hennigan’s other bracelets have come in Championship events. He won the $50,000 Poker Players Championship (2014), the $10,000 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball (2016), and the $10,000 H.OR.S.E (2018). Do not bet against Hennigan winning another $10,000+ event in 2021.
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1John HenniganUnited States$245,451 2Daniel NegreanuCanada$151,700 3David “ODB” BakerUnited States$104,416 4Michael SemenovRussia$73,810 5David SingerUnited States$53,621 6Chris TrybaUnited States$40,066 7Frank KasselaUnited States$30,817 8Frankie O’DellUnited States$30,817
$10,000 Razz Championship – Scott Seiver
Scott Seiver
Scott Seiver has two WSOP Championship event titles to his name. Seiver won the $10,000 Limit Hold’em Championship in 2018 and followed that up with the $10,000 Razz bracelet in 2019.
Seiver came out on top of a tough final table in the $10,000 Razz in 2019, a table that housed such luminaries as David Bach, Andre Akkari, Daniel Negreanu, and Chris “Jesus” Ferguson.
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1Scott SeiverUnited States$301,421 2Andrey ZhigalovRussia$186,293 3Chris FergusonUnited States$131,194 4Daniel ZackUnited States$94,305 5Daniel NegreanuCanada$69,223 6Andrew AkkariBrazil$51,911 7David BachUnited States$39,788
$10,000 Pot Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better Championship – Nick Schulman
Nick Schulman
The 2019 edition of the $10,000 Pot Limit Omaha Hi-Lo event attracted 193 players, including Nick Schulman. It was Schulman who accumulated all the chips in play and who scooped the $463,670 top prize.
Schulman found himself three-handed against former WSOP Main Event champion Joe Hachem and Brian Hastings. Neither posed a threat as Schulman came out on top to win his third bracelet; his other two both came in the$10,000 NL 2-7 Lowball Championship events.
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1Nick SchulmanUnited States$463,670 2Brian HastingsUnited States$286,570 3Joe HachemAustralia$201,041 4Denis StrebkovRussia$143,700 5Christopher VitchUnited States$104,688 6Corey HochmanUnited States$77,763 7Michael McKennaUnited States$58,918 8Bryce YockeyUnited States$45,551
$10,000 No Limit Hold’em 6-Handed Championship – Anuj Agarwal
Anuj Agarwal
Anuj Agarwal had cashed a couple of times in WSOP events before 2019 but those results, with all due respect, were not anything to write home about. That changed when Agarwal bought into the $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em Championship 6-Handed event alongside 271 others. Three days after parting company with a five-figure buy-in Agarwal beat Australia’s Kahle Burns heads-up to become a WSOP champion.
The victory came with $630,747 and, of course, a coveted WSOP bracelet.
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1Anuj AgarwalUnited States$630,747 2Kahle BurnsAustralia$389,832 3Gal YifrachUnited States$257,533 4Leonard MaueGermany$174,252 5Dong ChenChina$120,828 6Ben HeathUnited Kingdom$85,915
$10,000 No Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw Championship – Jim Bechtel
Jim Bechtel
Jim Bechtel finished fourth in the 2006 $50,000 HO.R.S.E. event for $549,120 and then we hardly saw him until the 2019 WSOP. Bechtel appeared in the $10,000 No Limit 2-7 Lowball Championship where he muscled his way through the 91-strong field to emerge victoriously to secure the $253,817 top prize.
Bechtel had to contend with Galen Hall, Paul Volpe, Jean-Robert Bellande, Prahlad Friedman, and Darren Elias at the final table, but still managed to get the job done.
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1Jim BechtelUnited States$253,817 2Vince MussoUnited States$156,872 3Darren EliasUnited States$109,738 4Prahlad FriedmanUnited States$78,157 5Jean-Robert BellandeUnited States$56,693 6Pedro BromfmanUnited States$41,897 7Paul VolpeUnited States$31,556 8Galen HallUnited States$24,232
$10,000 Limit Hold’em Championship – Juha Helppi
Juha Helppi
Finland’s Juha Helppi came close to winning a WSOP Championship event in 2015 but fell in fifth place in the $25,000 Pot Limit Omaha High Roller. Helppi isn’t known for his fixed limit prowess, but you would never have known because he won the 2019 $10,000 Limit Hold’em Championship.
Helppi went on to win another championship event in 2020. The Finn triumphed in the $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha Championship online at GGPoker for an additional $290,286.
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1Juha HelppiFinland$306,622 2Mike LancasterCanada$189,505 3Tam HangUnited States$133,718 4Anthony MarsicoUnited States$96,272 5Kevin SongUnited States$70,750 6Josh AriehUnited States$53,095 7Kyle RayUnited States$40,709 8Qinghai PanUnited States$31,902 9Robert ComoUnited States$25,566
$10,000 Limit 2-7 Lowball Triple Draw Championship – Luke Schwartz
Luke Schwartz
The United Kingdom’s Luke Schwartz is known for his table trash talk more than he is his poker ability, and he likes it that way because his brash attitude masks a talented poker player.
Schwartz finished fourth in the 2012 edition of the $50,000 Poker Players Championship. He made amends for not winning that particular tournament by taking down the $10,000 Limit 2-7 Lowball Triple Draw Championship in 2019.
This was Schwartz’s first bracelet win. He had to defeat George Wolff heads-up to get his hands on it, but it was never in doubt in Schwartz’s mind.
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1Luke SchwartzUnited Kingdom$273,336 2George WolffUnited States$168,936 3Johannes BeckerGermany$116,236 4Mark GregorichUnited States$81,635 5Yueqi ZhuUnited States$58,547 6Calvin AndersonUnited States$42,898
$10,000 Heads Up No Limit Hold’em Championship – Sean Swingruber
Sean Swingruber
Sean Swingruber had never cashed in a live WSOP event before he headed to Las Vegas in 2019. Swingruber is usually found playing low-to-mid-stakes tournaments, so it was a surprise to see him buy into the $10,000 No Limit Hold’em Heads-Up event. He went on to defeat Ben Yu in the final round, and walked away with $186,356 and a piece of poker’s most sought after jewelry.
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1Sean SwingruberUnited States$186,356 2Ben YuUnited States$115,174 3Lance GarciaUnited States$73,333 4Keith LehrUnited States$73,333
$10,000 H.O.R.S.E. Championship – Greg Mueller
Greg Mueller
Canada’s Greg Mueller won two WSOP bracelets in 2009, including the $10,000 Limit Hold’em Championship. He waited another decade before banking his third bracelet, but it was worth the wait.
Mueller showcased his mixed game skills in the 2019 $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. Championship, and bulldozed his way to victory, leaving the likes pf Phil Galfond, Scott Clements, Dario Sammartino, and runner-up Daniel Ospina in his wake.
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1Greg MuellerCanada$425,347 2Daniel OspinaColombia$262,882 3Dario SammartinoItaly$184,854 4Scott ClementsUnited States$132,288 5Craig ChaitUnited States$93,678 6Michael SemenovRussia$71,505 7Matthew GonzalesUnited States$54,043 8Phil GalfondUnited States$41,625
$10,000 Dealers Choice 6-Handed Championship – Adam Friedman
Adam Friedman
Ohio’s Adam Friedman has a trio of WSOP bracelets to his name, two coming from Championship events. Friedman won the $10,000 Dealers Choice in 2018 and followed that up with a victory in the same event in 2019!
There is a $10,000 Dealer’s Choice on October 18, 2021. Friedman couldn’t go back-to-back-to-back, could he?
PlacePlayerCountryPrize 1Adam FriedmanUnited States$312,417 2Shaun DeebUnited States$193,090 3Matt GlantzUnited States$139,126 4David MoskowitzUnited States$100,440 5Michael McKennaUnited States$72,653 6Nick SchulmanUnited States$52,656
