Gamble, Weng & Coleman Win at WPT World Championship Festival; Leah Claims 2nd Trophy
The World Poker Tour (WPT) World Championship Festival at Wynn Las Vegas may be shining a light on both the $10,000 WPT World Championship and $1,000,000 WPT Big One for One Drop, but recently there was a slew of side events that crowned some big-name winners.
We previously recapped winners such as George Tomescu winning the $1,600 Mystery Bounty for $564,202, David Larson taking down the $1,100 Seniors NLH for $141,386, and Mike Leah emerging victorious in the $2,200 8-Game for $78,841.
It wouldnt be Leahs only victory as less than a week later he beat out 547 entrants to win the $1,100 Pot-Limit Omaha (PLO) tournament for $99,916 and his second title of the series.
Heres a look at some of the other side event winners at the WPT World Championship Festival.
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Bin Wengs Stellar 2023 Continues with Big Win in the $25K High Roller
The $25,700 NLH High Roller, which ran Dec. 17-18, attracted 194 runners and awarded a $4,850,000 prize pool. Of those, only 35 advanced to the Day 2 finale where only the top 23 were slated to make the money. Among those to cash but fall short of the final table were Clemen Deng (10th - $101,098), Brek Schutten (13th - $88,642), Seth Davies ( 16th - $71,243), Darren Elias (18th - $65,954), Victoria Livschitz (20th - $65,954), and Erik Seidel (21st - $62,139).
The final table was understandably a stacked affair with the likes of David Peters (8th - $141,590), Joe McKeehen (7th - $173,844), Alex Kulev (4th - $397,254), and Justin Saliba (3rd - $525,087).
Bin Weng, who has crushed 2023 and is slated to finish as the GPI Player of the Year, began heads-up play with a slight chip lead over Thomas Boivin. He even extended that to a 2:1 lead before Boivin battled back. Eventually, the two decided to work a late-night even chop and then flip for the trophy. Weng won the last hand with a pair of eights to overcome Boivins ace-high, and he officially claimed the title of champion.
$25,700 High Roller Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bin Weng | $958,279 * |
| 2 | Thomas Boivin | $958,278* |
| 3 | Justin Saliba | $525,087 |
| 4 | Alex Kulev | $397,254 |
| 5 | Joni Jouhkimainen | $295,116 |
| 6 | Danny Tang | $219,306 |
| 7 | Joe McKeehen | $173,844 |
| 8 | David Peters | $141,590 |
| 9 | Orpen Kisacikoglu | $117,659 |
Nathan Gamble Beats Yuval Bronshtein in O8 Championship
The $1,100 Limit Omaha 8 Championship, which took place Dec. 17-18, saw 209 entrants compete for a $202,730 prize pool, which was more than double the $100K guarantee. The top 27 finishers made the money including Frankie ODell (11th - $3,993), Rupesh Pattni (17th - $2,767), Shirin Oskooi (20th - $2,539), and Benny Glaser (25th - $2,236).
After Frances Fabrice Soulier bowed out in third place for $21,406, the title came down to two of the best mixed games players in the world in Nathan Gamble and Yuval Bronshtein. The former ultimately came out on top of the heads-up match and took down a $47,472 top prize and the coveted Wynn trophy.
$1,100 Limit Omaha 8 Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize + Bounty |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nathan Gamble | $47,472 |
| 2 | Yuval Bronshtein | $29,350 |
| 3 | Fabrice Soulier | $21,406 |
| 4 | Young Kim | $16,013 |
| 5 | Nohad Teliani | $11,831 |
| 6 | Tom Koral | $9,010 |
| 7 | Chris Stewart | $7,047 |
| 8 | Tyler Willse | $5,663 |
Clemen Deng Wins $3,000 NLH PKO for $156,530 + $92,750 in Bounties
In the $3,000 NLH PKO on December 16, 582 entrants generated a prize pool of $1,018,500, which was more than double the $500,000 guarantee.
The top 71 finishers made the money including John Riordan (11th - $12,846), Brian Altman (16th - $8,039), Stoyan Madanzhiev (62nd - $4,402), Jerry Wong (64th - $4,235), Fedor Holz (65th - $4,235), and Nate Silver (71st - $4,235).
One familiar face at the final table was European poker legend Bruno Fitoussi, who jammed preflop holding the AK and found himself flipping against the 55 of Clemen Deng. The K5J flop gave Fitoussi a king, but it was no good as Deng improved to a set. The 3 turn closed the door on Fitoussi, and he exited in fifth place after the meaningless 7 was run out on the river.
On just the second hand of heads-up play, Dang moved all in with the Q5 and Leonard Carrillo called off with the 87. The board ran out a dry 6KAJ2 and Dengs queen-high held to secure him the victory and the $92,750 PKO bounty.
$3,000 NLH PKO Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize + Bounty |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Clemen Deng | $156,530 + $92,750 |
| 2 | Leonard Carrillo | $156,530 + $9,250 |
| 3 | Jordan Siegel | $96,342 + $22,500 |
| 4 | Eshaan Bhalla | $76,092 + $6,500 |
| 5 | Bruno Fitoussi | $58,969 + $5,500 |
| 6 | Alex Kulev | $44,782 + $30,250 |
| 7 | Lachezar Petkov | $33,466 + 9,750 |
| 8 | Namhyung Kim | $24,666 + $10,000 |
| 9 | David Gonzalez | $17,582 + $500 |
Maxx Coleman vs. John Monnette for $1,100 HORSE Championship Title
From Dc. 12-13, the $1,100 HORSE Championship played out with 286 runners nearly tripling the $100K GTD by creating a prize pool of $277,420.
Day 2 saw 57 players return to action with the top 34 making the money. Among those to cash the tournament but fall short of the final table were David Bakes Baker (9th - $5,505), Owais Ahmed (12th - $3,901), Ray Henson (17th - $3,046), Eric Buchman (22nd - $2,592), Ronnie Bardah (29th - $2,329), Aubrey Williams (31st - $2,329), and Maureen Feduniak (33rd - $2,329).
The title came down to two well-known mixed game grinders Maxx Coleman and John Monnette, and their heads-up battle came to a head in a round of 7-Card Stud. Monnette got the last of his chips in on sixth with a pair of nines and was looking to overcome the sevens and deuces two pair of Coleman. Unfortunately for Monnette, he caught a useless ace on seventh and had to settle for second place and $41,115 in prize money.
$1,100 HORSE Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maxx Coleman | $60,240 |
| 2 | John Monnette | $41,115 |
| 3 | James Davis | $30,460 |
| 4 | Jake Liebeskind | $22,576 |
| 5 | Phillip Penn | $16,715 |
| 6 | Joe Brindle | $12,404 |
| 7 | Adam Friedman | $9,271 |
| 8 | John Zaleski | $7,070 |
WPT World Championship Wynn Side Event Results
| Tournament | Entries | Prize Pool | Winner | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $600 NLH $1M Gtd | 4,960 | $2,554,400 | Michael Rossitto | $366,698 |
| $600 Omaha 8-or-Better | 152 | $78,280 | John Cernuto | $20,073 |
| $10,500 NLH 8-Max | 77 | $770,000 | Ian Bradley | $240,625 |
| $1,100 NLH 6-Max | 367 | $355,900 | Michael Berk | $70,045 |
| $1,100 PLO/NLH | 376 | $364,720 | Martin Kozlov | $74,373 |
| $1,100 Seniors NLH Championship | 805 | $780,850 | Dave Larson | $141,385 |
| $1,600 Mystery Bounty | 3,421 | $3,215,740 | George Tomescu | $564,202 |
| $2,200 8-Game | 146 | $291,000 | Mike Leah | $78,841 |
| $1,100 Ladies Championship | 457 | $443,290 | Lisa Costello | $85,297 |
| $1,100 H.O.R.S.E. Championship | 286 | $277,420 | Maxx Coleman | $60,240 |
| $1,100 PLO | 547 | - | Michael Leah | $99,916 |
| $3,000 PKO | 582 | $500,000 | Clemen Deng | $156,530 |
| $1,100 Limit O8 Championship | 209 | $100,000 | Nathan Gamble | $47,472 |
| $25,700 NLH High Roller | 194 | $4,850,000 | Bin Weng | $958,279 |