Weiran Pu Wins WSOP Event #57: $25,000 High Roller Pot-Limit Omaha

Weiran Pu won his first-ever WSOP bracelet when he took down the $5,000 buy-in Six Max Evet #65 in Las Vegas. With the Horseshoe Las Vegas casino packed to the rafters in the so-called ‘Thunderdome’, the dramatic footage was played out ‘as live’ to PokerGO’s many subscribers online.

Final Table Begins with Quick Exit

It took very little time for the final six players to produce the first elimination of the final table, with one of the two Brazilians to make the final hitting the rail. Former chip leader Vitor Dzivielevski moved all-in pre-flop with king-nine, but he was short stacked and called by Tyler Cornell, who had ace-queen. Both an ace and a queen came on the board and the Brazilian was on the rail with $153,485.

The last lady standing was Angelina Rich and in some ways, all the pressure was on her at the final table. Not only was it her first WSOP final table, but this summer, there have not been any female winners of open events (Tamar Abraham won the all-female Ladies Championship just last night). Rich started a long way back but some early momentum definitely gave her a shot at victory. Sadly for her, luck ran out soon after that initial spike in fortunes.

All-in with pocket fours in a very standard spot, Rich was coolered, running into Pedro Garagnani’s pocket kings and by the river, Rich only had two outs. Despite the majority of the non-Brazilian rail cheering for her to survive, it didn’t happen and she busted in fifth place for an admirable dep run and great score of $209,366.

Garagnani Gets a Ticket

Pedro Garagnani came into play as one of the most feared players at the final table. Not only is he a former world number one in online poker, but the Brazilian brings with him the kind of supporting rail that would make the Night King’s army of the dead in Game of Thrones look small and feeble. When Vitor Dzivielevski busted, it seemed as if every Brazilian immediately became one of Garagnani’s warriors.

Add into the mix that he busted Rich, and Garagnani could well have been the winner had he managed to avoid elimination when it happened. Losing a crucial pot with top pair, top kicker to Cornell’s flopped two pair, Garagnani dropped to short stack and eventually shoved with ace-deuce. It was a horrible moment for Weiran Pu to wake up with ace-six four-handed, but that he did and after the A-8-3 flop, all the chips went into the middle.

Even so, Garagnani could still have survived. Two cards higher than a six and the pot could be chopped, but the five turn and seven river condemned Garagnani to defeat for $289,819 and immediately quietened the noise on the rail in the Thunderdome by about 90%. The wind had been taken out of the sails of the flamboyant Brazilian but the studious Pu was about to get the ultimate reward.

Cornell Shot Down by Rockets, Pu Powers to Victory

Three players remained, and one huge hand had a massive influence on the destiny of the bracelet. Tyler Cornell four-bet all-in with ace-jack and was immediately called by Pu who turned over the best pre-flop hand in poker – pocket aces. The rockets didn’t let him down with a board of T-T-4-5-9 sending Cornell home for $407,040.

The exit of Cornel meant another non-American WSOP bracelet winner, and the Hungarian Szecsi was going for his fourth bracelet. All the nous in the world can’t win you the tournament in one hand if you’re behind in No Limit Hold’em, however, and Pu’s stack of  38.2 million chips to Szecsi’s 21.8 million was a dominant lead.

Szecsi needed to improve, and though he’d found the perfect opportunity to do so when he looked down at ace-queen. It was not the case, though. Szecsi’s four-bet shove was snap-called by Pu, who turned over ace-king for the dominating hand. The flop of K-J-7 was a nightmare for Norbert, but the queen on the turn did give him some more outs.

Another queen on the river would see him double into the lead, and even a ten would give them a Broadway straight to chop up the pot. It didn’t come, however, as an eight landed to pronounce Pu the winner and send his rail into rapturous delight. Szecsi, ever the gent, shook his opponent’s hand and congratulated him on a momentous first-time bracelet victory, knowing exactly how sweet it feels, consoled at least by his runner-up score of $579,892.

For Weiran Pu, WSOP bracelet winner, he was $938,244 and the memory of how he achieved it will live forever.

Here’s how Pu made it to 14^th on the all-time tournament poker list for Chinese players by winning his first bracelet.

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