When heads-up play in Event #82: $10,000 Eight Game Mixed Championship bagged up for an extra day, Mike Gorodinsky was facing an enormous chip deficit while trying to get some much-needed rest.
The mixed-game veteran had been playing sick for much of the past two gruelling days at the 2025 World Series of Poker (WSOP), wearing a mask while battling for a milestone victory at Paris and Horseshoe Las Vegas.
When he returned for the added Day 4, the extra rest had clearly helped after bagging up close to 2 a.m. the previous night. Gorodinsky erased the seven-to-one disadvantage against WSOP bracelet winner Eric Wasserson, before completing the comeback and taking down the title.
Mike Gorodinsky
“I was feeling probably the worst I felt,” Gorodinsky told PokerNews after taking his winner photos. “It's late, being sick the whole day, especially when you're focusing and playing. I was just kind of hoping to make it through the last hour and get out of there. So I'm glad I did.”
This marks Gorodinsky’s fifth WSOP bracelet, outlasting a field of 195 players that created a prize pool of $1,813,500. The 2015 WSOP Player of the Year now has time to rest and recover, complete with a shiny new piece of jewelry, along with the top prize of $422,421.
$10,000 Eight Game Mixed Championship Final Table Results
Place
Player
Country
Prize (USD)
1
Mike Gorodinsky
United States
$422,421
2
Eric Wasserson
United States
$277,960
3
Jon Turner
United States
$187,724
4
Brian Tate
United States
$130,211
5
Kahle Burns
Australia
$92,829
6
Bradley Jansen
United States
$68,071
7
Thomas Taylor
Canada
$51,385
Final Day Comeback
Gorodinsky returned to the table with just six of the 49 big bets in play, but used the opening level to draw closer by more than doubling his stack.
“This tournament wound up being really deep, so there was always going to be a lot of play still, even with the deficit. It's a tournament, all you really have to do is win five to ten hands in a row, which happens quite often in poker, and you're just back in it.”
Early in the second level, Gorodinsky gained some ground after confusing Wasserson in Razz. Playing just four hands of each game, action was quick with both players making timely decisions. Gorodinsky then took over the chip lead after shoving the turn in No-Limit Hold'em.
Eric Wasserson
Winning the Rematch
The two had played together at 2024 WSOP Paradise during the final table of Wasserson’s bracelet win. Gorodinsky finished third in the $25,000 Dealers Choice Championship, but said he used some of that experience in this heads-up match.
“Actually, it was helpful because I got a sense for what his best and favorite games are. So I played those a little bit more conservatively in our heads-up. So, yeah, it really genuinely was helpful.”
Midway through the second 90-minute level of the day, Gorodinsky faded Wasserson’s flush draw to earn the victory. When asked about the scope of his comeback, he thought back to the 2013 WSOP.
“I think my first bracelet, I don't know, a lifetime ago, I think I was like 10 to 1 [underdog] in that tournament, so pretty close to this.”
Gorodinsky now joins the five-timer’s club at the WSOP, and is proud of the accomplishment. “You know, each one is more meaningful than the last in its own way. I'm just grateful they get to come out and play and you keep putting up good results.”
“It's just fun, right? Playing for a bracelet, playing for a lot of money, heads up is just going to be fun regardless. So yeah, I'm always glad for the opportunity, glad that it went my way today.”
Gorodinsky will now take some time for some well-earned rest, before jumping into Day 2 of the Main Event.
