Event #56: $50,000 Poker Players Championship
Day 5 Completed
Event #56: $50,000 Poker Players Championship
Day 5 Completed
In the end it was a win by submission for Macho Man Dan eight minutes after sunrise.
Having announced he'd "basically already won" the $50,000 Poker Players Championship ahead of the penultimate day's play, Dan "Jungleman" Cates backed up his words with actions and secured his second WSOP bracelet along with $1,449,103 in prize money after defeating Brazilian Yuri Dzivielevski heads-up.
Dzivielevski was looking for his third WSOP bracelet win in four years, and had opportunities in a marathon topsy-turvy heads-up battle in front of a raucous Brazilian rail. However, he fell just short and would have to settle for second-place.
PLACE | WINNER | COUNTRY | PRIZE (IN USD) |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Dan Cates | United States | $1,449,103 |
2 | Yuri Dzivielevski | Brazil | $895,614 |
3 | Naoya Kihara | Japan | $639,257 |
4 | Benny Glaser | United Kingdom | $464,420 |
5 | Johannes Becker | Germany | $343,531 |
6 | Koray Aldemir | Germany | $258,812 |
Five players returned for the final day of the Poker Players Championship, played in the Bally's Event Center and streamed on PokerGO.
Overnight chip leader Dan Cates was soon surpassed by Benny Glaser, looking to win his fifth WSOP bracelet, while Johannes Becker headed in the opposite direction. He finally got his last chips in the middle in No-Limit Hold'em holding ace-ten against the ace-queen of Glaser to bust in fifth.
Cates had enjoyed a brief spell back in the chip lead, before Glaser returned to the top of the chip counts, but after a hot streak during Limit Hold'em Cates started to open up a considerable gap.
That gap grew wider still after Cates outdrew Glaser in a hand of No-Limit 2-7 Single Draw. With Glaser standing pat with a ten, Cates drew one to make an eight. Glaser called off for half of his remaining chips to fall to the bottom of the counts.
And in the same round of Single Draw, Glaser was out. It was a battle of the pat hands between Glaser and Kihara, with Kihara patting an eight and Glaser unable to break his nine and patting behind to bust in fourth.
Rough ending for @BennyGlaser, his day ends with a fourth-place finish. Love the respect he has for this tournamen… https://t.co/fiPj0UuZ9Q
— Jeff Platt (@jeffplatt)
There was still clear water between Cates and the other two players, with the gap remaining consistent for an extended period. In the end, it was Kihara who blinked first after check-raising river when his straight draw missed, only to get picked off by Cates' trip jacks.
Three doubles for Kihara would follow — in Limit Hold'em, 2-7 Single Draw and Stud Hi-Lo — but he was eventually eliminated in 2-7 Triple Draw by Dzivielevski who found himself out-chipped by over 3:1 to start heads-up play.
And so, in front of a raucous rail of vocal Brazilians and vociferous Americans trading chants back and forth, as well as the assembled TV personnel and poker media, the two players settled in for an entertaining back and forth heads-up battle that produced many stand-out moments over the course of seven hours.
An early wheel for Dzivielevski in 2-7 Triple Draw along with catching Cates bluffing in No-Limit Hold'em saw him almost draw level in the chip counts, but back came Cates after winning a series of Pot-Limit Omaha hands that had Dzivielevski scrambling to stay alive. In the last hand of the PLO round the chips went in with Dzivielevski dodging straight, flush and even backdoor quad outs to stay alive and prolong the battle.
Cates still held the momentum and, aided by a straight flush in Limit Hold'em, he worked hard to again hold a 2:1 chip lead.
Dzivielevski is a two-time WSOP bracelet winner, and this was the Brazilian's sixth WSOP final table and fifth in two years since the WSOP returned from its coronavirus-induced hiatus. So when Cates opened up another lead he didn't blink and worked steadily to close the gap once more.
Then it was Dzivielevski's turn to put his foot on the gas. It felt like he had Cates right where he wanted him and finally had the measure of his opponent. But that's where the Jungleman is most dangerous, and in a blink of an eye — aided by the steadily increasing blinds and limits — the tables had turned and it looked like Cates was inches away from victory.
The two traded pots almost as often as they traded the chip lead. A double for Cates was the first called all in for several hours after Dzivielevski had again had Cates inches away from the exit.
Then the limits simply became too much. Dzivielevski was short after a 2-7 Triple Draw hand, and despite several No-Limit Hold'em doubles to stay alive, Cates was finally able to close out victory shortly before 6 a.m.
YEAR | ENTRIES | PRIZE POOL | WINNER | PRIZE |
---|---|---|---|---|
2022 | 112 | $5,362,000 | Dan Cates | $1,449,103 |
2021 | 63 | $3,016,125 | Dan Cates | $954,020 |
2019 | 74 | $3,552,000 | Phil Hui | $1,099,311 |
2018 | 87 | $4,176,000 | Michael Mizrachi | $1,239,126 |
2017 | 100 | $4,800,000 | Elior Sion | $1,395,767 |
2016 | 91 | $4,176,000 | Brian Rast | $1,296,097 |
2015 | 84 | $3,696,000 | Mike Gorodinsky | $1,270,086 |
2014 | 102 | $4,896,000 | John Hennigan | $1,517,767 |
2013 | 132 | $6,336,000 | Matthew Ashton | $1,774,089 |
2012 | 108 | $5,184,000 | Michael Mizrachi | $1,451,527 |
2011 | 128 | $6,144,000 | Brian Rast | $1,720,328 |
2010 | 116 | $5,568,000 | Michael Mizrachi | $1,559,046 |
2009 | 95 | $4,560,000 | David Bach | $1,276,806 |
2008 | 148 | $7,104,000 | Scotty Nguyen | $1,989,120 |
2007 | 148 | $7,104,000 | Freddy Deeb | $2,276,832 |
2006 | 143 | $6,864,000 | Chip Reese | $1,716,000 |
Yuri Dzivielevski's comeback has been thwarted during a No-Limit Hold'em round.
Dzivielevski shoved for 2,200,000 with and Dan Cates, who has spent the last few minutes talking like "Macho Man" Randy Savage, pondered his options before calling with .
The flop put the ball in Cates' court, with the turn providing to help to the all-in Dzivielevski. A burn card later and the landed on the turn, busting Dzivielevski in second place and awarding back-to-back $50,000 Poker Player Championship titles to the one and only Dan "Jungleman" Cates.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Dan Cates |
33,600,000
2,200,000
|
2,200,000 |
|
||
Yuri Dzivielevski
|
Busted |
Yuri Dzivielevski has doubled up again after fading a bag of outs.
Dzivielevski was all-in with and against the of Cates. The Brazilian' queen-high reamined best on the flop. He paired his eight on the turn, and faded straight draw outs with the river falling the .
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Dan Cates |
31,400,000
-800,000
|
-800,000 |
|
||
Yuri Dzivielevski
|
2,200,000
800,000
|
800,000 |
No-Limit Hold'em
Yuri Dzivielevski shoved for only 400,000 with , and Dan Cates looked him up with .
The board ran and cheers of "VAMOS! erupt from the Brazilian rail.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Dan Cates |
32,200,000
-1,300,000
|
-1,300,000 |
|
||
Yuri Dzivielevski
|
1,400,000
1,300,000
|
1,300,000 |
Limit 2-7 Triple Draw
Dan Cates raised and Yuri Dzivielevski three-bet, which Cates called. Dzivielevski drew one and Cates drew two.
Dzivielevski bet and Cates called, before each player drew one card each.
Dzivielevski bet, Cates raised, and Dzivielevski called.
Both players stood pat. Dzivielevski checked, Cates bet, and Dzivielevski called.
Cates took the massive pot down with , besting his Brazilian opponent's .
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Dan Cates |
33,500,000
8,000,000
|
8,000,000 |
|
||
Yuri Dzivielevski
|
100,000
-8,000,000
|
-8,000,000 |
Limit 2-7 Triple Draw
Dan Cates has one hand on the bracelet following a huge hand in Limit 2-7 Triple Draw.
Yuri Dzivielevski raised with and Cates called with . Dzivielevski drew two and Cates drew three.
Cates led for 800,000 and Dzivielevski. Cates called and drew one. Dzivielevski stood pat.
Cates checked, Dzivielevski bet, and Cates check-raised. Dzivielevski called, as the pot swelled to 12,800,000 chips.
Cates now stood pat,and Dzivielevski drew one. Both players checked.
"Ten-six," said Cates, and Dzivielevski looked pained as his last draw gave him , a worse hand than Cates' .
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Dan Cates |
25,500,000
6,400,000
|
6,400,000 |
|
||
Yuri Dzivielevski
|
8,100,000
-6,400,000
|
-6,400,000 |
Limit 2-7 Triple Draw
Dan Cates raised to 1,600,000 with and Yuri Dzivielevski called with . Dzivielevski drew three, and Cates drew two.
Both players checked, Dzivielevski drew three again, and Cates drew two. Dzivielevski checked, Cates bet 1,600,000, and Dzivielevski called.
Dzivielevski drew one, as did Cates.
Dzivielevski check-called a 1,600,000 bet and won the pot with because Cates could only muster .
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Dan Cates |
19,100,000
-5,200,000
|
-5,200,000 |
|
||
Yuri Dzivielevski
|
14,500,000
5,200,000
|
5,200,000 |
Seven Card Stud Hi-Low
Yuri Dzivielevski is approaching 10 million chips after taking down the first couple of hands during the Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo round.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Dan Cates |
24,300,000
-3,550,000
|
-3,550,000 |
|
||
Yuri Dzivielevski
|
9,300,000
3,550,000
|
3,550,000 |
Pot-Limit Omaha
Dan Cates raised the button with the and Yuri Dzivielevski came along with the in the big blind. Both checked the flop and the followed on the turn. Dzivielevski checked again and Cates then bet 1,100,000 only to face a raise to 3,500,000.
That sent Cates into the tank but he came along as the river completed a potential back door flush. Dzivielevski now checked and Cates bet the pot to win the hand without any showdown.
Player | Chips | Progress |
---|---|---|
Dan Cates |
27,850,000
9,200,000
|
9,200,000 |
|
||
Yuri Dzivielevski
|
5,750,000
-9,200,000
|
-9,200,000 |