Florida businessman and a Chinese investor win their first bracelets and big money
Amateur players David Prociak and Yue Du proved once again this week that the World Series of Poker is not necessarily the domain of the professional aces, taking down two important events for their first bracelets and substantial amounts of prize money.
In the three-day $1,500 buy-in Seven-Card Stud High-Low Split tournament Florida small business owner and amateur player Prociak (33) took the honours despite only entering tournaments since late last year. He has two other WSOP cashes to his credit this year…. in the Colossus and a mixed Omaha and Stud event.
Despite his relative inexperience, Prociak is showing considerable potential; having earlier this year managed a second placing for $330,912 in a major poker tournament at the Seminole Hard Rock in his home state.
Prociak scored his first bracelet Friday, collecting a check for $156,546 after surviving a star-studded field of 521 entrants and a final table that included three multiple WSOP bracelet holders in John Monnette, Brandon Shack-Harris and Calvin Anderson.
The overall entry field included high calibre professional players like former WSOP main event champ Joe McKeehen, Jimmy Fricke, Andy Bloch, Daniel Negreanu, Victor Ramdin, Yuval Bronshtein, Daniel Idema, Chris Klodnicki, Mike Leah and Allen Cunningham.
It was not an easy victory for Prociak, and the heads up against triple bracelet holder Shack-Harris was a hard fought and lengthy affair in which both players were tested to the limit.
Prociak had earlier battled from the low-stack position at four-handed play to a big lead going into the heads up and it was ultimately the more experienced Shack-Harris who departed with the runner-up check for $96,750.
The rest of the final table cashed:
John Monnette $66,601
Alexander Livingston $46,652
Louis Russo $33,263
Gaurav Kalro $24,148
Jameson Painter $17,855
Calvin Anderson $13,452
Yue Du, a 48-year-old venture investor from China and an ardent cash game recreational player, won his first bracelet and a whopping $800,586 in first prize money for taking down the $5,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em event in a spectacular performance that included busting out all eight of his final table rivals.
The event attracted a stellar field of 863 entrants, generating a prize pool of $4,056,100 and enabling 130 finishers to cash.
It was also notable for the unusual sight of five-bracelet professional ace Jason Mercier kneeling at the table to propose marriage to Natasha Barbour, who had just claimed her $348,374 third-placing check in the event. Not that Mercier needs the cash – he's been doing very well in WSOP this year, adding to career earnings of several millions. She accepted btw.
Back to Du's big win… the Chinese amateur swept all before him in the final days of the event to start the last day with more than half the chips in play.
He promptly put his massive advantage to work when the final table formed as he methodically eliminated every opponent – including three-bracelet German ace Dominik Nitsche – to end in the heads up against Canadian Michael Gentili with a major chip lead.
That ensured a swift departure for the Canadian with his biggest career reward yet – a second placing check for $494,797.
Other final table pay days included:
Dominik Nitsche $248,640
Ismael Bojang $179,923
Marius Gierse $132,030
Matt O'Donnell $98,269
Sertac Turker $74,201
Arne Coulier $56,851
Online Casino News Courtesy of Infopowa
