Gaelle Jaudon
Whose $5,000,000 Guaranteed Main Event represents the highlight of the festival World Poker Tour Five Diamond World Poker Classic, the many side events that preceded it were also hugely successful. They have attracted some of the biggest names in poker from around the world with a series of High Rollers, Pot Limit Omaha and mixed game tournaments.
Over $3,100,000 in prize pools have been generated in the 20+ daily tournaments that started on October 8th. Here’s a look at some of the winners.
Two High Rollers to Bonomo
The only player to win two Five Diamond titles this year is the All-Time Money List leader in tournament earnings, Justin Bonomo.
He earned his first win in Event #10, a $10,000 High Roller, defeating a field of 16 players including Stephen Chidwick heads-up final, to win $75,792.
Event #10 Results: $10,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em
| SQUARE | NAME | COUNTRY | PRICE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Justin Bonomo | United States | $75,792 |
| 2 | Stephen Chidwick | The United Kingdom | $58,608 |
| 3 | Yasuhiro Waki | Japan | $25,600 |
Bonomo then won his second High Roller title of the festival in Event #22, a $25,000 buy-in tournament that drew 17 entrants.
Bonomo struck Sam Soverel heads-up to claim the title and $229,500, with Chidwick finishing third.
Results Event #22: $25,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em
| SQUARE | NAME | COUNTRY | PRICE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Justin Bonomo | United States | $229,500 |
| 2 | Sam Soverel | United States | $127,500 |
| 3 | Stephen Chidwick | The United Kingdom | $68,000 |
Bonomo also took third place in Event #6, a $10,000 High Roller with 15 entries, won by Nick Schulmanwhile Sean Winter came second.
Results Event #6: $10,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em
| SQUARE | NAME | COUNTRY | PRICE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nick Schulman | United States | $81,000 |
| 2 | Sean Winter | United States | $45,000 |
| 3 | Justin Bonomo | United States | $24,000 |
Kempton wins the biggest PLO High Rollers
Pot-Limit Omaha was also well represented on the High Roller tables, with Michael Duke ($105,800) and Ronald Keizer ($108,000) wins $10,000 buy-in titles, while Event #20: a $25,000 buy-in PLO tournament is Isaac Kempton who triumphed over a field of 23 contestants, strikingly Jeremy Ausmus heads-up to take home $264,500, while Keijzer added a third place finish to his tally.
Event #20 Results: $25,000 High Roller PLO
| SQUARE | NAME | COUNTRY | PRICE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Isaac Kempton | United States | $264,500 |
| 2 | Jeremy Ausmus | United States | $161,000 |
| 3 | Ronald Keizer | Netherlands | $92,000 |
| 4 | John Riordan | United States | $57,500 |
Elezra and Kihara win 8 game events
The mixed gaming community had two Five Diamond trophies to contend with, with a $10,000 High Roller and a $1,620 tournament also up for grabs.
Event #8: 8-Game High Roller saw an elite field of 12 Mixed Games players try their luck, including two Poker Hall of Famers who are no strangers to high stakes mixed games at the Bellagio, who went heads-up for the title. It is Eli Elezra who won, beat Mori Eskandani to win $57,000
Results Event #8: $10,000 High Roller 8 Game Mix
| SQUARE | NAME | COUNTRY | PRICE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Eli Elezra | Israel | $57,000 |
| 2 | Mori Eskandani | United States | $53,000 |
| 3 | Brian Rast | United States | $10,000 |
Meanwhile, in Event #3, a $1,620 8-Game tournament, 47 entries were registered and it isNaoya Kihara that struck Matthew Gonzales in the finals to win the first prize of $25,302.
Below is the full list of Five Diamond World Poker Classic side event winners.
Five Diamond Side Event Winners
| EVENT | APPETIZERS | Prize pool | WINNER | COUNTRY | PRICE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Event #1: $560 No-Limit Hold’em | 138 | $100,000 | Robert Goldstein | United States | $18,015 |
| Event #2: $25,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em | 9 | $225,000 | Steve Zolotov | United States | $135,000 |
| Event #3: $1,620 8-Game Mix | 47 | $68,385 | Naoya Kihara | Japan | $25,302 |
| Event #5: $1,620 6-Max No-Limit Hold’em | 83 | $124,500 | Breno Silva | Brazil | $35,807 |
| Event #6: $10,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em | 15 | $150,001 | Nick Schulman | United States | $81,000 |
| Event #7: $1,100 Seniors No-Limit Hold’em | 91 | $100,000 | Mike Meskin | United States | $31,119 |
| Event #8: $10,000 High Roller 8 Game Mix | 12 | $120,000 | Eli Elezra | Israel | $57,000 |
| Event #9: $1,100 Pot-Limit Omaha | 56 | $61,600 | Justin Lapka | United States | $20,100 |
| Event #10: $10,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em | 16 | $160,000 | Justin Bonomo | United States | $75,792 |
| Event #11: $1,100 Mystery Bounty No-Limit Hold’em | 114 | $110,580 | Valentin Shabelnyk | Ukraine | $41,583 |
| Event #12: $10,000 High Roller Pot-Limit Omaha | 23 | $230,000 | Michael Duke | United States | $105,800 |
| Event #13: $600 No-Limit Hold’em | 51 | $26,520 | Jordan Helms | United States | $9,814 |
| Event #14: $10,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em | 18 | $180,000 | Pete Chen | Taiwan | $97,200 |
| Event #15: $400 No-Limit Hold’em | 80 | $26,400 | Richard Kemperman | United States | $8,844 |
| Event #16: $10,000 High Roller Pot-Limit Omaha | 20 | $200,000 | Ronald Keizer | Netherlands | $108,000 |
| Event #17: $1,600 Deepstack No-Limit Hold’em | 63 | $90,405 | Fikret Kovac | Bosnia Herzegovina | $25,766 |
| Event #18: $10,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em | 4 | $40,000 | Stephen Chidwick | The United Kingdom | $25,000 |
| Event #19: $1,100 No-Limit Hold’em | 54 | $52,380 | Gregor Sverko | Croatia | $19,380 |
| Event #20: $25,000 High Roller Pot-Limit Omaha | 23 | $575,000 | Isaac Kempton | United States | $264,500 |
| Event #22: $25,000 High Roller No-Limit Hold’em | 17 | $425,000 | Justin Bonomo | United States | $229,500 |
that WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic is a $10,400 buy-in tournament with a $5 million GTD that takes place from 19 to 23 October. The WPT Five Diamond is the oldest tournament in the WPT, played at the Bellagio since 2002. It has stood the test of time and has a unique historical significance as a starting point for the World Poker Tour. PokerNews.com will feature daily content on the event, so stay tuned for the latest updates, stories and other WPT information!
*Photos courtesy of WPT/Joe Giron.
Gaelle Jaudon