Benny Glaser Leads the Pack at WPT World Championship Final Table; Canadian Wins Ladies’ Title
After several starting flights and five days of action, the World Poker Tour World Championship reached the final table in Monday’s early morning hours.
After leading Day 3 and 4, Benny Glaser built an impressive chip lead going into the final table with 133.6 million chips. The poker pro from the United Kingdom has been a dominating force and has more than 50 million more chips than his closest competitor.
“It’s been really fun,” he said on Day 5. “It’s been kind of a roller coaster for a couple of days. Days one and four ended having a pretty rough last of the day and then having great ends to all the (other) days pretty much.”
The final table is now set for Tuesday from Wynn Las Vegas. In other news from the series, Canada’s Lina Niu scored the title in the $1,100 Ladies Championship on Sunday.
A look at the WPT World Championship final table
Those returning to the action on Tuesday may be a bit bleary-eyed despite a day off. Play began at noon on Sunday and ran past 6 am on Monday as players scratched and clawed to be among the final six remaining. The broadcast crew may also need a rest after the live stream stretched to more than 18 hours.
The winner takes home $4.1 million with the other five players also guaranteed at least a $1 million payday. Here’s a look at the player remaining.
Benny Glaser – 133.6 million chips
The leader brings a deep stack as well as a deep poker record to the final table. Glaser has $3.7 million in live tournament winnings including four World Series of Poker bracelets.
Glaser also boasts impressive online poker results, including four PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) titles and one Spring COOP (SCOOP) win this year alone.
Eliot Hudon – 80.8 million
This player from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, has $205,342 in live tournament winnings and now greatly eclipses that total with a final table appearance.
His biggest score came in 2021 in the WSOP Main Event, where he took 63rd for $113,800.
Hudon is fresh off a win in November at the Playground Power Week in Montreal. He took down the C$1,100 Main Event for $59,444 and also is a regular online player.
Adam Adler – 27.2 million
This player from Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, brings a nice poker resumé to the final table as well. He has $1.2 million in live tournament winnings in a record stretching back to 2009.
Adler’s largest win came in 2018 at the WSOP, where he took runner-up in a $10,000 No Limit Hold’em Super Turbo Bounty for $243,323.
Frank Funaro – 21.1 million
This New Jersey online poker grinder continues riding the wave to live tournament success. He’s booked the biggest score of his career but is looking for even more.
The Garden State crusher has just shy of $1 million in live tournament winnings. He won a WSOP Online bracelet in 2021 for $94,097 and also has a pair of WSOP Circuit rings. On Day 5, Funaro spoke with USPoker about the event and discussed how much a win on this stage would mean.
“That would be awesome,” he said. “This is probably the best one of all time to win almost, the first world championship here (at Wynn).”
Jean-Claude Moussa – 19 million
This makes the third final table appearance for this player from Brighton, Massachusetts. That included a fourth-place finish at the LA Poker Classic in 2019 for $346,550. In 2010, he also took fifth at the LAPC for $321,840.
Moussa brings some major experience to the final table but will have some work to do facing such a major chip disadvantage.
Colton Blomberg – 14 million
This marks the first WPT Main Tour cash for this player from Tempe, Arizona. He now adds considerably to his $231,722 in live tournament winnings.
His largest previous score was also at the Wynn. This summer he won a $550 NLHE event as part of the Summer Classic for $41,102. Even a sixth-place finish of just over $1 million dwarfs that finish.
Lina Niu Takes Down Ladies Championship
Beyond the main event, the $1,100 Ladies Championship also concluded on Sunday. The event was streamed live and filmed for television broadcast.
In the end, Lina Niu took the title and $105,136. The event featured the largest guarantee ever for a women’s tournament at $200,000. However, the prize pool almost tripped that with a field of 578 for $560,660
“Honestly I don’t have that much experience in tournament poker, I just love it. I thought I’d take a shot in it…”
Lina Niu captured her first live tournament win in the inaugural WPT Ladies Championship at Wynn Las Vegas for $105,136.
Read more: https://t.co/RGH2lQtMjQ
— World Poker Tour (@WPT) December 19, 2022
Niu, of Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, had only $16,857 in live tournament winnings before the victory. Despite entering the event with the chip lead, capturing the title wasn’t easy.
“Today’s been a roller coaster for sure,” she said afterward. “I started off with the chip lead, lost a lot early on, and played super tight. I got really lucky in some all-in spots. Just got super lucky on the last hand too.”
Here’s a look at all the final table payouts.
2022 WPT Ladies Championship
- Lina Niu – $105,136
- Olga Iermolcheva – $70,008
- Dusti Smith – $51,538
- Cindy Spier – $38,350
- Kathy Liebert – $28,847
- Jamie Kerstetter – $21,934
Prime Championship final table up next
Monday also brings the conclusion of the $1,100 WPT Prime Championship. The tournament is streamed live at the WPT YouTube and Twitch channels, and will also be filmed for television.
Recreational player Lara Eisenberg, of Silver Springs, Maryland, leads the six returning players with 39.2 million chips. When not making final tables, she works as a radiologist and has also competed as a professional skydiver.
$712,000 TO 1ST PLACE makes this a MAJOR sweat for long-time BBZPoker & @apestyles student; @eisen009 🔥🙏🏼
🍀 We wish Lara the best of luck ahead of the live stream via @WPT on Monday the 19th.
Lara attends our Daily Seminars and you can too for just $60 per month. Link in bio! pic.twitter.com/NlOmsDZGG2
— BBZ Poker (@BBZPoker) December 16, 2022
With $528,215 in live tournament winnings, Eisenberg now has the chance to grab an even bigger prize. The winner takes home $712,650 and here’s a look at the final six players.
WPT Prime Championship
- Lara Eisenberg – 39.2 million
- Stephen Song – 38.4 million
- Albert Nguyen – 32.2 million
- Giorgii Skhulukhiia – 19.8 million
- Young Eum – 19.9 million
- Alon Messica – 13.9 million