WSOPC Event #11: $1,700 MAIN EVENT

SAM GREENWOOD BECOMES FIRST CANADIAN GOLD BRACELET WINNER OF 2015

Toronto Player Tops 1,915-Player Field in $1K NLHE and Wins $318,977

Sam Greenwood is the latest gold bracelet winner at the 2015 World Series of Poker being held at the Rio in Las Vegas.  He’s the first Canadian champion of this year’s series.

The Toronto-based player won the $1,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em tournament, which was the 21st gold bracelet event on this year’s schedule.  Greenwood topped another huge field of 1,915 players on the way to the biggest payday and most prestigious prize of his poker career, to date.  His victory paid $318,977 out of the total prize pool of $1,723,500.

Cheered on by a loud rail of spectators, including several other poker pros, the player who describes himself as a “poker enthusiast” rather than a poker pro, played very much like a skilled veteran, managing a bold comeback against Cole Jackson, who appeared to be the player to beat, but couldn’t maintain his momentum in the tournament’s closing stages.

“I really wouldn’t call myself a poker pro,” Greenwood stated afterward.  “I’m not really sure what I am or what I want to do.  I just hope poker gives me enough of a steady income to do something later on.”

Greenwood’s humble outlook on the game and his role in it was refreshing and even a bit of a surprise.  Even winning the prized gold bracelet didn’t seem to be his primary objective.

“When I’m playing, I’m in the zone,” he said.  “I’m not thinking about the bracelet.”

“Things really worked out for me tonight.  I won most of my pre-flop all-in raises, my made hands got paid off – that’s what it takes to win one of these,” he added.

On the final hand of the tournament, Greenwood got it in great, holding J-6 with a board that contained two 6s, good for three-of-a-kind.  He hollered out to his rail, “He’s drawing dead!”  Those words pretty much summed up the victory.”

Here’s the succession of other finishers who made the final table, which clocked in at just 1:45 of actual playing time:

Second Place:  Cole Jackson, from Seattle, WA finished as the runner up.  This was his highest and most lucrative WSOP finish to date, worth $197,254.  The 23-year-old poker pro cashed for the second time this year, also making the money in the Millionaire Maker tourney.  This marks seven series cashes since his first appearance here at the annual classic back in 2013.

Third Place:  Ken Weinstein made his second final table in as many years and third WSOP cash overall, collecting $136,380 for 3rd place.  Weinstein is from Chatham, NJ.

Fourth Place:  James Dorrance, from Hershey, PA finished 4th, which paid $98,360.  Dorrance won the WSOP Circuit Main Event in Chicago two years ago, one of the largest championship fields in the 10-year history of the Circuit.  That 2013 win paid more than $400,000.  This was his best WSOP score in Las Vegas, and perhaps a sign of even more future success.

Fifth Place:  John Myung, from the Washington, DC suburbs finished in 5th place.  He’s a longtime tournament semi-pro who has cashed in numerous events, including 31 times now at the WSOP.  Yet, he still remains without a gold bracelet.  Myung, did pocket $71,904 in this, his sixth final table appearance here at the series.

Sixth Place:  Sean Rice, a 25-year-old wealth management advisor from Cherry Hill, NJ came in 6th.  He picked up $53,256, the highest payout he’s achieved at the WSOP to date.  This was Rice’s second final table appearance in 2015 following an 8th-place finish in the Turbo No-Limit Hold’em tourney a few days earlier.

Seventh Place:  Aaron Belardo made $39,967 for finishing in 7th place.  This was his first series in-the-money finish.

Eighth Place:  Robert Hsu, from Plano, TX made his first WSOP cash in this event, earning a very respectable $30,385 for his 8th place finish.

Ninth Place:  Jay Dragland rounded out the final table by finishing 9th.  He collected $23,387 in prize money.  Dragland is 23-years-old and resides in Calgary, Alberta (Canada). 

OTHER NOTABLE IN-THE MONEY FINISHERS: 

Gold bracelet winner and 2009 Ladies World Champion Lisa Hamilton cashed in this event, finishing 15th.