MARTIN KOZLOV WINS $10,000 BUY-IN SIX-HANDED NO-LIMIT HOLD’EM EVENT
Australian poker pro collects $665,709 top prize in Event #39
Table of death includes four gold bracelet winners – Davidi KItai, Justin Bonomo, Chris Ferguson, and Nick Petrangelo
2000 world champion Chris Ferguson makes first final table appearance since 2010
Belgian Davidi Kitai barely missed fourth gold bracelet -- finishes as runner up
MEET THE LATEST WSOP GOLD BRACELET CHAMPION
Name: Martin Kozlov
Current Residence: Melbourne, Australia
Marital Status: Single
Children: None
Profession: Poker Player
Number of WSOP Cashes: 14
Number of WSOP Final Table Appearances: 7
Number of WSOP Gold Bracelet Victories (with this tournament): 1
Best Previous WSOP Finish: 4th (2014)
Total WSOP Earnings: $956,091
Winner’s Quote:
“I usually just play cash games. But sometimes I also play a few tournaments – especially when I am feeling it. This year at the series, I’ve been feeling it.”
Martin Kozlov is the newest member of poker’s gold bracelet club.
The professional poker player from Melbourne, Australia won the $10,000 buy-in Six-Handed No-Limit Hold’em tournament, which was played over three days and nights and just concluded on the ESPN main stage at the Rio in Las Vegas.
This was arguably the most electrifying finale of any championship event played thus far at the 2016 World Series of Poker. Moreover, the final hand made for a riveting finale.
Kozlov collected $665,709 in prize money, making this the biggest win of his career. This marked his fifth time to cash at this year’s series, including one previous final table appearance when he finished fifth ($3,000 buy-in Six-Handed No-Limit Hold’em).
The Aussie poker pro won his victory by coming out on top at a final table which included a tough lineup – including four former gold bracelet winners – Davidi Kitai (3 wins), Justin Bonomo (1 win), Chris Ferguson (5 wins), and Nick Petrangelo (1 win).
“Winning this tournament is very satisfying,” Kozlov said. “It’s tough. It’s prestigious. It’s some of the best players out there.”
In the fourth hour of play when three-handed, the ultimate moment of triumph came when Kozlov scooped the final pot of the tournament against KItai and Bonomo, who were both all in and more than covered by Kozlov’s chip lead.
The final hand pitted Bonomo with 9-9 against Kitai, holding 6-6. But the real power belonged to Kozlov, who tabled Q-Q. The packed crowd, mostly partisan, rose and watched in shock as Kozlov flopped Q-Q-7, which was good for quad-Queens. It wasn’t just an exclamation point. It was a double knockout punch.
“The crowd didn’t really affect me all that much,” Kozlov replied when asked about the electrifying energy in the crowd, the largest of any final table played so far. “When you are playing, you get into a zone and tune that out. You just focus on the cards. You don’t think about what’s going on beyond the felt.”
With this victory, Kozlov became the 12th Australian national in history to win a WSOP gold bracelet. The country down under has accounted for 21 WSOP titles in all (multiple players have more than one win).
Kozlov started playing poker in college in Australia. He played for very low stakes initially. Then, as he gradually improved, Kozlov realized he might be able to make a living at the game. He’s now been playing for ten years. That dedication was finally awarded on this evening by a gold bracelet victory.
This tourney attracted 294 entrants which created a prize pool totaling $2,763,600. The top 45 finishers collected prize money.
Aside from the winner, here’s a brief report of the other top finishers who made the final table:
Second Place: Davidi Kitai, from Brussels, Belgium was only a day removed from having his record matched by Michael Gathy as the all-time leader in WSOP victories, with three. Kitai nearly won a fourth title, but came up short on the final all-in hand. Still the Belgian who held the chip lead part of the way on Day Three of the competition, ended up cashing from the 28th time at the WSOP. He pocketed a nice consolation prize amounting to $411,441.
Third Place: Justin Bonomo, from Glendale, CO came in third place. He was short on chips much of the finale, but still managed to make a decent run. For his effort, Bonomo earned $271,856. The 2014 gold bracelet winner ($1,500 by-in Six-Handed No-Limit Hold’em) now has 37 WSOP cashes and more than $2.6 in WSOP career earnings.
Fourth Place: Chris Ferguson attracted much of the focus of this finale, particularly in light of his five-year layoff from the game. His last final table appearance took place in 2010. The five-time gold bracelet winner and 2000 world poker champion has enjoyed a strong series, thus far, with six cashes. He was low on chips during his three-hour stay under the lights, and ended up coming in fourth place, which paid $183,989.
Fifth Place: Nick Petrangelo, from Feeding Hills, MA came in fifth place. He lost a critical hand late with pocket aces, which were out-flopped by Martin Kozlov’s pocket queens (a queen came). Petrangelo had to settle for a payout totaling $127,622. He now has 14 WSOP cashes, including a gold bracelet victory in last year’s NLHE Shootout.
Sixth Place: Jack Salter took a tough beat in a three-way pot on what turned out to be his final hand. The player from London, UK cashed for the ninth time at the series, including a second-place showing at the 2014 Asia-Pacific WSOP Main Event Championship. Salter received $90,783 for this deep run.
Seventh Place: Eric Worre, from Eden Prairie, MN rounded out the unofficial final table, coming in seventh place. This was his first final table appearance and second time to cash at the WSOP. Worre collected $66,270.
This was the 39th official event on this year’s schedule. This leaves 30 gold bracelet events still to be played at the 2016 WSOP.
OTHER NOTABLE IN-THE MONEY FINISHERS:
Vanessa Selbst, a three-time gold bracelet winner (2008, 2012, 2014), finished 9th.
Paul Volpe, a two-time gold bracelet winner (2014, 2016) posted his third top-ten finish of this year’s series by coming in 10th.
Frank Kassela, a two-time gold bracelet winner (2010, 2010) and the 2010 WSOP “Player of the Year,” posted his first cash of 2016 by finishing 12th.
Steve Gross, a gold bracelet winner (2013) came in 11th.
Scott Seiver, a gold bracelet winner (2008), finished in 19th place. This was his 35th time to cash at the Series. His WSOP earnings amount to $3.8 million.
Jonathan Little, poker strategist and writer, came in 20th.
EVENT DIRECT LINKS:
For this event’s official final results (listing all players who finished in-the-money), please visit:
http://www.wsop.com/tournaments/results.asp?grid=1232&tid=14939
For Martin Kozlov official player profile page, please visit:
http://www.wsop.com/players/playerprofile.asp?playerID=134578
For the live reporting logs for this event, please visit:
http://www.wsop.com/tournaments/updates.asp?grid=1232&tid=14939
To access licensed images from this all other 2016 WSOP gold bracelet events, please visit:
www.pokerphotoarchive.com
For the live stream archive of this event, please visit:
http://www.wsop.com/videos/?vcat=2
(Note: Will appear 48 hours after event concludes)