News
MIKHAIL LAKHITOV CONQUERS THE WEST
Jun 24 2011 05:44 PM EST
Perhaps you just had to be there to understand.
Maybe there’s no way to reconstruct the raucous and rowdy atmosphere surrounding the most recent World Series of Poker tournament, which just ended at the Rio in Las Vegas.
Think of an international soccer match headed into overtime. Think of a heavyweight prize fight in the midst of the final round. Think of a jam-packed bar, during happy hour.
Nearly lost in the celebratory atmosphere was some exceptional poker playing, most of it performed by a Russian poker pro named Mikhail Lakhitov.
For his victory, Lakhitov won the most prized symbol of achievement in the game – the WSOP gold bracelet. The professional poker player from Cheborsary (Russia) overcame a huge starting field totaling 1,734 entrants. It took him four days to finally defeat his final challenger en route to a payout totaling $749,610 in prize money for first place. That comes out to a cool $187,000 a day. Nice work if you can get it.
Among former gold bracelet winners who cashed in this tournament were: David “Dragon” Pham (37th), Andrew Cohen (49th), David Diaz (89th) and J.C. Tran (151st).
For a comprehensive recap of Event #36, including the official report, please come back soon to WSOP.com.
Maybe there’s no way to reconstruct the raucous and rowdy atmosphere surrounding the most recent World Series of Poker tournament, which just ended at the Rio in Las Vegas.
Think of an international soccer match headed into overtime. Think of a heavyweight prize fight in the midst of the final round. Think of a jam-packed bar, during happy hour.
That was the setting around the final table of the $2,500 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em tournament, which concluded amidst one of the most festive finales witnessed in recent memory at the WSOP.
One media member, accustomed to covering dozens of WSOP finales over the last few years candidly remarked, "The energy is like nothing I've ever seen at the WSOP! Trouble is, it's giving me a headache!"
Another player, sitting in an unrelated tournament about 100 feet from the constant chanting said, "I thought this was poker. Not a scene from animal house."
Yet another bystander -- aligned with one of the opposing players said, "Can't you do something to make them all shut up?
That pretty much said it all.
Nearly lost in the celebratory atmosphere was some exceptional poker playing, most of it performed by a Russian poker pro named Mikhail Lakhitov.
For his victory, Lakhitov won the most prized symbol of achievement in the game – the WSOP gold bracelet. The professional poker player from Cheborsary (Russia) overcame a huge starting field totaling 1,734 entrants. It took him four days to finally defeat his final challenger en route to a payout totaling $749,610 in prize money for first place. That comes out to a cool $187,000 a day. Nice work if you can get it.
The new champion is hardly a one-hit wonder. With this victory, Lakhitov cashed for fifth time at this year's WSOP. He now has nearly $1 million in lifetime earnings.
Perhaps the greatest irony of the tournament's final outcome and the winner's story of triumph is his unusual background. Prior to playing poker for a living, Lakhitov was on active duty in the Red Army. During his down time, Lakhitov learned about a new game called poker. He spent many hours thinking about the game, and playing with his fellow comrades. When he was discharged from the military Lakhitov decided to try and make it as a pro. He's hasn't regretted the decision, since.
Another irony is that Lakhitov's first visit to the WSOP was last year. He did not even know there was such a thing as a gold bracelet attached to each victory. When Lakhitov found out there was a luminous gold prize that came along with each championship, he vowed to win a gold bracelet and present it to his wife.
Mrs. Lakhitov should be very proud indeed, when he returns with a homecoming gift.
The runner up was Hassan Babjane, from Boston, MA. He settled for second place, which paid $463,480 -- an incredible accomplishment considering this is his first time to cash at the WSOP.
