Tuesday, July 28, 2020 3:16 AM Local Time
Former WSOP.com Online Player of the Year Ian “ApokerJoker2” Steinman Captures 1st Gold Bracelet ($110,557)
On Sunday night, the 2020 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Event #27: $400 No-Limit Hold'em Freezeout attracted 1,940 players and 2016 WSOP.com Online Player of the Year Ian "ApokerJoker2" Steinman capture the $110,556.72 first-place prize and his first gold bracelet.
"I really credit playing before playing online because I started playing when I was like 16 and I just got all those skills before I got my fundamentals," Steinman said in the past regarding online poker. "Then I met some good players and I got some fundamentals because online, obviously, there are no live reads."
A four-time WSOP Circuit ring winner, Steinman had $654,816 in WSOP-related series before the win. That included two prior final table appearances and 10 cashes in the online series. Steinman's biggest live score was for $201,428 after he finished runner-up in the 2018 WPT Rolling Thunder (the same tournament in which he gained notoriety for folding a set of kings to Joe McKeehen).
After winning his last gold ring earlier this year, Steinman had told WSOP officials: "I'm just trying to play well honestly. I'd love to win a bracelet but that's kind of a strange goal to have because I can't control as much as I would like to. It is weird to have a goal if you can't control the outcome … I want to win a bracelet, but I don't want to make it my goal because I don't want it to affect my mentality if I don't do that."
While he may not have explicitly set it as a goal, it doesn't matter now as Steinman is a World Series of Poker bracelet winner!
2020 WSOP Online Event #27 Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|
| 1 | Ian "ApokerJoker2" Steinman | $110,557 |
| 2 | Satoshi "Godzillla" Tanaka | $68,373 |
| 3 | Mahyar "Psycho101" Ebrahimi | $49,796 |
| 4 | Nicholas "Got_The_Glow" Brancato | $36,526 |
| 5 | Cameron "crezident" Rezaie | $27,028 |
| 6 | Lokesh "lanku111" Garg | $20,254 |
| 7 | Alida "av1925" Veliu | $15,295 |
| 8 | Huiwen "HLM99" Liu | $11,663 |
| 9 | Cody "voltron12" Scherer | $9,009 |
After Mikey "Mn_2Die4" Wangh bubbled in 290th place, the in-the-money finishers included Event #26 champ Ethan "RampageP" Yau (217th - $698.40), Jamie "DanBilzerian" Kerstetter (163rd - $838.08), Blake "shampainpopn" Whittington (128th - $907.92), Marjorie "Cheetara" Davidovic (86th - $1,117.44), Mike "Mkspresident" Shin (30th - $2,793.60), Bryan "Pellepelle" Piccioli (14th - $5,517.36), and Shaun "ddtgg" Deeb (13th - $5,517.36).
Steinman, who was at his third final table of the online series, began the final nine with the chip lead, but it was Lokesh "lanku111" Garg scoring the first knockout when his king-queen held against the king-jack of Cody "voltron12" Scherer on a king-high flop.
Huiwen "HLM99" Liu exited in eighth place after losing with king-queen all in preflop against Cameron "crezident" Rezaie, who held with ace-nine suited. Following him out the door was Alida "av1925" Veliu, who got it all in preflop with pocket queens only to see them go down in flames against Mahyar "Psycho101" Ebrahimi's ace-six when an ace appeared on the flop.
Garg then lost a flip with pocket sevens to Nicholas "Got_The_Glow" Brancato's ace-queen to bow out in sixth place, and Rezaie bowed out a short time later losing a race with ace-jack to Steinman's two red nines.
Brancato took his leave after losing with ace-ten to Steiman's ace-queen all in preflop, and then Steinman dispatched Ebrahimi in third place with ace-nine against ace-eight. That allowed Steinman to take a nearly 4:1 chip lead against Satoshi "Godzillla" Tanaka.
Tanaka put up a fight but wasn't able to battle back, eventually falling in second place when his king-jack failed to get there against Steinman's ace-five.
Steinman's brother captured the moment of victory and shared it on social media:
The next tournament on the schedule – Event #28: $1,000 Omaha Hi-Lo 6-Max– will take place at 3 p.m. PDT on Tuesday. The PokerNews Live Reporting Team will once again be reporting all the action, so be sure to tune in then to see who captures the next 2020 WSOP bracelet!
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Tuesday, July 28, 2020 3:13 AM Local Time
Satoshi "Godzillla" Tanaka Eliminated in 2nd Place ($68,373.36)
Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman raised all in for 26,974,082 and Satoshi "Godzillla" Tanaka called off his 11,700,948 stack.
Satoshi "Godzillla" Tanaka:
Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman:
Tanaka was behind holding live cards but couldn't finds a pair on the runout ending his tournament in second place.
| Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman | 38,800,000 | 12,235,948  |
| Satoshi "Godzillla" Tanaka | 0 | -12,235,948  |
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 3:01 AM Local Time
Level 45 started
Level: 45
Blinds: 250,000/500,000
Ante: 62,500
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 2:59 AM Local Time
Mahyar “Psycho101” Ebrahimi Eliminated in 3rd Place ($49,795.92)
Mahyar "Psycho101" Ebrahimi moved all in for 5,351,012 and Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman three-bet to 10,302,024 from the small blind. Satoshi "Godzillla" Tanaka folded from the big and the hands were turned up.
Mahyar "Psycho101" Ebrahimi:
Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman:
Steinman had the better ace and things looked good for him on the flop. The turn gave Ebrahimi a heart flush draw, but it didn't come in as the bricked on the river.
Steinman won the pot and took a solid chip lead into heads-up play.
| Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman | 30,900,000 | 3,797,374 |
| Satoshi "Godzillla" Tanaka | 7,800,000 | -1,296,362 |
| Mahyar “Psycho101” Ebrahimi | 0 | -3,101,012 |
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 2:54 AM Local Time
Nicholas "Got_The_Glow" Brancato Eliminated in 4th Place ($36,526.32)
Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman raised to 800,000 under the gun and then called Nicholas "Got_The_Glow" Brancato's 3,351,882 three-bet jam from the button.
Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman:
Nicholas "Got_The_Glow" Brancato:
Brancato was dominated and nothing changed after the flop.
The turn gave both players a broadway draw but the completed the board on the river ending Brancato's tournament in fourth place.
| Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman | 27,102,626 | 4,901,882 |
| Nicholas "Got_The_Glow" Brancato | 0 | -3,351,882 |
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 2:44 AM Local Time
Level 44 started
Level: 44
Blinds: 200,000/400,000
Ante: 50,000
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 2:44 AM Local Time
Cameron “crezident” Rezaie Eliminated in 5th Place ($27,028.08)
Cameron "crezident" Rezaie raised to 640,000 from the cutoff and then called off their 4,702,420 stack after Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman three-bet jammed for 12,530,824 from the small blind.
Cameron "crezident" Rezaie:
Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman:
It was a classic race with Rezaie holding two overs but he couldn't find a pair with the runout ending his tournament in fifth place.
| Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman | 17,753,244 | 6,022,420 |
| Cameron “crezident” Rezaie | 0 | -4,382,420 |
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 2:36 AM Local Time
Updated Chip Counts
| Mahyar “Psycho101” Ebrahimi | 12,151,509 | 35,435 |
| Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman | 11,730,824 | 1,560,000 |
| Satoshi "Godzillla" Tanaka | 5,453,181 | 0 |
| Nicholas "Got_The_Glow" Brancato | 5,082,066 | 640,000 |
| Cameron “crezident” Rezaie | 4,382,420 | -1,360,000 |
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 2:29 AM Local Time
Level 43 started
Level: 43
Blinds: 160,000/320,000
Ante: 40,000
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 2:28 AM Local Time
Lokesh "lanku111" Garg Eliminated in 6th Place ($20,253.60)
Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman raised to 560,000 under the gun and Lokesh "lanku111" Garg three-bet all in for 3,042,128 next to act. Nicholas "Got_The_Glow" Brancato then isolated by four-bet jamming from the cutoff.
Nicholas "Got_The_Glow" Brancato:
Lokesh "lanku111" Garg:
It was a flip and Garg was looking to hold. He did so on the flop, but then disaster struck when the spiked on the turn. The river was no help to Garg and he was eliminated in sixth place.
| Nicholas "Got_The_Glow" Brancato | 9,978,276 | 2,337,128 |
| Lokesh "lanku111" Garg | 0 | -6,012,128 |
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 2:17 AM Local Time
Alida "av1925" Veliu Eliminated in 7th Place ($15,294.96)
Alida "av1925" Veliu raised all in for 2,170,000 under the gun and "Psycho101" isolated after they three-bet to 2,170,000 from the cutoff.
"Psycho101":
Alida "av1925" Veliu:
Veliu was ahead with her ladies but there was an ace in the window on the flop.
The turn was ho help to Veliu nor was the that followed on the river ending her tournament in seventh place.
| Mahyar “Psycho101” Ebrahimi | 10,054,009 | 1,413,984 |
| Alida "av1925" Veliu | 0 | -4,073,984 |
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 2:11 AM Local Time
Level 42 started
Level: 42
Blinds: 140,000/280,000
Ante: 35,000
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 2:09 AM Local Time
Huiwen "HLM99" Liu Eliminated in 8th Place ($11,663.29)
Huiwen "HLM99" Liu moved all in for 2,130,748 from the cutoff and "crezident" called from the big blind.
Huiwen "HLM99" Liu:
"crezident":
The flop paired "crezident" but Liu picked up a gutshort Broadway straight draw. The turn gave him an added flush draw, but the river was a brick to put an end to his tournament.
| Cameron “crezident” Rezaie | 8,063,872 | 3,480,498 |
| Huiwen "HLM99" Liu | 0 | -3,590,748 |
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 1:52 AM Local Time
Level 41 started
Level: 41
Blinds: 120,000/240,000
Ante: 30,000
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 1:48 AM Local Time
Cody “voltron12” Scherer Eliminated in 9th Place ($9,009.36)
Cody "voltron12" Scherer raised all in for 747,602 from the hijack and was called by "Psycho101" from the button along with Lokesh "lanku111" Garg from the big blind.
Once the flop appeared, Garg led out for 950,000 getting a quick fold from "Psycho101" and the two players tabled their hands.
Cody "voltron12" Scherer:
Lokesh "lanku111" Garg:
Both players connected with the flop but Scherer had kicker issues and neither the turn nor the river were any help ending his tournament in ninth place.
| Lokesh "lanku111" Garg | 6,114,878 | 3,100,204 |
| Mahyar “Psycho101” Ebrahimi | 5,165,025 | -391,602 |
| Cody “voltron12” Scherer | 0 | -800,000 |
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 1:36 AM Local Time
Final Table Draw and Counts
Event 27 Final Table| Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman | 6,989,162 | 340,000 |
| Mahyar “Psycho101” Ebrahimi | 5,556,627 | -800,000 |
| Alida "av1925" Veliu | 4,794,484 | 2,801,948 |
| Cameron “crezident” Rezaie | 4,583,374 | 620,000 |
| Nicholas "Got_The_Glow" Brancato | 4,401,148 | 160,000 |
| Satoshi "Godzillla" Tanaka | 4,367,181 | -700,000 |
| Huiwen "HLM99" Liu | 3,590,748 | -1,576,433 |
| Lokesh "lanku111" Garg | 3,014,674 | -420,000 |
| Cody “voltron12” Scherer | 1,502,602 | -1,509,754 |
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 1:33 AM Local Time
"elchuco" Eliminated in 10th Place ($6,984)
"elchuco" moved all in for 2,221,948 from middle position and three-bet jammed for 2.3 million from the small blind.
"elchuco":
Alida "av1925" Veliu:
"elchuco" had the inferior pocket pair and failed to get lucky as the board ran out a clean .
| elchuco | 0 | -1,576,948 |
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 1:30 AM Local Time
"LordMTM" Eliminated in 11th Place ($6,984)
Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman raised to 320,000 under the gun and then called "LordMTM's" 1,679,208 three-bet jam from the button.
"LordMTM":
Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman:
"LordMTM" was ahead with their made hand and nothing changed after the flop.
The turn however, paired Steinman leaving "LordMTM" drawing to an eight but the completed the baord on the river ending their tournament in 11th place.
| Ian "apokerjoker2" Steinman | 6,649,162 | 0 |
| LordMTM | 0 | 0 |
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 1:28 AM Local Time
Eddy "Habibi" Sabat Eliminated in 12th Place ($6,984)
"Psycho101" raised to 320,000 from the cutoff and Eddy "Habibi" Sabat called from the small blind. Satoshi "Godzillla" Tanaka came along from the big and it was three-way action to the flop. Two checks saw "Psycho101" continued for 400,000 and Sabat check-jammed for 1,787,668.
Tanaka folded and "Psycho101" made the call.
"Psycho101":
Eddy "Habibi" Sabat:
"Psycho101" had flopped top pair but Sabat was drawing to both straight and flush draws. Unfortunately for him, both the turn and bricked and he hit the rail in 12th place.
| Mahyar “Psycho101” Ebrahimi | 6,356,627 | 1,595,168 |
| Eddy "Habibi" Sabat | 0 | -2,127,668 |
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 1:20 AM Local Time
WSOP Online Recap Show - Interview with Daniel Negreanu