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Tuesday, June 19, 2018 4:51 PM Local Time
Yueqi Zhu Claims First WSOP Gold in Event #35: $1,500 Mixed Omaha
After six narrow misses in bracelet events that left him claiming either silver or bronze, Yueqi Zhu closed one out for the gold. The Chinese poker ambassador ran up an impressive stack at the final table of Event #35: $1,500 Mixed Omaha, but he had to return for an unscheduled fourth day on Tuesday to make it official.
Zhu returned with nearly 80 percent of all the chips in play three-handed, and it didn't take long to seal the deal. Bracelet winner Carol Fuchs, L.A.-based producer and screenwriter who crushes mixed game tournaments in her free time, was the third-place finisher, despite an early double-up of her short stack to enter the final day.
Fuchs eventually got it in against chip leader Zhu with a six-high straight and six-five low, only to be up against Zhu's slightly better seven-high straight and better six-five low.
Heads up against Gabriel Ramos didn't last long — Zhu starting out with a more than 10-1 chip advantage. Ramos got it in with top set of queens in PLO-8 on a flop, but couldn't hold against Zhu's wrap that made a straight on the river.
Ramos had to settle for runner-up and $130,850, his fifth WSOP cash, and by far his best to date. Zhu, on the other hand, had a whopping 70 WSOP cashes with no bracelet in his 12-plus years of grinding World Series of Poker events coming into this final. Twelve years after finishing second in a $3,000 Limit Hold'em event for $184,409, Zhu grabs the elusive gold, along with a payday of $211,781.
Official Event #35 Final Table Payouts
| Position | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|
| 1 | Yueqi Zhu | China | $211,781 |
| 2 | Gabriel Ramos | United States | $130,850 |
| 3 | Carol Fuchs | United States | $89,488 |
| 4 | Matthew Gregoire | United States | $62,226 |
| 5 | Jon Turner | United States | $44,007 |
| 6 | Peter Neff | United States | $31,662 |
| 7 | Ryan Hughes | United States | $23,182 |
The field was no cakewalk, and 116 players eventually collected a piece of the $1,043,550 prize pool. The 773 total entries marks the largest-ever mixed Omaha field at the Rio as the structure allowed for a single reentry through the first eight levels of play.
Among the cashers who fell short of the final table were bracelet winners Andrew Barber, Max Pescatori, Barry Greenstein, Erik Seidel, Phil Hellmuth, and Robert Mizrachi. With the eliminations of Chip Jett in ninth place ($13,114) and bracelet winner Nathan Gamble in eighth ($17,279), the official final table was set.
Fuchs was the lone bracelet winner among them, all the rest looking for bracelet numero uno. Before the end of Day 3, though, that dream fell short for Ryan Hughes, Peter Neff, Jon Turner, and Matthew Gregoire before the final three had to call it a night and return Tuesday to finish it out.
While that concludes the coverage of Event #35, more World Series of Poker coverage can be found via PokerNews live reporting throughout the series, so keep it here to keep up with all the action.
Tuesday, June 19, 2018 2:41 PM Local Time
Gabriel Ramos Eliminated in 2nd Place ($130,850)
PLO-8
Yueqi Zhu opened to 100,000 on the button and Gabriel Ramos three-bet to 300,000 from the big blind. Zhu called and the flop came . Ramos led out for 75,000 and Zhu min-raised to 150,000.
"I guess it's right that I go all in with this hand," Ramos said as he pushed his last 430,000 into the middle. Zhu quickly called and the hands were tabled.
Yueqi Zhu:
Gabriel Ramos:
Ramos flopped top set but Zhu had an overpair and a straight draw. The turn brought the and the river landed the . Zhu made a king-high straight on the river and there was no low hand to be had. Ramos was eliminated holding his favorite hand, queen-six, and he was surprisingly not upset about it.
An extensive recap of today's and yesterday's action is to follow.
| Yueqi Zhu | 5,765,000 | 447,500  |
| Gabriel Ramos | 0 | -480,000  |
Tuesday, June 19, 2018 2:27 PM Local Time
Heads-Up Chip Counts
| Yueqi Zhu | 5,317,500 | 802,500 |
| Gabriel Ramos | 480,000 | -200,000 |
Tuesday, June 19, 2018 2:25 PM Local Time
Carol Fuchs Eliminated in 3rd Place ($89,488)
Limit Omaha 8-or-Better
Yueqi Zhu raised the button and Carol Fuchs called from the big blind.
The flop came and Fuchs checked. Zhu bet and Fuchs called.
The turn brought the , Fuchs checked, Zhu bet, and Fuchs called to put herself at risk.
Yueqi Zhu:
Carol Fuchs:
Fuchs had turned a six-high straight and six-five low, but found herself trailing Zhu's seven-high straight and low. The river changed nothing, and Zhu took the pot to send end Fuchs' run in this event.
| Carol Fuchs | 0 | -450,000 |
Tuesday, June 19, 2018 2:18 PM Local Time
Fuchs Doubles Through Ramos
Limit Omaha 8-or-Better
Carol Fuchs raised the button and got the chips in before the flop against Gabriel Ramos, who was in the big blind.
Carol Fuchs:
Gabriel Ramos:
The board ran out to give Fuchs the nut flush for the double-up.
| Gabriel Ramos | 680,000 | -290,000 |
| Carol Fuchs | 450,000 | 140,000 |
Tuesday, June 19, 2018 2:00 PM Local Time
Shuffle Up and Deal!
Day 4 action is officially underway.
Tuesday, June 19, 2018 1:59 PM Local Time
Level 31 started
Level: 31
Blinds: 25000/50000
Ante: 0
Tuesday, June 19, 2018 11:31 AM Local Time
Zhu, Ramos, and Fuchs Return For Day 4 of Event #35: $1,500 Mixed Omaha
Although Event #35: $1,500 Mixed Omaha was only scheduled for three days of play, Yueqi Zhu, Gabriel Ramos, and Carol Fuchs will return for a fourth day of action to play down to a winner. The eventual champion will take home $211,781 and a coveted WSOP gold bracelet.
Yueqi Zhu has a substantial chip lead with 4,515,000, which is 78 percent of the total chips in play. The accomplished Chinese player has made it to the top three spots on six prior occasions but has yet to take home a title. Ramos (970,000), a two-time WSOP Circuit Omaha Hi-Lo ring winner, and Fuchs (310,000), a highly regarded mixed game player who won her first bracelet in the $1,500 Dealer's Choice event in 2015, will have their work cut out for them.
Here's a look at the seating chart with chip counts and final table results thus far:
Final Table Chip Counts & Results
| Seat | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds | Big Bets |
|---|
| 4 | Carol Fuchs | United States | 310,000 | 6 | 2 |
| 7 | Yueqi Zhu | China | 4,515,000 | 90 | 23 |
| 8 | Gabriel Ramos | United States | 970,000 | 19 | 5 |
| Position | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|
| 1 | | | $211,781 |
| 2 | | | $130,850 |
| 3 | | | $89,488 |
| 4 | Matthew Gregoire | United States | $62,226 |
| 5 | Jon Turner | United States | $44,007 |
| 6 | Peter Neff | United States | $31,662 |
| 7 | Ryan Hughes | United States | $23,182 |
| 8 | Nathan Gamble | United States | $17,279 |
Cards will be in the air at 2:00 p.m. local time. Limits will be 50,000/100,000 and pot-limit blinds will be 25,000/50,000 when play resumes. Keep it here for coverage of the conclusion of Event #35: $1,500 Mixed Omaha and throughout the 2018 World Series of Poker from the PokerNews Live Reporting team.