Event #12: $5,000 Freezeout No-Limit Hold’em 8-Handed

Event #12: $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em Freezeout of the 2023 World Series of Poker (WSOP) is in the books, with Mississippi's Jeremy Eyer capturing their maiden WSOP bracelet and the $649,550 first-place prize.

Eyer defeated GGPoker ambassador Felipe Ramos in an elongated heads-up duel to top the 735-player field and claim the lion's share of the $3,381,000 prize pool.

The win marked the end of Eyer's five-year pursuit of poker's most sought-after accolade. It was his 12th cash at the WSOP, with his first coming back in 2018. Moreover, the victory boosts Eyer to $1,483,523 in live tournament earnings and shoots him to second place in the Mississippi All-Time Money List.

The top 111 players made the money, with notable names such as Kristen Foxen (26th - $18,569), Josh Arieh (39th - $15,873) and 2022 WSOP Main Event champion Espen Jorstad (63rd - $10,952) all cashing the event.

Event #12: $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em Freezeout Final Table Results

Eyer Spins Up a Short Stack to WSOP Glory

Eyer came into Day 2 with a stack of only 60,000 and squeezed into the paid places, and when the money bubble burst, Eyer pointed to that as the turning point for his tournament.

"Probably my first double after the bubble," said Eyer in regard to where things started going right for him. "I had king king-ten versus ace-king, and I rivered a flush."

Eyer is often found on the virtual felt, where he's been sharpening his skills.

"I'm just trying to improve each year. I've been playing a lot online, improving my game, and now I'm transitioning more into live mostly, and that's helping my game a lot. And coming here, playing with the best players, and finishing first also helps."

His battle with Ramos lasted three hours and was a true test of wits until the end.

"It was a back-and-forth battle, you know. I had him down a little bit, and he had me down. It was back and forth, and finally, we just got into a cooler, and I was on the right end of it."

Eyer has ruled out competing for the WSOP Player of the Year title, but the newly crowned champion is still hunting for more gold.

"I don't play enough mix games for the Player of the Year race, so I'll probably just stick to the bigger hold'em events and keep trying to win bracelets."

Day 3 Recap

Just 16 players returned for the final day, and the action was fast and furious as the official final table of eight was established by the first break. The likes of Yuval Bronshtein, Christina Gollins, and Jesse Lonis all found themselves on the wrong side of the rail within the first two levels of the day.

Gollins suffered a huge cooler in a pot for the chip lead after her ace-king couldn't leapfrog Ramos' pocket queens in a battle between the blinds.

James Vecchio busted in ninth place on the final hand before the first break after his ambitious hero call backfired. His $51,769 payout was his biggest ever cash and more than three times as much as his total live tournament earnings.

WSOP Circuit Ring winner Shiva Dudani was the next to depart after jamming his short stack in with king-deuce, but he could not hold against Jeremy Eyer's queen-nine.

Ramos then took the chip lead heading into the final six after making two difficult calls in a row. He called a big river bet from Nozomu Shimizu with ust second pair and then called the four-bet bluff shove from Ivan Galinec. The Croatian tabled pocket fours, and they went into the muck after Ramos' pair of jacks held out to bring the event to its final six players.

2022 bracelet winner Jinho Hong then scored his first final table elimination after his pocket nines won the flip against Jeffrey Halcomb.

Shimizu then began his ascent up the chip counts after doubling through Ramos and Hong as well as ousting Ronald Minnis with a superior ace.

Hong was down to one big blind after Shimizu doubled through him. Hong was then all in several times over the next few hands. He was denied a couple of double-ups through chopped pots but did manage to double twice before eventually bowing out to Eyer.

With Hong's exit confirmed, the three remaining players competed for their first bracelet. Ramos and Eyer had previously tasted victory under the WSOP umbrella, but that came on the WSOP circuit in 2010 and 2019, respectively.

The top three would then battle in a war of attrition with the three stacks even for most of the time. However, Ramos sent Shizimu out in third place after his ace-queen held against ace-ten.

The $287,106 score was Shizimu's biggest payday and follows on from a stellar year where he has already picked up an EPT title in addition to the $194,273 he banked from a €25K High Roller at EPT Monte Carlo.

Like Shizimu, Eyer and Ramos also guaranteed themselves a career-best cash, but that thought didn't cross the mind of either player as both were gunning for the bracelet, if nothing else.

At heads-up, the chip lead changed back and forth on several occasions. As soon as one player looked like they would pull ahead, momentum shifted in their opponent's favour.

Eyer then picked off Ramos' three-high bluff to set himself apart once more, and then a few hands later, Eyer flopped Ramos dead after both players committed their stacks with premium hands.

That concludes PokerNews live reporting for the $5,000 Freezeout but be sure to stick around to keep up with all the action from the WSOP.

Jeremy Eyer raised to 600,000 with    on the button and Felipe Ramos three-bet to 2,150,000 with the   . Eyer called.

The flop brought the     and Ramos continued for 1,700,000. Eyer called.

The   fell on the turn and Ramos kept his foot on the gas — betting 3,300,000. This time Eyer shoved for 12,500,000 with his two pair, which got a quick fold from Ramos to send a massive pot Eyer's way.

Jeremy Eyer	23,750,000	5,925,000
Felipe Ramos	13,100,000	-5,925,000

Jeremy Eyer opened to 600,000 and Felipe Ramos defended his blind.

Both players checked on the     flop and Ramos bet 575,000 when the   fell on the turn. Eyer called.

Both players checked on the   river and Ramos tabled    for trip nines.

It was good against the    of Eyer and with that pot, Ramos has re-taken the lead.

Felipe Ramos	19,075,000	4,550,000
Jeremy Eyer	17,750,000	-4,575,000

Jeremy Eyer, with    raised to 600,000 from the button and Felipe Ramos called from the big blind with   .

Ramos check-raised to 1,900,000 after Eyer bet 500,000 on the     flop and Eyer folded.

Jeremy Eyer	24,875,000	-650,000
Felipe Ramos	11,975,000	650,000

Jeremy Eyer raised to 500,00 with    and Felipe Ramos defended his blind with   .

Ramos led out for 375,000 on the     flop and Eyer called.

The   paired the turn and both players checked.

Ramos checked again on the   river and Eyer decided to bet 950,000, which got a quick fold from Ramos.

Jeremy Eyer	22,725,000	1,245,000
Felipe Ramos	14,125,000	-1,275,000

Felipe Ramos opened to 525,000 with    and Jeremy Eyer called with the   .

Eyer checked to Ramos, who bet 375,000 on the     flop. Eyer called.

The turn brought the   and Eyer opted to lead out for a 900,000 bet. Ramos folded his hand Eyer added to his stack.

Felipe Ramos	21,475,000	-1,300,000
Jeremy Eyer	15,375,000	1,300,000

Jeremy Eyer opened to 500,000 with    and Felipe Ramos called with the   . Ramos led out for 425,000 on the     flop and was called.

On the   turn, Ramos opted to check, which prompted Eyer to fire for 1,300,000. Ramos gave up the pot.

Felipe Ramos	21,425,000	-550,000
Jeremy Eyer	15,425,000	550,000

Felipe Ramos opened to 500,000 from the button with    and Jeremy Eyer called with the   .

Ramos had top pair on the     flop but was behind the jacks and sevens held by Eyer. Action checked through to the   turn, which again checked through to the   river.

Eyer bet 1,000,000, and Ramos snap-called. The pot was then pushed to Eyer, which helped close the gap between him and Ramos.

Felipe Ramos	20,650,000	-1,375,000
Jeremy Eyer	16,200,000	1,375,000