Poker Players Champion to be Crowned Thursday
On Thursday, three players will be looking to etch their names in history as champions of the grandest tournament in mixed games, the World Series of Poker $50,000 Poker Players Championship. Two others with be looking to add to their lore as previous champions of the event.
Here’s a look at the final five, who will be playing for the top prize of $1,324,747, a WSOP gold bracelet, and their name etched on the Chip Reese Memorial trophy.
Talal Shakerchi (United Kingdom) Chip Leader – 10,170,000 chips
A High Roller scene regular with a pair of deep runs in this year’s WSOP already in the $10,000 Razz championship (5th) and the $50,000 High Roller (11th), Talal Shakerchi is in his best position ever to claim his first WSOP bracelet. While Shakerchi has more than $12,000,000 in worldwide tournament earnings and multiple online COOP titles to his name, a WSOP bracelet has eluded him, potentially only until today.
Matthew Ashton (United Kingdom) 2nd place – 7,380,000 chips
Matthew Ashton is one of two previous champions at the final table, having won the title in 2013. That win was Ashton’s greatest WSOP triumph, and deep runs in the PPC are a regular occurrence for the Brit whose WSOP appearances are selective. In fact, his last two WSOP cashes are in this event last year (8th - $155,421) and in 2017 (8th - $164,286).
James Obst (Australia) 3rd place – 5,110,000 chips
Following a brief hiatus from poker to pursue a career in professional tennis, Australian mixed game star James Obst has returned in a huge way to the WSOP, with this marking his third final table of the summer. Obst notched a fifth-place finish in the $1,500 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better event for $67,737, and an eighth-place finish in the $10,000 version for $48,300. While he does have a 2017 WSOP $10,000 Razz Championship bracelet, a PPC win today would be the pinnacle of his newly reborn poker career.
Brian Rast (United States) 4th place – 4,545,000 chips
The other returning champion and a two-time one at that, Brian Rast’s Hall of Fame credentials continue to grow with another deep PPC run here in 2023. A win Thursday would make him only the second player to earn three Poker Players Championships, joining Michael Mizrachi. He would also become just the 19th player to ever win six WSOP bracelets, and the second to do so this summer, alongside Shaun Deeb.
Kristopher Tong (United States) 5th place – 2,500,000 chips
If there’s a wildcard in this group of mixed game stars it would have to be Kristopher Tong. His journey to the final day of the PPC is his deepest WSOP run since a runner-up finish in 2013 in a $2,500 Omaha / Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better event, where he topped Ashton, who finished third but fell heads-up to another PPC champion, Mike Gorodinsky.
The $303,071 that Tong is guaranteed for at least a fifth-place finish will be his largest-ever WSOP score and nearly equals his all-time WSOP winnings before this week.
Poker Players Championship Final Table Results and Payouts
| Place | Winner | Country | Prize (in USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1,324,747 | ||
| 2 | $818,756 | ||
| 3 | $573,679 | ||
| 4 | $411,824 | ||
| 5 | $303,071 | ||
| 6 | Phil Ivey | United States | $228,793 |
| 7 | Ray Dehkharghani | United States | $177,294 |
Now the final five return to Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas where they’ll gather under the lights of the mothership to battle for World Series of Poker and mixed-game immortality.
Play resumes at 2 p.m. local time with 8 minutes and 20 seconds remaining in Level 23, with streaming available on a one-hour delay on PokerGO beginning at 3 p.m.
Stay with PokerNews as well, as we will have updates on the same delay so as not to create any spoilers to the stream.