After what has been widely described as one of the most entertaining final tables of all time, Vietnam’s Qui Nguyen has won the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event and its US$8 million first prize.
Playing in the world’s most famous tournament for the very first time, the 39-year-old made for compelling viewing with his wild and unorthodox play leaving commentators speechless his opponents bewildered.
Nevertheless, his heads-up battle with Gordon Vayo – who showed remarkable patience in the face of Nguyen’s relentless raising – lasted an exhausting nine hours, by far the longest in WSOP Main Event history. Vayo collected US$4,661,228 for his runner-up finish.
The chip leader and favorite coming into the final table, veteran Cliff Josephy, was well and truly in the hunt with three players remaining but was left crippled after his set of 2s ran into Cayo’s set of 3s.
However, it was Nguyen that this final table will be remembered for – and not just because of his victory. Along the way he pulled off a series of outrageous bluffs including one monster hand heads-up when he shoved on the river of with J5 on a 942T5 board, forcing Vayo to fold Q9.
It prompted three-time WSOP bracelet winner and expert commentator Antonio Esfandiari to quip, “I am out of words, gentlemen. This is poker at its best. This is the most exciting match I’ve ever seen in my entire life.”
The final table placing were as follows:
|
2016 WSOP Main Event
|
||
| 1st | Qui Nguyen | $8,005,310 |
| 2nd | Gordon Vayo | $4,661,228 |
| 3rd | Cliff Josephy | $3,453,035 |
| 4th | Michael Ruane | $2,576,003 |
| 5th | Vojtech Ruzicka | $1,935,388 |
| 6th | Kenny Hallaert | $1,464,258 |
| 7th | Griffin Benger | $1,250,190 |
| 8th | Jerry Wong | $1,100,076 |
| 9th | Fernando Pons | $1,000,000 |
