As the iconic World Series of Poker (WSOP) Paradise Main Event gradually moves through the third of its four starting flights, Japanese player Masashi Oya proved his skill battling against an impressive plethora of poker pros for a potential mouth-watering prize counting seven figures at the largest buy-in event, the Event #9 $100,000 Ultra High Roller.
Oya Took Home a $2,940,000 Top Prize
The event, which was spread across three days, gathered a total prize pool of $11 million from 111 entries at Atlantis Paradise Island.
Oya proved his nerves of steel during the third day of the event, held his chips in the lead, and eventually won the top prize valued at $2,940,000 while gathering 550 PGT points. His big win also brought his first WSOP gold bracelet.
Facing online phenom pro poker names like Ben Heath, Leon Sturm, Danny Tang, Nick Schulman, David Peters, Ren Li, Sorel Mizzi, Taylor von Kriegenbergh, and Justin Bonomo, Oya took the lead into a heads-up battle against Jason Koon.
Oya held a five-to-two chip advantage over his opponent entering heads-up play, and he quickly extended his chip lead. Koon called all-in on the river while Oya proceeded to prove his superiority and pipped Koon, sending the chips in the middle and claiming the win.
Oya Won Over $4 Million in 2023
So far, the Japanese player has so far scooped up an impressive $5.58 million win in live poker tournaments. Of it, over $4 million came in 2023 alone.
This makes him the leading pro poker player on Japan’s All-Time Money List, leaping over the iconic Tsugunari Toma.
Oya’s latest victory along with his 12 PokerGO Tour cashes in 2023 have propelled him to the 39th position in the Top 40 on the leaderboard thanks to the 1,709 PGT points he managed to accumulate out of a total of 12 cashes.
The Japanese player will most likely have to add to his PGT points total in the other eight events scheduled until the end of the season in order to secure his place in the Top 40. This would also qualify him for a seat in the PGT Championship $1 Million Freeroll that will take place on January 9-10, 2024.
The list of additional players who finished in the money in Event #9 and climbed higher on the PGT leaderboard features Ren Lin, who reached the sixth position, Nick Schulman, who moved to the 12th position, and Justin Bonomo, who reached the 53rd spot.
Quan Zhou and Justin Bonomo also rose into the Top 100. Ivan Luca and Benjamin Heath made it into the Top 200. Danny Tang is ranked 300th overall on the PGT leaderboard.
Erik Seidel also grabbed his tenth World Series of Poker bracelet in the $50,000 Super High Roller at WSOP Paradise.