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.

The post Masashi Oya Scoops up $3M at $100K WSOP Paradise Ultra High Roller appeared first on Keno Wizard.

The world’s biggest online poker room, GGPoker, announced the launch of a series of online poker tournaments providing pathways for players to participate in live poker events in London.

Pathways to Live Poker Events

The Road to London series of satellites launched by GGPoker will offer participants a chance to win seats for two iconic live poker tournaments, the £3,300 WSOP Super Circuit Series London Main Event and the £21,200 Triton Super High Roller GGMillion$ Live, as well as the thrill of live poker action.

Commenting on the series launch, GGPoker’s head of marketing, UK & Ireland, Angela Martin, was thrilled to announce the return of live poker events to London, adamant that Road to London would be “an unrivaled opportunity to participate in world-class tournaments and compete alongside the poker elite.”

We’re confident that GGPoker players will relish the chance to win their way into these incredible live events at a fraction of the cost, making poker dreams come true.

Angela Martin, head of marketing for UK & Ireland, GGPoker

Promising an electrifying experience for poker players, as well as the thrill of competitive live poker action on an international stage, the Road to London series will reward at least 200 players with seats to the WSOP Super Circuit London Main Event.

One More Hurdle to Overcome

Players who have earned their seats through the satellites will be free to participate in either an OnLive Day 1 tournament hosted at GGPoker or in one of three live Day 1s in London. The first OnLive Day 1 tournament is set to take place on July 2 and step qualifiers are already underway.

Scheduled to start on August 8, the £3,300 WSOP Super Circuit Series London Main Event will have a huge guaranteed prize pool of £3,000,000 ($3,840,000), besides the thrill of playing competitive poker with fellow players from around the world, including recent GGPoker partner, Brian ‘True Geordie’ Davis.

Commencing on July 27, the £21,200 Triton Super High Roller GGMillion$ Live will welcome some of the most popular poker players worldwide, promising to make it a truly exhilarating affair. Qualifier satellites for the tournament will run from June 24.

Both the £3,300 WSOP Super Circuit Series London Main Event and the £21,200 Triton Super High Roller GGMillion$ Live will take place at JW Marriott Grosvenor House in the heart of the capital.

GGPoker was at the center of a controversy recently after most of the high stakes players decided to boycott the games in protest of the latest changes to the poker room’s rake system.

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The World Series of Poker (WSOP) will return to London for the first time in over a decade. As announced by GGPoker, the world’s biggest poker room, the WSOP Super Circuit Series is set to take place in London this summer.

GGPoker noted that the WSOP Super Circuit Series will take place at the JW Mariott Grosvenor House Hotel in the British capital’s Mayfair district. The event, scheduled to take place from July 27 to August 13, will welcome some of the best poker players in the world.

This will notably mark the first time a WSOP event has been held in London since 2010.

Tournaments for Everyone

Four big events have been announced for the upcoming 2023-2024 WSOPC season. This includes a £3,000 + £300 WSOP Super Circuit series main event. In addition to that, there will be a £500 + £60 Colossus, a £1,000 + £100 Mystery Million and a £10,000 + £400 High Roller events.

Each competition’s specifics will appeal to different poker-playing demographics, allowing many poker pros to enjoy themselves while competing against their peers. Buy-in prices will range from £500 to £10,000, providing options for cautious players and risk-takers alike.

The WSOP Super Circuit Series will also host a competition that will welcome fifteen holders of WSOP Gold Ring holders.

If the buy-in prices are still too high for some players, they could also test their mettle in the satellite tournaments hosted by GGPoker. Players can register for these events and compete against other challengers for a shot at qualifying for GGPoker’s bigger tournaments.

WSOP Published Its Summer 2023 Schedule

In February, the WSOP revealed its full schedule for summer 2023, promising a year of excitement to poker enthusiasts. Its main event will be held between May 30 and July 18 at the Horseshoe Las Vegas Casino.

The poker series is planning to host a total of 95 bracelet events prior to that, providing lucky players with chances to win exciting prizes. One lucky player will win free entry to 30 upcoming WSOP Main Events.

Back then WSOP’s SVP & executive director Ty Stewart said that his team expects record-breaking WSOP and World Championship at Paris and Horseshoe Las Vegas activity in 2023.

In other news, GGPoker high rollers recently boycotted the company’s updated rake system. The players slammed the historically high rake rates, which have now been made even worse.

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