The $50,000 buy-in Poker Players Championship, one of the most prestigious events of the WSOP, drew a field of 91 players this year. It took five days and nights of playing a wide mix of games until the final hand was dealt on the ESPN main stage at the Rio on Thursday.
After defeating Justin Bonomo heads-up, high-stakes poker professional Brian Rast collected $1,296,097 in prize money as well as his third gold coveted bracelet! This was the second time Rast won the Poker Players Championship, after winning his first title in 2011. He and Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi (2010 and 2012) are the only two players who have won this event twice.
"This final table was really tough," Rast told WSOP.com when asked about the tough line up that included Michael Mizrachi & Justin Bonomo. "I was really low on chips for a lot of it. The heads up match was a really long battle. And, it was definitely satisfying. I would agree it was both my toughest and most satisfying win."
This was the 11th year of this tournament. The first one was won by poker legend Chip Reese who sadly passed away in 2007. A trophy to honour Chip Reese (on the left in the picture) is passed on to the new Poker Players Championhip winner every year.
