Daniel Maor benefited from the current wave of WSOP fever sweeping Las Vegas by winning a record-setting BetMGM Poker Championship.
Maor made the short trip from the Horseshoe to the Aria on June 7 to enter the $3,500 BetMGM Poker Champion. He was joined by 1,140 other entrants looking for summer success outside of the WSOP.
That level of interest saw the $3 million guarantee beaten by more than $600,000, and the BetMGM Poker Championship set another record.
Pros Target New Summer Staple in Vegas
As noted by Luke Staudenmaier, BetMGM’s Director of Poker, the tournament has become a “summer staple” for players in Las Vegas. Maor confirmed that in his post-win interview.
“When looking at the overall schedule for the summer, this was something I earmarked because a $3,500 buy-in, $3 million guarantee events don’t come around every day. The structure was great, and I wanted to play in this, especially at a nice venue like ARIA,” Maor said after his win.
Five days of play saw the field, which contained 150 online qualifiers, whittled down to a final table of seven. Maor quickly established his dominance, using his stack to good effect.
With cards and chips on his side, Maor eliminated five of his six opponents en route to winning over $600,000. That’s an achievement in its own right, but Maor’s performance is even more impressive when you consider the players he beat.
Daniel Maor Dominates BetMGM Poker Championship Finale
Ethan Yau, aka Rampage, Eric Baldwin, and Shannon Shorr, were all fighting for the lion’s share of $3.6 million and one what’s quickly becoming a coveted poker title. However, for all their skills and experience, it was Maor who came out victorious.
2024 BetMGM Poker Championship Result
- Daniel Maor – $613,914
- Shannon Shorr – $430,367
- Lyu Jun Qiang – $279,207
- Jordan Westmorland – $206,914
- James Romero – $156,344
- Eric Baldwin – $126,405
- Ethan ‘Rampage’ Yau – $104,424
The final hand saw Maor enjoy a healthy dose of luck with Q♦ J♥. Raising it from the small blind, Maor was met with a three-bet from Shannon Shorr holding A♠ Q♣. After a few moments of deliberation, Maor called.
Shorr continued his aggression by moving all-in on the 8♠ J♦ 10♣ flop. Maor took a moment to check his hand and count his stack.
With top pair and enough chips behind to survive a bad beat, he called. The 8♦ and 4♦ couldn’t help Shorr, and with that, Maor was crowned the 2024 BetMGM Poker Championship champion. The win took Maor’s live earnings over the $1 million mark, and since then, he’s parlayed his success into two cashes as the WSOP.
