The WSOP Online and WCOOP are currently going head-to-head in the search for players and giant prize pools, which means the Big Winners have been coming in thick and fast. The good news is we’ve picked out the best performers across both series. The champions are supported by an equally inspiring selection of Big Winners from the live arena. So, if you’re ready to be impressed by poker’s finest, scroll down for CardsChat’s Big Winners of the Week ending Sunday, September 25.
Ourania Zarkantzia
‘SlimLady’
WSOP Online Colossus
GGPoker
$378,508
The WSOP’s online Colossus event lived up to its name in every way last week. The $400 tournament attracted a colossal 10,090 entries, creating a monstrous prize pool worth $3.79 million. That meant Greek grinder Zarkantzia banked a career-best win worth almost $400K on Sunday. Playing under the moniker SlimLady, Zarkantzia picked up his first WSOP bracelet after a pair of queens took the final pot from Alexandre Ragazzi.
Jonah LaBranche
Fall Mayhem Series Main Event
The Lodge Card Club
Round Rock, Texas
$227,561
LaBranche smashed his career-best win last Monday by taking down the Lodge Card Club’s latest main event. The Mayhem finale attracted 1,479 entrants, pushing the prize pool way above its guarantee and up to $1.5 million. LaBranche moved among the chip leaders after Day 1 and never looked back. In the end, he got it done with an unlikely hand (9s 2h) to surpass his previous highest payout by more than 10X.
Ronald Keijzer
Poker Masters PLO
PokerGo Studio
$202,500
PLO specialist Keijzer kept his reputation in check on Sunday after dominating the latter stages of PokerGo’s $10K event at its Aria-based studio in Las Vegas. Eighty-one players anted up late last week, but Keijzer almost had things sewn up after Day 1. The Dutch pro had more than 50% of the chips in play at the start of Day 2 and he never gave up his position. Even with the likes of Jared Bleznick and Ben Lamb on the final table, Keijzer remained composed throughout his quest to add a PokerGo Tour title to the WSOP bracelet he won in 2018.
Rayan Chamas
‘Beriuzy’
WCOOP Turbo Progressive KO
PokerStars
$76,348
(27,598 + $48,750 in bounties)
Chamas has won his second WCOOP title in a week. The Lebanese poker pro and streamer added to the $2,000 Turbo title he won on September 17 by taking down the $2,100 Turbo Progressive KO event on Sunday. Chamas, who has a second-place finish in a WPT main event, topped a field of 148 entrants to claim another WCOOP win.
L.D. Gray
Commerce Hold’em Series Main Event
Commerce Casino
$69,470
The latest poker series at LA’s Commerce Casino wrapped up Sunday, and it was a local regular L.D. Gray who took home the lion’s share of the prize pool thanks to a five-way chop. With a $600 buy-in and no guarantee, the turnout was still massive as 1,044 total players came out to create a prize pool of $527,220. Gray has been cashing in Los Angeles tournaments since 2004, but this victory marks the biggest win of his career. It also pushed him to nearly $400K in total live earnings. The final series of the year for Commerce Casino, the LA Poker Open, kicks off in November.
Leon Campbell
25/50 London
The Vic Poker Room
£34,328
($36,958)
Circuit regular Campbell picked up his fifth live tournament win on Sunday after taking down The Vic’s latest London event. A total of 356 entries and 271 re-entries made the £220 ($240) tournament a record-setter and tripled the Vic’s £50,000 ($54,000) guarantee. When the final few had fallen, Campbell took control and raked in the last pot of the night. That result capped off a solid two-year run that’s seen the Englishman win more than $200K.
Tobias Leknes
‘Senkel92’
WCOOP 8-Game
PokerStars
$28,084
Leknes won his third WCOOP of the series on Sunday and dedicated it to the Norwegian mixed-games community. The Norwegian pro now has nine WCOOP titles with his latest victory coming in the $2,100 8-Game event. A three-way deal gave Leknes a $28K+ payday, but it was the trophy he wanted. He eventually got it done after beating ‘sweems’ heads-up. Leknes is now tied for the most WCOOP titles along with Joao Vieira and Denis Stebkov.
Daniel Smyth and Kevin Taylor contributed to this report. Know a big winner we missed? tips@cardschat.com
