Brock Wilson picked up more than $500,000 and his first WPT Alpha8 title this week at the Wynn Las Vegas.
The WPT’s first $25,000 poker tournament of the summer tempted 78 players away from the WSOP on June 25. Among the famous faces anteing up inside the Wynn were perennial high rollers Daniel Coleman, Artur Martirosyan, and Matthias Eibinger.
Wilson was also among those vying for a share of $1.8 million, but he almost wasn’t.
Last-Minute decision proves profitable for Wilson
Wilson was at the Wynn Las Vegas for the Summer Classic’s $4 million guaranteed event. Despite his best efforts, he busted midway through Day 1B of the $3,500 event, but decided to stick around and watch the opening stages of the WPT Alpha8.
After some deliberation, he decided to put up the $25,000 and play.
“I try really hard to compete with some of the best players in the field, and after I busted the $3,500, I was really in a mood to try and battle it out,” Wilson told the WPT’s media team.
That decision turned out to be a wise one. He made it through to the second day with a strong enough stack to fend off the aforementioned trio of high rollers. However, it wasn’t all smooth sailing.
Wilson admitted the pressure got to him during a big hand on the bubble.
“I made a big fold versus Artur Martirosyan on the bubble which was dead wrong. I thought I might go from like 1 of 12 in the chip counts to stone bubbling, but fortunately, I kind of kept my composure,” Wilson continued.
Fortunately for the American poker pro, that was his toughest test on Day 2. In his words, he was blessed with “easy spots” during the final table, which made it hard for him to make many mistakes.
Win earns Wilson his first WPT Alpha8 title
That, of course, might be Wilson downplaying his achievement. Despite having over $7 million in live cashes prior to the latest WPT Alpha8, his résumé wasn’t stacked with major titles.
He’d won live and online tournaments, but notable titles, such as a WPT Alpha8 trophy, had eluded him.
That changed on June 26 when he made all the right moves against a tough final table. Indeed, as Coleman, Eibinger, and Martirosyan fell by the wayside, only Seth Gottlieb stood in Wilson’s way.
WPT Alpha8 Trifecta Event #1 Result
- Brock Wilson – $571,400
- Seth Gottlieb – $380,900
- Artur Martirosyan – $253,900
- Matthias Eibinger – $176,400
- Ilya Nikiforov – $128,000
- David Coleman – $97,200
The 2023 Triton London PLO champion didn’t make it easy for Wilson. His aggressive style almost got him over the line first. However, Wilson was able to sniff out a bluff from Gottlieb at the right time.
Making the correct call with second pair secured Wilson the rest of his opponent’s chips and, more importantly, the first WPT Alpha8 Trifecta title of the summer.
Many of poker’s finest will be back at the Wynn Las Vegas on July 3 for the second $25,000 WPT Alpha8 of the summer before the final event takes place on July 10.
Players who cash in WPT Alpha8 Trifecta events earn leaderboard points. Wilson leads the way at this point, but the top-ranked player after Event #3 will receive a free seat in December’s $10,400 WPT World Championship.
