Pressure Mounts as Massive Pay Jumps on Horizon at WPT Tampa Final Table
Table Of Contents
The final table of the $3,500 buy-in World Poker Tour Main Event at the Seminole Hard Rock in Tampa is underway, and six players are all vying for the $615,050 first place prize. But there's nearly a $500,000 difference between first and sixth place, which means the pressure is on for the entire table.
On top of the money at stake, the final six are all hoping to join the exclusive WPT Champions Club. There are no past winners remaining in the field, so we're guaranteed to have a first-time champ.
For any poker player, outside of perhaps the billionaire high roller investors or Phil Ivey, the money at stake in Tampa on Wednesday is significant. Most of them have never reached a final table with so much money on the line.
Brock Wilson the Favorite?
Brock Wilson, who began the day third in chips, but barely behind chip leader Steven McKoy, has far and away the highest Hendon Mob results at the final table with $5.3 million in cashes. His largest score came in 2019 in a $25,000 buy-in partypoker MILLIONS Live High Roller, a second place finish for $619,536, a few thousand more than he can win in Tampa on Wednesday.
Wilson also has a second place finish in February 2022 at the PokerGO Cup in Las Vegas for $416,000 in a $50,000 buy-in event, along with a number of other six-figure scores. So, he isn't in unchartered territory, but he's still seeking his first major poker tournament title, much like the other six players at the final table.
That said, Wilson isn't the only accomplished tournament player remaining, nor is he the only one with experience competing for large sums of money. Take David Tuthill, a local who calls the Seminole Hard Rock his home casino, for example. The local poker pro had $1.9 million in lifetime live tournament cashes entering the 1,165-player event this past week, and is guaranteed to crack the $2 million mark regardless of his finish (sixth place pays $130,000).
Tuthill's biggest score is $223,197 for winning a World Series of Poker Circuit ring in 2013 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.
Feeling Out their Opponents
At the time of publishing, one hour into the final table, Wilson had taken over the chip lead by a significant amount. He's been the most aggressive player early on, which shouldn't come as much of a surprise given his high-stakes tournament experience. Tuthill had moved into second place, while McKoy had lost about 25% of his stack from the start of play.
Wilson, Tuthill, McKoy, and Seth Berger all have over $1 million in Hendon Mob results. Fred Paradis, the Day 3 chip leader, and Corey Wade, are the only players at the final table with only six-figure career cashes.
The pay jumps today will be massive, starting right off the bat. Once the first player busts, the payouts will go from $130,000 to $170,000, and then rise to $226,000 for fourth place, $300,000 for third place, $410,000 to the runner-up, and then the winner will take home $615,050. We'll see how loose and relaxed they all play once the life-changing money payouts approach.
Check out the WPT Hub on PokerNews here!
Photos courtesy of Drew Amato/WPT
