Tyler Smith Leads Final 11 in Event #71: $50,000 Pot-Limit Omaha High Roller

Christian Zetzsche

Level 24 : Blinds 100,000/200,000, 200,000 ante

The most expensive four-card event of the 2023 World Series of Poker schedule at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas is one step closer to crowning a champion. Out of a massive field of 200 entries in Event #71: $50,000 Pot-Limit Omaha High Roller, only 11 players remain in contention for the biggest slice of the $9,550,000 prize pool.

To put things in perspective, the 33 late entries at the start of Day 2 ensured that the High Roller contest gathered a field bigger than the previous two editions in 2021 and 2022 combined, further showcasing the tremendous growth in many mixed game and high-stakes tournaments during this ongoing festival in Sin City.

When another 12 levels of 40 minutes had concluded, not only had the money bubble burst but the unofficial final table was almost reached. Four bracelet winners remain in contention to potentially increase their tally and they are led by Tyler Smith, who held the top spot for an extended period and bagged up 14,000,000. Fellow bracelet winners Isaac Haxton (2,500,000) and Ian Matakis (2,150,000) can be found at the bottom of the leaderboard.

Matakis has had a memorable 2023 WSOP already as he captured his first WSOP gold bracelet in Online Event #2: $500 No-Limit Hold'em Bankroll Builder at the start of the series. He then finished seventh just one day ago in Event #65: $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em (6-Handed) before max late-registering this event. Known under his moniker "potamophobia" during the start of the global pandemic, his fear of rivers may only be challenged by the fear of an opponent raising the pot behind.

Second in chips behind Smith is the always dangerous Jesse Lonis, one of the rising young players on the international live poker circuit with a WSOP online domestic bracelet to his name from one year ago. He was involved in plenty of big pots thanks to his aggressive playing style, undeterred by the fact that this is his first event with such a high price tag. Lonis already has 10th and 9th place finishes in Freezeout tournaments during the 2023 WSOP and will be aiming to further improve on those finishing positions.

https://twitter.com/JesseLonis/status/1674980614628589569

Several PLO specialists remain in contention such as Elias Harala (6,575,000), James Park (4,325,000), Adam Hendrix (3,500,000) and Jonas Kronwitter (3,225,000).

Seat Assignments for the Final Day

Casino	Table	Seat	Player	Country	Chip Count	Big Blinds
Horseshoe	1	2	Danny Hannawa	United States	6,125,000	25
Horseshoe	1	3	Tyler Smith	United States	14,000,000	56
Horseshoe	1	4	Jonas Kronwitter	Germany	3,225,000	13
Horseshoe	1	5	Kabeelan Rajamurthy	Malaysia	5,400,000	22
Horseshoe	1	6	Anthony Marsico	United States	3,525,000	14
Horseshoe	1	8	James Park	United Kingdom	4,325,000	17

Horseshoe	2	1	Jesse Lonis	United States	8,650,000	35
Horseshoe	2	3	Ian Matakis	United States	2,150,000	9
Horseshoe	2	4	Isaac Haxton	United States	2,500,000	10
Horseshoe	2	7	Elias Harala	Finland	6,575,000	26
Horseshoe	2	8	Adam Hendrix	United States	3,500,000	14

The penultimate tournament day started with a short delay in order to accommodate all late entrants with all but one open seat getting sold. Some of those jumping in at the last minute barely lasted one full level with Eric Rabl and Gjergj Sinishtaj bowing out in the very first hand. Other big names such as Phil Hellmuth, Jason Koon, Erick Lindgren, Josh Arieh, and Bryce Yockey followed their path to the rail soon after.

Often involved in the action was Lonis, who notched up several knockouts along the way and was only overtaken by Smith on the final six tables. As the money bubble drew closer, several big names of the international poker scene all came short of a cash price including Shaun Deeb, Chance Kornuth, 2022 runner-up Dash Dudley, Day 1 chip leader Alex Foxen, and James Obst. The latter was ousted by Smith when the Aussie called off a river shove with two pair and the busted nut flush draw. [Removed:422] was eliminated by Danny Hannawa on the same table shortly after to let the bubble burst.

Sam Soverel was knocked out by Lonis in a large pot for a min-cash before a wild roller coaster ride on the final three tables for Lonis followed, after which he ultimately came out with a big stack once more.

Defending champion Robert Cowen fell in 20th place for $103,093 and Smith then won the biggest pot of the tournament so far when he rivered a flush against Aaron Katz, who received the same payout as Cowen.

Notables to bow out thereafter included Anton Morgenstern, Jared Bleznick, Krasimir Yankov, Matthew Wantman, and Eelis P?rssinen. This locked up a cash prize of at least $157,963 for all survivors and the top three finishers will earn seven-figure paydays with $2,303,017 reserved for the eventual champion.

The final 11 players will return to the side feature tables of the Horseshoe Event Center on Sunday, July 2nd, 2023, at 1 p.m. local time. Recommending blinds in level 25 will be 125,000-250,000 with a big blind ante of 250,000. One further redraw awaits with nine hopefuls remaining. All those still in contention by then will also receive an additional eight time eight time bank extensions.

Stay tuned right here on PokerNews for the conclusion of this record-setting $50,000 High Roller.