Ren Lin had already proven himself to be an experienced poker player before entering the World Poker Tour (WPT) Alpha8 tournament with a buy-in of $50,000. But now he can add his first seven-figure sum to his The Hendon Mob CV.
The Chinese pro beat a field of 69 players to win $1,045,781 at Wynn Las Vegas on Thursday. He beat the big guys Jason Koon Heads-up at the end, along with a star-studded field full of some of the best players in the world.
WPT Alpha8 final table results
| rank | player | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ren Lin | $1,045,781 |
| 2 | Jason Koon | $669,300 |
| 3 | Martin Kabrhel | $468,510 |
| 4 | Biao Ding | $334,650 |
| 5 | Seth Davies | $249,314 |
| 6 | Nikita Kuznetsov | $192,424 |
Final Table Action
As day 2 began on Thursday, Seth Davies had a slight chip lead over some others as there were 13 players left. Lin, who was in the middle of the field, was just waiting for the right time to run.
Only nine of the players who returned to Wynn would be paid. Since there are 10 players left, Alex Foxen went all-in with his last 10 big blinds 9X9X and was looked up by Lin, who had done it QX4X and was clearly behind. A river queen sent Foxen onto the rail on the stone bubble.
Justin Bonomo Next came (ninth place for $108,761), followed by Isaac Haxton (eighth place for $125,494) and Brad Owen (seventh place for $152,266).
The official final table then began Martin Kabrhel in the chip lead, but no one had more than 37 big blinds. Lin had less than 20 big blinds and needed to make something happen quickly.
Nikita Kuznetsov lost 60/40 to Kabrhel and was eliminated in sixth place ($192,424), and then Davies was all-in A♦8th♦ against that 9♥9♣ from Biao Ding. Davies flopped a flush draw, but his opponent turned a full house and he was in fifth place with $249,314.
However, Ding lost a race to Lin shortly afterwards and was in fourth place ($334,650). At the start of the three-handed game, Koon held the chip lead, but at that point it was anyone’s game. From now on, the cards would largely determine the outcome.
Koon would continue to move forward, but then Lin caught Kabrhel bluffing and took the chip lead, leaving Kabrhel with less than 10 big blinds. Shortly after, he was eliminated in third place for $468,510, less than half of what he lost this week in the $1 million buy-in WPT Big One for One Drop.
The game at the start of heads-up play was almost even, with Lin slightly in the lead. He briefly gave up the lead, but then quickly regained it and ended the game with an all-in call A♠2♥ against Koons J♦9♣. The board was empty Q♥5♣2♠7♥10♦ and Koon took second place for $669,300.
This means Ren Lin is the WPT Alpha8 champion, which earned him $1,045,781.
*Image courtesy of the World Poker Tour.
