2016 WSOP Recaps for Events 11-25

Jason Mercier has taken center stage at the 2016 WSOP after grabbing two gold bracelet wins. What’s more is that Mercier has a bunch of prop bets going that he’s either won, or stands to win with a third bracelet. See this story below along with a recap of WSOP events 11-25.

Event #11: Pro Basketball Player Wins $10k Dealer’s Choice

Long before he was a poker player, Jean Gaspard was a pro basketball player who spent time in Europe. Gaspard would even receive an invite to the Chicago Bulls’ training camp, although he didn’t make the team. That’s alright with the Haitian-born poker player, though, because he now has his first gold bracelet after topping a 118-player field in this $10k Dealer’s Choice event. Gaspard also added another $306,621 to his career tournament winnings of over $2.2 million.

Event #12: $565 PL Omaha is Biggest PLO Tourney Ever

We’ve seen plenty of records broken at the WSOP, and now we can add the largest PLO tournament ever to the list. 2,483 players turned out for this event, and Ryan LaPlant topped the field to win his first bracelet along with $190,328.

Event #13: Rep Porter Wins Third Bracelet in $1.5k Seven Card Razz

Ralph ‘Rep’ Porter has been around the poker world quite a while, making his first cash in 2003. Now, 13 years later, Porter lays claim to three-career gold bracelets after winning this $1,500 Seven Card Razz tourney. He also has over $3 million in career winnings after earning the $142,624 top prize in this event. Daniel Negreanu came close to winning his seventh bracelet, but he settled for fourth place and $42,030.

Event #14: Jason DeWitt Beats 7,190-Player Field to win Millionaire Maker

The Millionaire Maker was once again a big hit this year, drawing 7,190 players while promising two guaranteed $1 million payouts. Jason DeWitt topped this huge field to collect $1,065,403 and his second gold bracelet. Second-place Garrett Greer also won big with a $1 million score. But the biggest story was Lisa Meredith, a kindergarten teacher who took third place and $500k in her first-ever WSOP tournament.

Event #15: Paul Volpe Gets Second Bracelet in $1.5k Eight Game Mix

Paul Volpe won his second-career gold bracelet and $149,943 after beating out 490 opponents. This brings Volpe’s career winnings up to almost $5 million.

Event #16: Jason Mercier Wins $1.5k HORSE and Prop Bets

Before the 2016 WSOP, Jason Mercier took prop bets at 3:1 odds on winning a gold bracelet this summer. He cashed in on all these bets after winning the $1,500 HORSE event along with $273,335. Aside from the prize money and winning prop bets, Mercier also collected his fourth-career bracelet.

Event #17: Chase Bianchi Takes Down $1k NLHE

Traveling from Maryland, amateur player Chase Bianchi topped a 2,422-player field in this $1,000 NL Hold’em event to earn $316,920. After the win, Bianchi said that he plans on doing some upgrades to his home in Maryland.

Event #18: Marco Johnson Grabs Second Bracelet in $3,000 HORSE

Three years after winning his first gold bracelet in the 2013 WSOP, Marco Johnson added another bracelet in this $3,000 HORSE event. Johnson topped a 400-player field to win Event #18 along with $259,700. On a side note, Phil Hellmuth picked up his record-116th cash by finishing 45th.

Event #19: Soverel Continues Good Year with $1k PLO Win

Prior to the 2016 WSOP, Sam Soverel was already having an outstanding year, with two WPT final table finishes and an Aria high roller win ($309,400). But things keep getting better for him since Soverel topped a 1,106-player field in this $1k PLO event to win $185,317 and his first bracelet.

Event #20: Ray Dehkarghani Beats Mercier to Win $10k Razz Championship

The big story here as the 100-player Razz Championship thinned out was Jason Mercier chasing his second bracelet. Mercier would come close, but he lost a heads-up match with Ray Dehkarghani in the end. Dehkarghani picked up a $273,338 payout for first while Mercier earned $168,936 for second place.

Event #21: Calvin Lee Wins $3k Six-Handed NLHE

Calvin Lee, who spends most of his time playing big cash games in Macau and Las Vegas, took some time out to play in the 2016 WSOP. And Lee made a great decision since he topped a 1,029-player field in this Event #21 to win $531,577.

Event #22: Danny Le Wins $1.5k Limit Hold’em

Vietnamese-born poker player and businessman Danny Le beat a 665-player field to win this $1,500 Limit Hold’em event along with $188,815. After the win, an elated Le said that he’s going on a vacation to Cancun, Mexico.

Event #23: Spain’s Cesar Garcia Beats International Field in $2k NLHE

A number of international players found their way towards the top of the Event #23 $2,000 NL Hold’em tournament. Spain’s Cesar Garcia was the big winner here as he picked up $447,739 for beating the 1,419-player field. Bulgaria’s Viliyan Petleshkov (2nd, $276,660), Ireland’s Yuriy Boyko (3rd, $198,185), the Ukraine’s Kamel Mokhammad (5th, $105,253), the UK’s Craig McCorkell (6th, $78,053), and Brazil’s Thiago Nishijima (8th, $44,478) all had strong showings too.

Event #24: Mercier Earns Second Bracelet in $10k HORSE Championship

Just eight events after winning his first bracelet of the series, Jason Mercier got another one in the $10,000 HORSE Championship. The 30-year-old beat out a 171-player field to earn $422,874 and his fifth-career bracelet. Obviously winning two bracelets in the same WSOP is an incredible accomplishment, but this sets up an even better storyline. If Mercier wins a third bracelet this summer, he’ll also win a prop bet with Vanessa Selbst, where he risked $10,000 to win $1.8 million.

Event #25: Michael Gagliano Wins $2.5k NLHE

Former teacher and current poker pro Michael Gagliano beat out a 1,045-player field in this $2,500 NL Hold’em event to win $448,463. Gagliano, who’s sponsored by the Borgata poker site in New Jersey, has been grinding and working as a poker instructor for a few years. With this $448k boost, Gagliano should be able to take his poker career further.