2016 WSOP Recaps for Events 26-40

Jason Mercier took the 2016 WSOP by storm early on with two bracelet wins. But now we have a couple more multi-bracelet winners to report. See who they are as we recap Events 26-40 and discuss the most-recent winners.

Event #26: Benny Glaser Wins Another Bracelet in $1,500 Omaha Split Hi-Lo

Last year, Benny Glaser won his first gold bracelet in a 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball event. Now, the Brit has added his second bracelet in two years after taking down this $1,500 Omaha Split Hi-Lo tourney. Glaser played through a 934-player field and on towards the $244,103 top prize. This was also the UK’s first bracelet of the summer.

Event #27: Johnnie Craig Wins Biggest $1k Seniors Championship Ever

The Seniors Hold’em Championship has been steadily growing every year, and it’s peaked at 4,499 entries in 2016. Johnnie Craig, a retired US army vet, who now owns a restaurant, battled through this massive field to earn the $541,708 top prize. Afterward, Craig said that he honed his poker skills by reading books and attending poker boot camps.

Event #28: Ian Johns Grabs Second Bracelet of 2016 WSOP

Up to this point, Jason Mercier was the only player to have won two bracelets in the 2016 WSOP. But Ian Johns changed this by winning a $10,000 Limit Hold’em event along with $290,635. John’s other bracelet came in the Event #8 $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. tournament.

Event #29: Alexander Zishkin Holds Off Rally to Win $1,500 NLHE

It looked like Alexander Zishkin would cruise towards his first gold bracelet when his heads-up match with Jems Grieme began. After all, his German opponent was down to just a single chip. But Grieme mounted a furious comeback that even saw him take the lead. Zishkin would regain his composure, though, and come back to beat Grieme and win the $401,494 top prize.

Event #30: Viatcheslav Ortynskiy Wins Russia’s First Bracelet in $3k Six-Handed PLO

Appearing on his fourth-career WSOP final table, Viatcheslav Ortynskiy was able to grab his first-career gold bracelet and $344,327. Ortynskiy battled through a 580-player field to win the first bracelet of the summer for Russia.

Event #31: James Moore Takes Down $1k Super Seniors Hold’em

James Moore triumphed over a field of 1,476 players to win the Super Seniors Hold’em event along with $230,626. A medical physician and radiologist, Moore had multiple moments where it looked like he would bow out of the tourney. But the 65-year-old stayed strong every time and ended up winning.

Event #32: Glaser Wins Again in $10k Omaha Hi-Lo Split

Benny Glaser is having quite a run this summer, adding another bracelet in this $10k Omaha Hi-Lo Split event. Glaser beat a 163-player field to win the $407,194 top prize along with his third-career bracelet. “It’s surprising that I would win two gold bracelets, at all,” Glaser said afterward. “But if I was going to win, it would have been in this game since this is my best game and the one I have played the most online.”

Event #33: Spain’s Adrian Mateos Wins $1.5k Summer Solstice

Adrian Mateos made his mark on the poker world three years ago, winning the 2013 WSOP Europe Main Event and a $1 million payout. The winning hasn’t stopped for the Spaniard since he added another victory in the 2015 EPT Grand Final ($1.2m). Mateos has won yet again, battling through this 1,840-player Summer Solstice field to win $409,171. On a side note, the Summer Solstice tourney gets its name because it takes place over the longest days of the year.

Event #34: Andrey Ziachenko Grabs First Bracelet in 9 Years

Russian poker player Andrey Ziachenko has been attending the WSOP for nine years. And despite previously making 4 final tables, he’d failed to win a bracelet. That changed in this $1,500 Triple Draw Lowball event, though, as the Russian battled through a 358-player field to win the $117,947 top prize. A sales and marketing director at a Moscow business, Ziachenko plays plenty of poker on the side, and it shows.

Event #35: Michael Gathy Wins Third-Career Bracelet in $5k Six-Handed NLHE

Belgium’s Michael Gathy first made a splash at the WSOP by winning bracelets in 2012 ($1k NLHE) and 2013 ($1k Turbo NLHE). Now, three years later, he’s added a third gold bracelet by winning this $5,000 Six-Handed NL Hold’em event. Gathy’s prize is $560,843, and he ties countryman Davidi Kitai for the most bracelets by a Belgian.

Event #36: Hani Awad Takes Down $2.5k Mixed Omaha/Seven Card Stud

Hailing from Nazareth, Israel, and currently living in Las Vegas, Hani Awad triumphed over this 394-player field to win a $213,186 payout. Afterward, the taxi cab company owner said he could care less about the payout. “This means everything. I don’t even care about the money,” said Awad. “I just wanted to win the gold bracelet.”

Event #37: Jiaqi Xu Becomes Champion in $1.5k PLO

Prior to the final day of Event #37, Jiaqi Xu listened to Queen’s “We Are the Champions” to pump himself up. It worked like a charm because the Washington DC-area player won this $1,500 PLO event along with $212,128. “The cards fell my way at the right time,” said Xu. “I knew that if I could get deep I would have a chance and things went right for me.”

Event #38: Lebron Wins $3k Six-Handed Limit Hold’em

Perhaps inspired by LeBron James’ recent win in the 2016 NBA Finals, Rafael Lebron claimed victory in this six-handed Limit Hold’em tourney along with $169,337. A Washington state amateur player, Lebron said that he might have been the “worst player at the (final) table,” but luck hit him at the right time.

Event #39: Martin Kozlov Wins $10k Six-Handed NLHE

Australia’s Martin Kozlov emerged victorious over a 294-player, six-handed NLHE field to win $665,709. He had to survive a final table that included Kitai (2nd, $411k), Justin Bonomo (3rd, $272k), Chris Ferguson (4th, $184k), and Vanessa Selbst (9th, $50k).

Event #40: Chris Vitch Takes Down $2.5k Mixed Triple Draw Lowball

Up until last year, Arizona poker pro Christopher Vitch mainly came to the WSOP to play in the cash games. But he claims to have “been bitten by the bug” and started playing more tournaments. It’s a good thing for Vitch since he won this $2.5k Mixed Triple Draw Lowball event and $136,854.