China’s Lei Yu has taken down the WSOP Paradise $5,000 Deepstack NL Hold’em event after coming perilously close to being knocked out on the final day.
A total of 363 entrants built a prize pool of $1,815,000 with $293,050 going to the winner.
The 38-year-old is a member of the famed Red Dragon Poker Team who only recently went past the $1 million career earnings mark.
Yu told reporters that he’d been playing poker for many years and didn’t have any plans for the boost to his bankroll, but the bracelet is all that matters to him, right now.
Action Recap
Argentina’s Ezequiel Kleinman left the final table first after his top pair came unstuck against the set of deuces of Blaz Zerjav. A turned flush draw gave some hope but it never arrived.
Yu then dealt with Archibald Seaton shortly before Zerjav got his second scalp, knocking out Gleb Tremzin.
Bulgaria’s Fahredin Mustafovhad a good run and made a move to jump up the pay scale with an all-in shove hoping for his double gutshot to come in. It didn’t and we were down to the final five.
Bruno Volkmann was on course for a much-needed double up with ace-six versus the ace-five of Vlad Darie, but a five on the flop was enough to send him home.
Darie didn’t make good use of his unexpected increase in chips. An over-aggressive move with king-queen pre-flop saw him run head first into Rokas Asipauskas’ ace-king.
Darie was the only former bracelet winner in the event, guaranteeing a new champion would be crowned for six times in a row.
Zerjav and Asipauskas now had to duel with each other to prevent Yu from disappearing into the distance.
In a key hand, Zerjav raised to 400,000 on the button with 10♦ 9♦ and Rokas Asipauskas defended with K♣ Q♥ in the big blind.
Asipauskas called a bet of 300,000 from Zerjev and checked the 8♠ turn. Zerjav bet 1.2 million and the Lithuanian called after a long think.
Zerjav jammed the river with his straight and Asipauskas called it off with his top two pair.
The Slovenian entered the heads-up phase with a two-to-one advantage and soon had a chance to end it.
Yu seized the chip lead and Zerjav reclaimed it back. Zerjav then needed only one card to grab the win but instead we saw Yu doubling up into a lead he would never relinquish.
Yu sealed the win with pocket aces when Zerjav’s top pair and an open-ended straight draw came to nought.
WSOP Paradise $5K Deepstack NL Hold’em Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize (USD) |
| 1 | Lei Yu | China | $293,050 |
| 2 | Blaz Zerjav | Slovenia | $225,720 |
| 3 | Rokas Asipauskas | Lithuania | $174,050 |
| 4 | Vlad Darie | Romania | $134,210 |
| 5 | Bruno Volkmann | Brazil | $103,490 |
| 6 | Fahredin Mustafov | Bulgaria | $79,800 |
| 7 | Gleb Tremzin | Russia | $61,530 |
| 8 | Archibald Seaton | United Kingdom | $47,450 |
| 9 | Ezequiel Kleinman | Argentina | $36,590 |
- Get the best rakeback deals
- See the best poker promotions
- View the latest poker news
- Get the best No Deposit Poker Bonuses
- Benefit from the biggest poker bonus
- Calculate your rakeback with the rakeback calculator
Terms and conditions apply. New customer offer and 18+ only. Should you require help regarding your betting pattern, please visit www.begambleaware.org
