Mark Checkwicz has won the inaugural $5K Seniors High Roller event, defeating his 679 rivals to bag the $573,876 winner’s cash prize.
The three-day event is the biggest ever run at the World Series of Poker for seniors and the hefty $5,000 buy-in wasn’t enough to put players off. The organisers were beaming at the support the tournament got to build a $3,128,000 prize pool.
Final Action
Ten players remained in the event when the action restarted, and only one of them would be denied the opportunity to grace a final table with their presence.
Judith Bielan was the unfortunate soul who missed out after taking her chance with ace-nine only to run into ace-jack. As quick as that it was all over for her.
Angela Jordison was the first to leave the final table stage after experiencing one of the most tumultuous runs of the event.
She ended Day 1 with a commanding lead until a run of misfortune saw her enter Day 3 in the bottom half of the field.
Richard Lowe was next after finding out his ace-ten was no good, taking home a $55,998 prize as consolation.
John Thornton then ran his pocket sixes into a larger pair but did pick up a career best score over his decade-long career.
Bruno Lopes, a Winamax ambassador, was the man to watch coming into the final table stage. With way more experience than his opponents, he must have felt this could be his moment, but, alas, tournaments rarely work out that way.
With no momentum or timely luck, the Frenchman found himself heading to the rail feeling there was just nothing happening on the day.
Samuel Wagner busted out in fifth place after a three-hour period which saw much more cagey play as the pay jumps became more significant.
With a career winnings total of only $6,072, we assume the $135,543 he walked away with was ample compensation.
Kevin Nathan was the only bracelet winner to make the final table, having won a $1,500 No Limit Hold’em event in 2006. But it was close and no cigar for the American as Arie Klipner’s pocket queens were enough to send him out.
Michael Vela followed Nathan to the rail almost immediately with Checkwicz’s top pair fading the straight draw of his opponent.
Kliper and Checkwicz then treated the fans to an epic heads-up duel which lasted almost two hours.
Unlike some of the other two-handed battles we’ve seen so far, this one was more circumspect with the players trading small pots.
This style of play seemed to suit Checkwicz more than his opponent, and before long he ground Kliper down and sealed the win.
Checkwicz was ecstatic with the result but told reporters that he would be leaving Las Vegas soon to receive a visit from his daughter in Los Angeles.
Event #65: $5,000 Seniors High Roller No-Limit Hold’em Final Table Results
| Place | Name | Country | Prize (USD) |
| 1 | Mark Checkwicz | United States | $573,876 |
| 2 | Arie Kliper | Israel | $382,581 |
| 3 | Michael Vela | United States | $266,257 |
| 4 | Kevin Nathan | United States | $188,385 |
| 5 | Samuel Wagner | United States | $135,543 |
| 6 | Bruno Lopes | France | $99,203 |
| 7 | John Thornton | United States | $73,877 |
| 8 | Richard Lowe | United States | $55,998 |
| 9 | Angela Jordison | United States | $43,216 |
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