Georgios Skarparis has won the $1,000 Mini Main Event after beating a field of 6,076 to claim the $554,925 winners prize.
The former lawyer bagged his first WSOP bracelet and the lion’s share of the $5,361,840 prize pool with one of the rowdiest rails seen this summer.
Alexandre Barbaranelli was the man who pushed Skarparis until the very end, picking up a prize of $369,994 to more than quadruple his career earnings.
Final Action
Only five contenders returned for Day 3, with Kyle Williamson and Georgios Skarparis holding 80% of the chips between them.
Dirk Bruns of Germany started with the shortest stack and a failed double-up with ace-king against eights saw him heading to the door.
Incredibly, it was Kyle Williamson who busted out next.Tournament poker is known for dishing out harsh swings but this was a brutal downfall, although the career best $208,444 prize is a great result for an amateur.
Mikhail Zavoloka was by now running low on chips, and even a player with more than $1 million in winnings can do nothing if the cards don’t fall right.
A jam for a few big blinds was called by both of his rivals and then checked down to send the Russian home.
Alexandre Barbaranelli had high hopes for a comeback as heads-up play began but within only five hands it was all over as the players both hit a pair of aces with the Italian holding an inferior kicker.
Skarparis looked emotional as the bracelet was presented. We then heard how he made a promise to win a WSOP so he could dedicate it to a late friend lost in a car accident.
A great result for a player who is only in his fourth year as a professional with many commentators predicting many more days such as this one.
Event #78: $1,000 Mini Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Name | Country | Prize (USD) |
| 1 | Georgios Skarparis | Cyprus | $554,925 |
| 2 | Alexandre Barbaranelli | Italy | $369,994 |
| 3 | Mikhail Zavoloka | Russian Federation | $276,695 |
| 4 | Kyle Williamson | United States | $208,444 |
| 5 | Dirk Bruns | Germany | $158,191 |
| 6 | Joshua Prager | United States | $120,950 |
| 7 | Kaihung Hu | United States | $93,171 |
| 8 | Stefan Widmer | Switzerland | $72,316 |
| 9 | Hunter Frey | United States | $56,557 |
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