Leon Tsoukernik has won the €100,000 Short Deck Super High Roller after defeating Phil Ivey heads-up. Ivey threw away a chip lead of 8-1 as his year goes from bad to worse.
Tsoukernik was clearly overjoyed at beating one of his idols and collected his second best career prize of €1,102,000.
Beating Phil Ivey Heads-Up
Dusk Till Dawn Casino and Card Room owner Rob Yong pulled Tsoukernik to one side afterwards for a glass of wine and a brief chat. When asked how it felt to beat Phil Ivey heads-up Tsoukernik said,
“When we start to play on the final table I came to Phil Ivey and I said,’My dream is going to be heads up with you. Doesn’t matter if you win or I win.’”
Yong pressed further and enquired if there was no way that he would do a deal. The reply was probably the same as what most of us would think.
“No, no. For what? It was with Phil Ivey. How can you make a deal with Phil Ivey? You need to beat him properly.”
And beat him he certainly did. Ivey was also reported to have been a perfect gentleman in defeat. This was only the 15th time that Ivey has been beaten heads-up in a live tournament ever, making it a great achievement for Tsoukernik.
Unfortunately for him, this was not a WSOP gold bracelet event, but the seven-figure prize, and accolade of beating an all-time great, will probably be enough.
Tonight, @PokerroomKings owner, Leon Tsoukernik is probably the happiest poker player on the planet after defeating his hero @philivey HU to win €1.1M in the €100K Shortdeck @WSOP Europe. Having a glass of wine 🍷 & got him to day a few words… pic.twitter.com/JI54HF0Rxd
— Rob Yong (@rob_yong_) October 20, 2019
€100K Super High Roller
The event, unsurprisingly, only attracted 14 players with 15 further rebuys. This made a prize pool of €2,755,000.
Phil Ivey was on a rampage during the late stages. American Ben Lamb was the guy who dipped out on the bubble. With only four places paid competition was always going to be tough, and Ivey knocked out three in a row.
Cary Katz, another American, was next to leave, but at least he picked up €275,500 for a min cash.
Triton Poker Series founder Paul Phua was also soon heading to the door. The Malaysian businessman handing over his remaining chips to Ivey.
Following these three knockouts, Phil Ivey went into the heads-up stage with a huge chip lead. Alas, there didn’t seem to be anything he could do to control Tsoukernik. Three speedy double ups swiftly turned the tables and Tsoukernik was heading full speed to victory.
The end came when Tsoukernik’s top set got all the chips in against Ivey’s top pair on a king high dry board. It was just one of those days.
Erm yeah almost crying 🏌️♂️
— Rob Yong (@rob_yong_) October 20, 2019
Payouts WSOP Europe 100K Short Deck
| Place | Winner | Country | Prize (in EUR) | Prize (in USD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leon Tsoukernik | Czech Republic | €1,102,000 | $1,223,220 |
| 2 | Phil Ivey | United States | €826,500 | $917,415 |
| 3 | Paul Phua | Malaysia | €551,000 | $611,610 |
| 4 | Cary Katz | United States | €275,500 | $305,805 |
Can Phil Ivey Pull Himself Out of This Rut?
Phil Ivey’s troubles have been well documented over the last couple of years. From the edge sorting scandal to divorce and the sale of his Las Vegas Mansion. It’s been tough, no doubt about it.
There has also been plenty of speculation regarding Ivey’s financial status. We know for certain that Dan ‘Jungleman’ Cates is involved in staking Ivey for some high roller events. How busto is he?
Ivey is a popular figure in the community and most will be happy to see him pull himself out of this rut he seems to be in.
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