Raphael Francisquetti Triumphs at 2017 WPT Brasil

South America welcomed its first ever World Poker Tour event after the R$1,500 ($475) buy-in WPT Brasil was held at the Infinity Blue Resort & Spa in Camboriú. A total of 3,386 entries subsequently resulted in a prize pool of R$4,269,746 ($1,356,551), with the competition eventually won by Raphael Francisquetti for a R$781,546 ($248,306) payday.
Commenting upon the continent’s inaugural WPT tournament, Executive Tour Director Matt Savage, who was in Brazil to attend the event, commented upon the high level of excitement created by the tour, stating:
“Brazilian poker players have a passion for the game that is unmatched, and you can feel the excitement when you enter the room. It builds intensity until the final table is reached, when fans of the game come out and cheer on their friends and family chasing the dreams of a WPT title. WPT Brasil has been a truly incredible experience.”
By the time the final table of nine was reached, Francisquetti was out in front as the chip leader on a 66 bb stack, followed by Alex Gelinski (48bb), and Fernando Konishi (31), with these same players later making it all the way through to three-handed play. In the process, Francisquetti eliminated Faraz Jaka in 7th, and Valciz Mello in 5th, while Fernando Konishi took care of Alex Gelinski in 3rd to herald the start of heads-up play between the two players for the title.
The final battle may have started of with the two finalists even in chips, but Francisquetti was soon able to pull away to a 3:1 chip lead when the deciding hand was played with Konishi (J-7) reraising all-in preflop, only to be called by Francisquetti holding pocket jacks. The A-Q-4-9-2 board which ensued sealed the deal, and so Fernando Konishi finished the runner-up for $148,637, while Francisquetti was crowned the inaugural WPT Brazil champion.
Final Table Results (US$):
1: Raphael Francisquetti $247,321
2: Fernando Konishi $148,637
3: Alex Gelinski $97,404
4: Felipe Guimaraes $71,771
5: Valciz Mello $53,195
6: Kadu Rozzi $42,436
7: Faraz Jaka $33,196
8: Caio Maciel $27,151
9: Rhelton De Carvalho $21,139