Czech Pro Tomas Junek Wins WSOP $1,500 NLHE
July 5, 2012 12:48 pmCzech player Tomas Junek has won Event #56: $1,500 NLHE, after besting a field of 2,798 players on his way to collecting a gold bracelet and the $661,022 first place prize.
The 23 year old online pro had rarely played live tournaments leading up to his remarkable win in Las Vegas, and had just one tournament cash to his name for $3,195. Despite the more punishing schedules associated with live tournaments, it would seem Junek’s latest $661,022 score might provide the incentive he needs to make the adjustments necessary for the live circuit, and as he explains:
“I feel really great, but on the other hand I am very tired. It is so difficult to me to play for three days the best I can and focus…I don’t have many cashes in live tournaments, but I think after this success I will play live tournaments a little bit more.”
On his way to the final table, Tomas Junek had to first overcome a tough field laden with many top pros. Notable names cashing in at the event include Jennifer Tilly in 205th ($3,324), Jeff Madsen in 199th ($3,324), Maria Ho in 169th ($3,702), Daniel Negreanu in 104th ($4,155), Marco Traniello in 52nd ($10,388), Will Failla in 20th ($18.924) and Sam Holden in 16th ($23,608).
At the final table of nine, Tomas Junek then managed a much needed double-up having three-bet all-in with A-10 against the Ad-Kd of Donald Vogel with a 10 appearing on the river. As the table played down, David Borg (9-9) eliminated Peter Eastgate (Qh-Jh) in 4th ($209,111), while Junek (A-Q) dispatched Vogel (A-5) in 3rd ($289,530) to get heads-up play underway.
At this stage, Tomas Junek held a 2 to 1 chip advantage over Australia’s David Borg and managed to extend his lead further before the final hand saw Borg (Ks-5s) all-in and up against pocket tens. Subsequently, the board ran out 2-5-4-A-6 to relegate David Borg to a runner-up finish worth $410,517, while Tomas Junek picked-up a prestigious WSOP bracelet.
The final table payouts were as follows:
1. Tomas Junek – $661,022
2. David Borg – $410,517
3. Donald Vogel – $289,530
4. Peter Eastgate – $209,111
5. Eliyahu Levy – $152,867
6. Andrew Taylor – $113,092
7. Steven Goldberg – $84,649
8. Tomas Trampota – $64,101
9. Bassel Moussa – $49,105