WSOP 2015: Phil Galfond Wins 2nd Career Gold Bracelet

Phil Galfond is not only one of online cash poker’s most successful players with more than $8 million in winnings, but the 30 year-old pro is also a prolific tournament player with $2,303,737 in live cashes. Of that total, $224,383 came recently from his winning performance at WSOP Event #29: $10k 2-7 Draw Lowball No-Limit Championship, which he eventually took down to claim a second career gold bracelet. Following his remarkable performance, Galfond commented:
“I’ve played for cash game pots the size of first place. This feels a lot bigger and I think it’s because of this stage and the bracelet. It’s more meaningful than cash games.”
Although just 77 players entered the tournament to create a prize pool worth $723,800, Galfond’s victory was all the more impressive considering the incredibly tough field the 2-7 Draw Lowball No-Limit variant attracted. Amongst the 14 players receiving a return on their $10k investment was such notable pros as Ralph Porter in 14th ($14,693), Michael Watson in 12th ($14,693), George Danzer in 10th ($17,067), and Jorryt van Hoof in 9th ($17,067), while the final table of seven also featured some of the best players in the game.
After outlasting such pros as Eli Elezra (6th), Erik Seidel (4th), and Dan Smith (3rd), Phil Galfond would eventually face 2-times WSOP bracelet winner Nick Schulman for the title, with the latter holding a 3-1 chip advantage over Galfond. Nevertheless, the 30 year-old pro was soon able to overcome the deficit to prevent Schulman winning this WSOP event for a third time, and later heaping praise upon his opponents, Galfond said:
“It means a lot. Especially in a field this tough, and a table this tough. I have a ton of respect for all of my opponents. I knew Nick was going to be extremely tough. I managed to run really good. I play tournaments to try and do this and it’s been seven years since I won one so I’m pretty happy.”
Final Table Results
1 Phil Galfond $224,383
2 Nick Schulman $138,665
3 Dan Smith $87,898
4 Erik Seidel $59,532
5 Jon Turner $42,298
6 Eli Elezra $31,463
7 Adam Owen $24,457