Cassidy Battikha Claims LIVE Grand Prix Canada Title

Latest stop on the partypoker LIVE Grand Prix Canada was the Playground Poker Club in Montreal, with an impressive 2,570 players paying its CAD$14,000 entrance fee to create a prize pool which exceeded the events CAD$500,000 guarantee. Following three days of action, the tournament was eventually won by Cassidy Battikha, who collected the title, and $84,050 for his winning performance.
Another feature of the LIVE Grand Prix Canada was that the first 100 online qualifiers for the event received a Golden Chip, with CAD$20,000 subsequently earmarked for the player who could last the longest. By the time the final table was reached on Day 3, two players were still in the race, namely Kevin Zeidler and top Canadian pro Mike Leah.
Leah (A-3) then proceeded to eliminate Dilovan Hussein (J-10) in 8th, while not to be outdone, Kevin Zeidler (K-K) took care of Emmanuel Kyrkinis (6-6) in 7th.
Playground Poker Club regular Cassidy Battikha (K-K) then entered the fray by ousting Shahar Ohaion (A-K) from the competition in 6th, before Leah (A-K) took care of a short-stacked Leandre St-Laurent (A-4) in 5th.
Not long after, however, Leah subsequently lost his Golden Chip race with Zeidler after Cassidy Battikha busted him in 4th, leaving the remining three players to agree a deal in which Battikha and Karim Abdelhamid locked up at least CAD$62,500 apiece, and Kevin Zeidler CAD$53,450, not including his CAD$20,000 award, with a further CAD$20,000 left for the ultimate champion.
Despite Abdelhamid subsequently finding himself reduced to just 10bbs, it was Zeidler (Jh-9h) who exited next after he and Battikha (Ah-2h) went all-in on a Js-8h-Qh flop, with a 4c and As then dealt on turn and river. Needless to say, the heads-up battle proved a quick affair, with Battikha’s J-8 beating his opponent’s Q-9 to clinch the victory, and the biggest poker score of his career.
Final Table Results:
1: Cassidy Battikha $84,050
2: Karim Abdelhamid $62,500
3: Kevin Zeidler $53,450 (+$20k)
4: Mike Leah $25,000
5: Leandre St-Laurent $14,580
6: Shahar Ohaion $10,000
7: Emmanuel Kyrkinis $7,500
8: Dilovan Hussein $6,000
9: Kyle Chang $5,000