Matt Salsberg Triumphs at Commerce Casino for $175k

The 2017 California State Poker Championship was held at the Commerce Casino in Los Angeles, with a total of 1,119 players entering its $1,100 Main Event. Two days later, and it was Matt Salsberg who would eventually overcome the field, including Fredrick Arni heads-up, to clinch the title, and a first place prize of $174,870. Salsberg also received a $10,000 L.A. Poker Classic seat as part of his winner’s package.
Following his latest triumph, the US pro now boasts $2,422,862 in live earnings, with his biggest score recorded in 2012 after taking down the €7,500 WPT Rendez-Vous à Paris main event for €380,000 ($478,415). That proved to be his most lucrative year to date with $711,599 in winnings, followed by 2013 ($450,234), 2014 ($434,080), and 2016 ($302,012).
Day 2 of the $1,100 Main Event saw 50 players return to the arena, and amongst the notable pros finishing in a money spot was David Pham, Thayer Rasmussen, Mike Shariati and Billy Baxter. Los Angeles pro Eddy Sabat then entered the final table in pole position, with female player Saya Ono also in command of one the bigger stacks at the table. However, she subsequently went bust in 9th after her flush draw and two overcards failed to improve against Fredrick Arni’s flopped trips, with Arni (A-K) following up the elimination by sending John Hulett (A-Q) to the rail in 8th.
Next, Matt Salsberg woke up with Ah-Kh and after a raising war went all-in against Thomas Zanot, who unfortunately for Salsberg had been dealt As-Ad. The 9h-8c-6h-3h-x board, however, saw Zanot exit in 7th, after which Salsberg (Q-10) also took care of Douglas Lada in 6th. Thu Nguyen (Q-10) then entered the fray by knocking out Eddy Sabat in 5th, before Fredrick Arni eliminated Delmero Toledo in 4th, and Thu Nguyen in 3rd to usher in heads-up play against Salsberg for the title.
At this point the duo agreed a money deal, as reflected in their final table payouts, and soon after Salsberg managed to finish off his last opponent to claim the title.
Final Table Results:
1: Matt Salsberg $174,870
2: Fredrick Arni $160,000
3: Thu Nguyen $85,720
4: Delmero Toledo $58,040
5: Eddy Sabat $44,610
6: Douglas Lada $37,040
7: Thomas Zanot $31,040
8: John Hulett $25,020
9: Saya Ono $19,020