NAPT Mohegan Sun 2011 Won By Vanessa Selbst
April 14, 2011 8:36 amVanessa Selbst has just triumphed at the NAPT Mohegan Sun Main Event, and what makes her latest victory so stunning is the fact she won the exact same event only a year earlier.
This time around Vanessa Selbst had to overcome a field of 387 players over five days on her way to lifting the title, and collecting the $450,000 first place prize.
With her latest victory, Selbst, who currently sits in second place on the ‘Woman’s All Time Money List,’ has now taken her live tournament earnings to an impressive $4,562,979
After winning the $5,000 buy-in event in Connecticut, a jubilant Selbst commented: “I didn’t win this in my typical fashion. I didn’t steamroll the table. I had some luck on my side and I played a pretty good heads up game against a formidable opponent.”
Vanessa Selbst started the final table as the second biggest stack and soon acquired more chips after eliminating Aaron Overton in 7th ($50,000). Overton had moved all-in from the small blind with Kh-Qd but was called by Selbst on the big blind with Ah-2h, with the board eventually running out A-10-6-3-5.
However, Selbst later lost a massive pot holding pocket sevens to Dan Shak’s Ad-6h to become the short stack at the table, before then managing to battle back and double up through Rubianes.
Now down to three players, Selbst looked sure to be eliminated in third spot after drawing slim holding A-5 to a big-stacked Shak with A-K. However, a 5 on the flop salvaged her tournament and after Shak later retrieved some chips by eliminating Tyler Kenney in 3rd ($170,000), Selbst and Dan Shak then went heads-up for the title.
Despite a 3 to 1 chip disadvantage, Selbst managed to reverse the roles quickly after being dealt pocket kings to Shak’s K-Q. An A-K-2 flop saw all the chips going in and Selbst doubling up.
Two and a half hours later, Shak got his remaining chips in holding J-7 on a K-7-3 flop only to run into Selbst’s K-7. With no relief on the turn or river, Dan Shak had to content himself with a runner-up finish worth $254,000, while Vanessa Selbst was crowned the NAPT Mohegan Sun Champion for the second year in a row.