Andy Bloch Wins WSOP Bracelet At $1,500 Seven-Card Stud Event

Having reached ten WSOP final tables, Andy Bloch has finally captured his first ever WSOP bracelet after taking down the $1,500 Seven Card Stud event in Las Vegas over the weekend. Bloch started his poker career back in 1993 and following his much deserved victory,  joked:
“It’s only been 18 years. Looking back on those events, I felt like I played pretty well and I had a chance to win and the cards just didn’t come. It’s much easier to deal with coming in second when you did everything you pretty much could do.”
The 43-year-old had to overcome a field of 367 competitors and a tough final table, which included David Williams and Barry Greenstein, on his way to clinching the tournament, and its $126,363 first place prize.
By the time the eight man final table had reached four handed play, Bloch, Greenstein, Williams and Stephen Su were all fairly even in chips and finely poised to make a run for the title. Su then eliminated Williams in 4th ($36,470), before Bloch subsequently sent him to the rail in 3rd ($50,332), thus ushering in the heads-up play between himself and three times bracelet holder Barry Greenstein.
Starting out with a 4 to 1 chip advantage, Andy Bloch then improved to a 10 to 1 chip lead before the final hand was played. Despite Bloch making two pair by 5th street, he was still behind Greenstein’s made straight. Nonetheless, two running cards completed Bloch’s higher straight to ensure his long awaited WSOP victory.
Commenting on his success at the seven-card stud event, Bloch said: “I’m not really too surprised. I began my casino poker career at Foxwoods back east, where stud was king. The big games were all stud, so I played a lot of seven-card stud over the years.”
The final table payouts were as follows:
1. Andy Bloch – $126,363
2. Barry Greenstein – $78,038
3. Stephen Su – $50,332
4. David Williams – $36,470
5. Huu Vinh – $26, 813
6. Lee Goldman – $20,001
7. Caroline Hermesh – $15,135
8. Scott Abrams – $11,618