- Joey Weissman won the first-ever BetMGM Poker Championship $3,500 Main Event.
- Weissman defeated Paul Hoefer heads-up to take home the $224,236 winner’s prize.
- Online qualifier Benji Felson finished 5th and won over $51,000 after an investment of $100 to enter the online tournament in New Jersey.
Joey Weissman won the inaugural BetMGM Poker Championship $3,500 Main Event at the Aria Resort and Casino.
The four-day BetMGM Poker Championship Main Event drew 343 players to generate just under $1.1 million in total prize money to surpass the guarantee of $1 million. Weissman walked away with the big chunk of the pot money.
The WSOP bracelet holder won the final hand when Paul Hoefer went all-in on a king-deuce versus Weissman’s ace-four. With the ace on the river, Weissman was the last man sitting and the first-ever winner of the event.
Weissman Collects $224,236 for the win.
Joey Weissman (@JoeyWeissman) is the inaugural @BetMGMPoker $3,500 Main Event champion!
Weissman steamrolled the final table after coming in with the chip lead. He collects $224,236 for his victory.
⏯️ – A replay of the event is available now: https://t.co/HcwIdPK9my pic.twitter.com/mPkUJGK411
— PokerGO (@PokerGO) June 27, 2022
The win was Weissman’s first and fourth final table finish of the year. He was awarded 720 points for Card Player of the Year for the victory. He now has a total of 1,346 points and sits in 118th place in the 2022 Global Poker Player of the Year race.
By winning the tournament, Weissman took home the top prize of $224,236 which represents the third-biggest career score, behind only his WSOP bracelet which was worth $694,609, and a second-place finish in a Wynn Spring Classic event in 2021 which netted him $230,090. It also pushed Weissman’s career live tournament earnings to $4.3 million.
Benji Felson Places 5th
Benji Felson places in 5th and takes home just over $50,000, his biggest live tournament score to date.
Felson had a good run & was the last man standing out of all the online qualifiers. 🙌 pic.twitter.com/7G4hKrELd8
— BetMGM Poker (@BetMGMPoker) June 27, 2022
The tournament’s Top 44 players got a share of the pot money. Among them was Benji Felson who was one of the 68 players who qualified through online tournaments held in Michigan, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Felson placed 5th and ended up with $51,587 in winnings, his biggest tournament score to date and which was way more than the $500 he spent in buying into the online tournament in New Jersey.
Meanwhile, a handful of tournament stars also made good runs in the BetMGM event despite falling short of the final table. Two-time bracelet winner Shankar Pillai finished 14th and won $16,464 while POT contender Isaac Kempton placed 18th and won $14,269. Meanwhile, four-time bracelet winner Michael Gathy won $10,208 for 252nd place while three-time bracelet winner Norbert Szecsi made $6,586 for 39th. Bracelet winner DJ Alexander was 41st for $6,256.
