After five gruelling days of tournament poker, The Joe Hachem Deep Stack Series 4 has been run and won by Sam Welch who has been being crowned the new Joe Hachem Deep Stack Series 4 Champion of the Main Event!
With a field of 784 players only ten remained on the final day of the Main Event in the Crown Poker room. Englishman Joe Pascoe headlined the final table holding a monstrous 3.79m in chips which was nearly double his nearest rival. Although there were a few relative short-stacks the final table was fairly evenly poised as the first hand was dealt.
Ten minutes into the final table Michael Bouskila busted when the board hit running clubs to send him out the door $4,500 richer. Just a few hands later, short-stack Michael Mifsud finished in ninth place collecting $6,000.
The very next hand high-stakes cash game player Michael Spilkin to Konrad Janica, exiting in eighth place. Janica opened for 325,000 from the button, Janica found a caller for an additional 225,000 from the big blind by Sam Welch. Janica fired out a continuation bet of 550,000 only to be check-raised by Welch to 1,500,000. Janica moved all in for a further 1,165,000 but fell in seventh place taking a cool $11,000, it was at this moment Welch took control of the final table with over 40% of the chips in play.
Alex Kostic was unable to gain any momentum during the final table and eventually was forced to commit his short-stack against an opponent’s Jacks. No help on the board saw him leave in sixth place, earning himself $14,500 in the process. Esan Tabrizi then gained some chips to challenge Sam Welch forcing local tournament veteran Frank Mizra out in fifth place and collecting $20,000.
Overnight chip leader Joe run ended in fourth place taking with him $30,000 for his tournament efforts.
Only a few hands later Henry Chan was sent to the rail third place taking a nice $41,500. Heads up play was then between Esan Tabrizi – 9,500,000 and Sam Welch – 6,200,000 after just two hours of final table action.
Tabrizi flew out of the blocks firing out some check-raises to take a few pots from Welch before he joined in on the tricky trapping play taking 3.5 million chips in one hand on the turn by check-raising all in for his tournament life.
With the momentum well and truly in Welch’s favor, play concluded when the river was unable to deliver a heart for Esan Tabrizi sendign him to the rail in second place, he didn’t leave empty handed as he took an impressive $56,000 for his deep run.
Sam Welch now joins the likes of Luke Santo, Daniel Botta and Amanda De Cesare as Joe Hachem Deep Stack Series Champions after beating am impressive field of 784-players, he took with him $80,050 in prize money and the coveted trophy.
Congratulations to Sam Welch for an excellent tournament from the Crown Poker Team.
Don’t miss all the up coming action with the 2010 Melbourne Poker Championship only weeks away, stay tuned for more details!
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