The Horseshoe and Paris, Las Vegas, held the 2023 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Event No.90: $10,000 6-Handed No-Limit Hold'em Championship. It attracted 550 entrants who formed a $5,155,000 prize pool.
Even so, only four players advanced to an unscheduled final day on July 17, each of them being guaranteed of taking home at least $306,555. Still, no one was ready to easily give up on bagging the $1,057,663 top prize and a WSOP gold bracelet.
Alexandre Reard ended the day's action when he beat Stephen Chidwick in a tough heads-up match. The champion's live poker tournament earnings increased by more than twice, and he has two No-Limit Hold'em bracelets.
The Main Event final table had many distractions. But, Reard remained focused on the largest prize. He revealed after winning that he had increased his mental strength for a long time and busted his bubble.
Reard added that his many vocal fans created an amazing atmosphere for him. The early stages were shaky for him despite being among the chip leaders early in the final day. Even so, the poker pro changed his playing strategy and recovered his lost chips.
What Were the Championship's Top Prizes?
- Alexandre Reard from France-$1,057,663
- Stephen Chidwick from the United Kingdom-$653,688
- AJ Kelsall from the U.S.-$443,259
- Justin Liberto from the U.S.-$306,555
- Eli Berg from the U.S.-$216,319
- Eric Baldwin from the U.S.-$155,809
Reard's Journey to Victory
Michael Rossitto left the tournament in seventh place late on Day 3, and the remaining players set a six-handed final table. Kelsall's big slick dominated Rossitto's king-queen and sent him packing.
Two other players got busted in the last three levels. Eric Baldwin faced and lost to Reard's jacks before finishing sixth. Eli Berg followed Baldwin in fifth place after Reard busted him using jacks.
The remaining four players had huge money jumps and didn't hesitate to move their cards. This prompted the event's organizers to add another day to get a winner.
Reard kicked off Day 4's action fast by leveraging his stack to add more ICM pressure on other players. But, his strategy failed as he quickly lost his stack lead when the chips evened. Still, he didn't lose up, and the odds favored him when he busted Liberto in fourth place, starting the day's eliminations.
Kelsall was almost at the bottom of the leaderboard most of the time. But he won a few all-ins that extended his run. Unfortunately, Kelsall's luck ended after doubling up Chidwick as his opponent collected his remaining chips after several hands.
The former's exit kicked off heads-up action between Chidwick and Reard, who had a 3:1 stack advantage. Chidwick made a top pair flop that Reard's turned straight bested.
Chidwick finished second with $653,688, the largest payout in his poker career. Reard's victory improved his position on the all-time poker money list.
