Artur Martirosian clinches WPTWOC Player of the Championship title

Poker writer Geoff Fisk profile photo
Geoff Fisk
Posted on: September 28, 2020 12:29 PDT

Russian pro adds latest accolade to stellar 2020 results

The World Poker Tour World Online Championships are a wrap, and Artur Martirosian added another resume builder to his incredible run of poker results in 2020.

Martirosian took home the title as the WPTWOC Player of the Championship, clinching the title with a win in the $10,300 Mini Super High Roller. That victory allowed the Russian Martirosian to pull away from Scott Margereson, who finished second in the Player of the Championship standings.

Both Martirosian and Margereson still had a shot at the title going into the final day of the Mini Super High Roller. Both players made it to the final table in that event, but an exit in sixth place by Margereson ensured the Player of the Championship award for Martirosian.

Martirosian went on to win the Mini Super High Roller, taking home $239,500 in the process. That marked the second six-figure win for the player in the final week of the WPTWOC series.

Earlier in the week, Martirosian took down a $25,500 Super High Roller event. That Super High Roller side tournament wasn't a part of the official WPTWOC schedule, but it did earn the player $377,000.

Martirosian's 2020 results have put the Russian high-stakes tournament pro on the map as one of this year's top rising stars. Other big scores for the pro in 2020 include a win in a $10,000 High Roller side event at the GGPoker WSOP Online Bracelet Events series, which bagged $265,672.

Martirosian also won the 2020 Super High Roller Bowl Online Series overall championship, making six final tables and cashing in for $1,795,395 in earnings. That total includes a win in SHRB Event #16 $10,000 NLHE, which earned $234,605 for one of Russia's top tournament players.

WPT World Online Championships end a summer of unprecedented online events

With COVID-19 shutting down scheduled live tournaments around the world, the summer of 2020 produced several concurrent big-name online tournament series. The WSOP moved online with its bracelet event schedule, while the WPT unveiled its own series in the form of the $100 million guaranteed World Online Championships.

The WPTWOC ran from July 17 through Sept. 24, with 12 Main Events offering a combined $50 million guaranteed. The winners of those Main Events earned the right to have their names inscribed on the Mike Sexton WPT Champions Cup.

Using real names and running during a time of unprecedented online tournament opportunities, the WPTWOC drew big numbers and attracted some of the world's biggest poker names across the nine-week series.

Some of the biggest winners from the series included:

Phil Mighall — The UK's Phil Mighall put his name on the Mike Sexton WPT Champions Cup by virtue of a win in the $10,300 Main Event. The win earned $1,550,298 for the pro, which was the biggest payout in any WPTWOC event.

Mighall outlasted a field of 1,011 entries to take down the $10 million guaranteed tournament.

Michael Addamo and Issac HaxtonThe $100,000 Super High Roller brought out 40 of the world's highest-stakes tournament players, with Michael Addamo emerging victorious. Addamo outdueled Issac Haxton in the heads-up battle, earning $1,284,114 per the terms of a heads-up deal.

Haxton's payout in the agreement was no slouch, as the partypoker Ambassador earned a $1,216,286 payday.

Mikita Badziakouski The high-roller regular from Belarus came away as another seven-figure winner in the WPTWOC series. Badziakouski took down the $25,500 High Roller Championship, earning $1,062,730 after making a heads-up deal with runner-up Jason Koon.

Featured image source: Twitter