The crowning event of the PokerGO Tour 2024 Poker Masters concluded Thursday evening at the PokerGO Studio. Event #8: $25K No-Limit Hold'em drew a field of 68 entrants to create a prize pool of $1,700,000, with 10 places paid and $510,000 for the eventual winner.
By the time the final table was set there were no series leaderboard implications at play, as no remaining player could surpass the high watermark set by Jim Collopy. By making four straight final tables, Collopy accrued enough points to put the title out of reach for the rest of the field, despite valiant efforts from both Jeremy Becker and Isaac Haxton.
With the top spot locked up, Collopy takes home the coveted Poker Masters Purple Jacket, along with a $25,000 PGT Passport and a PokerStars NAPT Gold Pass.
Back in the studio, when the final hand of the final event of the 2024 Poker Masters was over, Ben Tollerene held all the chips, taking home the title and the $510,000 top prize after defeating Taylor von Kriegenbergh heads up.
Andrew 'LuckyChewy' Lichtenberger started the seven-handed final table with the chip lead, chasing his seventh career PGT title. Aram Zobian and Tollerene came in second and third, respectively, and were the only other players to start the final table with more than a million chips. Sam Soverel, Filipp Khavin, Victoria Livschitz and von Kriegenbergh all began with less than average stacks. Each of the final table finishers started with $68,000 locked up already, but with $510,000 for the winner, all eyes were on the top prize.
Short stacks exit
Livschitz, the shortest stack by far, committed her final six or so big blinds with 
, but von Kriegenbergh found 
in the big blind and called to put her at risk. The 
runout improved her hand, but not enough to stay alive and Livschitz's day ended with a seventh place finish.
Khavin bowed out next after calling off the rest of his stack with 
when Soverel moved all-in with 
. It was a flip, one which Khavin would need to win in order to keep his first place hopes alive. The dealer spread the 
flop, pairing Soverel and leaving Khavin drawing to two outs. The turn 
and river 
weren't what the PGT newcomer needed and his day ended with a sixth place finish.
Back-to-back coolers courtesy of von Kriegenbergh saw Zobian ushered to the payout line next. First, his 
was downed by von Kriegenbergh's 
. In a spot that typically sees von Kriegenbergh eliminated, he managed to find a two-outer on the 
runout to double up through Zobian.
A few hands later, Zobian looked to score a double up of his own when his 
went up against von Kriegenbergh's 
. Again in need of a two-outer, von Kriegenbergh continued to run hot against Zobian on the 
board. Zobian, on the other hand, was simply dealt out of the tournament, unable to prevent his own demise.
After securing three pay jumps, Soverel chose to commit the majority of his short stack with 
. Tollerene made the call with before the action folded around to von Kriegenbergh in the big blind. Looking down at 
, he re-shoved over the top, which forced Soverel to put in his final chip and left Tollerene with no choice but to get out of the way. Soverel needed to improve to stay in the fight, but the 
board didn't connect with him and von Kriegenbergh's ace-high holding stayed best.
Three-handed cooler leads to heads-up
Three-handed action saw the players trade pots back-and-forth, with each man assuming the chip lead at one point or another throughout the battle. It took over an hour before the deck dealt out a cooler worthy of putting all the chips in, but it was bound to happen sooner or later.
Lichtenberger's button raise with 
was met with a re-raise from Tollerene in the big blind with . Rather than reveal the strength of his hand, Lichtenberger opted for a smooth call and the two players saw the 
flop. Tollerene continued betting with a quarter-pot sizing and Lichtenberger decided to pull the trigger on his trap, moving all-in. After getting a count, Tollerene made the call, needing to improve to eliminate the start-of-day chip leader. Improve he did on the turn and now it was Lichtenberger in need of a miracle card. The wasn't the one and Lichtenberger's run ended with a third-place finish.
Tollerene started the heads-up stage of play with the chip lead, nearly 2:1 in his favor, but von Kriegenbergh cobbled together a string of pots to swing the advantage his way. Then, a collision between two big hands saw all the chips go in the middle with von Kriegenbergh's looking to deliver a knockout blow to Tollerene and his 
. Tollerene's pair held up on the 
flop and the 
turn kept him ahead as well. Taylor von Kriegenbergh needed to connect on the river, but the 
kept his opponent's hand best and the lead flipped back to Tollerene.
After winning the key flip to take a commanding lead, Tollerene closed out the win shortly after. A raise from von Kriegenbergh with was met with an all-in shove from Tollerene with 
. With a smile, von Kriegenbergh made the call and the two players watched on as the dealer spread the 
flop. The additional diamond outs left von Kriegenbergh with the lion's share of the equity, but Tollerene's hand was still technically best and held up through the turn. There were 14 cards in the deck that could improve von Kriegenbergh to the winner, but the was not one of them and his day ended with a runner-up finish. Tollerene exchanged a handshake and a hug with his opponent before hoisting the Poker Masters trophy in celebration.
Poker Masters Event #8: $25K No-Limit Hold'em final table results
| Place | Player | Prize (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ben Tollerene | $510,000 |
| 2 | Taylor von Kriegenbergh | $331,500 |
| 3 | Andrew Lichtenberger | $229,500 |
| 4 | Sam Soverel | $170,000 |
| 5 | Aram Zobian | $127,500 |
| 6 | Filipp Khavin | $93,500 |
| 7 | Victoria Livschitz | $68,000 |
Images courtesy of PokerGO
