Maksim Pisarenko wins PGT Mixed Games opener, Glaser second in $5k H.O.R.S.E.

Russia's Maksim Pisarenko has become the PokerGO Tour's latest first-time winner by capturing Event #1 of the PGT's just-underway Mixed Games series, $5,100 H.O.R.S.E. The debut win was worth $117,450 and came over a loaded six-player final table at the PokerGO Studio in Las Vegas on Thursday. The Mixed Games kickoff event drew 87 entries, and 13 players made it into the money.

Pisarenko entered Wednesday's live-streamed finale in fourth place out of the final six players, though the chipstacks were unusually tight among all six finalists as the day's action began. Start-of-day leader Dennis Maschke began with 2,500,000 chips, while Mike Gorodinsky was in sixth, but with a very playable 1,700,000. Between them were Daniel Negreanu (2,400,000), Benny Glaser (2,375,000), Pirasenko (2,100,000), and Andrew Kelsall (2,075,000).

Gorodinsky was active in early play but was crippled in a fixed-limit hand when his pocket aces were cracked by Maschke, who rivered a straight. Negreanu finished off Gorodinsky moments later in an Omaha hi-lo hand. Negreanu, though, was the next player to bust, hitting the rail after a razz hand against Glaser, who had climbed into the lead during the first hour of play. Glaser's modest jack-high held up against Negreanu's king-high when Negreanu paired up on his final two cards.

Kelsall's day ended with a fourth-place payout after he whiffed on a straight draw against Pirasenko's kings and jacks in a stud hand, and Maschke was ousted in a huge three-way stud hi-lo hand when Pisarenko rivered a nine-high straight to scoop the pot. The hand sent Maschke to the rail and let Pisarenko take command against Glaser.

Glaser, a formidable mixed-games pro, battled hard but couldn't find his way back to the lead. The final hand found Pisarenko again catching a huge river card to win. With Glaser all in and the cards face up in a stud hand, Pisarenko trailed through sixth yet had plenty of high cards, topped by a king, but Glaser had an ace and the lead with one card to come. Pisarenko looked first and slapped down his final card, a ten, to fill a gutshot, king-high straight. Glaser made a six-high straight on the river as well, but it wasn't enough, and the chips and the win went Pisarenko's way.

Final-table results:

All images courtesy PokerGO