Poker legend denied 5th WSOP bracelet - first in 22 years - after epic duel

Blaz Zerjav notched his second World Series of Poker bracelet of the summer with a win in Event #69: $1,500 Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better. Zerjav defeated Huck Seed in heads-up play to deny the 1996 Main Event Champion his fifth bracelet — and his first since 2003. 

It was a slugfest finish – to be expected in any split pot variant – as 11 players returned to the Horseshoe on Friday to play down to a winner. Jay Kerbel held the chip lead at the start of play on Day 3, but couldn't hold on to seal the deal as he bowed out in fifth place. 

Michelle Konig had a chance to become the first female bracelet winner of the summer, but her run came to an end in fourth place.

Omar Sader

Michelle Konig had a serious sweat to become the first female bracelet winner of the summer, but couldn't advance further than four-handed play. Sergei Tolkachov briefly held the chip lead during three-handed play and, like Kerbel and Konig before him, couldn't turn it into a win. 

After scoring his first WSOP bracelet in Event #22: $25,000 NLH High Roller, Zerjav added a second bracelet to his summer results with the win. 

'I feel it immediately' 

Zerjav began the final day of play as one of the larger stacks remaining in the field and managed to hang on as his competitors fell by the wayside. When play reached five-handed, he held an overwhelming chip lead over his four opponents – but it didn't last. 

Seed picked up momentum at the right time, surging from the bottom of the counts up to the top. With Kerbel, Konig, and Tolkachov out of the way, Seed and Zerjav settled in for a lengthy duel as the heads-up battle lasted the better part of two hours – with both players fighting to the last for the silverware. 

At one point, Seed seemingly had one hand on the bracelet as he whittled his opponent down to just a few big bets. Zerjav held tough, however, and battled back to regain the chip lead before closing out the win. 

Blaz Zerjav denied Huck Seed (pictured) a fifth World Series of Poker bracelet.

Hayley Hochstetler

When asked how he felt in the wake of yet another bracelet win, Zerjav told PokerOrg, "It's more thrilling than the first one. I felt this one immediately – the first one took a few days." 

Zerjav, an experienced online player who plays under the moniker 'Scarmak3r,' honed his mixed games skills on PokerStars – mostly during the Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) and the World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP). 

"I don't have a lot of experience," he told PokerOrg. "I play a bunch during SCOOPs and WCOOPs. I tried to learn about the games but mostly got better through playing and repetition."

Zerjav showed nothing but respect to his opponent in the aftermath, saying of Seed, "It was kind of obvious that he has more experience than me, a lot more. His hand-reading ability is much better than mine in this game. It was a challenge, but I think I navigated it well."

$1,500 Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo or Better final table results