Robert Cowen, a veteran tournament grinder from Swansea, Wales, has captured his first World Series of Poker gold bracelet by winning Event #80 of the 2021 WSOP, $3,000 6-Handed Pot-Limit Omaha. Cowen's win in one of the final PLO events on the 2021 WSOP slate was worth $280,916, and it represents the largest live cash of his poker career.
Cowen's victory over a 496-entry field came on the heels of his deep run in the Main Event. He made Day 6 in the ME, busting just shy of Day 7's final 36 players with a 39th-place finish worth $163,900. The twin scores cap a best-ever WSOP for Cowen, who's been a regular visitor to the WSOP since 2016. His breakthrough bracelet win swells his recorded live earnings to more than $900,000, more than half of which has come at the WSOP.
Cowen topped a strongly international field in this mid-buy-in PLO tourney. The United Kingdom's Robert Emmerson finished as the runner-up to Cowen, collecting $173,613. Israeli pro Uri Reichenstein earned $116,106 for taking third. Five of the top six finishers in this event were non-U.S. players, reflecting PLO's continuing popularity across Europe.
Day 3 leader Cowen survives to win
Cowen entered Day 3 action with a sizeable chip lead among the event's 24 returning players. His win, however, wasn't quite a wire-to-wire affair. As the final table neared, he was surpassed for the lead by Dylan Weisman, Reichenstein, and Karl Mokry, setting up a well-balanced final.
Meanwhile, the tourney's biggest remaining names busted short of the final table. Ray Henson was the first player eliminated on Day 3, Richard Ashby and Chino Rheem busted during three-table play, and Mike "The Mouth" Matusow, seeking his fifth career bracelet, made the unofficial final table but was eliminated in seventh place.
Cowen survived his own all-in moment at the final table. Well behind, and in a pot against Emmerson, Cowen spiked a river king to stay alive. The hand triggered a rush for Cowen, who eventually reeled in and finished off Emmerson, who held a commanding lead through much of the final table.
Cowen took more than a 2:1 edge in chips against Emmerson into the event's final hand. Most of the chips went into the pot on the turn, when the Qh joined the 6d-4d-9h flop. A 3h river completed the board, Cowen bet 2 million, and Emmerson called off the last of his stack. Cowen showed Kh-Jh-Qs-10c for the rivered flush. Emmerson mucked his holdings, and the bracelet was Cowen's.
Event #80, $3,000 6-Handed Pot-Limit Omaha - Final-table Results
- Robert Cowen (United Kingdom) - $280,916
- Robert Emmerson (United Kingdom) - $173,613
- Uri Reichenstein (Israel) - $116,106
- Dylan Weisman (Canada) - $79,368
- William Benson (United States) - $55,485
- Karel Mokry (Czech Republic) - $39,688
Featured image source: WSOP.com
