The inaugural Philadelphia Poker Championship Series got underway at Rivers Casino Philadelphia last month and has already seen a poker superstar walk away with a victory.
World Series of Poker Main Event champion Joe McKeehen, a Pennsylvania native, took down the $2,200 buy-in PPCS Main Event for $94,323 after defeating “Joe “The Worm” Palma in what the Rivers Philadelphia Poker Room called “an instant classic of Philadelphia Poker.”
The Main Event champ and Palma, a fellow Pennsylvanian who added to his more than $1 million in Hendon Mob earnings, were joined at the final table by New Jersey’s Christopher Hill (3rd - $42,072) and Thomas Revello (5th - $23,084) as well as Massachusetts’ Kevin Gabryel (4th - $30,898).
The two final finishers were the only players at the final table with seven figures in live earnings and now have high five-figure scores to add to those impressive results.
Main Event Final Table Results
| PLACE | PLAYER | PRIZE (IN USD) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joe McKeehen | $94,323 | |
| 2 | Joe Palma | $58,266 | |
| 3 | Christopher Hill | $42,072 | |
| 4 | Kevin Grabel | $30,898 | |
| 5 | Tom Revello | $23,084 | |
| 6 | Byron Vereschagin | $17,540 | |
| 7 | Adam Calabrese | $13,550 | |
| 8 | Brandon Lulov | $10,640 | |
| 9 | Nir Cohen | $8,489 |
Read about the best online poker sites in Pennsylvania!
McKeehen Killing It
McKeehen hasn’t slowed down since he won the 2015 WSOP Main Event for $7.7 million while sporting a Philadelphia Sixers jersey. He has racked up several million in earnings in the years since then and is on a bit of a recent heater to start off the new year.
In January, McKeehen finished third in the $5,300 Borgata Return for $440,327 before finishing seventh in a Lucky Hearts Poker Open $25,000 High Roller for $67,600 the same month. Later that stop, McKeehen made a deep run in the $3,500 Lucky Hearts Poker Open Championship and wound up in 25th place for $24,570.
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The Philadelphia Poker Championship Series consists of a handful of events at got underway on Feb. 19 with $180 Little Rush with a $100,000 guaranteed prize pool followed by the $250,000 guaranteed Main Event.
Still on the schedule is the $200,000 guaranteed $560 Mystery Rush, which will get underway today with one of four starting flights ahead of Day 2 on March 12.
For more information about the Philadelphia Poker Championship Series, visit www. riverscasino.com/philadelphia/promotions/philadelphia-poker-championship.
Want to learn more about Rivers Casino? Read about a record-breaking $1.2 million bad beat jackpot that was hit at the Pittsburgh property in August 2022!
Lead photo courtesy of Rivers Casino Philadelphia & Harry Corvese