5 Stories You May’ve Missed from 2023 WPT Poker Showdown at Seminole Hard Rock

This weekend, the World Poker Tour (WPT) Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown $3,500 Main Event gets underway (it runs April 28-May 2). However, the festival itself began back on April 13, and there have been nearly four dozen side event winners thus far.

The series kicked off with a bang as Event #1: $400 Deep Stack No-Limit Hold’em attracted 4,184 entries and awarded a $1,380,720 prize pool. Carlos Loving took down that tournament for $153,690. Others to claim titles included Ken Po (Event #13: $400 HORSE for $12,185), Rodney Turvin (Event #27: $1,700 Purple Chip Bounty Six-Max for $50,455), Shannon Shorr (Event #37: $10,000 Eight-Handed NLH for $260,600), Cherish Andrews (Event #39: $1,100 Deep Stack Turbo NLH for $31,105), and Carlos Chadha (Event #40: $1,100 Deep Stack for $71,150).

Here are five other stories to know headed into the WPT $3,500 Poker Showdown.

Michael Newman Wins Record-Tying 9th SHRP Title

From April 16-18, Event #9: $400 Deep Stack Pot-Limit Omaha played out. The tournament drew 468 entrants and awarded a $154,440 prize pool. After three long days of play, Seminole Hard Rock crusher Michael Newman emerged victorious to capture $25,178 in prize money and a ninth SHRP title, which tied him for most all-time alongside Raminder Singh.

“It’s great to be tied with someone who’s a really good player,” Newman said after the victory, though they wouldn’t be tied for long (more on that below).

Newman’s SHRP Titles

Learn more about Michael Newman here!

Singh Breaks Record a Week Later

As stated above, the tie between Newman and Singh didn’t last long as a week later the latter topped a field of 157 entries to win Event #38: $400 Deep Stack NLH for $12,320 and his record-breaking 10th SHRP title.

The tournament ended when Singh struck a heads-up deal with Kevin McLeskey, who settled for second place and $10,800 in prize money.

Singh’s SHRP Titles

Newcomer Wins Event #21 for $300K!

One of the bigger tournaments of the series was Event #21: $600 Deep Stack NLH, which took place April 20-24. The event attracted 3,989 entries and more than doubled the $1 million guarantee by offering up a $2,074,280 prize pool.

Some heavy hitters made the final table in Ari Engel and Darryll Fish, but ultimately it came down to Vladyslav Shovkovyi and David Trager. The former held a 5:1 chip lead when heads-up play began, but the latter managed to claw back to close to even. At that point, the final two struck a deal that saw Trager take $288,485 in prize money, while Shovkovyi took the title and $299,715.

“I think ace-queen was my hand of the tournament,” Shovkovyi told reporters after the win, “because I made a few good moves with that hand and I won a lot of chips.”

He added: “Getting first and the trophy in such a big field is awesome. I had a few good runs this year, but I took second, third, and a few more final tables, but not first … The level of some players here is very good. The guys on the final table had millions in winnings, and I’m only just starting. So, it was awesome to play with good players, and to put pressure on them.”

Event #21 Final Table Results

_{*Denotes heads-up deal.}

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Ari Engel Wins a Title of His Own

After busting the above tournament in fifth place for $94,300, Engel promptly jumped into Event #32: $600 Six-Max Pot-Limit Omaha, a tournament that drew 196 runners and paid out a $102,900 prize pool.

By the end of the night, Engel was one of the final three players standing alongside Shanmukha Meruga and Pawel Andrzejewski. The trio wound up working a deal that saw Andrzejewski take third for $15,213, Meruga second for $18,212, and Engel first place for $20,505 and the trophy.

Event #32 Final Table Results

_{*Denotes three-way deal.}

A Pair of High Roller Tournaments

On April 26, Event #42: $50,000 Super High Roller attracted 18 entries, which meant an $873,000 prize pool awaited the top four finishers. Sam Soverel and Kevin Rabichow finished in fourth and third place for $104,760 and $157,140 respectively, which left high roller regulars David Peters and Alex Foxen as the last two players standing.

They opted to work a deal that saw Foxen settle for second place and $282,573, while Peters was deemed the champion and claimed $328,527 in prize money. The victory marked the fourth SHRP major series trophy for Peters, who also won the 2022 SHRPO $50K Super High Roller for $407,545.

The following day, Event #45: $25,500 PLO High Roller drew 27 runners and offered up a $666,900 prize pool to the top five finishers. Foxen was once again at the final table, this time settling for fifth place and $53,300, while Michael Wang (4th – $73,400) and Firas Kashat (3rd – $106,700) followed him out the door.

That left Ren Lin and Dylan Smith to do battle in what turned out to be a back-and-forth heads-up affair. Eventually, Lin closed it out to win his first SHRP title and $266,700, while Smith had to settle for second place and $166,800 in prize money.

Eric Diaz Wins CSOP Larry Frank Memorial Event at Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown

Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Winners Thus Far…

_{*Images courtesy of WPT and Seminole Hard Rock.}

Executive Editor U.S.

Executive Editor US, PokerNews Podcast co-host & 2013 WSOP Bracelet Winner.