Joao Simao Wins First WSOP Bracelet in the GGPoker WSOP Online Event #2: $1,111 Caesars Cares Charity Event ($206,075)
Brazil's Joao Simao earned his first bracelet in style by coming from behind to beat Norway's Espen "_sennj_" Sandvik in the 2021 WSOP Online Event #2: $1,111 Caesars Care at GGPoker for $206,075.
The second event of the 2021 GGPoker WSOP Online was a massive success as not only did 1,584 entries generate a $1,759,824 prize pool but also raised a whopping $175,824 for Caesars Cares, a Nevada-based COVID-19 charity.
Simao entered Day 2 as the chip leader with 20 players remaining, but it wasn't all smooth sailing, especially at the final table for the Brazilian poker pro. Simao, who was once ranked as the best online player in the world according to PocketFives, has amassed more than $1.1 million at the GGPoker Network according to GGPoker's proprietary PokerCraft.
Read More: GGPoker Announces Full 33-Bracelet WSOP Online 2021 Schedule
WSOP Online Event #2: $1,111 Caesars Cares Charity Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joao Simao | Brazil | $206,075 |
| 2 | Espen "_sennj_" Sandvik | Norway | $154,533 |
| 3 | Tom "Jabochi" Shaham | Israel | $115,884 |
| 4 | Roman Hrabec | Czech Reupblic | $86,900 |
| 5 | Ilya "Dezauzer" Yakunin | Russia | $65,166 |
| 6 | Andras Nemeth | Hungary | $48,868 |
| 7 | Jinlong "yiliuqi" Hu | China | $36,646 |
| 8 | Le "Hugo777" Fang | China | $27,480 |
| 9 | Peter "BigFishEight" Raimondi | Canada | $20,607 |
Final Day Action
The final day began with 20 hopefuls in the hunt for WSOP gold. The action was already down to a final table of nine players after less than an hour of play with Diego "CAACAUS" Dos Santos (12th - $10,270), Sergio Aido (13th - $10,270), Elio Fox (15th - $8,973), Timo "omaha4lolz" Kamphues (16th - $8,973), Claas Segebrecht (18th - $7,839), and Leonid "LeBroHbKA" Logunov (19th - $7,839) among the notable players to come short.
Roman Hrabec entered the final table with the chip lead with Simao not too far behind. Andras Nemeth snagged the lead after winning a big pot of Simao early on in the action.
Peter "BigFishEight" Raimondi was the first player out at the final table in ninth place for $20,607 after he jammed his short-stack with king-queen without success into the ace-jack held by Tom "Jabochi" Shaham.
A short while later, Simao ousted China's Le "Hugo777" Fang in eighth place for $27,480 when his ace-jack held against ace-ten. Fang's countrymate, Jinlong "yiliuqi" Hu, was out next in seventh place for $36,646 when his king-ten didn't get there against Nemeth's ace-eight.
Nemeth was cruising along at the final table with the chip lead from near the beginning before things abruptly fell apart for the Hungarian. He first doubled Sandvik to hand the Norwegian the chip lead with king-six against king-queen with two kings on the board before hitting the rail in sixth place for $48,868 on a bad beat when his queens didn't hold against Simao's sixes.
Sandvik then delivered a bad beat to Ilya "Dezauzer" Yakunin (fifth - $65,166) when his deuces improved to a full house against queens. Simao then took care of Hrabec (fourth - $86,900) when his ace-queen held against ace-jack.
Investors Win Big on Shaham
Shaham found himself short on chips and was able to steal the blinds a few times before he was called by Sandvik. He lost the flip to go out in third place for $115,884 when his queen-jack suited bricked the board against nines.
Thanks to GGPoker's innovative staking feature, Shaham wasn't the only one that won big thanks to his podium finish as the Israeli sold 50 percent of his action at 1.1 mark-up, meaning that 11 stakers paid a total of $611 to win a whopping $57,942 straight into their GGPoker accounts.
Stake Your Favorite Players at GGPoker
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Back and Forth Heads-Up Battle
Sandvik was in the driver's seat to win his second WSOP bracelet as he entered heads-up play with more than double the stack of Simao. Two years ago, Sandvik shipped the 2019 WSOP Europe Event #5: €2,500 8-Game Mix for €75,246 ($84,058) and was already guaranteed to win more regardless of how things turned out during heads-up play.
Simao immediately grabbed the lead on the first hand of heads-up play when his ace-jack was good against ace-nine. It wasn't a smooth ride for Simao as very soon after Sandvik took the lead back when he got Simao to pay him off on a rivered flush.
However, things fell apart after an ill-timed bluff left Sandvik short on chips and he was eliminated in second place for $154,533 after his ace-queen didn't hold against Simao's queen-ten suited.
Congrats to Joao Simao for winning his first WSOP gold bracelet and the $206,075 top prize. Stay tuned at PokerNews as the 2021 GGPoker WSOP Online will continue on Tuesday, Aug. 3 with the two-day Event #3: $2,500 Limit Hold'em Championship with cards in the air at 7 p.m. CEST (1 p.m. ET).