This Week's Big Winner: Ryan Tosoc Wins WPT Five Diamond Year After Finishing Second

Nobody remembers the guy who finishes second… unless that guy comes back the next year and wins it all.

Ryan Tosoc won the 2017 World Poker Tour Five Diamond World Poker Classic $10,000 no-limit hold’em main event at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. Tosoc’s win is particularly special because he finished runner-up in this same event in 2016, and somehow managed to return a year later and improve on his previous finish. Tosoc outlasted a field of 812 entries on the way to securing the title, the largest field in this event’s history. Tosoc earned the massive first-place prize of $1,958,065 and added his name to the WPT Champions Cup.

“It feels unreal,” Tosoc told WPT reporters after it was all over. “I kind of feel like I’m in a dream right now.”

The 27-year-old Tosoc Las Vegas resident has now earned more than $3 million in the WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic over the past two years, having cashed for more than $1.1 million as the second-place finisher in 2016.

Here are the five biggest hands from the final table that propelled Tosoc to the win.

Tournament: WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic
Buy-In: $10,000
No. of Entries: 812
Prize Pool: $7,876,400
1st Place Prize: $1,958,065

The Action

Foxen raised to 180,000 from under-the-gun and Del Vecchio three-bet to 520,000 on the button. Perry then four-bet all-in for 3,345,000 from the small blind and Tosoc instantly called from the big blind. Foxen and Del Vecchio both folded, and Perry showed A 9. Tosoc, however, had him dominated with A J. The flop of J 9 3 hit both players, but kept Tosoc in the lead. The turn and river fell 5 5, and Perry was eliminated in fourth place, earning $504,090.

The Action

Foxen raised to 200,000 from the button and Del Vecchio moved all-in for 2,280,000 from the small blind. Tosoc then called from the big blind, forcing a fold from Foxen. Del Vecchio showed K J, but he was behind to Tosoc’s A Q. The dealer put out a board of 8 7 4 2 10 and Del Vecchio was eliminated in third place, pocketing $752,196 for his efforts.

The Action

Facing a nearly 3:1 chip disadvantage, Tosoc raised to 250,000. Foxen called and the flop came down 9 5 3. Foxen checked and Tosoc bet 250,000. Foxen check-raised to 800,000 and Tosoc reraised to 1,400,000. Foxen tank-called, and the turn was the 7. Foxen checked, and Tosoc bet 1,500,000. Foxen again went into the tank, and eventually called. The river was the 4 and Foxen checked again. Tosoc moved all-in for 3,605,000. Foxen used two time extensions, but ultimately threw in the call. Tosoc showed pocket nines for a set, and Foxen mucked his cards.

The Action

Tosoc raised to 425,000 on the button and Foxen called from the big blind. The flop was J 7 3 and Foxen checked. Tosoc bet 450,000 and Foxen check-raised to 1,400,000. Tosoc called and the 4 hit the turn. Foxen bet 1,600,000 and Tosoc called. The river was the 10, and Foxen bet 4,500,000. Tosoc went into the tank, using two time extensions before eventually making the call with K 7 for third pair. Foxen could only show king high, however, and Tosoc took more than a 4:1 chip lead in the match.

The Action

Tosoc raised to 500,000 on the button and Foxen three-bet shoved for 2,900,000. Tosoc quickly called with Q 10, but he was dominated by Foxen’s A 10. Foxen remained in the lead as the flop came down K 9 3, but Tosoc nailed his inside straight draw when the J hit the turn. Foxen could still win the pot with a queen on the river, but the J ended his tournament run in second place. He picked up $1,134,202 for his runner-up performance, the largest score of his career. Tosoc earned the title, the trophy and the $1,958,065 first-place prize.

Final Table Results

1. Ryan Tosoc — $1,958,065
2. Alex Foxen — $1,134,202
3. Mike Del Vecchio — $752,196
4. Sean Perry — $504,090
5. Ajay Chabra — $350,500
6. Richard Kirsch — $271,736
7. Daniel Zack — $208,725
8. Lauren Roberts — $153,590
9. Ray Pulford — $107,119