Eric Afriat Wins World Poker Tour Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown

The final table of the World Poker Tour Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown featured some of the best up-and-coming players in the game, but when the dust settled, it was 44-year-old Montreal, Quebec resident Eric Afriat who came out on top, earning his first WPT title and the $1,081,184 first-place prize.

The $3,500 buy-in tournament drew a record field of 1,795, creating a total prize pool of $5,788,875.

It was Afriat’s second WPT final table appearance after finishing sixth in the Bellagio Cup VI back in 2010. In order to get the victory, the businessman had to overcome a group of players that included notable pros Chance Kornuth (sixth), Matt Stout (fifth), Jake Bazeley (fourth), James Mackey (third) and the red-hot Mukul Pahuja (second), who was at his third WPT final table of the season.

Afriat came into the final table in fourth place, but after cracking Bazeley’s aces with flopped two pair, he had the ammunition to take home the title. Sporting a 2.5 to 1 chip advantage entering heads-up play, it took just seven hands before the tournament was wrapped up.

Afriat called Pahuja’s all-in shove with pocket eights, which held against K9 on a board of 552106.

For his runner-up finish, Pahuja earned $691,965 and 1,350 Card Player Player of the Year points. With a total of three final table appearances in 2014, the 28-year-old Coconut Creek, Florida resident now has a total of 2,442 points, good enough for sixth place overall. Afriat’s 1,620 points moved him into 14th place.

Here’s a look at the final table results.

*Winner photo courtesy of Joe Giron and the World Poker Tour

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