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Phil Hellmuth Denied First World Poker Tour Title In Dramatic Fashion

Art Papazyan Wins WPT Legends Of Poker, Hellmuth Finishes Second

by Brian Pempus  |  Published: Sep 01, 2017  |  

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Credit: WPT/Joe Giron

Poker legend Phil Hellmuth has 14 World Series of Poker bracelets, but his poker resume contains zero World Poker Tour titles. He was ever so close to winning his first early Friday morning outside of Los Angeles. He has now fallen short in all seven of his WPT final tables.

The Hall of Famer finished runner-up in the prestigious WPT Legends of Poker main event at the Bicycle Casino in Bell Gardens. Local cash game professional Art Papazyan won the event for $668,692, while the “Poker Brat” walked away with $364,370 in his pocket.

The $4,000 buy-in no-limit hold’em event drew a field of 763 total entries, the second largest turnout in the tournament’s history. It’s been running for 16 years.

Hellmuth, who recently signed on as the WPT Raw Deal analyst, now has nearly $22 million in lifetime tournament earnings. It’s unlikely he’ll be pleased with the result, however. The second place continued a summer of solid results, but ultimately disappointment, for arguably the most well-known professional poker player in the world. He’s recorded six top-20 finishes in major poker tournaments since June.

The final hand of the tournament was between Papazyan’s KClub SuitQSpade Suit and Hellmuth’s AHeart SuitKDiamond Suit. All the money was in the middle preflop, and Hellmuth was in good shape to double up. The cards weren’t going to be kind to the 53-year-old here, as the flop fell QHeart Suit10Heart Suit8Club Suit, putting Papazyan out in front with top pair. Hellmuth did have some outs though.

The 5Heart Suit on the turn gave Hellmuth some more chances with a nut flush draw. The dealer burned and turned the final card, an inconsequential 3Spade Suit on the river. A disappointed Hellmuth was eliminated and Papazyan was the champion.

Here’s a look at the final table results:

1. Art Papazyan: $668,692
2. Phil Hellmuth: $364,370
3. JC Tran: $217,040
4. DJ Alexander: $161,490
5. Marvin Rettenmaier: $120,775
6. Adam Swan: $91,825

The Season XVI WPT Legends of Poker main event at the Bicycle Hotel & Casino is scheduled to air in May 2018 on FOX Sports Regional Networks.

Image via Twitter. Credit WPT/Joe Giron.

 
 
Tags: Phil Hellmuth,   Poker Tournaments,   Bike,   The Bike,   WPT,   WPT Legends,   Legends of Poker
 
 
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