Julien Martini Wins 2018 WSOP $1,500 Omaha Eight-or-Better EventFrench Poker Pro Defeats Field of 911 Players To Win $239,771 |
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The 2018 World Series of Poker $1,500 Omaha eight-or-better event was originally scheduled to last only three days, with the planned finish of the event on Saturday, June 2. Late that night play was halted with four players remaining, which meant that an extra day was added to the schedule. After five more hours of play on Sunday a winner was finally decided. France’s Julien Martini emerged victorious in the end, defeating a field of 911 players to win his first gold bracelet and the $239,771 first-place prize. This was by far the largest cash of the 26-year-old’s live tournament career, and it brought his lifetime earnings to $448,240.
“I was dreaming about this for seven years,” Martini told WSOP reporters after taking down the event. “It’s one of the best things in my life. I’m super proud and very happy.”
The final day began with Martini as the chip leader, with Kate Hoang in second place. Hoang is no stranger to WSOP Omaha eight-or-better final tables, having finished second in the 2016 WSOP $3,000 pot-limit Omaha eight-or-better event for $182,281. Mack Lee and William Kopp both survived to day four with only 2 big bets each, and it wasn’t long until both were sent to the rail.
Kate Hoang
Plenty of big names made deep runs in this event including Card Player’s own Jeff Shulman (12th – $13,091), Danny Wong (13th – $10,340), Chris Bjorin (17th – $8,296), Mike Wattel (21st – $6,764), Jason Lester (28th – $56,05), Mike Leah (30th – $5,605), Victor Ramdin (38th – $4,723), Shaun Deeb (44th – $4,723), Benny Glaser (63rd – $3,526), John Monnette (67th – $3,127), Allen Kessler (75th – $2,823), John Racener (86th – $2,595), and Robert Mizrachi (90th – $2,595).
Here is a look at the payouts and POY points awarded at the final table:
Place | Player | Earnings (USD) | POY Points |
1 | Julien Martini | $239,771 | 912 |
2 | Kate Hoang | $148,150 | 760 |
3 | Mack Lee | $104,016 | 608 |
4 | William Kopp | $74,058 | 456 |
5 | Brandon Ageloff | $53,482 | 380 |
6 | Chad Eveslage | $39,182 | 304 |
7 | Rafael Concepcion | $29,128 | 228 |
8 | Denny Axel | $21,977 | 152 |
9 | Tammer Ilcaffas | $16,832 | 76 |
For more coverage from the summer series, visit the 2018 WSOP landing page complete with a full schedule, news, player interviews and event recaps.