Jeremy Ausmus Wins U.S. Poker Open Event No. 5 For $178,200

Jeremy Ausmus is on a roll.

On Monday, Mar. 21 the 42-year-old poker pro defeated a field of 66 entries to take down event no. 5 at the 2022 U.S. Poker Open, a $10,000 buy-in no-limit hold’em tournament. The three-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner earned $178,200 for the win, while also securing his second title of 2022. This was already his 11th final-table finish of the year. Ausmus won the PokerGO Cup in February, the most recent stop on the PokerGO Tour prior to the ongoing USPO.

“It would be really cool to win back-to-back majors,” Ausmus told PGT reporters after coming out on top. “I know [David] Peters won this [USPO] twice, but I don’t think anyone has won back-to-back. The older I get, the more important it is to me. My kids think it’s cool. If I win trophies, they can see me way up in the standings.”

Ausmus’ hot streak extends back to last fall. Since the start of September, he has cashed 31 times for a total of nearly $3.4 million. He has secured 20 final-table finishes and four total titles in that time span.

As a result of his impressive run, Ausmus had already moved into the top spot in the 2022 Card Player Player of the Year race before his latest victory. Now, he has extended his lead, with his 2,902 points giving him a 502-point advantage over second-ranked Tony Sinishtaj in the overall POY standings, which are sponsored by Global Poker.

Ausmus also secured 178 PokerGO Tour rankings points for the win, moving him into sixth place in the PGT points race.

The final day of this event began with six players remaining and Nick Petrangelo in the lead. Ausmus sat on the second-shortest stack when the day began, but won an early pot without showdown that helped propel up the leaderboard and into the middle of the pack. Petrangelo lost the lead when his A-Q was unable to beat the pocket kings of short stack Ali Imsirovic in a preflop all-in confrontation.

Imsirovic, the reigning Card Player and PGT Player of the Year, continued to climb thanks to another huge clash before the flop. He raised with A-Q suited and then made a small four-bet in response to a re-raise from David Peters, who held A-J suited. Peters five-bet shoved and Imsirovic made the call. Neither player improved and Peters was eliminated in sixth place. The 2016 Card Player POY award winner earned $39,600 for his latest deep run, increasing his career earnings to more than $41.4 million in the process.

Petrangelo was the next to fall. The two-time WSOP bracelet winner got all-in with pocket sevens and was up against the pocket queens of Imsirovic. The larger pair held up, improving to a full house to secure the pot and send Petrangelo home in fifth place ($52,800). This was his eighth final-table finish of the year, with three titles won already in 2022. Petrangelo has accrued more than $2.6 million in POY earnings this year, the most of any player on the circuit. He now sits in eighth place in the POY race, and fourth in the PGT standings.

Chris Brewer found an early double-up through Imsirovic during four-handed play, spiking an ace on the river with A-5 to beat the pocket sevens of his opponent. The two players clashed again in the next key hand at the final table. Brewer, who had ascended into the lead, raised with pocket eights. Imsirovic three-bet holding A-Q and Brewer four-bet shoved. Imsirovic called to set up a classic coin flip with the chip lead hanging in the balance. The pocket pair held up and Imsirovic was eliminated in fourth place, earning $66,000 for his tenth final-table showing of 2022. With four titles won and nearly $1.5 million in POY earnings, Imsirovic is now the third-ranked player in the 2022 POY rankings. He is also inside the top five in the PGT standings, as he looks o go back-to-back in both points races.

Ren Lin’s run in this event came to an end when he shoved with Q-9 suited from the small blind and Brewer called with A-9 from the big blind. Both players spiked a nine on the flop, but the turn and river brought nothing else of impact and Lin was sent home in third place ($85,800). This was his fourth final-table finish of the year.

Brewer took just over a 3:1 chip lead into heads-up play with Ausmus, who sat with just more than 30 big blinds. Ausmus was able to cut into the lead a bit in the early going before a huge hand saw him surge into the lead. Brewer made a large raise on the button with A7 and Ausmus three-bet with 77. Brewer called and the flop came down AQJ to give Brewer top pair. Ausmus led out for 400,000. Brewer called and the turn was the 7, giving a set to Ausmus and two pair to Brewer. Ausmus fired a 1,000,000 bet and Brewer raised all-in. Ausmus quickly called off his remaining 530,000 and Brewer got the bad news. The river was the 5, sending the massive pot to Ausmus to give him the lead.

In the final hand, Brewer limped in from the button with AQ and Ausmus raised with 1010. Brewer moved all-in and Ausmus called. The J87 flop kept Ausmus in the lead, but the A turn gave Brewer the superior pair. Ausmus was left in need of a nine or ten on the river. The 9 on the river completed Ausmus’ gutshot straight draw to lock up the pot and the title. Brewer earned $132,000 as the runner-up finisher. The 2021 high-roller circuit breakout has continued his strong form in 2022, with seven final-table finishes already made this year.

Here is a look at the payouts and rankings points awarded at the final table:

Photos provided by PokerGO.

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