From Runner-Up To Champion, Shiina Okamoto Wins 2024 WSOP Ladies Event

Japan’s Shiina Okamoto navigated her way through a field of 1,295 entries in the 2023 World Series of Poker $1,000 ladies no-limit hold’em championship, only to fall one spot shy of earning the hardware.

On day 1 of the 2024 WSOP ladies event, which drew 1,245 entries, Okamoto made a post on social media that translated to the following: “I want to retrieve the things I left behind last year.”

Incredibly, she did just that. Okamoto managed to battle all the way back to the final two, and this time around she emerged victorious with the bracelet. She defeated two-time WSOP Circuit ring winner and poker commentator Jamie Kerstetter heads-up to secure the top prize of $171,732.

Okamoto, via translation by the first-ever Japanese bracelet winner Naoya Kihara, told Card Player that when she first made that social media post, “There was a long way to go, and I didn’t think it would really happen. But by the end of day 2 I had a really massive stack, and at that point I thought it could be true.”

After this latest win, Okamoto now has $408,567 in recorded tournament earnings to her name, with more than three-quarters of that coming from her success at the WSOP.

This tournament ran over the course of four days. The money bubble burst late on day 2, with 187 players earning a share of the $1,095,600 prize pool. Plenty of notables ran deep including poker media member Alexandra Loveless (34th), two-time WSOPC ring winner Kasey Lyn Mills (31st), Jennifer Shahade (29th), recent Resorts World Las Vegas’ Summer Poker Series $100,000 guaranteed event winner Robyn Alvis (27th), Monika Zukowicz (22nd), Nadya Magnus (19th), Cherish Andrews (16th), and 2023 European Poker Tour Prague final tablist Marle Spragg (11th).

Just six players advanced to the final day of play, with Kerstetter in the lead and Okamoto joining her as the only other player with more than 100 big blinds to start. Kerstetter scored the first knockout. France’s Cecile Ticherfatine got all-in with K-J trailing the K-Q of Kerstetter. A jack on the turn gave Ticherfatine a pair and the lead, but also saw Kerstetter pick up a flush draw with one card to come. The river brought a fourth diamond to give Kerstetter a winning flush. Ticherfatine earned $32,007 as the sixth-place finisher.

Diamond flushes were key in the next big hand as well. Israel’s Mor Kamber flopped a jack-high flush with J-7 of diamonds, only to have Kerstetter turn an ace-high flush when a fourth diamond came off the deck again. The chips went in on the turn, but Kamber was not drawing dead. She had an open-ended straight flush redraw to keep her hopes alive, but a brick on the end saw her head to the rail with $43,125 for her fifth-place showing.

Linda Durden was knocked down to just a single big blind after her king-jack ran into the pocket kings of Ceci Liao. Durden managed one double up through Kerstetter, but was soon all-in again. She found a big hand in pocket nines to shove her last few blinds with. Kerstetter called with A-7 suited and flopped an ace to take a big lead in the hand. Durden found no help on the turn or river and was eliminated in fourth place ($58,910). This was the largest recorded score yet for the Wenatchee, Washington resident.

Despite scoring that knockout, Liao was still the clear short stack heading into three-handed action. A preflop cooler brought her tournament to a close, with her pocket queens running into the pocket kings of Okamoto. A king high flop left Liao in dire straights, and a blank on the turn ensured that she would finish third for $81,573.

Heads-up play began with Kerstetter holding roughly a 3:2 chip lead over Okamoto. The first several hands all went Okamoto’s way. A failed bluff attempt for Kerstetter saw the lead change hands, as Okamoto made a quick call of a river raise with deuces full of aces to best Kerstetter’s missed flush draw.

Okamoto was able to pull away ahead of the final hand. Kerstetter limped on the button for 160,000 total with A7 and Shiina Okamoto checked from the big blind with 95. The flop came down A109 and Okamoto check-called a 200,000 bet from Kerstetter, who had flopped top pair. The 5 turn gave Okamoto two pair and the lead. She checked and Kerstetter bet 550,000. Okamoto check-raised all-in and Kerstetter made the call. The 2 on the river eliminated Kerstetter in second place. She earned a career-best live score of $114,479 as the runner-up, increasing her career earnings to over $1.1 million.

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

Winner photo credit: WSOP / Eloy Cabacas.

Visit the Card Player 2024 World Series of Poker page for schedules, news, interviews, and the latest event results. WSOP coverage sponsored by Global Poker.

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