Prominent Las Vegas pro Ben Yu has won Event 56 of the 2021 World Series of Poker, the $10,000 Six-Handed No-Limit Hold'em Championship. "B.Y.U."'s latest triumph is his fourth career WSOP bracelet victory, all of which have occurred in the last six live WSOP series.
Yu collected $721,453 after busting his final remaining foe, Russia's Nikita Kuznetsov, in Monday's early hours, the continuation of Sunday's long Day 3 finale. He began the day mid-pack among 19 players who survived the tournament's 329-entry field. By the time Yu reached the six-player final table, he'd become the short stack, though he powered through from there for the win.
Yu has enjoyed an impressive 2021 WSOP to date with 11 cashes, plus Monday's bracelet win. He's also become the only player to rank high at this juncture on both the WSOP Player of the Year and No-Limits VELO leaderboards. Yu has moved into sixth place in the extremely tight POY race, which Anthony Zinno currently leads, and he's moved into third on the VELO board, just behind leaders Daniel Lazrus and Jason Koon. Yu has also amassed more than $5.3 million in career WSOP earnings.
Tightly-bunched final table
Any time a player begins a final table as the short stack and goes on to win, it's extra impressive, though this final began with its players tightly bunched. Eventual fourth-place finisher Mike Sowers held the early lead as he pursued his own first WSOP bracelet, just ahead of Kuznetsov.
Sowers picked up the final's first knockout, sending Israel's Asi Moshe to the rail in sixth. From there, though, it was Yu's turn to surge. He picked up several large pots through the final's middle levels and eventually busted Sowers in fourth. That knockout gave Yu a lead he'd never relinquish, as he ground down his final two foes, Argentina's Ariel Mantel and Kuznetsov. Yu picked off both Mantel and Kuznetsov as well to seal the victory.
In the championship's final hand, Yu began with about a 5:1 edge in chips over a short-stacked Kuznetsov. Yu raised to begin the betting action, Kuznetsov moved all in, and Yu called, finding himself well ahead with pocket jacks to Kuznetsov's pocket deuces. A 3h-As-Qh flop gave Kuznetsov little hope, but a 4d turn gave him four more outs to a wheel straight. Instead, a river 8d missed Kuznetsov's six outs, and Yu had his fourth career WSOP triumph.
Event 56, $10,000 Six-Handed No-Limit Hold’em Championship – Final-table results
- Ben Yu (United States) - $721,453
- Nikita Kuznetsov (Russia) - $445,892
- Ariel Mantel (Argentina) - $293,578
- Mike Sowers (United States) - $198,205
- Steve Yea (South Korea) - $137,303
- Asi Moshe (Israel) - $97,660
Featured images source: WSOP.com
