David Ko bested Joseph Roberts in heads-up play to take down Event #11: $2,000 High Roller. Ko is no stranger to trophies having won multiple WSOPC Rings, a WPT Championship, and an EPT trophy. This is his second PPT trophy and you will be sure to see him in more events throughout the year. He earned $28,000 for besting the 41-player field.
Ko started the day second in chips with 208,100. His aggressive play allowed him to flourish to gain the chip lead after registration closed. He exploited bubble pressure to add to his stack amounting to over 1,300,000 by the time the bubble burst. With over half the chips, Ko found elimination after elimination. He entered heads-up play with 2/3 of the chips in play. He slowly gained more and more before eventually making two pair and calling off Roberts’ jam to take the tourney. A full recap will be available tomorrow.
Joseph Roberts opened to 25,000 and David Ko moved all in having him covered. He called and both players revealed their holdings.
Joseph Roberts: K♠K♥
David Ko: A♠10♦
The board ran out 4♦7♦5♣9♠J♣ for Roberts to take the pot. He’s been running hot getting Kings, Aces twice, and Jacks in back to back hands. He sits at 780,000.
David Ko raised to 20,000 from the button and Keith Graham moved all in for 94,000 from the small blind. Ko made the call and both players revealed their hands.
Keith Graham: A♠K♣
David Ko: A♥10♣
The board ran out 3♦3♣7♠J♦2♣ for Graham to take the pot. He sits at 208,000.
Action folded to Michael Bernstein in the small blind who jammed for 120,000. Ben Veenstra called for 85,000 from the big blind. Both players revealed their hands.
Ben Veenstra: 10♦8♦
Michael Bernstein: A♥9♠
The board ran out 9♣7♣3♠4♦8♥ to send the remaining players into the money.
Mal Hagan moved all in for 42,500 from middle position and Joseph Roberts called in from the cutoff. Both players revealed their holdings.
Mal Hagan: 6♠6♦
Joseph Roberts: A♣K♥
The flop favoured Roberts as it came the A♥K♠4♠2♥. The turn changed little as it came the 2♥. However, Hagan found the 6♥ on the river to stay alive. He now sits at 97,500.
Garry Sandhu raised to 6,000 from the cutoff and Christopher Lastiwaka moved all in for 39,500. Sandhu made the call and both players revealed their hands.
Christopher Lastiwaka: A♥8♦
Garry Sandhu: K♣6♣
The board ran out A♦10♣4♦J♠5♠ for Lastiwaka to find the double.
Action was caught after the flop of A♥7♦2♥ and Garry Sandhu checked to David Ko. He fired for 12,000 and Sandhu made the call.
The turn was the Q♣ and both players checked.
After the river peeled the 2♦, Sandhu checked. Ko moved all in for 57,000 and Sandhu made the fold. Ko sits around 350,000 and Sandhu has near 400,000.
Alex Liu raised to 4,000 from under the gun. Colten Yamagishi made the call on the button and Mal Hagan defended his big blind.
The flop came 3♦10♣10♦ and Hagan checked to Liu. He fired for 3,000 and was rewarded with the pot. He now sits at 28,500. Yamagishi has 100,000 and Hagan 88,000.
David Ko raised to 4,000 from under the gun. Vince Lam moved all in for 36,500 from the button and Ko made the call. Both players revealed their holdings.
Vince Lam: A♣J♣
David Ko: 7♠7♣
The flop was good for Lam as it came 9♣10♥Q♥ to give him a straight draw along with his overs. The turn put him in the lead as it came the A♠. However, the river flipped the odds as the 7♥ completed the board. Ko now sits at 174,000.
Day 2 of the High Roller is set to roll with Garry Sandhu leading the way. He bagged 384.5k and was the only player even close to that. David Ko has the second stack for Day 2 with just over 200k while Brett Worton and Johnny Yu are both playing stacks in the 120k range for 3rd and 4th.
One other notable bag is Daniel Lefebvre. While he bagged just over a starting stack at 56k, he’s a player who knows how to win this event having won four $2k events on the PPT since Oct 2023. He’ll be dangerous in this one as long as he has chips.
Day 2 action gets underway at 1 PM and entries are still open for this one. Blinds for the opening level on Day 2 are 1k/1.5k/1.5k, which means late entries at the start of the day will sit down with 33 big blinds, and players who choose to max-late-reg will start with 20 big blinds, so there is still a reasonable amount of play for new stacks on Day 2.
There were 31 entries on Day 1 putting the current prizes at $53,010, but that will get bigger on Thursday with Day 2 entries.
Entries are set to close at the start of Level 12 which should be about 2:35 PM on Thursday. After that, it will be a race to the trophy. Alek Gillies will be on hand to focus on this event from the opening hands on Day 2 through to the trophy presentation.
Brett Worton raised to 2,8000 from under the gun. Vince Lam called from early position and both blinds defended.
The flop came 10♥J♣4♠ and both blinds checked. Worton fired for 5,000 and Lam made the call.
After the Q♥ peeled off on the turn, Worton checked to Lam. He fired for 9,000 and Worton moved all in covering Lam. He made the fold and sits at 32,000 while Worton has 142,000.
Action was caught after the flop of 6♥3♦4♥ and Colten Yamagishi led out for 6,000. Joseph Roberts moved all in for 30,000 and Yamagishi made the call. Both players revealed their holdings.
Joseph Roberts: A♠Q♣ Colten Yamagishi: K♠9♠
The board ran out 8♦8♠ for Roberts to double. He sits at 65,000 and Yamagishi at 49,500.
Middle position raised to 1,200 and Nu Teliani called from late position. The cutoff called and the button called as well.
The flop came 8♣Q♠Q♦ and both early players checked. The cutoff fired for 2,200 and everyone called.
After the turn peeled the 2♦ and everyone checked their action.
The 3♦ completed the board and middle position fired for 5,000. Teliani raised to 12,500 and middle position made the call. Taliani revealed 9♦10♦ to take the pot. She now sits at 57,000.
Early position called and Alex Liu raised to 1,500 from the button. The small blind and early position player put in a call.
The flop and turn peeled the 8♠Q♦9♠5♦ and all three players checked their option.
After the board completed with the 5♣, action checked to Liu. He fired for 5,500 and was called by the small blind. He revealed K♣5♥ to take the pot and chip up to 38,000.
Action was caught on the river of 7♠7♥2♦9♠J♦ and Michael Bernstein moved all in having David Ko covered. Ko made the call and was shown the bad news as Bernstein revealed 8♥10♥ to take the pot. Bernstein sits among the chip leaders with 108,000.
Garry Sandhu raised to 500 from under the gun and Colten Yamagishi three-bet to 2,000 from the small blind. Sandhu made the call.
The flop came 7♠7♠6♦ and Yamagishi fired for 1,000. Sandhu made the call.
After the turn and river peeled the 10♥10♣, both players checked their option. Sandhu’s ace high was good enough to take the pot. He sits at 59,000 and Yamagishi at 55,000.
The high roller is underway with 14 entrants at the moment. Blinds are slower with 40 minute levels and a starting stack of 50,000. Among the field are Julius Roque, Colten Yamagishi, and David Ko.
Wednesday is High Roller with Day 1 action kicking off at 4 PM. Players get 50k in chips for their $2k and will play 40-minute levels throughout the event (20 minutes during heads up).
Day 1 is scheduled to last for 9 levels with the bags coming out around 10:30 PM but late entries will still be open when they bag up for the night. Players can get into this game as late as the end of the break following Level 11 which should be about 2:35 PM on Thursday’s Day 2.
Alek Gillies will be in to cover this one in its entirety.
Brett Worton raised to 2,8000 from under the gun. Vince Lam called from early position and both blinds defended.
The flop came 10♥J♣4♠ and both blinds checked. Worton fired for 5,000 and Lam made the call.
After the Q♥ peeled off on the turn, Worton checked to Lam. He fired for 9,000 and Worton moved all in covering Lam. He made the fold and sits at 32,000 while Worton has 142,000.
Action was caught after the flop of 6♥3♦4♥ and Colten Yamagishi led out for 6,000. Joseph Roberts moved all in for 30,000 and Yamagishi made the call. Both players revealed their holdings.
Joseph Roberts: A♠Q♣ Colten Yamagishi: K♠9♠
The board ran out 8♦8♠ for Roberts to double. He sits at 65,000 and Yamagishi at 49,500.
Middle position raised to 1,200 and Nu Teliani called from late position. The cutoff called and the button called as well.
The flop came 8♣Q♠Q♦ and both early players checked. The cutoff fired for 2,200 and everyone called.
After the turn peeled the 2♦ and everyone checked their action.
The 3♦ completed the board and middle position fired for 5,000. Teliani raised to 12,500 and middle position made the call. Taliani revealed 9♦10♦ to take the pot. She now sits at 57,000.
Early position called and Alex Liu raised to 1,500 from the button. The small blind and early position player put in a call.
The flop and turn peeled the 8♠Q♦9♠5♦ and all three players checked their option.
After the board completed with the 5♣, action checked to Liu. He fired for 5,500 and was called by the small blind. He revealed K♣5♥ to take the pot and chip up to 38,000.
Action was caught on the river of 7♠7♥2♦9♠J♦ and Michael Bernstein moved all in having David Ko covered. Ko made the call and was shown the bad news as Bernstein revealed 8♥10♥ to take the pot. Bernstein sits among the chip leaders with 108,000.
Garry Sandhu raised to 500 from under the gun and Colten Yamagishi three-bet to 2,000 from the small blind. Sandhu made the call.
The flop came 7♠7♠6♦ and Yamagishi fired for 1,000. Sandhu made the call.
After the turn and river peeled the 10♥10♣, both players checked their option. Sandhu’s ace high was good enough to take the pot. He sits at 59,000 and Yamagishi at 55,000.
The high roller is underway with 14 entrants at the moment. Blinds are slower with 40 minute levels and a starting stack of 50,000. Among the field are Julius Roque, Colten Yamagishi, and David Ko.
Wednesday is High Roller with Day 1 action kicking off at 4 PM. Players get 50k in chips for their $2k and will play 40-minute levels throughout the event (20 minutes during heads up).
Day 1 is scheduled to last for 9 levels with the bags coming out around 10:30 PM but late entries will still be open when they bag up for the night. Players can get into this game as late as the end of the break following Level 11 which should be about 2:35 PM on Thursday’s Day 2.
Alek Gillies will be in to cover this one in its entirety.
David Ko bested Joseph Roberts in heads-up play to take down Event #11: $2,000 High Roller. Ko is no stranger to trophies having won multiple WSOPC Rings, a WPT Championship, and an EPT trophy. This is his second PPT trophy and you will be sure to see him in more events throughout the year. He earned $28,000 for besting the 41-player field.
Ko started the day second in chips with 208,100. His aggressive play allowed him to flourish to gain the chip lead after registration closed. He exploited bubble pressure to add to his stack amounting to over 1,300,000 by the time the bubble burst. With over half the chips, Ko found elimination after elimination. He entered heads-up play with 2/3 of the chips in play. He slowly gained more and more before eventually making two pair and calling off Roberts’ jam to take the tourney. A full recap will be available tomorrow.
Joseph Roberts opened to 25,000 and David Ko moved all in having him covered. He called and both players revealed their holdings.
Joseph Roberts: K♠K♥
David Ko: A♠10♦
The board ran out 4♦7♦5♣9♠J♣ for Roberts to take the pot. He’s been running hot getting Kings, Aces twice, and Jacks in back to back hands. He sits at 780,000.
David Ko raised to 20,000 from the button and Keith Graham moved all in for 94,000 from the small blind. Ko made the call and both players revealed their hands.
Keith Graham: A♠K♣
David Ko: A♥10♣
The board ran out 3♦3♣7♠J♦2♣ for Graham to take the pot. He sits at 208,000.
Action folded to Michael Bernstein in the small blind who jammed for 120,000. Ben Veenstra called for 85,000 from the big blind. Both players revealed their hands.
Ben Veenstra: 10♦8♦
Michael Bernstein: A♥9♠
The board ran out 9♣7♣3♠4♦8♥ to send the remaining players into the money.
Mal Hagan moved all in for 42,500 from middle position and Joseph Roberts called in from the cutoff. Both players revealed their holdings.
Mal Hagan: 6♠6♦
Joseph Roberts: A♣K♥
The flop favoured Roberts as it came the A♥K♠4♠2♥. The turn changed little as it came the 2♥. However, Hagan found the 6♥ on the river to stay alive. He now sits at 97,500.
Garry Sandhu raised to 6,000 from the cutoff and Christopher Lastiwaka moved all in for 39,500. Sandhu made the call and both players revealed their hands.
Christopher Lastiwaka: A♥8♦
Garry Sandhu: K♣6♣
The board ran out A♦10♣4♦J♠5♠ for Lastiwaka to find the double.
Action was caught after the flop of A♥7♦2♥ and Garry Sandhu checked to David Ko. He fired for 12,000 and Sandhu made the call.
The turn was the Q♣ and both players checked.
After the river peeled the 2♦, Sandhu checked. Ko moved all in for 57,000 and Sandhu made the fold. Ko sits around 350,000 and Sandhu has near 400,000.
Alex Liu raised to 4,000 from under the gun. Colten Yamagishi made the call on the button and Mal Hagan defended his big blind.
The flop came 3♦10♣10♦ and Hagan checked to Liu. He fired for 3,000 and was rewarded with the pot. He now sits at 28,500. Yamagishi has 100,000 and Hagan 88,000.
David Ko raised to 4,000 from under the gun. Vince Lam moved all in for 36,500 from the button and Ko made the call. Both players revealed their holdings.
Vince Lam: A♣J♣
David Ko: 7♠7♣
The flop was good for Lam as it came 9♣10♥Q♥ to give him a straight draw along with his overs. The turn put him in the lead as it came the A♠. However, the river flipped the odds as the 7♥ completed the board. Ko now sits at 174,000.
Day 2 of the High Roller is set to roll with Garry Sandhu leading the way. He bagged 384.5k and was the only player even close to that. David Ko has the second stack for Day 2 with just over 200k while Brett Worton and Johnny Yu are both playing stacks in the 120k range for 3rd and 4th.
One other notable bag is Daniel Lefebvre. While he bagged just over a starting stack at 56k, he’s a player who knows how to win this event having won four $2k events on the PPT since Oct 2023. He’ll be dangerous in this one as long as he has chips.
Day 2 action gets underway at 1 PM and entries are still open for this one. Blinds for the opening level on Day 2 are 1k/1.5k/1.5k, which means late entries at the start of the day will sit down with 33 big blinds, and players who choose to max-late-reg will start with 20 big blinds, so there is still a reasonable amount of play for new stacks on Day 2.
There were 31 entries on Day 1 putting the current prizes at $53,010, but that will get bigger on Thursday with Day 2 entries.
Entries are set to close at the start of Level 12 which should be about 2:35 PM on Thursday. After that, it will be a race to the trophy. Alek Gillies will be on hand to focus on this event from the opening hands on Day 2 through to the trophy presentation.
Mal Hagan
