The 2021 Poker Masters entered its home stretch over the weekend, which included crowning two more winners before heading into the final tournament of the series.
On Friday, Mikita Badziakouski topped a field of 38 entries to win Event #10: $25,000 NL Hold’em at the 2021 Poker Masters for $342,000. Not only did Badziakouski topped win, he did so in hist first Poker Masters of the 2021 edition after having recently arrived in Las Vegas.
“It feels good, but you know, it’s just about luck,” Badziakouski told PokerGO officials after the win. ““As a professional, I just need to come and try to perform my best no matter the results from the previous events.”
He added: “It’s very easy to lose yourself in sorts about previous hands, which is not necessary and probably not the best choice. I’m glad I managed to notice when I’m out of sorts about previous hands and actually try to get my focus back to what is going on. Maybe that’s helped a little, but at the most, it’s just about luck.”
According to updates from the event, Seth Davies began heads-up play with a chip lead but Badziakouski scored a double with jack-nine and hit the river to best ace-six. Not long after, Davies was at-risk with jack-four and despite pairing on the flop, Badziakouski rivered a straight with queen-ten to seal the deal.
2021 Poker Masters Event #10 Payouts
| Place | Player | PokerGO Tour Points | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mikita Badziakouski | 205 | $342,000 |
| 2 | Seth Davies | 137 | $228,000 |
| 3 | Daniel Negreanu | $91 | 152,000 |
| 4 | Ali Imsirovic | 63 | $104,500 |
| 5 | Jason Koon | 46 | $76,000 |
| 6 | Chris Brewer | 29 | $47,500 |
Addamo Takes the Lead
In just his second tournament of the 2021 Poker Masters, Michael Addamo bested a 34-entry field to win Event #11: $50,000 NLH for $680,000. Addamo began the final day as the chip leader and eliminated all four of his opponents on his way to victory, which put him atop the points leaderboard with just one event to go.
“It was incredible,” Addamo said of going on to win after starting Day 2 with the chip lead. “I had a great stretch of hands and I pretty much had it the whole time on the final table, so I can’t credit it to any good bluffing skills. Just good fortune.”
He continued: “I just want to keep playing the big buy-ins,” Addamo said when asked about what else he would like to achieve in poker. “The 100Ks-plus is really exciting stuff and obviously this one as well. I’d just like to keep going, battling it out with all of the other top guys, and see how we go.”
According to updates from the event, Addamo bested Jason Koon in heads-up play when his king-jack held up against king-nine.
2021 Poker Masters Event #11 Payouts
| Place | Player | PokerGO Tour Points | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Addamo | 408 | $680,000 |
| 2 | Jason Koon | 265 | $442,000 |
| 3 | David Coleman | 163 | $272,000 |
| 4 | Alex Foxen | 112 | $187,000 |
| 5 | Cary Katz | 71 | $119,000 |
The 2021 Poker Masters will wrap up on Sunday with the conclusion of Event #12: $100,000 No-Limit Hold’em. Just five players remain in that tournament with Addamo sitting as chip leader. If he can finish in the top two he will lock up the purple jacket.
However, if Badziakouski, Alex Foxen, or Nick Petrangelo win, they will take top honors. The only player at the final table without a chance to win the Poker Masters purple jacket was Hong Kong’s Stanley Tang.
Here’s a look at the points leaderboard after Event #11:
2021 Poker Masters Leaderboard
| Rank | Player | Points | Wins | Cashes | Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Michael Addamo | 408 | 1 | 1 | $680,000 |
| 2nd | Lou Garza | 376 | 0 | 4 | $550,200 |
| 3rd | Daniel Negreanu | 372 | 1 | 3 | $433,400 |
| 4th | Brock Wilson | 358 | 1 | 3 | $414,300 |
| 5th | Chris Brewer | 349 | 1 | 4 | $538,300 |
| 6th | Jason Koon | 345 | 0 | 3 | $552,400 |
| 7th | Sean Perry | 280 | 1 | 3 | $280,000 |
| 8th | Stephen Chidwick | 271 | 1 | 3 | $296,100 |
| 9th | Dylan DeStefano | 260 | 0 | 3 | $260,800 |
| 10th | Jeremy Ausmus | 219 | 0 | 3 | $253,200 |
