Allen Kessler, Esther Taylor & Sean Banahan Among WPT Wynn Side Event Winners

While all eyes are currently on the $10,400 World Poker Tour (WPT) World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas, it’s important to remember that it is just one tournament in a long festival that runs December 1-20.

During that time there are more than $22 million in guaranteed prize pools being offered across 23 events. Among those to win side event titles were Ethan “Rampage” Yau ($25K High Roller for $894,240), Calen “Big Wheel” McNeil ($600 Limit Omaha 8/B for $21,305), Sergio Grosso ($1,100 Seniors NLH for $130,806), Lawrence Berg ($600 PLO Turbo for $46,307), and Christopher Puetz ($1,600 NLH Bounty Turbo for $79,576).

Here are some other big winners from the series thus far.

Allen Kessler Wins Limit Omaha 8B Championship

From December 13-14, the $1,100 Limit Omaha 8B Championship took place. With 228 entrants, the $100K guarantee was more than doubled as a $221,160 prize pool was on offer to the top 23 finishers.

Among those to cash but fall short of the final table were Esther Taylor (10th - $4,578), Nathan Gamble (11th - $4,578), Calen McNeil (16th - $3,178), Ari Engel (18th - $2,864), and Barry Shulman (22nd - $2,596).

Much to the delight of many poker fans worldwide, Allen Kessler, who has finished runner-up in four WSOP gold bracelet events, closed it out by besting Clyde Gaskins in heads-up play. The victory was good for $52,104 and a bit of redemption for the “Chainsaw” as he claimed a desired trophy.

It’s been a bit of a heater for the “Chainsaw” as back in October, Kessler topped a field of 41 runners to win the 2022 Orleans Fall Poker Open $400 Eight-Game Mix for $3,210. Prior to his recent victories, Kessler hadn’t had a tournament victory since 2015 according to the Hendon Mob.

$1,100 Limit Omaha 8B Final Table Results

Massive Opening Event Ends in Heads-Up Deal

The series actually kicked off with a $600 buy-in, $500K GTD No-Limit Hold’em event from December 1-4. That tournament attracted a massive 2,999 runners and more than tripled the guarantee by generating a $1,559,480 prize pool.

Among those to make deep runs were Eric Baldwin (14th - $13,800), Elvis Toomas (24th - $8,455), Thomas Middleton (34th - $7,430), Jose Barbero (43rd - $6,575), Dan Shak (52nd - $5,860), Mitchell Halverson (63rd - $4,743), and Ryan Riess (69th - $4,743).

The tournament ended in a heads-up deal between Jesse Lonis, one of the hottest players in tournament poker, and Idaho’s Sean Banahan. As part of the deal, Lonis finished in second place for $122,184 while Banahan was deemed champion for $136,220 and the tophy.

$600 NLH Opening Event Final Table Results

Esther Taylor Bests Benny Glaser to Win 8-Game Mix

Back on December 8, the $3,000 8-Game Mix $200K GTD attracted 131 entries, which created a $360,250 prize pool. That was paid out to the top 15 players, and among those to cash but fall short of the final table were Leonard August (10th - $8,538), Toby Lewis (11th - $8,538), Eita Sakai (12th - $7,475), Ken Aldridge (13th - $7,475), Nick Milgrom (14th - $6,621), and AJ Kelsall (15th - $6,621).

The final table was filled with recognizable and accomplished poker players, but after Brian Hastings bowed out in third place for $41,069, the title came down to Esther Taylor and Benny Glaser.

Taylor wound up closing it out for a smooth $100,000, while Glaser took $73,496 for his runner-up finish. Glaser would go on to make a deep run in the WPT World Championship and actually began Day 4 as the chip leader.

$3,000 8-Game Mix Final Table Results

WPT Wynn Side Event Winners