Marvin Rettenmaier Wins World Poker Tour Merit Cyprus Classic, Back-to-Back WPT Titles
The World Poker Tour Merit Cyprus Classic has been completed and history has been made. Marvin Rettenmaier emerged victorious in Cyprus and by doing so has made history as the first player to win back-to-back WPT titles.
In May 2012, just days after becoming a PartyPoker sponsored pro, Rettenmaier entered the $25,500 WPT World Championship at the Bellagio, Las Vegas; the Grand Final of Season X of the WPT. When the dust had settled, Rettenmaier had outlasted 151 star-studded opponents to win his first WPT title and the massive $1,196,858 prize. Fast forward to Aug. 9 and Rettenmaier has won the first event of Season XI of the World Poker Tour, becoming the first player in the history of the WPT to win back-to-back titles.
Rettenmaier went into the final table third in chips but went about his victory in style, single-handedly knocking out each of his five opponents!
WPT Merit Cyprus Classic Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marvin Rettenmaier | $287,784 |
| 2 | Artur Voskanyan | $184,020 |
| 3 | Ran Azor | $118,360 |
| 4 | Victor Paraschiv | $87,610 |
| 5 | Joseph El Khoury | $65,770 |
| 6 | Kiryl Radzivonau | $52,590 |
First to feel the wrath of Rettenmaier was Kiryl Radzivonau who found himself short of chips and moved all in with J♦10♠. Unfortunately for him, Rettenmaier held Q♣Q♦ and made the call. Radzivonau paired his ten on the flop, but Rettenmaier flopped a set of queens and Radzivonau was drawing dead on the turn.
It took three hours of small-ball poker before the table lost another player. Joseph El Khoury was down to 10 big blinds when he open-shoved for 1,225,000 from the button with A♣2♠. Rettenmaier called with a dominating A♥Q♣, but he had to endure a brief scare as the board ran out 4♣8♥6♣3♥ giving El Khoury a glimpse of hope, but the 8♦ on the river took that hope away — and all his chips.
From that moment on, any thoughts of a non-Rettenmaier win were dismissed because of the simple fact that Rettenmaier had plenty of chips at his disposal and his opponents were being forced to play push-or-fold poker. One man who did push was Victor Paraschiv who three-bet all-in over the top of Rettenmaier's opening raise with K♣5♣. Rettenmaier, with K♠K♦ made the call and the 4♣Q♦10♠5♥J♦ board eliminated Paraschiv, leaving Rettenmaier with six times as many chips as either of his opponents!
Three became two when Rettenmaier dispatched Ran Azor. Rettenmaier raised all in and Azor made the call, turning over 7♣7♦. Rettenmaeir's Q♠9♣ flopped an open-ended straight draw, but it was the queen he caught on the river that eliminated Azor. Rettenmaier held more than a 4:1 chip lead when heads-up play with Artur Voskanyan began.
Rettenmaier sealed the deal after just two hands of one-on-one action. He put Voskanyan all in while holding J♦9♦, and his Russian opponent called with A♣10♥. Rettenmaier caught a nine on the 9♣8♠4♥ flop and when the turn and river were the Q♥ and 7♦ respectively, the game was over for Voskanyan. Rettenmaier made his mark in the history books with his win at the World Poker Tour Merit Cyprus Classic as the first back-to-back winner of WPT Main Event titles.
The World Poker Tour and Rettenmaier head back stateside for the WPT Parx Open Poker Classic where he will attempt to win back-to-back-to-back titles.
Get all the latest PokerNews updates on your social media outlets. Follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook now!
