Joshua Pollock Wins First WPT Title at Legends of Poker ($573,350)
The Season 20 edition of World Poker Tour (WPT) Legends of Poker at Parkwest Bicycle Casino has come to an end and Joshua Pollock is the last one standing. Pollock defeated WPT mainstay Ray Qartomy at the end to claim his spot in the WPT Champions Club and a top prize of $573,350.
The $5,250 tournament drew 642 players for a total prize pool of $3,113,700.
Pollock’s first WPT title comes after a long career with two WSOP bracelets and just over $1.7 million in lifetime earnings. His previous best finish at Legends of Poker was a run to fourth in 2011.
Season 20 WPT Legends of Poker Final Table Results
| Rank | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joshua Pollock | United States | $573,350 |
| 2 | Ray Qartomy | United States | $380,000 |
| 3 | Matthew Wantman | United States | $280,000 |
| 4 | Aaron Motoyama | United States | $207,000 |
| 5 | Lei Lei | United States | $156,000 |
| 6 | Adam Hendrix | United States | $119,000 |
Final Table Action
Pollock set himself up for success at the top of the leaderboard after he ended Day 2 with the chip lead.
“I just ran super well the last level of Day 2," Pollock said in a post-win interview with PokerNews. "I went from one of the bottom stacks to the chip leader. I won a race and then I coolered someone when I flopped a straight against their set. I just ran really good."
Day 3 also went well for Pollock and he finished in a tie for second with Matthew Wantman. Qartomy lead the way at the beginning of the final table, but Pollock stayed within striking distance throughout the finale.
Adam Hendrix and Lei Lei bowed out in the early portion of the final table. Hendrix got it in early after he shoved with a big draw-only to run into Wantman’s set of fours. The river was a brick and Hendrix was out in sixth place. Lei followed in fifth place a few hands later when his ace-jack couldn’t catch up to Wantman’s pocket kings.
Pollock’s turning point came after he knocked out Aaron Motoyama in fourth place.
“There was a big flip to get down to three players. Basically, me and (Motoyama) had the same stack, and I went all in with queen-ten of diamonds on an eight-high diamond flop. He called with nines and I hit a queen to bust him.”
The pot moved Pollock’s stack to even with the others as three-handed play got underway. The final three players played a bulk of the day’s hands against one another, and Pollock finally eliminated Wantman after a series of clashes. Wantman's bid for a second WPT title ended after an impressive run to third place.
Heads-up play kicked off just before 5 p.m. local time and it took less than an hour to find a winner. Pollock entered the final two with a chip advantage before he ceded to Qartomy for a brief moment. The champ quickly fought back and the big moment came when Qartomy suited ace-eight couldn’t improve against Pollock’s pocket eights.
Pollock picked up his first WPT title, and he enjoyed the opportunity to do it against one of the tour’s best.
“Getting heads up against Ray (Qartomy) was pretty awesome because I think we both have similar styles. He likes to play fast and I like to play fast, so that was a really enjoyable experience.”
Qartomy is a fixture at final tables at WPT events, and this was the sixth trip in his career. He previously finished third at this year’s WPT Choctaw, and today’s runner-up effort was his best finish.
Meanwhile, the two-time WSOP bracelet winner can enjoy another one of poker’s biggest accolades.
“This is probably the top accomplishment. It’s the most money and it’s a tough field. It was a tough final table and I never thought I would get to a point where I had a chance to win one of these.”
What’s Next?
Pollock has big plans for his family in December, and he will take a step back from live poker for the time being.
“I’ve been playing for a long time. I started playing online in 2002. I don’t play much live anymore, and my wife is due, so I don’t think I will be playing much live poker coming up. Hopefully, by the next WSOP I will be able to fire a bunch of tournaments. It’s exciting and I definitely want to play more tournaments next year.”
The World Poker Tour now moves on to Tampa for WPT Seminole Hard Rock Tampa. The stop runs from September 2-7 and it will feature a $3,500 Main Event.
Be sure to keep it with the PokerNews team for more coverage from the World Poker Tour at Seminole Hard Rock Tampa.
Photos courtesy of Joe Giron/WPT
