Connor Berkowitz Wins Event #66 ($487,784)
Connor Berkowitz won Event #66: $777 “Lucky 7s” No-Limit Hold'em, the first such event the World Series of Poker has held. He won $487,784 for topping the 4,422-player field.
It isn't Berkowitz's first time scoring five figures or more, but you wouldn't know that looking at his poker stats. That's because Berkowitz makes a living playing tournaments online in his home state of New Jersey, where he can play legally with fellow residents.
The final table for the event included Matt Matros, who finished eighth, and Faraz Jaka, who was denied his first bracelet with a fifth-place finish. Berkowitz proved to be Jaka's downfall as he shoved for 1.5 million over a Jaka open to 260,000 and doubled when he hit a three-outer with 
against Jaka's 
. A bit later, Berkowitz finished Jaka with 
against 
as neither player found any improvement on the board.
Berkowitz then continued to run hot, busting Jeffrey Dobrin with 
when Dobrin picked up 
. That gave Berkowitz half of the chips in play three-handed and he made it a full four eliminations in a row by also taking out David Yu in third and John Armbrust in second.
“It really is a dream come true,” he said. “It's everybody's dream, but for it to actually happen is insane.”
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Connor Berkowitz | Manalapan, NJ | $487,784 |
| 2 | John Armbrust | Austin, TX | $301,615 |
| 3 | David Yu | Foster City, CA | $217,173 |
| 4 | Jeffrey Dobrin | Las Vegas, NV | $160,496 |
| 5 | Faraz Jaka | San Jose, CA | $119,606 |
| 6 | John Gallaher | Lebanaon, TN | $89,890 |
| 7 | John Zimmerman | Las Vegas, NV | $68,098 |
| 8 | Matt Matros | Brooklyn, NY | $52,033 |
| 9 | Massimo Mosele | Torino, Italy | $40,085 |