Michael "stiltwalk" Mercaldo Wins Second WSOP Bracelet In Event #23: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Freezeout ($68,005)
On Sunday night, the 2022 World Series of Poker Online Event #23: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Freezeout attracted 244 players to generate a $335,500 prize pool. After eight and a half hours of play, Michael "stiltwalk" Mercaldo came out on top to win a $68,005 first-place prize and his second career gold bracelet.
Prior to this victory, Mercaldo had $71,221 in live earnings according to The Hendon Mob with his biggest score being in a WSOP.com bracelet event last year when he took down the $777 No Limit Hold'em Lucky Sevens for $123,574.
Many notables joined the virtual felt and some who made a deep run but came up short of a final table finish included high-stakes regular and bracelet winner Alex "OrcinusOrca" Foxen (27th - $2,449), PokerGo commentator Jeff "mavsusc" Platt (20th - $2,482), and UK’s own Toby "DustPistons" Lewis (9th - $5,401).
WSOP Online Bracelet Event #23 Final Table Results
| Place | Name | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael "stiltwalk" Mercaldo | United States | $68,005 |
| 2 | Joseph "ShoeGoat" Walters | United States | $49,150 |
| 3 | Evan "ballz222" Sandberg | United States | $35,730 |
| 4 | Matthew "booyastink" Wantman | United States | $25,867 |
| 5 | Will "JonSnow14" Clarke | United States | $18,754 |
| 6 | Orson "borgatcha" Young | United States | $13,688 |
| 7 | Austin "Shady_1" Roberts | United States | $9,997 |
| 8 | Jesse "Patient0" Yaginuma | United States | $7,347 |
Final Table Action
The eight-handed final table got off to a slow start with action going back and forth for over 30 minutes. With the blinds increasing and stacks becoming shorter, Jesse "Patient0" Yaginuma moved all in with ace-jack and was called by Evan "ballz222" Sandberg with pocket queens. The board didn’t improve Yaginuma and they were out in eighth place.
A short while later Austin "Shady_1" Roberts had all their chips in the middle with ace-seven and was up against the ace-king for Matthew "booyastink" Wantman. The board ran out ten-high and Roberts was eliminated in seventh place.
On the next hand Orson "borgatcha" Young moved all in with pocket jacks and was called by Sandberg with ace-eight. The flop fanned out an ace and Young was sent to the rail in sixth place. Will "JonSnow14" Clarke was the next casualty when his ace-nine fell to the ace-king for Mercaldo and Clarke was out in fifth place.
Wantman moved all in with king-queen and was called by Joseph "ShoeGoat" Walters with ace-ten. The board didn’t improve Wantman and he was eliminated in fourth place.
Sandberg got in a flip situation when his ace-king was up against the pocket fours for Mercaldo. The flop fanned out a four and the rest didn’t help Sandberg as he was sent to the rail in third place.
Heads-up play started very close in chips between Mercaldo and Walters. After close to ten minutes Walters picked up pocket sevens and found himself all in against the pocket eights for Mercaldo. The board ran out queen-high and Walters was forced to settle for runner-up position. Mercaldo won the event and his second career WSOP bracelet.
That's a wrap here at 2022 WSOP Online Event #23: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Freezeout. Be sure to stick with PokerNews as we continue to bring you full coverage of this series on WSOP.com!