Level 41
: Blinds 1,000,000/2,000,000, 2,000,000 ante
Andreas Kniep
Pavel Plesuv raised 4,000,000 and Andreas Kniep jammed for 11,900,000. Plesuv called and both hands were on their backs.
Andreas Kniep: A♣5♠
Pavel Plesuv: K♥10♥
Kniep had the lead and the A♥7♠2♦ flop left Plesuv drawing thin. The Q♣ hit the turn, giving Plesuv a gutshot straight draw but the 9♦ river was no help and Kniep doubled through him.
Level 41
: Blinds 1,000,000/2,000,000, 2,000,000 ante
Andreas Kniep
Florian Ribouchon raised Q♣J♣ on the button to 4,000,000 and Andreas Kniep flatted the small blind before and Pavel Plesuv jammed all-in in the big blind.
Ribouchon quickly folded and Kniep called off his stick of 26,800,000.
Andreas Kniep: A♠A♥
Pavel Plesuv: A♦2♦
The flop came 10♥5♠3♠, giving Plesuv a straight draw. The 4♠ hit the turn immediately, and Kniep couldn't find another spade to make a flush or a duece to chop as the 7♦ rolled off on the river.
Level 41
: Blinds 1,000,000/2,000,000, 2,000,000 ante
Paul Gunness
Pavel Plesuv raised to 22,000,000 in the small blind and Paul Gunness called off his stack of 19,500,000 in the big blind.
Paul Gunness: A♦3♥
Pavel Plesuv: Q♦8♠
The flop came K♥9♥9♣ for Gunness' ace high to still be good but the Q♠ turn left him drawing to an ace on the river. The 10♠ river was no help though as he was eliminated in 3rd place.
Level 41
: Blinds 1,000,000/2,000,000, 2,000,000 ante
Florian Ribouchon raised limped Q♣6♦ and Pavel Plesuv looked down at 8♥8♣ before raising to 6,500,000, which Ribouchon called.
When the 4♦3♥2♦ flop hit the felt, Plesuv continued for 5,000,000 and Ribouchon called.
The 5♠ hit the turn, improving Ribouchon to a straight and Plesuv fired 6,500,000. Ribouchon made the call.
When the K♣ completed the board, Plesuv slowed down with a check and Ribouchon jammed all-in for 21,600,000. Plesuv thought about it for about a minute and let it go.
Level 41
: Blinds 1,000,000/2,000,000, 2,000,000 ante
Pavel Plesuv
The 2023 World Series of Poker in its home at Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas has crowned a new champion as Moldovan Pavel Plesuv has won his first bracelet. He was the last player standing in Event #53: $1,500 Millionaire Maker No-Limit Hold'em. Although this is his first bracelet, Plesuv has found high success in various WSOP events prior.
With his bracelet win, Plesuv has found his biggest live cash to date. With such prestige and notoriety, Plesuv has won the grand prize of $1,201,564 and his first WSOP bracelet. Plesuv stormed through the field of bracelet winners and notable names as he outmaneuvered the entrants over five days to claim the bulk of the $13,905,360.
It was with little adversity, since Plesuv came into the final day as the chip leader and continued to run hot until the end of the event. Plesuv was supported by a rail of friends and family as he seemed unstoppable marching his way to the bracelet.
Event #37: $1,500 Millionaire Maker Final Table Results
Place
Winner
Country
Prize
1
Pavel Plesuv
Moldova
$1,201,564
2
Florian Ribouchon
France
$1,003,554
3
Paul Gunness
United States
$650,058
4
Andreas Kniep
Germany
$501,182
5
Anton Smirnov
Russia
$373,524
6
Myles Mullaly
United States
$287,522
7
Vitor De Souza Coutinho
Brazil
$222,749
8
Andras Matrai
Hungary
$173,683
9
Charles Benoit
Canada
$136,302
Many notables were in the field with David “OBD” Baker chasing his forth WSOP bracelet. However, Baker was eliminated near the beginning of Day 4 in 30th place. Another bracelet winner Blair Hinkle was also eliminated early in day 3 at 33rd Place.
Plesuv came into Day 5 as the chip leader and he managed to secure the win with little risk. He was never all in or at risk of elimination as he took the tournament down.
Winner's Reaction
PokerNews asked about his success in WSOP events, and how he felt after winning this tournament. Plesuv said:
"It feels amazing, as you said I had some deep runs in the world series but no bracelets. So, it’s really nice to win my first bracelet in such a big field, and for such a big amount my best cash. It feels amazing"
When asked about plans and how he was gonna spend the money, Plesuv responded:
"We’ll see. First of all, I will pay my taxes. Second, I will have some beer and party, and I will continue supporting Ukraine and people in need. Maybe I’ll buy a house we will see"
When asked if he felt there was a tipping point or hand that was crucial to his win of the tournament, Plesuv said:
“Honestly, I don’t have this feeling that I will definitely win. The stacks were pretty shallow and it is swingy. If I lose this A♦2♦ vs A♣A♠ hand I will not be chip leader. I’d say the turning point where I got the chip lead and far ahead of the others was at two tables on the second feature table. We got big stacks there close to each other, and I was getting good hands in good spots to accumulate some chips.”
Finally, when asked if there was anything else he wanted to say to the readers, Plesuv said:
“Keep studying and keep believing in your dreams. Follow your passion and the results will come. Don’t let results affect your life too much. You can extract a lot of good things, even when you have a losing streak.
Pavel Plesuv
Recap of the Day
The day started with Andreas Kniep putting the pressure on the rest of the table, and the first elimination could be credited to Kniep when Vitor De Souza Countinho lost a flip to him. This eliminated the Brazilian in 7th place for $222,749.
The next victim was Myles Mullaly who saw himself on the wrong end of a two outer hit. This tragically ended the American's run in 6th place for $287,522.
Anton Smirnov was knocked out next. He lost a flip to be eliminated in 5th place for $373,524. Following shortly after was Andreas Kniep who had his Aces beat to send him home in 4th place for $501,182.
Next up was Paul Gunness who was eliminated in 3rd place for $650,058. His Ace high hand was beaten in a flip against Plesuv.
The heads-up battle was a short affair and it was the Jacks of Florian Ribouchon that lost to Puslev in a flip. Florian took home $1,003,554 for his 2nd place finish.
Congratulations to Pavel for winning the 2023 WSOP Event #53: $1,500 Millionaire Maker!
Be sure to keep it with the PokerNews team for coverage of your favorite tournaments at the 2023 World Series of Poker.
