Event #66: $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Championship (8-Handed)
Day 4 Completed
2024 World Series of Poker
Event #66: $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Championship (8-Handed)
Day: 4
Event Info
Final Results
Event Info
Level Info
Players Info - Day 4
2024 World Series of Poker
Buy-in
$10,000
Prize Pool
$7,542,300
Entries
811
Level
31
Blinds
150,000 / 300,000
Ante
300,000
Entries
5
Players Left
1
Level 31
: Blinds 150,000/300,000, 300,000 ante
Championship final days at the 2024 World Series of Poker have been dominated by the game's biggest stars, but in a seldom-seen twist this summer, the five players who returned for today's $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Championship finale had never tasted success on poker's grandest stage.
Giants like Stephen Chidwick, John Hennigan, and Michael Mizrachi were just some of the huge names who made way for a new crop of talent to take centre stage under the bright lights of the Horseshoe Events Centre, all vying for their own crowning moment.
After the final hand was dealt, it was Elie Nakache who seized the opportunity and etched his name in poker's history books. Nakache defeated Joshua Adkins in heads-up to stand tall over the record-setting field of 811 entries. His prize was his maiden WSOP bracelet, along with the $1,320,945 set aside for the winner. Adkins, who had never cashed in a WSOP event before, banked $880,621 for his runner-up performance.
Jonathan Bowers rounded out the podium finishes, while Manh Nguyen and Oshri Lahmani bowed out in fourth and fifth, laying the path for Nakache's victory.
$10K PLO Championship Final Table Results
| Place | Winner | Country | Prize (in USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elie Nakache | France | $1,320,945 |
| 2 | Joshua Adkins | United States | $880,621 |
| 3 | Jonathan Bowers | United Kingdom | $615,251 |
| 4 | Manh Nguyen | United States | $436,751 |
| 5 | Oshri Lahmani | Israel | $315,098 |
| 6 | Krzysztof Magott | Poland | $231,101 |
| 7 | Eelis Pärssinen | Finland | $172,355 |
| 8 | David Benyamine | France | $130,748 |
Click here to see a full list of payouts.
Nakache's Love Affair with PLO
Nakache's poker story began with grinding Spin-and-Go's before Pot-Limit Omaha became his favorite game to play.
"I’m a spin player, but during the last two years, I fell in love with PLO." gushed Nakache. "I like to play a lot of hands, and tournaments are perfect for that. I had the feeling that I could do something in this tournament. And it was amazing. I’m very lucky, and I won a bracelet."
The switcheroo has now proved to be the correct decision as it resulted in a seven-figure windfall, taking his previous $281,249 in live tournament earnings to new lofty heights.
Nakache produced a stunning heads-up display, railroading Adkins as the duo fought in a one-sided battle.
"The key is just a lot of aggression, and that’s how I play heads up." said Nakache. "You can’t just wait for a hand. I had good hands as well. And in the last hand, he had enough of it, he called…and that’s it."
"I think he had the image of me that I wasn’t an aggressive player. I think that was useful. But in heads-up, it’s not the same. We have to play. So I played, and it worked."
"The path was more exciting than the result, but a few minutes after I won, it was a very good feeling."
Nakache's Route to PLO Supremacy
The quintet of four-card aficionados had each secured $315,098 from the $7,542,300 prize pool before a single chip was exchanged, marking their biggest cash to date—except for Adkins, who previously notched a $331,480 payout on the World Poker Tour in 2019.
The stakes had never been higher for the final five, and it was Bowers who thrived under the pressure when the cards went in the air. The Brit doubled through Adkins before collecting Lahmani's short stack, reducing the field to four. Adkins' once insurmountable lead was now in Bowers' sights, but Adkins regained momentum, widening the gap after eliminating Nguyen in fourth place. While Nguyen missed out on the winner's spoils, his $436,751 payday saw him cross the $1 million mark in live earnings, a milestone achievement for any poker player.
Nakache bided his time in the early stages, choosing his spots wisely as he climbed the counts, while Bowers tumbled down to become the short stack. "Johnny English" — as his supporters fondly called him, was worn down by Adkins — who then delivered the final blow to Bowers, setting up a heads-up showdown with Nakache.
Adkins held a 3:1 advantage over his opponent, but the script flipped dramatically as Nakache came alive. The Frenchman wasted no time in seizing control, steadily pulling away from Adkins, whose chip lead at the start of Day 4 now seemed a distant memory.
Nakache withstood Adkins' aggression in key three-bet pots during heads-up that turned the tides in his favor, and then sealed the triumph. Nakache flopped a six-high straight and was paid off by Adkins' aces to become France's 36th bracelet winner.
This concludes PokerNews' coverage of the $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Championship, but be sure to explore our live update hub to keep up with all the action from the 2024 WSOP.
Level 31
: Blinds 150,000/300,000, 300,000 ante
Joshua Adkins opened to 900,000 from the button and Elie Nakache defended his big blind.
On the 6♣4♥2♠ flop, Nakache check-raised to 2,000,000 over a bet of 600,000 and was called. Nakache fired out 3,500,000 on the K♦ turn, and Adkins stuck around for the final street.
The 10♠ completed the board, and Nakache moved all-in for Adkins' last 9,500,000. The American thought for around 30 seconds before making the call for the cards to be tabled.
Joshua Adkins: A♠A♣K♠Q♣
Elie Nakache: 8♣5♦4♠3♥
Nakache flopped the stone-cold nuts, cracking Adkins' double-suited aces to become France's 36th bracelet winner.
Adkins, who had never cashed in a WSOP event before, banked $880,621 for his runner-up performance.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
48,660,000
17,135,000
|
17,135,000 |
|
||
|
Busted | |
|
||
Level 31
: Blinds 150,000/300,000, 300,000 ante
Joshua Adkins raised to 900,000 on the button holding A♦9♦3♦2♠ and Elie Nakache called with 9♠8♠7♦7♣ from the big blind.
The flop fell Q♠7♠J♥. Nakache checked, and Adkins fired out a bet of 1,050,000. Nakache check-raised to 3,500,000, and Adkins instantly folded.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
31,525,000
1,950,000
|
1,950,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
17,075,000
-1,950,000
|
-1,950,000 |
|
|
||
Level 31
: Blinds 150,000/300,000, 300,000 ante
Elie Nakache raised the button to 900,000 with 9♣7♣6♦2♣. Joshua Adkins three-bet out of the big blind holding 10♠10♥7♥7♦. Nakache called, and they headed to the flop.
After Adkins bet 600,000 on the 8♣8♦A♣ flop, Nakache raised to 2,000,000. After a few moments, Adkins three-bet to 3,500,000. This forced a quick fold from Nakache.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
29,575,000
-5,300,000
|
-5,300,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
19,025,000
5,300,000
|
5,300,000 |
|
|
||
Level 31
: Blinds 150,000/300,000, 300,000 ante
Earlier this year on an ordinary Monday afternoon, a bespectacled man walked into the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop on Las Vegas Blvd. Tucked under his arm was an uninteresting box that only he knew contained something rather interesting – a pair of gold watches dating back more than 40 years.
These were not your run-of-the-mill wristwear, but rather evidence of a unique and often overlooked time of poker history, a year when the World Series of Poker (WSOP) gold bracelet, now the game’s highest accolade, was replaced in favor of watches.
The man holding the box was David Sklansky, who in 1978 forever changed poker by advocating a mathematical approach to the game in his groundbreaking book The Theory of Poker. Nicknamed “The Mathematician,” he proved his prowess just four years later when he won two WSOP tournaments in five days.
First, he won the 1982 WSOP Event #7: $800 Mixed Doubles Limit Seven Card Stud, a tournament that paired one man with one woman, alongside Dani Kelly, and followed that up by taking down Event #12: $1,000 Limit 5-Card Draw High. A year later, the Binions reverted back to the beloved bracelets players know today, and Sklansky captured his third piece of WSOP hardware by winning Event #11: $1,000 Limit Omaha.
It was a remarkable accomplishment, and for more than four decades he’s kept safe the evidence of his victories, both of which still worked. So, why was Sklansky carrying his 1982 WSOP gold watches, two of only 15 ever awarded, into a pawn shop? Well, he was looking to sell them of course, but not to just any of the dozens of pawn shops spread across Las Vegas. Oh no, he was walking into arguably the most famous pawn shop in the world, the home to the wildly popular television show Pawn Stars, and he was there to do it with cameras rolling.
Read all about the 1982 WSOP watches here in our feature article!
Level 31
: Blinds 150,000/300,000, 300,000 ante
Elie Nakache raised to 900,000 with Q♣10♦10♣4♦ on the button, and Joshua Adkins defended the big blind with K♦6♣5♦4♠.
The Q♥8♠5♥ flop got checked through for the J♦ to come on the turn. This time Adkins check-folded to bet a 2,100,000 from Nakache.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
34,875,000
1,350,000
|
1,350,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
13,725,000
-1,350,000
|
-1,350,000 |
|
|
||
Level: 31
Blinds: 150,000/300,000
Ante: 300,000
Level 30
: Blinds 125,000/250,000, 250,000 ante
Elie Nakache raised to 750,000 on the button with J♣8♦7♦5♣. Joshua Adkins three-bet to 2,250,000 from the big blind with K♥K♣5♦4♥, and Nakache called.
On the 4♣Q♣3♥ flop, Adkins bet 1,600,000, and Nakache made the call.
The turn was the J♠. Adkins checked, then faced a bet 7,950,000 from Nakache. This sent Adkins deep into the tank, thinking for over two minutes. Ultimately, he settled on a fold and forfeited the pot to Nakache.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
33,525,000
4,100,000
|
4,100,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
15,075,000
-4,100,000
|
-4,100,000 |
|
|
||
Level 30
: Blinds 125,000/250,000, 250,000 ante
Joshua Adkins called from the button with A♠Q♣4♦3♥. Elie Nakache raised to 750,000 from the big blind holding K♠6♦5♥4♠, and Adkins called.
The 6♠A♣2♣ flop saw Nakache bet 600,000 and Adkins call.
The turn came the 2♥. After Adkins checked, Nakache bet 2,950,000 and after some tanking, Adkins threw his cards into the muck.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
29,425,000
1,350,000
|
1,350,000 |
|
|
||
|
|
19,175,000
-1,350,000
|
-1,350,000 |
|
|
||