Saturday February 4, 2023 at 7:35 pm

Aliaksandr Shylko from Belarus shipped the second-ever PokerStars Players Championship (PSPC) for a $3.1 million score after he worked out a three-way money chop with Germany's Max Menzel and Philipe Pizzari from Brazil. Nacho Barbero went deep in the 2023 PSPC with a fourth-place finish at Baha Mar in the Bahamas. Shylko outlasted 1,014 runners who generated a prize pool worth over $24.8 million

2023_SHYLKO_PSPC
Aliaksandr Shylko - 2023 PSPC Champion (Pic by @PokerStars)

Ship it to Belarus. After a multi-year wait, PokerStars finally crowned a new champion in the second running of the PokerStars Players Championship. The 2023 PSPC coincided with the return of the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in the Bahamas. The Baha Mar is the new home to the PCA and the luxury resort also hosted the PSPC. Last weekend, PokerStars crowned a new PCA Main Event champion when Michel Dattani from Portugal won the first big tournament of 2023. On Friday, PokerStars crowned the winner of the PSPC who hails from Belarus.

The first-ever PSPC occurred during the 2019 PCA at Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. The inaugural PSPC was a $25,000 event that got boosted by Platinum Passes and prize packages. The first PSPC set a record and attracted 1,039 runners and a prize pool worth $26.4 million. Roman Collias from Spain was the last player standing. Collias, dubbed the Spanish Chris Moneymaker, secured a seat to the first 2019 PSPC through a satellite and then parlayed that into $5.1 million.

Now, you can add Aliaksandr Shylko to the growing list of PSPC champions after he was the last player standing at the second-ever PSPC. The 2023 PSPC had $25,000 buy-in, which attracted 1,014 runners and a prize pool worth $24,843,000. Only the top 175 places paid out with $4 million originally set aside to the winner.

Marcello Del Grosso bubbled the final nine when he busted in tenth place. Romania's Andrei Boghean finished in ninth place, which paid out $449K. Bulgaria's Petar Kalev was picked off in eighth place for $621K. Thomas Eychenne from France bubble the final table when he was knocked out in seventh place, which paid out $801K.

The final table of six at the 2023 PSPC included two Germans -- Niclas Thumm and Max Menzel -- along with players from Belarus, Brazil, Argentina, and Portugal. Nacho Barbero, a well-known pro from Argentina, was the most noteworthy player at the final table. Aliaksandr Shylko, Philipe Pizzari, and Pedro Marques rounded out the final six.

Germany's Niclas Thumm won a Platinum Pass which he parlayed into a cool million when he busted in sixth place.

Pedro Marques missed out on becoming another player from Portugal to win a major event at the PCA, but he was knocked out in fifth place, which paid out $1.25 million.

In a joust between two South Americans, Brazil's Philipe Pizzari took out Argentina's Nacho Barbero in fourth place when he flopped top two pair with Carte 5 de cœurCarte 3 de cœur. Nacho hit the bricks in fourth place, which paid out $1.5 million.

With three to go, Shylko was the big stack with 26M, followed by Max Menzel in second with 20M, and Pizzari was the "short stack" with 14.1M.

The final three of Shylko, Menzel, and Pizzari worked out a money chop and ICM deal. First place was supposed to pay out $4.05 million, with $2.5 million for second place, and $1.9 million for third place.

With the new payouts... Pizzari locked up $2,524,871 for third place in the deal, Menzel got $2,759,990, and Shylko secured $2,921,838 as the chip leader. Under the terms of the deal, the left $200K on the table for first place and $100K to second place. Oh, and let's not forget about the coveted PSPC trophy to the winner.

Short-stacked Pizzari made a final stand with Carte Valet de cœurCarte 7 de cœur and he picked up a heart flush draw on the flop of Carte Dame de cœurCarte 3 de cœurCarte 3 de pique, but he whiffed on the turn and the river. Menzel dragged the pot with Carte Roi de piqueCarte Dame de pique and won with Queens up. Pizzari bounced in third place and won over $2.5 million thanks to the deal.

It was a battle of Germany and Belarus for the PSPC title, but Menzel was outchipped by big-sacked Shylko.

Menzel thought he could double up after he caught a runner-runner straight with Carte Valet de trèfleCarte 9 de pique on a board of Carte 8 de trèfleCarte 5 de carreauCarte 5 de cœurCarte 10 de piqueCarte Dame de trèfle. However, his Queen-high straight was not good enough to beat Shylko's full house. Shylko flopped trip fives with Carte 10 de cœurCarte 5 de trèfle, and turned a full house. Menzel check-raised all-in on the river, and Shylko could not call fast enough with his boat.

Max Menzel, who was a Platinum Pass winner, earned $2.86 million for a runner-up finish. Not too shabby, eh?

Aliaksandr Shylko was the last player standing and he became the second-ever PSPC champion. The pro from Belarus banked $3,121,838, which was his biggest score to date.

Notable players who went deep in the 2023 PSPC included... Sam Grafton, Jeremy Ausmus, Fedor Holz, Jerome Moreau, Chris Moneymaker, Dan Dvoress, Blake Bohn, Chris Moorman, Tommy Nguyen, Jonathan Jaffe, Talal Shakerchi, Ori Hasson, Norbert Szecsi, Robert Cowen, Chance Kornuth, Bruno Volkmann, Kenny Hallaert, Martin Zamai, Michel Dattani, Noah Boeken, Joni Jouhkimainen, David Peters, Justin Liberto, Romain Lewis, Noah Schwartz, Dario Sammartino, Sergio Aido, James Tolbert, Kitty Kuo, Ema Zajmovic, Martin Jacobson, Chris Day, Sammy Lafleur, Jake Schwartz, Pierre Fromage, Dinesh Alt, Mustapha Kanit, Shannon Shorr, Justin Saliba, Griffin Benger, Richard Seymour, Julien Perouse, and Eric Afriat.

2023 PokerStars Players Championship

Buy-in: $25,000

Entrants: 1,014

Prize Pool: $24,843,000

Payouts: 175

 

Final Table Results:

1. Aliaksandr Shylko (Belarus) $3,121,838 ***

2. Max Menzel (Germany) $2,859,990 ***

3. Philipe Pizzari (Brazil) $2,524,871 ***

4. Nacho Barbero (Argentina) $1,551,300

5. Pedro Marques (Portugal) $1,251,500

6. Niclas Thumm (Germany) $1,001,200

*** 3-way money deal

Latest news
Friday December 1, 2023 at 4:49 pm
Hungary's Istvan Briski wins 2023 WPT Seminole Rock N Roll Poker Open

The World Poker Tour crowned a new champion during their latest stop in Hollywood, Florida at the 2023 WPT Seminole Rock N Roll Poker Open. When the dust settled, Istvan Briski from Hungary outlasted 1,447 runners to win the $3,500 Main Event for a score worth $647,300. Darryll Fish missed out on another title when he busted in sixth place.

Monday November 13, 2023 at 11:20 pm
Sami Bechahed wins 2023 NAPT Las Vegas Main Event

The PokerStars-branded North American Poker Tour made its triumphant return, and Sami Bechahed shipped the NAPT Las Vegas Main Event at Resorts World. The $1,650 buy-in NAPT Main Event attracted 1,095 runners and a prize pool worth $1.6 million. Bechahed -- a poker dealer -- banked $268,945 for first place when he outlasted a final table that included Jonathan Borenstein, David Coleman, Ping Liu, Sergio Aido, and Nick Schulman.

Saturday October 21, 2023 at 8:46 pm
Jared Bleznick ships $1.3 million at Super High Roller Bowl PLO

Jared Bleznick was the last player standing at the first-ever Super High Roller Bowl PLO $100,000 buy-in event at the Aria Casino in Las Vegas. Bleznick outlasted 38 runners and won $1,292,000 in the record-setting high roller PLO affair. Meanwhile, Isaac Haxton finished in second place but he moved into first place on the PokerGo Tour Leaderboard after his deep run.

Tuesday October 10, 2023 at 3:09 am
RIP Anthony Holden, ‘Big Deal' poker author passes away at 76

The poker world lost one of its finest authors when Anthony Holden passed away at age 76. Holden penned, translated, and edited nearly 40 books during his illustrious career as a journalist and writer. “Big Deal: A Year as a Professional Poker Player” is considered one of the best books ever written about poker, and it chronicled Holden's journey into the gambling underworld in Las Vegas in the late 1980s.

Tuesday September 19, 2023 at 12:27 am
2023 Poker Masters: Darren Elias, Vladas Tamasauskas early winners

The 2023 Poker Masters is underway at the Aria Casino in Las Vegas and two events are in the books. Lithuania's Vladas Tamasauskas outlasted a record-setting field of 114 entries to win Event #1 $10K NL for a score worth $239,400. American pro Darren Elias was the last player standing in Event #2 $10K NL and he banked $223,100 and his second PGT title.

Wednesday September 6, 2023 at 1:52 am
Simon Wiciak wins 2023 EPT Barcelona Main Event for €1.1 million

France's Simon Wiciak was the last player standing at the 2023 EPT Barcelona €5,300 buy-in Main Event, and he outlasted 2,120 runners to win €1,134,375 at a rowdy final table that included a pair of Brazilians. The final three players cut a money deal with Wiciak besting Brazil's Joao Sydenstricker and British pro Carl Shaw. The final table in Barcelona also included Canada's Santiago Plante, Brazil's Andre Akkari, and Argentina's Ezequiel Waigel.

Thursday August 24, 2023 at 7:19 pm
Daniel Negreanu and Doug Polk meet in High Stakes Duel 4

The next big matchup in PokerGo's High Stakes Duel will feature Daniel Negreanu and Doug Polk. The two pros will meet once again in the latest installment of HSD 4 Round 2. Polk defeated Negreanu in their own High Stakes Feud than ended in early 2021 with Negreanu losing $1.2 million after logging 25,000 hands of heads-up NL.

Friday August 18, 2023 at 5:35 pm
PokerStars releases 2023 WCOOP schedule

PokerStars released the schedule for the upcoming 2023 World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP). This year's epic and popular online series features 110 tournaments with three different tiered buy-ins and $80 million in guaranteed prize pools starting on Sunday, September 10 and running for 25 days through October 4. There are 12 championship events on the docket at the 2023 WCOOP.

Wednesday August 16, 2023 at 8:16 pm
Billy Kopp and Tobias Schwecht win WSOP Circuit Main Events

The World Series of Poker Circuit handed out gold rings to a pair of Main Event champions. German pro Tobias Schwecht was the last player standing at the World Series of Poker International Super Circuit London in the UK, and he banked £480K or approximately $610K USD for winning the Main Event. American pro and WSOP bracelet winner Billy Kopp locked up a third-career ring when he shipped 2023 WSOP Circuit Harrah's Cherokee Main Event in North Carolina for $376,154.

Tuesday August 15, 2023 at 12:13 am
2023 WSOP Paradise releases schedule

The WSOP released an official schedule of events for the inaugural WSOP Paradise at the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. The WSOP Paradise kicks off on December 3 and final event begins on December 14 with 15 bracelets events up for grabs. There's two online events and cards go in the air for the Main Event on December 9. The $25K GGMillion$ High Rollers Championship is slated for December 5.

Tuesday July 18, 2023 at 1:46 am
Breaking News
Dan Weinman wins 2023 WSOP Main Event for $12.1 million

The 2023 World Series of Poker Main Event finally played down from 10,043 entrants to the last player standing in Las Vegas. Atlanta-based pro Daniel Weinman is the 2023 WSOP Main Event champion and he earned a first-place payday worth $12.1 million. He also snagged a second-career bracelet. Americans finished 1-2-3 in this year's Main Event. Steven Jones was the runner up and he won $6.5 million for second place. Adam Walton won $4 million for a third-place finish.

Saturday July 15, 2023 at 10:46 pm
2023 WSOP: Adam Walton leads Main Event Final Table

The 2023 World Series of Poker Main Event in Las Vegas reached a final table with nine players remaining in the hunt for $12.1 million and the coveted special bracelet. Adam Walton from Los Angeles leads the final table with 143.8M in chips. Also still alive are Americans Steven Jones and Dan Weinman, Toby Lewis and Dean Hutchison from the UK, Germany's Jan-Peter Jachtmann, Ukraine's Ruslan Prydryk, Juan Maceiras from Spain, and Daniel Holzner from Italy. The final table resumes on Sunday.

Free tournaments and added prizes

The Club Poker organizes freerolls and special tournaments with added prizes.
To qualify for free, register on our poker partners websites: