Several noteworthy names took down events at the 2023 US Poker Open at the Aria Casino in Las Vegas. Phil Hellmuth won Event #5 $10,000 NL with a straight flush. Isaac Kempton won Event #6 $15,000 PLO for $279,000, Darrien Elias binked Event #7 $15,000 NL for a $313,200, and Ike Haxton shipped Event #8 $25,000 NL for $423,000.
The 2023 US Poker Open continued its high roller action at the Aria Casino on The Strip, and the latest stop on the PGT Tour is almost complete. It's been a wild few days at the USPO with Phil Hellmuth making a big splash with a USPO title. Yup, even the Poker Brat got in on the action and found himself as the last player standing at the Aria.
The fifth event on the docket featured another $10,000 buy-in no-limit event. USPO Event #5 attracted 88 entrants, who created a prize pool by $880,000. The top 13 places paid out with the lion's share se aside to the champ.
Among those familiar faces who cashed in Event #5 included Jim Collopy, Cary Katz, Ren Lin, John Riordan, Cherish Andrews, David Stamm, and Darren Elias.
The final table included Allan Le, Aram Oganyan, George Wolff, Jesse Lonis, Jeremy Ausmus, and Phil Hellmuth. Hellmuth and Ausmus squared off in a heads-up duel, and Ausmus settled on a second-place finish. He was knocked out on an unfortunate beat when Hellmuth won the pot and tournament with a straight flush.
Ausmus took 
into battle against Hellmuth's 
:2. Ausmus flopped top pair, but Hellmuth picked up a straight flush draw on a board of 
. The two bombed it all-in on the flop. The turn was a fortuitous 
. Ausmus improved to a Queen-high flush, but for Hellmuth filled in his straight flush. Hellmuth banked $211,200 and 211 points for the victory, but you know he's gonna yap incessantly about the straight flush.
Event #6 $15,000 PLO attracted 62 runners and a prize pool worth $930,000. Only the top nine places paid out. Mike Wang, Chris Brewer, and Jim Collopy cashed but missed the final table.
The final six in Event #6 includes Erik Seidel, Roussos Koliakoudakis, Greg Shuda, Isaac Kempton, Ben Lamb, and Martin Zamani. Shuda and Kempton were the final two standing players in PLO, but Shuda hit the bricks in second place. Kempton banked $279,000 for the PLO victory, and he netted 279 leaderboard points.
Event #7 $15,000 NL attracted 87 entries and a prize pool worth $1.3 million. The top 13 places got a cut of the pool. Among those who went deep and cashed included David Peters, Carlos Chadha, Alex Foxen, Ben Miner, Justin Saliba, Mike Lang, and Isaac Kempton.
The final table of Event #7 included Chris Brewer, Sean Winter, Mas Oya, Brandon Wilson, Sam Soverel, and Darren Elias. Soverel and Elias threw down in a heads-up joust, but Elias was the one who stepped into the winner's circle. Soverel busted in second place, which paid out $221,850. Elias snagged $313,200 for the win and 313 leaderboard points. That six-figure score in the USPO pushed Elias over the $11 million career-earnings mark on Hendon Mob.
Event #8 $25,000 NL attracted 54 players. The prize pool was $1.35 million, and the top eight places paid out. Mas Oya, Chris Brewer, Alex Foxen, Phil Hellmuth Bill Klein, Joey Weissman, Dan Smith, and Ike Haxton cashed in the $25K.
Haxton and Weissman were heads-up for the title, with Weissman seeking a second victory this series. Alas, he busted in second place, but earned $283,500 and 170 coveted leaderboard points. Haxton took home $423,000 and scooped up 429 points.
Ren Lin sits atop of the US Poker Open leaderboard with 465 points, and he's ahead of Sam Soverel in second place with 457, and Weissman in third place with 429 points.
