British pro Jack Sinclair has overcome the disappointment of a near miss in 2017 to win his first bracelet and $1.2 million at the 2018 World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE).
In clinching the WSOPE title November 2, Sinclair not only beat 2013 WSOP Main Event champion Ryan Reiss but avenged his seventh-place finish in 2017’s Big Dance.
Entering the final day inside the Czech Republic’s King’s Casino fourth in chips, Sinclair caught a break early courtesy of Milos Skrbic.
Sinclair Doubles and Dominates
Using his newfound chips as leverage, the Englishman proceeded to push the pace as the final stages of the €10,350/$11,700 tournament loomed. By the time the aforementioned Skrbic and Riess had exited in fifth and fourth respectively, Sinclair took control.
First to fall in the three-way battle was Krasimir Yankov. After raising from the button with pocket fives and receiving two callers, the Bulgarian thought he was in good shape when the flop came Q
However, after a raise and a call pushed Laszlo Bujtas out of the pot, Sinclair put his opponent all-in as the K
With the chip lead in his position, Sinclair looked confident heading into the heads-up match against Bujtas. Things quickly changed, however, as the Hungarian grabbed the chip lead with some well-timed moves.
Queen Makes Sinclair WSOPE King
As the action dragged on, it was back-and-forth between the two finalists before a pair of queens ended it. With no other option but to move all-in on the button with J
Within three cards, the Brit’s marginal lead was extended significantly thanks to the Q
1st Jack Sinclair – $1,277,013
2nd Laszlo Bujtas – $789,227
3rd Krasimir Yankov – $546,231
4th Ryan Riess – $384,363
5th Milos Skrbic – $275,055
6th Ihor Yerofieiev – $200,233
7th Koray Aldemir – $148,327
8th Bulcsu Lukacs – $111,842
9th Stoyan Obreshkov – $85,868
Commenting on his victory, an elated Sinclair said that he learned a lot from the 2017 WSOP Main Event final table but didn’t let his previous disappointment cloud his judgement.
“I thought about [the 2017 WSOP final table] once at the final table when I had jack-four off-suit against Laszlo. Vegas was my first ever time playing a $10K and the first time in Vegas in general. The whole thing has been so surreal from the start of my poker career until now,” Sinclair told PokerNews on November 2.