Antonio Vargas wins the first US Circuit Championship in WSOP history

One of the novelties of this year’s WSOP (World Series of Poker) edition was the US Circuit Championship NLH, Event 16 of the schedule which had entries at US$ 1,700. And after three days of play, it came to an end this Thursday (4), with Antonio Vargas as the great champion.

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As well as the tournament itself, it was Antonio Vargas’ debut at the top of the podium in World Series disputes, as the victory earned him his first career bracelet. The player from the US state of Colorado overcame a remarkable field of 2,148 entries to win not only the jewel, but also a prize of US$ 439,605.

Antonio Vargas’ title is largely due to his prominence at the final table. Regularly throughout the decision, he made eliminations, always staying at the top of the chip count. He was responsible for dispatching, for example, Liubomyr Melnyk in fifth and Kartik Ved in third.

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However, the main highlight of the final table was the heads-up. In more than an hour and a half, Antonio Vargas fought a true battle with Kai Cohen, who started behind but collected doubles and didn’t give up. It all ended in a cooler, in which the chips went to the center on the river with the board JT5Q2 with no flush possibilities. Cohen had Q3s, and his top pair was beaten by Vargas’ straight, who held K9o.

The inaugural edition of the US Circuit Championship distributed US$ 3,231,666 in prizes, and although no Brazilian reached the ITM, several big names were among those awarded. The list includes WSOP Main Event champions, such as Joe McKeehen (69th, US$ 6,529) and Jonathan Tamayo (97th, US$ 5,068).

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Check out the final standings of Event 16: