3-Bet: Justin Liberto, Fabrice Bigot & Justin Macella Win Live Titles!

Today we bring updates from three live stops, Potomac Winter Poker Open, WPT Prime Paris, and bestbet Winter Open.

WSOP bracelet winner Justin Liberto (cover left) cut through a 533-entry field in the Potomac Winter Poker Open Main Event, collecting $277,053 up top and a beautiful memento! Caitlyn Cobb placed second for a career-best $172,044.

French poker pro Fabrice Bigot (cover center) trounced a vast 1,071-entry field in the WPT Prime Paris Main Event to collect a career-best €177,240, a Club WPT trophy, other prestigious souvenirs, and a seat worth $10,400 to the WPT World Championship at the Wynn in Las Vegas. Sabare Atmani finished runner-up for €113,000.

High School coach Justin Macella (cover right) outclassed a 327-player field in the bestbet Winter Open Main Event, netting a career-best of $122,017. High-stakes cash game player Russell Quick pocketed a runner-up payday worth $81,343.

Justin Liberto Ships Potomac Winter Poker Open Main Event For $277,053

American pro Justin Liberto overcame a stacked 533-entry field in Potomac Winter Poker Open’s Event #11: $2,700 Main Event, collecting $277,053 and a beautiful crystal memento. Caitlyn Cobb made away with a career-best $172,044 in second place.

Liberto has amassed $4,625,788 in live tournament earnings. His previous best score of $640,711 was recorded in the 2015 WSOP, where he won the gold bracelet in Event #51: $3,000 NLH Six-Handed.

“I feel happy. I feel fortunate how it all happened,” said Liberto in the winner’s interview. The stars were aligned for him to play and win the tournament. “I actually was in the Bahamas until Day 1b, and I landed here at 6:30 p.m. I got here at 9 p.m., and late registration closed at 9:45 p.m., so I got to play one level before late reg ended.”

As for Liberto’s future plans, he intends to cut back on live poker. “I just had a kid that’s about to turn one, so I play a little less frequently than I did for the past decade.” Still, he is not in full retirement mode just yet. “I’m going to keep being out there, keep trying to win, keep trying to make some more money.”

The $2,700 buy-in Main Event saw 533 hopefuls raising $1,274,400 in the prize pool. The top 54 finishers received a payday, and a min-cash was worth $5,098.

Tim Faro (9th for $22,302), Hal Rotholz (8th for $31,860), Anthony Lam (7th for $39,506), and Shouyi Gao (6th for $52,250) were the early eliminations on the final table.

Christopher Brown fell out fifth for $68,818 before Mark Dickstein bowed out in fourth place for $90,482. Joseph Lebrun rounded the podium in third place, cashing a cool $123,617.

In the heads-up bout, Liberto clashed against Caitlyn Cobb, a rookie, and after almost two hours of battle, he took down the Main Event title for $277,053.

In the final hand, Cobb (5,200,000) limped on the button, and Liberto (2,13,50,000) raised it to 750,000 in the big blind. Cobb made the call to get to the flop . Liberto checked to Cobb, and she led for 1,500,000. Liberto flatted. The turn was the . Followed by a 2,000,000 check-call by Liberto.

A paired the board on the river, and Cobb moved all in after Liberto checked his option. Liberto snap-called, tabling for a full house that had Cobb’s beat.

Final Table Results (USD)

1. Justin Liberto – $277,053
2. Caitlyn Cobb – $172,044
3. Joseph Lebrun – $123,617
4. Mark Dickstein – $90,482
5. Christopher Brown – $68,818
6. Shouyi Gao – $52,250
7. Anthony Lam – $39,506
8. Hal Rotholz – $31,860
9. Tim Faro – $22,302

Fabrice Bigot Champions WPT Prime Paris Main Event For Career-Best €177,240

The WPT Prime Paris Main Event ran from January 31 to February 5 at the Club Circus Paris. French poker pro Fabrice Bigot outlasted a vast 1,071-entry field to win the coveted title for a career-best €177,240, a gorgeous Club WPT trophy, and a seat to the $10,400 WPT World Championship at the Wynn Las Vegas. Sabare Atmani finished runner-up for €113,000.

A recent inductee to the poker world, Taylor earliest recorded live score was in 2021. With the victory, he surpassed his previous best score, an 11th-place finish in the 2022 EPT Prague Main Event, worth $78,698. He also crossed $500,000 in live tournament earnings.

The €1,100 buy-in event registered 1,071 runners across five starting flights, generating a €1,028,160 prize pool.

Timothee Scotti (8th for €22,000), Hakim Chnyyat (7th for €28,000), Manuel Coimbra (6th for €36,000), and Antonie Labat (5th for €47,000) were the first few players to exit the final table.

Alexandre Le Vaillant (3rd for €84,000) and Federico Cirillo (4th for €63,000) collected career-best scores for their top finishes, leaving Sabare Atmani and Fabrice Bigot heads-up.

Bigot took an over 2:1 chip lead into heads-up play against Atmani and easily sailed past the finish line.

On the final hand, Atmani moved all in on the flop with -middle pair and a gutshot draw. Bigot made the call with – top pair. The turn and river were no help for Atmani, and just like that, Bigot was named the champion.

Final Table Results (EURO)

1. Fabrice Bigot – €177,240
2. Sabare Atmani – €113,000
3. Alexandre Le Vaillant – €84,000
4. Federico Cirillo – €63,000
5. Antonie Labat – €47,000
6. Manuel Coimbra – €36,000
7. Hakim Chnyyat – €28,000
8. Timothee Scotti – €22,000

High School Coach Justin Macella Win bestbet Winter Open Main Event For Career-Best $122,017

Justin Macella, a high school football and baseball coach, added another accolade to his list of achievements after claiming the bestbet Winter Open Main Event. He triumphed over a field of 327 players, securing a career-best of $122,017 and an alluring crystal trophy. High-stakes cash game player Russell Quick finished runner-up for $81,343.

Macella`s first recorded live score was $28,532, which came from a second-place finish in the bestbet Spring Series’ $1,200 NLH 6 Max event in 2021. The title victory is his second recorded live score, which boosted his total live earnings to $150,549.

The Main Event drew 327 runners, generating a $580,425 prize pool. The top 41 places got paid with a min-cash worth $3,577.

Thomas Carroll (3rd for $59,679), Aftab Patni (4th for $44,339), Michael Frierson (5th for $33,366), Toby Boas (6th for $25,437), David Tuthill (7th for $19,648), Maxwell Young (8th for $15,379) and Bryce McVay (9th for $12,201) were others who FT-ed the bestbet Winter Open Main Event.

Justin Macella’s victory was challenging, as he had to go head-to-head with high-stakes cash game player Russell Quick. In a dramatic twist, it was Quick Macella had to defeat on Day 2 of the tournament in a seemingly impossible hand. Macella jammed ace-five into Quick’s ace-jack and needed not one but two fives on the runout to survive after both players paired their kicker on the flop. However, Macella persevered and hit the other five on the turn to survive.

The fated opponents started the heads-up play with Justin Macella (5,845,000) in the lead and Quick (3,965,000) playing catch-up. In the end, Macella pipped the more experienced player to the finish line.

On the last hand of the tournament, Justin Macella limped with , and Russell Quick raised to 250,000 with . Macella called. The flop was tabled , and Quick made the top pair with an ace-kicker. He bet 375,000, and Macella called with his overcards and backdoor straight draw. The turn brought good news for Macella, giving him top pair. Quick moved all in for 2,635,000, and after some deliberation, Macella called. The on the river was no help for Quick, who hit the rail in second place.

In the post-tournament interview, Macella said, “It was fun. We have similar styles in that we’re both fearless, and it doesn’t matter what two cards we’re holding, we’re willing to mix it up and find spots, so that was a lot of fun.”

Final Table Results (USD)

1. Justin Macella – $122,017
2. Russell Quick – $81,343
3. Thomas Carroll – $59,679
4. Aftab Patni – $44,339
5. Michael Frierson – $33,366
6. Toby Boas – $25,437
7. David Tuthill – $19,648
8. Maxwell Young – $15,379
9. Bryce McVay – $12,201

Images and Content Courtesy: PokerNews