Home » News » Borgata Poker Open 2018: Guo Liang Chen Wins Maiden WPT Title For $789,058

Borgata Poker Open 2018: Guo Liang Chen Wins Maiden WPT Title For $789,058

PG News September 21, 2018
6 Mins Read

The five-day long Season XVI World Poker Tour (WPT) Borgata Poker Open Championship finally concluded on September 22 and outlasting the massive 1,132-entry field was Guo Liang Chen (cover image).

After a 10-hour long final table, which saw Chen defeat the likes of Thomas Paul, Jia Liu and Gregory Weber, he not only claimed his maiden WPT title but also posted his career-best live cash of $789,058, which includes a $15,000 seat into the season-ending WPT Tournament of Champions. Chen was also awarded a luxurious Hublot Big Bang Steel watch and a $5,000 membership to JetSmarter, the official private jet partner of the WPT.

“I had faith in myself,” Chen said after his victory. “I’m a very gifted player, so I definitely thought I could make it.”

Day 1A Recap

The first of the two starting flights opened to 283 entries, of which 131 remained till the end of the day’s play. Trung Pham topped the stacks with 327,300.

Day 1B Recap

The second and last starting flight dragged in a massive field of 965 runners. Following an intense day at the felts, Guy Smith emerged with the biggest stack of 210,800 to lead the remaining 358 players into Day 2.

Day 2 Recap

The players from Day 1A and 1B combined on Day 2 to create a player pool of 489 entrants. With several players entering through the late registration period, the final count of players stood at 1,132 entries and generated a prize pool north of $3.6 Million. David Gerassi (1,322,000) topped the 117 survivors for Day 3.

Day 3 Recap

Following 93 eliminations, the field was further reduced to 24 players who made the cut for Day 4. With the top 110 places assured a min-cash of $6,812, the money bubble eventually burst on Jordan Siegel.

The notables who finished in the money included Eddie Ochana (25^th for $16,306), Scott Sisler (30^th for $14,132), Ryan Tamanini (39^th for $12,320), Benjamin Zamani (50^th for $10,508), John Moore (63^rd for $9,240), Michael Hollenberg (70^th for $8,443), Matthew Burnitz (80^th for $7,791) and Daniel Strelitz (89^th for $7,175).

Cliff ‘JohnnyBax’ Josephy topped the final 24 with 4,079,000 in the bag.

Day 4 Recap

After 18 more eliminations including Muarem Kica (7^th for $126,824), Will Givens (8^th for $94,212), Benjamin Morgan (9^th for $66,492), Nick Palma (10^th for $43,301), Johanssy Joseph (14^th for $28,988), Jason Gooch (17^th for $19,386), David Gerassi (21^st for $16,306) and Steve Karp (24^th for $16,306), the six-handed final table was set.

Final Day Recap

Matt Parry began the final day as the chip leader. While all six finalists were assured a minimum payout of $161,247, all eyes were on the prestigious title and the top prize of $789,058.

Final Table Chip Counts

1. Matt Parry – 9,110,000

2. Gregory Weber – 6,990,000

3. Thomas Paul – 6,100,000

4. Jia Liu – 4,810,000

5. Guo Liang Chen – 3,850,000

6. Cliff Josephy – 2,950,000

Final Table Recap

Thomas Paul was the first elimination from the six-handed final table. On the 50th hand, Guo Liang Chen raised from middle position to 260,000 and Paul used one of his Time Chips before calling from big blind. The flop brought and Chen moved all-in with , while Paul check-called with . The turn missed both players but the river gave Chen a much-needed top pair that won him the pot and eliminated Paul in sixth place.

Less than 15 minutes later, Gregory Weber jammed from the small blind and Cliff Josephy called from the big blind. Weber pitted his against Josephy’s . The board ran and Weber picked up three-of-a-kind jacks on the turn, eliminating Josephy in fifth place.

Down to four-handed play, the game continued for 36 more hands till Matt Parry raised from the button to 450,000 and Weber re-raised to 1,200,000 from big blind. Parry moved all-in and Weber snap-called.

Matt Parry

Gregory Weber

The community cards fanned out and Weber flopped a pair of kings, while Parry was sent packing in fourth place.

Three-handed play continued for over two hours before Jia Liu finished his run in third place. He moved all-in from the button with and Chen called from big blind holding . The runout missed both players, but Chen’s king high was good enough to keep him in the hunt, as Liu moved on to collect his thid place prize money.

With Liu’s third-place exit, the heads-up play commenced between Gregory Weber (21,425,000) and Guo Liang Chen (12,450,000). The two pros battled for close to an hour before the final hand was dealt. On the 182nd hand of the day, Weber moved all-in for 5,050,000 and Chen tanked for a while before making the call.

Gregory Weber

Guo Liang Chen

The board came and did not affect either player. Chen’s ace kicker helped him claim his career-first WPT title and the top prize worth $789,058, while Weber settled for a runner-up finish!