WSOP 2022: Brazil’s Joao Simao Wins Career-Second Bracelet in Event #53 $5,000 Mixed No-Limit Hold ’em/Pot-Limit Omaha ($686,242)

Brazilian poker pro Joao Simao (cover image) cut his way across the 788-entry field in the 2022 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Event #53: $5,000 Mixed No-Limit Hold ’em/Pot-Limit Omaha to land his second WSOP gold bracelet and a personal-best $686,242 in prize money. Germany’s Marius Gierse finished runner-up for $424,122.

Joao Simao won his first bracelet last year in the WSOP Online Series Event #2: $1,111 Caesars Care Charity Event on GGPoker/Natural8 for $206,075, making this his first bracelet victory in a live event. This was also his sixth ITM finish at the ongoing series (45th WSOP cash overall), boosting his lifetime record at the WSOP to $1,348,890.

In his post-win interview, Simao said, “I had some very hard spots at the final table,” and added, “some players were better than me in Hold ’em, others were better than me in Omaha, but I felt that on average I had an edge because I play both well.”

He added, “Every time a Brazilian wins a bracelet, it makes our community grow more and more, which is good for us and the poker world in general.”

The $5,000 buy-in event collected $3,634,650 in the prize pool and paid out 119 places with a min-cash worth $8,010.

Day 2 began with 72 contenders. Some notables to post scores included David Williams (18th for $23,327), Brian Rast (22nd for $23,327), Mustapha Kanit (28th for $19,650), Ben Diebold (48th for $12,977), and Stefan Schillhabel (68th for $10,724).

Simao entered the final day as the chip leader and kept himself amongst the top stacks. He knocked out six players on the final table to grab his second bracelet.

Unofficial Final Table Chip Counts

1. Joao Simao – 9,900,000
2. Joshua McSwiney – 5,340,000
3. Marius Gierse – 5,050,000
4. Cody Rich – 4,800,000
5. Aden Salazar – 4,450,000
6. Dante Goya – 3,810,000
7. Fred Goldberg – 2,050,000
8. Joni Jouhkimainen – 1,925,000
9. Ryan Riess – 1,100,000

Finland’s Joni Jouhkimainen’s elimination (9th for $54,313) formed the official eight-handed final table.

Final Table Recap

Cody Rich was the first player to fall on the FT in a Pot-Limit Omaha hand. On the flop , Joao Simao’s went up against Cody Rich’s . The turn and river both bricked for Rich, relegating him to the rail in eighth place. Simao took down the pot with his pocket kings.

After almost an hour of play, Fred Goldberg went out in seventh place. His ran into Marius Gierse’s in a Pot-Limit Omaha hand and Gierse`s aces held.

After some to and fro, Joshua McSwiney was the next player to exit in sixth place. His lost the flip to Marius Gierse’s .

Soon after McSwiney, the short-stacked Aden Salazar joined the rail in fifth place. Salazar moved all-in with and Joao Simao called off with . The board gave both players a pair, but Simao made the better pair to knock Salazar out.

Ten minutes later, Brazil’s Dante Goya was sent packing in fourth place after his lost the flip against fellow countryman Joao Simao’s .

After Goya’s elimination, the 2013 WSOP Main Event champion Ryan Riess was the next player heading out in third place. In a preflop all-in showdown, Riess’s were up against Marius Griese’s . The rundown gave Griese the winning flush, and just like that, Riess’s wait for a second bracelet got stretched.

Entering the heads-up play, the Brazilian pro Joao Simao (30,800,000) had an over 3.5:1 chip lead over Marius Gierse (8,600,000). The heads-up match was over in forty minutes, with Simao extending his advantage to the finish line.

On the last hand of the tournament, Marius Gierse four-bet shoved with on the flop . Joao Simao looked him up with . Simao’s rail erupted into cheers as the & completed the board, assuring the Brazilian his second WSOP bracelet.

Final Table Results (USD)

1. Joao Simao – $686,242
2. Marius Gierse – $424,122
3. Ryan Riess – $302,980
4. Dante Goya – $219,472
5. Aden Salazar – $161,239
6. Joshua McSwiney – $120,165
7. Fred Goldberg – $90,864
8. Cody Rich – $69,727

Content & Cover Image Courtesy: PokerGO, PokerNews & WSOP

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