WSOP 2022: Paul Hizer Busts His Title Drought, Tops Massive 13,565-Entry Field in Event #51: $400 COLOSSUS ($414,490)

One of the most anticipated events of the 2022 World Series of Poker (WSOP), Event #51: $400 COLOSSUS NLHE saw UK`s Paul Hizer (cover image) fielding through a massive battleground of 13,565 competitors en route to winning his first live tournament title and a career-best $414,490. Sam Laskowitz placed runner-up for $256,170.

The colossal field saw widespread participation from all countries, including India, and as many as five Indian players finished in the money, namely Young Gun Siddharth Karia (142nd for $3,180 ~ ₹2,50,504), Parth Jha (768^th for $1,020 ~ ₹80,637), poker coach Abhishek Goindi (972nd for $890 ~ ₹70,109), Paawan Bansal (1374^th for $700 ~ ₹55,142), and Vinay Patel (1845^th for $640 ~₹50,596).

Paul Hizer has been playing poker professionally for around six years and recreationally for several years before that. In all that time, he had accumulated $474,000 (before this win) in tournament winnings, but a title victory had so far alluded him. He corrected that anomaly on Tuesday after taking down his career-first gold bracelet and his seventh ITM finish at the WSOP (his third in the series), improving his lifetime earnings at the WSOP to $473,701.

Hizer was relieved after finally getting the monkey off his back as he said, “It means a lot. Played many tournaments. Had lots of deep runs. But I’ve never actually won a tournament outright. I don’t know if many people know that about me. I’m sure my close friends do. And maybe today was just written in the stars, and I was meant to go all the way. I felt really confident, I felt like I had a really good game plan, and I’m just really thankful that it worked out.”

He added, “I’ve applied a lot of my time to playing poker. I’ve made it my profession over the last six years. My parents initially weren’t so pleased. It’s not the career choice they wanted for me. Like always in life, I just trust my gut, and I did my best.”

Hizer dedicated his win to Steven Jackson, who was a father figure to him and passed away a few years ago. He said, “He’s forever in my heart, and I love him to pieces. Steven, this is for you.”

The $400 buy-in event generated $4,476,450 in the prize pool and paid out 2,009 places with a min-cash worth $640.

Bracelet winner David Jackson bubbled the unofficial 10-handed FT (11^th for $32,130).

Unofficial Final Table Chip Counts

1. Sam Laskowitz – 160,000,000
2. Paul Hizer – 115,000,000
3. Jordan Pelon – 110,000,000
4. Luong Quach – 46,000,000
5. Sean Shah – 30,000,000
6. William Gian – 23,000,000
7. Anthony Ruttler – 15,000,000
8. James Scott – 15,000,000
9. Jeff Loiacono – 10,000,000
10. Patrick Choueiri – 8,000,000

Patrick Choueiri was the first among the ten finalists to fall (10^th for $32,130).

Final Table Recap

Sean Shah went out in ninth place after his were crushed by Paul Hizer`s .

Soon after that, William Gian fell out in eighth place. His failed to hold against Jeff Loiacono’s . The board ran out giving Loiacono a full house.

Gian`s elimination signaled the end-of-play, and Sam Laskowitz (206,500,000) bagged the overnight chip lead, with eventual champion Hizer (132,000,000) second in chips.

Final Day Chip Counts

1. Sam Laskowitz – 206,500,000
2. Paul Hizer – 132,000,000
3. Jordan Pelon – 68,000,000
4. Jeff Loiacono – 56,000,000
5. Luong Quach – 38,500,000
6. Anthony Ruttler – 32,000,000
7. James Scott – 13,500,000

Final Day Recap

After almost ninety minutes of play on Day 4, Anthony Ruttler got knocked out in seventh place. His were dominated by Luong Quach`s .

After some to and fro, Jeff Loiacono joined the rails in sixth place. His failed to improve against Sam Laskowitz’s .

Soon after Loiacono, short-stacked Luong Quach was sent packing in fifth place. He shoved from the small blind for less than two big blinds with , and Jordan Pelon in the big blind called off with . The community cards gave Pelon a pair of eights, eliminating Quach.

Almost thirty minutes later, James Scott crashed out in fourth place. His were cracked by Paul Hizer with who spiked a King on the runout .

Within a few minutes, Jordan Pelon moved all in with . Sam Laskowitz snap-called with , and an Ace on the turn knocked Pelon out in third place.

Sam Laskowitz (412,000,000) held an over 3:1 chip lead over Paul Hizer (131,500,000) at the start of the heads-up match, but Hizer chipped up fast.

In just an hour of heads-up play, a winner emerged. The final hand saw Paul Hizer moving all-in with , and Sam Laskowitz called off with . The shorter of the two, Laskowitz had two live cards, but the rundown was no help to him.

Final Table Results (USD)

1. Paul Hizer – $414,490
2. Sam Laskowitz – $256,170
3. Jordan Pelon – $193,240
4. James Scott – $146,680
5. Luong Quach – $112,060
6. Jeff Loiacono – $86,160
7. Anthony Ruttler – $66,670
8. William Gian – $51,930
9. Sean Shah – $40,710

Content & Cover Image Courtesy: PokerGO, PokerNews & WSOP

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