Lunkin wins $1.9M, second bracelet at poker series

LAS VEGAS — A 37-year-old Russian poker professional turned a $40,000 buy-in into $1.89 million at the World Series of Poker on Monday, earning his second gold bracelet after topping a field of 201 of the world’s toughest players over four days.

Vitaly Lunkin of Moscow bested 23-year-old Las Vegas poker professional Isaac Haxton after more than three hours of heads-up no-limit Texas Hold ‘em, winning the final hand with pocket aces — the game’s best starting hand.

“It was the most difficult tournament of my life,” Lunkin said through an interpreter. “Every player at the table was a star.”

Lunkin avoided a flush by Haxton on the final hand to take the last of his chips and end the tournament.

The players wagered all their chips after Haxton hit a pair of eights and a diamond flush draw on the flop, but black cards on the turn and river gave Lunkin the title.

“It was a game, but at the same time it was just a very hard job,” Lunkin said.

Haxton won $1.17 million for second place.

Haxton started heads-up play with a nearly 2-1 chip lead on Lunkin, but the players traded chips over a slow grind for much of the next two hours.

Lunkin took a roughly 2-1 chip lead over Haxton after calling Haxton’s all-in bet with a pair of 10s, catching a third on the flop for a set to beat Haxton’s king high.

Lunkin nearly eliminated Haxton with pocket aces a few hands later, but a river 10 gave Haxton two pair and the chip lead.

“Right after that 10 peeled off, I was pretty sure I was going to win the tournament,” Haxton said. “This was an exceptionally tough field.”

Haxton had Lunkin all but beat two hands later with a pair of eights, but Lunkin made a queen-high flush with the last community card to take a dominating chip lead.

The field of 201 players in the series’ first open tournament of the year attracted many of poker’s biggest names and others who regularly play in the highest stakes cash games. In all, 27 players won at least $71,858 from the prize pool of $7.72 million.

The $40,000 tournament, specially priced for the series’ 40th anniversary this year, is one of 57 bracelet events in several poker games culminating in the main event, poker’s richest tournament.

Series officials had hoped a buy-in four times the price of admission to its main event would attract only the game’s top players and result in a high-powered final table.

Greg “Fossilman” Raymer — who won $5 million for taking the main event title in 2004 — was eliminated in third place about nine hours after the final nine players began play Sunday afternoon. Raymer lost after finding his pair of fives against Haxton’s nines with all the money in the middle.

“I kind of wish I had two big cards right now,” the 2004 main event champion said after two face cards and a ten hit on the flop. Two red threes later, Raymer was out.

Raymer won $744,927 for third, then walked around a grandstand to another tournament table where an invitational event for past main event champions was under way.

“It was a lot of good luck and hopefully some good decisions,” Raymer said.