2010’s Top Poker Titles

With another year of big poker tournaments behind us, we’d like to take a moment to look back on 2010 and its largest live tournament wins.

WSOP Main Event Champion

Every year the pros rally around whatever fellow professional manages to grind their way to the top of the massive WSOP Main Event heap. Meanwhile, the amateur audience clamors to see another hopeful take down poker’s biggest prize. This year, the heads-up action gave both sides a little of what they wanted.

On one end was the young Canadian college dropout, Jonathan Duhamel, who had funded his first trip to the WSOP with factory work. In the other corner was accomplished pro John Racener, who’s proven himself many times over in both live tournaments and on the virtual felt. Ultimately, the cards played out in Duhamel’s favor, making him both a WSOP Champion and a millionaire in one glorious moment.

The Poker Players Championship

At the WSOP, all eyes seem to be on the Main Event, but this year it was Event #2 of the tournament – the Poker Players Championship – that most pros considered to be the truest test of a player’s skills. Indeed, the eight game event is the closest the WSOP has come to the gauntlet style competition that started it all since the 1970s.

For five days, competitors battled it out in Limit Hold’em, Omaha Hi-Low Split, Seven Card Razz, Seven Card Stud, Seven Card Hi-Low Split, NL Hold’em, PL Omaha and 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball. The $50,000 buy-in limited the field to 116 players, but it was perhaps the toughest and tightest field at the whole WSOP.

Who won? None other than Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi who was also a fan favorite at the final table for the Main Event. All in all, Mizrachi finished in the money at a total of five 2010 WSOP events, final tabling at four and winning one to take home more than $4 million in payouts and prove, without question, that he really is one of the best all-around players in the game.

WPT World Championship

David Williams has been picking and choosing his poker battles since 2001. Maybe that’s why he wins so many of them. Either way, in less than 10 years of limited tournament play he’s still managed to post 64 cashes, take five wins, earn a WSOP bracelet and finish second in the illustrious Main Event. This year he added another important jewel to his crown when he won the WPT World Championship in April.

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