The 2016 World Series of Poker The Main Event is currently paused for a period of three and a half months. In November, the top nine competitors from a total of 6,737 entrants will reconvene at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, competing for an enormous prize of $8 million and a historic place in poker. Among those returning are Griffin Benger and Fernando Pons, who both secured their spots through 888poker.
Fernando Pons, who earned his Main Event entry through a €30 qualifying tournament, is being dubbed the next 'Moneymaker,' while Griffin Benger demonstrated that even seasoned professionals can take advantage of satellite tournaments. With both of the November Niners assured of at least $1 million, they recorded two of the highest 'Return on Investments (ROI)' from the 2016 WSOP, although they were not the only successful players.
Other notable players who had remarkable runs this summer include Hung Le, Michael Tureniec, and Ola Brandborn. We took the opportunity to delve deeper into their individual stories.
Fernando Pons
Despite being the shortest stack among the final nine, 37-year-old Pons, who works as an account executive for a retail chain in Palma, Spain, is truly living an extraordinary experience.
Earlier this year, Pons won a €30 888poker.es satellite Originally planning to spend just five days in Las Vegas with his friend, Massa Paola, Pons' trip extended far beyond his initial expectations.
"He only packed enough clothes for five days,\" Paola shared with WSOP officials during the event. \"In the morning, you feel grateful just to be still in the game, but by nightfall, it’s hard to believe you’re still here. It feels surreal, so you find yourself buying more clothes for the next day.\"
Pons, who is married and has a four-year-old daughter, consistently managed to bag his chips each night. On Day 1c, this recreational player, known for being 'dedicated, quiet, and focused,' increased his starting stack of 50,000 to 118,900, landing him in 281st place out of the 3,252 players who survived the day.
During Day 2c, Pons ended up with 279,600 chips, placing him 258th among the 2,186 players returning for Day 3 when the money bubble burst. That day, out of the 800 players who advanced, he found himself ranked a lowly 684th with 137,000 in chips, which was less than half of what he had the previous day.
Luckily, Pons rallied on Day 4, boosting his stack to 1.58 million, which earned him the 81st position out of 251 players. His fortunate streak continued on Day 5 as he increased his chips to 7.93 million, positioning him 10th among the final 80 players. By Day 6, he reached the final 27, entering in seventh with 17.27 million.
Pons had a rollercoaster Day 7 as they played down to the much-anticipated November Nine. Although he held one of the smaller stacks during the crucial moments, the elimination of Josh Weiss in 10th place allowed Pons to become the first Spaniard to reach the final table since Andoni Larrabe in 2014.
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of Pons' journey is its similarity to that of Chris Moneymaker, who famously transformed a small satellite win into a $2.5 million victory in the Main Event back in 2003.
"I guess I’m the PonsMaker,\" Pons humorously responded when asked about the parallels. With a few months to enjoy being in the spotlight as one of the November Nine, he will soon be back in Las Vegas trying to overcome the short stack and potentially become the first 888poker qualifier to win the WSOP Main Event.
Check out Benger’s interview with PokerNews after the final table. Photo by: fabfotos.
Griffin Benger
Griffin Benger, a 31-year-old from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, stands out as one of the most successful players at the final table, boasting nearly $2.4 million in live tournament earnings. However, due to his recent role as a commentator for the Global Poker League, he missed out on much of this summer's WSOP. In fact, he only entered the Main Event, which he qualified for through an 888poker satellite.
Benger shared, \"I was actually in Malta at the time of the qualifier. I visited a friend’s house who was cheering me on, brought me a smoothie, and we were just playing together. Big shout out to my friend Roland. I had said I wouldn’t play in the Main Event unless I won a seat, but at the last minute, I decided to register. I find those satellites really enjoyable, and they all worked out perfectly for me.\" steam He mentioned, \"I invested around $1,000, which is quite a bargain. I must be honest; those satellites are soft. The steps they offer at 888poker make it accessible for players who usually wouldn’t be in a $1,000 buy-in event to qualify for the Main Event. I usually participate in the $160 and $30 steps, which serve as great entry points for those with a few hundred bucks looking to experience something exciting. It’s truly a gift that 888 provided me with this opportunity.\"
As he progressed to the November Nine, Benger ended Day 2 with 394,500 chips, ranking 62nd among the returning 2,186 players. By Day 3, he more than doubled his stack to 967,000, putting him 45th among the 800 remaining players. This upward trend continued on Day 4, where he finished with 2.409 million, ranking 24th among the 251 survivors.
Day 5 was particularly successful for Benger, as he climbed to 9.86 million chips, making him the fourth largest stack out of the final 80. On Day 6, he faced a small setback, dropping to 6.53 million, which placed him 20th among the remaining 27 players. Nevertheless, he held strong on the final day, finishing with 26.175 million, which placed him seventh among the November Nine.
Benger made his mark in the early 2000s as a competitive video game player known as 'shaGuar' in Counter-Strike, later switching to online poker. In 2011, under the online alias 'Flush_Entity,' he ascended to become the world’s top-ranked online poker player.
After finishing 90th in the 2014 WSOP Main Event, Benger is seeking redemption and aspires to become just the second Canadian to win the WSOP Main Event, the first being Jonathan Duhamel in 2011.
Leading up to the final event of the 2016 WSOP, it was a challenging summer for Michael Tureniec from Sweden, who did not record any cashes. Fortunately, he experienced a turning point by winning Event #69: $1,111 Little One for One Drop, triumphing over a field of 4,360 entries, which included 3,101 U.S. players and 1,259 international competitors, garnering a prize of $525,520.
Michael Tureniec
This victory marked the third-largest cash in Tureniec’s poker career, elevating his lifetime earnings to $3,765,066, placing him fourth on Sweden's all-time money list, behind Martin De Knijff, Chris Bjorin, and Martin Jacobson.
"Winning is an overwhelming feeling,\" expressed the 31-year-old Tureniec after claiming his first gold bracelet. \"This is the pinnacle of achievement in poker.\"
Notably, Tureniec, who also qualified for the WSOP Main Event through an 888poker satellite (although he didn't cash in that event), showcased his resilience as he emerged from a short stack against seasoned competitors such as Calvin Anderson and Ryan D'Angelo to secure his win.
"I started to get some strong hands once we became short-handed,\" Tureniec explained. \"That helped me accumulate chips when we were down to three or four players. By the time I was heads-up, it was crucial to have chips to play with, especially since Calvin was a formidable opponent.\"
Tureniec’s victory was noteworthy as it marked the 11th win in WSOP history by a Swedish player. Additionally, the event generated $1,206,478 for ONE DROP, an organization dedicated to providing global access to clean water. To date, participants have contributed over $14.7 million to this charity through the WSOP.
"In my hometown, they call me a fish. But today, I’m a fish with a bracelet,\" he remarked happily.
Undoubtedly, one of the summer’s most uplifting stories arose from Event #54: $888 Crazy Eights, a tournament that drew a massive 6,761 players (4,873 Americans and 1,885 international entrants) and created an impressive prize pool of $5,403,391.
Hung Le
Ultimately, it wasn't a renowned professional or even an experienced amateur who took home the title and the top prize of $888,888, but rather a self-identified 'fish' in the form of a 53-year-old Vietnamese immigrant, who operates a nail salon with his family in Dayton, Ohio.
"I have five children, and we are a working-class family. We put in a lot of effort. This money truly changes our lives,\" Le stated, expressing that he had never participated in a WSOP event before. \"I just hoped to come to Las Vegas and have some luck.\" Hung Le During his inaugural visit to Las Vegas, not only did Le achieve the biggest win of his poker career, but he also secured his very first cash! Furthermore, he succeeded at a challenging final table featuring two-time bracelet champion Loni Harwood, former PCA winner Dimitar Danchev, and France's Aurelien Guiglini.
Adding to the significance of his achievement, Le’s victory represented a remarkable 500% return on his two $888 buy-ins (after re-entering once), providing a perfect backdrop to celebrate his version of the American Dream on July 4th.
Ola Brandborn, a seasoned poker player from Sweden, has been involved in the game for many years. His earliest cash came in 1998 when he won the pot-limit Omaha event at the Swedish Championships in Stockholm, and since then he has accumulated $341,050 in lifetime earnings, ranking him just within the top 100 on Sweden's all-time money list at 96th.
This summer, Brandborn achieved his first-ever cash in the WSOP Main Event, which he qualified for through a $5 888poker satellite. He finished in 720th place, earning $17,232, translating to an impressive ROI of 3,446%.
Ola Brandborn
Chad Holloway is a WSOP Bracelet winner from 2013 and has previously worked as both a managing editor and live reporter for PokerNews.