The $1,500 Limit Hold’em Shootout (Event #53) was the lone final table on the World Series of Poker (WSOP) schedule on Friday, making for a somewhat quiet day before the Main Event kicks into gear.
A handful of Limit specialists advanced to the eight-player final table, including Full Tilt Poker Red Pro Mike Schneider, Terrence Chan, Brendan Taylor, and a player known for his outstanding No Limit Hold’em resume, former World Poker Tour Player (WPT) of the Year and current Victory Poker pro Jonathan “FieryJustice” Little. Each player had won their previous two tables and began the final day with 450,000 chips.
The talk at the beginning of the day surrounded Chan, considered one of the most feared Limit Hold’em players in the world and noted for winning two PokerStars Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) events on the same day in 2009. He also made a WSOP Limit Hold’em final table earlier this summer, taking third for $83,125. Chan, however, ran into several tough spots early and ultimately went out in eighth place when his pocket sevens walked right into the pocket aces of Little.
After Sijbrand Maal exited in seventh place, a short-stacked Schneider was forced to commit his remaining stack with pocket threes and Ben Yu called with 9h-7c in the big blind. The board ran out Qh-Qs-9s-Jc-5c, giving Yu a higher pair and sending Schneider home in sixth.
Just minutes later, it was Brian Tate who was sent to the rail. Taylor did the dirty work, eliminating Tate with a flopped pair of jacks to take the chip lead. From there, Taylor dominated the rest of the tournament. He knocked out Joe McGowan and Little to find himself heads-up against good friend and housemate, Yu. Taylor’s chip advantage was too much to overcome, as Yu eventually got his last chips in with Ac-9h against Taylor’s Ad-7h, but Taylor spiked a seven on the flop to seal the title and the $184,950 payday. It was his first career bracelet and one that he’d been eyeing for years.
“When I came out here in 2005, I told myself, ‘I am going to win a gold bracelet this year,’” said Taylor after his victory. “My goal was to win a Limit event. Of course, I didn’t do it that year. I didn’t do it the next, and the next, and the next. Two years ago, we got down to four-handed and I had an average chip stack and I think I was the best player at the table. And, sure enough, I was the next player out within 10 hands. So, this is a great feeling.”
1. Brendan Taylor – $184,950
2. Ben Yu – $114,484
3. Jonathan Little – $73,218
4. Joseph McGowan – $48,546
5. Brian Tate – $33,276
6. Michael Schneider – $23,563
7. Sijbrand Maal – $17,125
8. Terrence Chan – $12,961
