WSOP #2 = Bracelet #3 for Vanessa Selbst

Vanessa Selbst became only the second female player in the history of the World Series of Poker to win three WSOP bracelets when taking the Mixed Max Event #2.

Event #3 of the 2014 WSOP was the $25,000 buy-in Mixed Max NLHE Event – one in which players played Day 1 on a full ring table, Day 2 in 6-Max format, Day 3 on tables of four, and the concluding day heads-up.

Due to the quick conclusion of the 4-Max action on Day 3, the heads-up semi-finals were played on Thursday night; and they resulted in Jason Mo carrying forward a 5,860,000 -v- 3,960,000 chip advantage against Vanessa Selbst into the climax of the event, after both players had over-turned chip deficits in their respective semi-finals.

Mo Extends Advantage in Early Action

Play resumed with blinds reset to the place in Level 24 at which they were when Matt Giannetti bust out of the event in fifth place on Thursday (blinds 20,000/40,000 – ante 5,000) and Jason Mo certainly enjoyed the best of the first level – increasing his chip advantage to 6,235,000 -v- 3,585,000 after forcing Vanessa Selbst out of a couple of decent pots.

The start of Level 25 saw Mo extending his advantage further when his Q♣ 2♣ paired on the flop to best Selbst´s A♠ 9♠ in a 400,000 chip pot, but Selbst reduced the deficit at the beginning of Level 26 when, on a board of A♦ Q♦ 6♠ / 7♦ / 10♣, she check-raised on the River to 1.46 million chips and forced Mo to lay down his cards and concede a 1 million chip plus pot.

Mo Builds 5-to-1 Chip Advantage – then Selbst Doubles

Level 27 saw Jason Mo move a considerable step closer to winning his first WSOP title after forcing Vanessa Selbst off of three valuable pots within eight hands to build a 5-to-1 chip advantage; but then a massive swing occurred in the conclusion to WSOP 2014 Event #2.

At the end of the Level, Vanessa Selbst used the twenty minute break to review the hands in which she had lost a sizeable quantity of her chips, and came back all guns firing to double up in the fifth hand of Level 28 J♠ 10♠ > 5♦ 3♦. Then victory in another big pot in which Selbst was the aggressor following the flop of K♠ Q♠ K♥ saw the chip stacks returned to where they were at the start of play.

Vanessa Selbst Takes Chip Lead

The pivotal hand of the Mixed Max Event came deep into Level 28 when on a board of 10♥ J♦ 5♠ / Q♥ / 2♠ – and with 2.5 million chips already in the pot – Jason Mo led out for 1.315 million chips. Vanessa Selbst made the call and bested Mo´s A♠ Q♠ with Q♦ Q♣ to take a 7.29 million -v- 2.53 million chip advantage into Level 29.

Mo managed one double up – 10♦ 5♦ > K♥ 8♦ with a paired Five – but the momentum was definitely with Vanessa Selbst, and she used her chip advantage to good effect – forcing Jason Mo off of a couple more substantial pots to reduce her opponent to 2.535 million chips.

Vanessa Selbst Wins Mixed Max Bracelet

The last of Mo´s chips went in pre-flop with 9♦ 7♦, and Vanessa Selbst was more than happy to make the call with K♥ J♣. The flop of 10♣ A♠ 2♣ gave Mo nothing, and Vanessa Selbst had one hand on the bracelet following the Turn A♦. The J♣ sealed her victory in the Mixed Max Event – enabling her to lock up the $871,147 top prize and her third career WSOP bracelet.

Selbst´s victory took her lifetime live poker winnings to over $10 million, and her bracelet in this event is the first she has won playing NL Hold´em – the previous two came in PL Omaha (2008) and 10 Game Mix (2012). Her achievement of winning three WSOP bracelets is all the more remarkable because all three have been won in “open” events, whereas two of Barbara Enright´s trio of bracelets were won in Ladies-only Events.

WSOP 2014 Mixed Max Payouts

131 players entered the $25,000 buy-in NL Hold´em Mixed Max Event #3 of WSOP 2014, creating a prize pool of $3,111,250 which was shared between the top 16 players. Those who made it into the final eight places each received a six-figure payout: