In the history of poker, the 2021 World Series of Poker (WSOP) may one day become known as the most miraculous of poker festivals ever to take place. In the year after the COVID-19 pandemic rocked the entire world, poker’s resurgence was nothing short of sensational. The poker community reacted heroically to first pivot to an 85-event WSOP Online series, then crown Damian Salas as the world’s first – and to date only – WSOP Hybrid Main Event winner.
In 2021, live poker was back. And it was bigger and better than ever as the World Series of Poker ran again in Las Vegas.
JOIN THE POKER TABLES AT THE WSOP!
Preliminary Events
After the chaos of 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic, the WSOP was back in a big way. After a summer online series, the WSOP hosted an 88-bracelet event in Autumn. The sheer scale of the return to live action was a massive operation, with a negative COVID test required for players to take their seats.
The WSOP announced that the 2021 World Series of Poker would start on July 1st with the WSOP Online Series, which again was hugely popular. With the live Las Vegas WSOP returning on September 30th, there were 88 events in the biggest WSOP series of all time. Anyone participating in the WSOP in 2021 needed a confirmed COVID vaccination, but masks weren’t compulsory, leading to a divide between those who were happy to play without the Perspex barriers that peppered casinos in late 2020 and those who cared little for any barriers to the poker felt.
Player of the Year
It took 19 years for the WSOP to hand out 188 bracelets, happening between 1970 and 1988. In 2021, 188 were awarded across online and live events, leading to some players debating that the value of winning a WSOP event was being diluted by the popularity of the game. Multiple winners were everywhere, with four players winning not only their first but their second gold bracelets, including Scott Ball, Mark Herm, Daniel Lazrus, and Martin Zamani. Ryan Leng, Bradley Ruben, and Georgios Sotiropoulos all won two bracelets, while Michael Addamo, Josh Arieh, Kevin Gerhart, and Anthony Zinno all won both their third and fourth bracelets.
Adam Friedman became the first player in WSOP history to win the exact same event three times in a row, taking down the $10,000 Dealers Choice Six-Handed event for $248,350 after winning it in 2018 and 2019, there was no corresponding event in 2020. After a record 13 players won multiple bracelets in 2021, other winners such as Adrian Mateos, Ben Yu, Benny Glaser, Brian Yoon, Farzad Bonyadi, and John Monnette all fell short in the chase to become WSOP Player of the Year, as Josh Arieh triumphed. His two bracelets, five final tables, and 12 cashes meant his banner would be on the walls of the WSOP venue forever – again at the expense of second-placed Phil Hellmuth.
Star Names Fly High
Along with multiple winners, several of the WSOP’s most decorated players bagged gold too. Erik Seidel won the $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em event on GGPoker for his 9th career title at the WSOP, moving within just one bracelet of Johhny Chan, Phil Ivey and Doyle Brunson on ten. Phil Hellmuth’s victory in the $1,500 No-Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw event won the ‘Poker Brat’ $84,851 but, more importantly, his record-extending 16th bracelet, moving six clear of his nearest challengers.
While the World Series of Poker Europe festival featured 15 events from November to December, including the €10,350-entry WSOP Europe Main Event at King’s Casino in Rozvadov, Czech Republic, it was all about the Main Event in Las Vegas, and the final time it would be at The Rio. The $10,000-entry WSOP Main Event ran from November 4th to the 17th and featured 6,650 entrants, with 1,000 players paid.
Plenty of former champions began their assault on the summit, but only three of them made the money places: Martin Jacobson (844th), Chris Moneymaker (260th), and Qui Nguyen (241st), returning profit but not going any further. The reigning champion Damian Salas busted on Day 1a, so there would be a new name in the poker history books.
Elementary for Holmes
The final table of the 2021 WSOP Main Event began with German player Koray Aldemir in charge, holding 140 million – 35% of the chips in play. Behind him was amateur George Holmes, who bagged 83,700,000 (21%) and would prove to be Aldemir’s biggest challenger. Once again, there was a strong British showing at the final table, but after Chase Bianchi (9th for $1m) busted on hand five, Jareth East followed in 8th for $1.1m on hand 6, there was just one poker player from the U.K remaining.
PokerStars Team Pro and entertaining Argentinian Alejandro Lococo hit the rails in seventh place for $1,225,000 when he called Koray Aldemir’s shove with pocket nines on a board of J-J-9-8-3 with just pocket tens. He headed out while sitting second in chips but lost it all to the German when his hero call went very wrong.
At this stage of the final table, Aldemir had nearly 3.5 times the stack of his closest competitor and was slaying dreams. His ace-queen hit a queen on the turn to oust Henry Park after his pocket sevens failed to hold, the American leaving with a score of $1.4m. Soon, five became four, as Turkish player Ozgur Secilmis settled for $1.8m, his king-five of hearts slain by Aldemir’s pocket nines, as a flop with two hearts could not find any help on turn or river.
George Holmes was the only player looking likely to push Aldemir as he survived time and time again, taking risks where he could but generally playing tight whenever the chip leader was in the pot.
King for Six Months
There was a thrilling survival from Jack Oliver in a three-way hand when Joshua Remito busted in fourth place for $2.3m. All-in with ace-jack, Remito was not the favorite to win, with Aldemir in the hand with pocket queens. Jack Oliver was also at risk of elimination with jack-nine of diamonds, but the flop of T-9-8 only brought one diamond, Oliver’s flush was miraculously completed by a three on the turn and a seven on the river in that suit.
Now three-handed, Oliver was right back into the reckoning but was unlucky to lose when his ace-eight offsuit lost to Holmes’ queen-jack as a jack landed on the turn to send play heads-up and Oliver home with $3m.
Holmes had a chance heads-up, having regained a large chunk of the chips with that elimination; however, heads-up play turned into a superb display of professionalism from the German Koray Aldemir. On a board of T-7-2-K-9, George Holmes – who had been down to one big blind on Day 7 – moved all-in with king-queen. Aldemir had ten-seven and made the call as ten-seven fell for a flopped two pair.
“This might be it.” said Aldemir, who made the call.
“Koray Aldemir puts his signature on this Main Event masterpiece.” said Lon McEachern.
“He started the final table with the most chips, he ended it with all of the chips. And there was no stopping him.” Norman Chad agreed. It was almost a miracle story for the amateur, but in the end, Aldemir’s experience and skill got the better of the hopeful Holmes, who left with $4.3m as runner-up.
Koray Aldemir would have little over six months to celebrate as world champion. The German player – the second from his homeland to achieve his dream in three years – would defend his title in May of 2022, as the World Series of Poker moved away from the Rio and back to the world-famous Las Vegas Strip.
| Player | Country | Prize | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Koray Aldemir | Germany | $8,000,000 |
| 2nd | George Holmes | United States | $4,300,000 |
| 3rd | Jack Oliver | United Kingdom | $3,000,000 |
| 4th | Joshua Paige Remitio | United States | $2,300,000 |
| 5th | Ozgur Secilmis | Turkey | $1,800,000 |
| 6th | Hye Park | United States | $1,400,000 |
| 7th | Alejandro Lococo | Argentina | $1,225,000 |
| 8th | Jareth East | United Kingdom | $1,100,000 |
| 9th | Chase Bianchi | United States | $1,000,000 |
2020 WSOP Main Event 2022 WSOP Main Event
About the Author: Paul Seaton has written about poker for over 10 years, interviewing some of the best players ever to play the game such as Daniel Negreanu, Johnny Chan and Phil Hellmuth. Over the years, Paul has reported live from tournaments such as the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas and the European Poker Tour. He has also written for other poker brands where he was Head of Media, as well as BLUFF magazine, where he was Editor.