Ethan ‘Rampage’ Yau Wins Poker Masters Event #2 for $197,000

The second event to take place in the 2022 Poker Masters tournament series saw Ethan ‘Rampage’ Yau win a top prize of $197,600, good for his second-biggest career score. With players such as Michael Brinkenhoff, Stephen Song, and Masashi Oya all making the final nine, it was the player known as ‘Rampage’ online who got the job done and gave himself a shot at the Purple Jacket.

Making the Final Table

While the final day would start with six players, the final nine all reached the final table, with 11 players reaching the money. Stephen Chidwick was the first person to reach profit, cashing for $22,800 in 11^th place. Corey Wade (10^th for the same amount) missed out on the final nine, and it was Kid Poker himself, Daniel Negreanu.

Canada’s most successful player of all-time busted in ninth place to miss the final day, and he was joined on the rail by Jacky Wang (8^th for $30,400) and Jeremy Ausmus (7^th for $38,000). Heading into the final day, Michael Brinkenhoff, founder and CEO of Athena Cosmetics, made the final six players with the chip lead.

The first player to leave the final table was Masahi Oya who busted to Yau in a vital hand to the latter’s eventual success. Oya was all-in with ace-queen but was dominated to tournament death by Yau’s ace-king as the champion-to-be’s ‘rampage’ began. Oya had won $45,600 by making it to the final six.

The Race to the Podium

Dylan DeStefano was the next player to lose his seat as he crashed out in fifth place for $60,800. All-in with the better hand, his ace-deuce failed to survive when all-in and at risk, as DeStefano’s holding was overtaken by WSOP bracelet winner Stephen Song with queen-six. The flop brought a six and DeStefano couldn’t catch up, busting just outside the top four.

It then became the full ‘Rampage’ show as Yau busted every other remaining player. The overnight chip leader Michael Brinkenhoff was in prime position for a big double-up with pocket kings, but Yau’s call with ace-five flopped an ace to turn the tables on his opponent and strengthen an already impressive lead. Brinkenhoff cashed for $76,000 in fourth place.

Song was about to hit a bum note as his tune took a nosedive in third place for $98,800. Song was all-in with pocket eights, but again Yau managed to usurp the better hand, his queen-five of clubs hitting a flush draw on the flop and a fifth club arrived on the turn to send play heads-up.

With two players remaining, Yau had a massive lead, but he was up against a titan of the modern game in Alex Foxen heads-up. Initially, the heads-up match looked impossible to lose for Yau, who started with 8.8 million chips to Foxen’s micro stack of 700,000 chips.

The Final Duel Ends Quickly

An instant win for Yau was off the menu, however, as Foxen more than doubled back into contention, quickly playing then spinning his way back into contention with 2.5 million chips playing Yau’s 7 million. Foxen continued to rise, but one particular hand slashed his stack to around 1.8 million and the former GPI world number one was critically vulnerable at the worst time.

Once again, it was pocket eights that got the job done for Yau, this time for the second-largest title of his live career, as he went past $500,000 in live tournament winnings. Foxen was flipping for a vital double with ace-king, but with his tournament life at risk, couldn’t win as the tension-packed play-out came Q-T-9-6-7 to give Yau a rivered straight and the winning hand despite Foxen having a multitude of outs for two streets.

While it is Jeremy Ausmus who remains at top of the 2022 Poker Masters leaderboard after the first two events – Ausmus came seventh in this event for his second consecutive cash – Ethan Yau will be hoping his ‘rampage’ continues in Event #3.

Yau, whose biggest cash remains the $230,000 he took home for winning the MSPT DeepStack Championship in October of last year, will be looking to continue his recent record of success in poker as he grinds out the rest of this Poker Masters series in pursuit of the legendary Purple Jacket, the prize for topping the overall series leaderboard.