Laska and Verenko Both Bag WSOPE Bracelets in Rozvadov

The latest two WSOP Europe bracelet events have taken place in Rozvadov on the Czech/German borders and two new winners from two new countries claimed gold. Lubos Laska and roman Verenko were those champions as poker legend, local heroes and sponsored professionals were laid waste on the road to victory.

Colossus Sees Wheeler Bust First at Final Table

Lubos Laska won his first-ever WSOP bracelet after a dramatic ending saw the Slovakian triumph in style against players such as Jason Wheeler. In an event with 2,982 total entries, it was Wheeler who busted first at the nine-handed final table. His king-jack started and ended his final hand way behind Nino Pansier Junior’s pocket kings to bust for $16,975 as well as winning a seat into the $10,350-entry Main Event.

Out in eighth was Turkish player Ismet Oral, who made $21,590 from his $550-entry into the event when his ace-eight couldn’t hold against Demetrio Camanita’s king-queen. Two queens on the flop did for Oral, and he was followed from the felt by the Hungarian player Andras Balogh soon after. Balogh won $27,647 when his ace-nine fell to Camanita’s ace-jack, who was building a stack.

Home country player Patrik Zidek lost his stack in sixth for $35,644 when his king-eight lost to Pansier Junior’s ace-nine, and his exit was swiftly followed by another exit. Romanian player Florin Bilan busted in fifth place for $46,262 when his all-in with jack-ten lost to Laska’s ace-queen in especially cruel fashion, a ten on the flop followed by a queen on the river.

Lubos Laska Wins First Ranking Event for Maiden Bracelet

It wasn’t long before Laska’s domination ran from taking one player out of the equation to decimating the field entirely. Camanita was the next to go, Laska was starting his ascent to the throne, and he took care of Camanita next. The Italian moved all-in with ace-nine but ran into Laska’s pocket jacks and they were never threatened, with Camanita winning $60,442 for his deep run.

In third place, South Korean De Han Kim busted for $79,495 as his ace-five was called and beaten by Laska’s king-nine. That pot left Laska with a healthy chip lead of 48 million to 28 million heading into the final duel against the Dutch player Pansier Junior.

Over the course of this year’s WSOP Europe festival, a player of a different nationality has won each new event and that trend continued here. Laska lost the lead early in the heads-up match, but won it back and never let it go again, winning with queen-seven holding against Pansier Junior’s ten-eight after the money went in on a Q-T-9 flop.

A king on the turn and three on the river completed a remarkable victory for Laska after a handful of cashes in his poker career saw him claim a prize that is the envy of millions of poker players – a WSOP gold bracelet.

Roman Rule as Verenko Victorious for Ukraine

In Event #6, 223 entries took on the $5,000-entry Pot Limit Omaha event. With nine players making the final table, Shaun Deeb bubbled the final table of nine, cashing for $15,437 in 10^th place, whereupon Eran Dov Carmi from Israel led the remaining players into battle.

It didn’t take long for the Greek player Dimitrios Michailidis to bust (9^th for $18,572), and he was followed swiftly by Roland Israelashvili, the man with more WSOP cashes than anyone, but who is yet to win a WSOP bracelet. This time, however, Israelashvili fell short by precisely seven places as he slid out in eight place for $23,042. Next to go was the Israeli player Michael Magalashvili, whose run to seventh place was worth $29,453.

In sixth place, Oleksii Kovalchuk busted to Carmi for $38,756 as his pocket queens were eventually overtaken by the Israeli’s two-pair on the turn. Carmi claimed his second successive victim when Thomer Pidun lost out in fifth for $52,453, his pocket kings no good against Carmi’s aces.

The last American to survive in the event, Gergo Nagy, lost out in fourth for $72,962 before Carmi then busted with kings against aces to crash out in third for the first six-figure score of the tournament, a massive $104,234. Heads-up began with Verenko in a big lead and he toppled Swedish player Omar Huang when a flopped wheel gave the Ukrainian a memorable victory for him and his war-torn country.