Belgian ace Davidi Kitai claimed his third World Series of Poker bracelet over the weekend – the only European to do so – but only after a tough tussle with Gordon Vayo that demanded an extra day be set aside in order to decide a winner.
On Saturday the two ended heads up action with Vayo holding a slight lead after the two players survived a field of 810 entrants that generated a prize pool of $2,211,300 and a star-studded final table (see previous report.)
The duo returned to the table Sunday after taking a break during their heads-up match in the event, a $3,000 buy-in Six-Handed NLHE match, with Kitai adopting a more aggressive style of playing.
Kitai later admitted he had used the hiatus to review livestream footage of his opponent’s playing style in order to better understand him and formulate an effective counter-strategy.
The change in tactics clearly worked, as the Belgian managed to dispatch his final opponent in short order, winning the main prize of $508,640, and leaving Vayo with the runner-up reward of $314,535.
But it was the third bracelet that delighted Kitai most, projecting him into an elite group of 31 WSOP players who have won three or more bracelets.
Other pay-outs in the event were:
3 Tony Ruberto $200,476
4 Mark Darner $132,169
5 John Andress $89,734
6 Zachary Korik $62,690