The 2024 U.S. Poker Open is now underway, and the first winner in this event was someone that has had a ton of previous success. Erik Seidel came into this tournament looking to prove that he could still win big tournaments, and he got that done in the opener of this event.
There were 116 entrants for event 1 at the PokerGO Studio, and all of them were left wondering just how Seidel continues to win big events. He was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame back in 2010, and he’s clearly not done racking up the victories.
This first event was a $5,100 buy-in no-limit hold’em tournament, and Seidel was able to cash in with $145,000 by coming up with the win. Since this was just the first event of this tournament, there is time for Seidel to cash in some more in Las Vegas.
There are some other big names competing in the U.S. Poker Open, and it won’t be a shock to see other Hall of Fame members winning some tournaments as well. The PokerGO Studio is always a popular place for the top players, and this tournament is also extremely attractive.
The second event of this tournament is already underway, but there were just 99 entrants that signed up to compete in that tournament.
Other Top Finishers
While it was Seidel that walked away with the top prize in this tournament, there were some other players that cashed in as well. Eric Afriat ended up with a second place finish at Event 1 of the U.S. Poker Open, and that earned him $89,000.
The prize money continued to drop as you move further down the list, and some players left feeling extremely disappointed in the outcome. Dylan Linde just missed out on heads-up play as he cashed in with $63,800.
There were two other players that took home a massive prize and it was John Khoury that finished in fourth place and $49,300. William Lamar-Boone finished in fifth place in this event to take home $37,700.
Only six players even made it to the final table in this event, and that’s because Seidel was knocking players out early in this event.
A Look at the Action
Every live poker tournament plays out a little bit differently, and there are some events that take days to complete. This was never supposed to be one of those events, and it was Seidel that made sure it wasn’t the case.
When the action on the second day started, Seidel had a massive chip lead, and he got that lead by eliminating other opponents. Afriat was still within striking distance heading into the second day, but the other players were buried in the standings.
There was a moment when Aftriat actually took over the chip lead at the final table, but that wasn’t a lead that lasted long. Seidel has been an aggressive player throughout his career, and his aggressiveness put him back on top right away.
