2024 WSOP Europe saw some great poker action, and Event #4: €2,000 Pot Limit Omaha saw 888poker ambassador Vivian Saliba come out on top, besting Germany’s Markus Anheier in a decisive heads up round. Last year’s champion, Hokyiu Lee, was also on the final table, but bowed out for a 3rd place finish.
229 players paid the €2,000 buy-in for this event which was held in King’s Resort in Rozvadov, resulting in a prize pool of €398,231. It took almost seventeen hours of play for all participants, with 50 advancing to Day 2 to get to the final table.
Who Were the Participants at the Final Table?
| Placement | Player | Country | Prize |
| 1 | Vivian Saliba | Brazil | €91,400 |
| 2 | Markus Anheier | Germany | €59,700 |
| 3 | Hokyiu Lee | Hong Kong | €40,100 |
| 4 | Alen Sabic | Bosnia and Herzegovina | €27,700 |
| 5 | Thomas Hueber | Germany | €19,700 |
| 6 | Samuel Albeck | Germany | €14,500 |
| 7 | Eran Carmi | Israel | €11,000 |
| 8 | Milan Skacel | Czechia | €8,600 |
| 9 | David Sosic | Croatia | €6,980 |
The final table of Event #4 saw a great mix of players from across the world. There were three German players in Anheier, Hueber, and Albeck, which had the most representatives.
In terms of the initial chip leader, leading into the final table, Hokyiu Lee was the guy to beat. The first player to bow out was Croatia’s David Sosic, losing his Aces to Samuel Albeck’s Kings.
Eran Carmi from Israel was the second player out, losing his Ace hand to Vivian Saliba’s straight. Albeck was the third person to bow out, followed by Thomas Hueber, who started the final table on the short stack, ran out of double ups to end his run in a fifth-place finish.
After a number of rounds that saw a tug of war in the chip lead, Alen Sabic ended up in fourth place after falling to Anheier’s flush on the River. This set the stage for the final three in Vivian Saliba, Markus Anheier, and Hokyiu Lee.
Saliba was heading to the final three as the short stack, but after two quick doubles, Lee was suddenly on the verge of bowing out. Eventually, Lee succumbed to third place against Anheier’s kings.
Then it was Saliba versus Anheier in a heads up play. Saliba started the final round with a 3:1 chip lead over her opponent, but Anheier found a double up following a lucky turn card and the lead changed hands.
However, Lady Luck smiled at Saliba, as the river gave her a flush to stay alive when all-in and at-risk. The deciding hand saw Saliba turn a flush to take the lead against Anheier’s two pair.
A board-pairing river card was the catalyst that helped Saliba secure the title, the bracelet, and the first place prize money.
Markus Anheier had an exceptional run, and his second place finish at Event #4 nabs him the €59,700. Meanwhile, last year’s champion Hokyiu Lee third place finish lets him take home €40,100.
Saliba’s Reaction to Winning Her First WSOP Bracelet
On the heels of her win, Saliba said she was relieved to finally get her hands on a WSOP bracelet. Before her win, Saliba had 5 tries at the WSOP final table, and bowed out five times.
“I was just like okay, please don’t come second… I was really aiming for the bracelet. Of course I feel happy, but to summarize my feelings in one word, it’s relieved.”
Saliba added that she had to concentrate and play at her best for both days of the tournament due to her experience, with winning the bracelet on the top of her goals,
“It was a real marathon, we played a lot yesterday and I went to bed around six in the morning. I could concentrate thanks to my experience and motivation, just because I really, really wanted to win. I’m very competitive and not even tired right now, I’m hyped!”
Saliba also plans to continue riding her momentum in WSOP Europe, as she wants to participate in the Mini Main event.
