Ryan Hoenig Goes Wire-to-Wire to Win Event #18: $10,000 Dealers Choice Championship

Within the grand annals of the World Sequence of Poker, there have been few extra dominant performances than the one Ryan Hoenig simply pulled off in Occasion #18: $10,000 Sellers Alternative Championship.

Hoenig had the chip lead after Day 1. He was atop the leaderboard once more after the second day. He had the lead on Day 3 when play was stopped early with three gamers remaining. And on the unscheduled Day 4, he ended with each chip in play on the best way to defeating Dylan Smith heads-up to win his first WSOP bracelet and the $354,444 prime prize.

“Loopy. Exhausting. So exhilarating, so enjoyable. I simply love these video games. I like to play. It’s unbelievable,” the 31-year-old Fort Collins, Colorado native mentioned following his victory. “I felt in my aspect. I similar to the number of the video games. I’m excited to play each single recreation. Final yr I skipped this occasion, really, as a result of I used to be a bit not sure of a number of the video games. And this yr, I used to be like, I’m prepared for each recreation. The competitors is unbelievable. Dylan is an unbelievable competitor. It went fast as a result of I hit each hand, in order that helps.”

Remaining Desk Outcomes

Fairy Story Run

The win was a very long time coming for Hoenig, who first fell in love with poker as an adolescent however wasn’t able to decide to it on the time. He determined to return again and dedicate himself to his old flame, viewing the sport as a technique to fulfill his pure aggressive instincts.

“I had it once I was an adolescent. I had desires of changing into knowledgeable poker participant, however I didn’t have the emotional capability to cope with it on the time. So I really stop poker for just a few years and got here again to it,” he mentioned. “At all times liked the sport, however I got here to it with a special mindset as an grownup. Now I simply need to win each time I play and I’m prepared to win every time potential. It’s an unreal expertise.”

Hoenig’s fairy-tale run during the last 4 days almost didn’t occur. Late on Day 1, he made a giant fold in Razz and was a brief stack close to the top of the evening. He credit his coach, Jason Su, with placing him in the precise mindset to return again, in the end ending up as chip chief.

“Day 1, I made this fold in Razz. I used to be all the way down to 11K. I had two bets left with like an hour and a half to go on the day. (Su) talks about willingness, that there’s a discomfort that comes with the potential for profitable and success. I instructed myself once I was all the way down to 11K that I’m prepared to bag 300,000. I bagged 298,000,” he mentioned.

In a 152-player discipline that includes a number of the prime names in poker with many years of expertise taking part in combined video games, Hoenig is a relative newcomer. His first five-figure money got here lower than two years in the past. He then completed runner-up within the Pot-Restrict Omaha Hello-Lo Championship on the 2023 WSOP and had 14 WSOP cashes earlier than this occasion. His win right this moment pushes his reside earnings previous $1,000,000.

Hoenig needed to grasp 21 completely different poker variants to emerge because the winner, however mentioned he was prepared and ready to battle in each. “Once I was 15, I fell in love with Omaha Hello-Lo. My old flame that wasn’t a woman. In order that was my entry into combined video games, and that’s nonetheless my favourite recreation, all of the variations of it. After which once I jumped into every recreation, they form of inform one another. I simply love all of the video games now. I’m simply prepared. Each time I see a brand new plaque on this match, I’m like, yeah, let’s go,” he mentioned.

Day 4 Motion

Hoenig, Smith, and Philip Sternheimer returned for an additional Day 4 right this moment at 1 p.m. native time to battle for the bracelet. Hoenig was proper the place he was your entire match, atop the leaderboard with 4,995,000. Smith was in second with 2,220,000, whereas Sternheimer adopted behind with 1,910,000.

On the primary hand of the day, Hoenig hit a straight on the flip in Pot-Restrict Omaha and acquired paid on a 400,000 river guess in opposition to Smith to shortly widen his lead. The subsequent hand, once more in PLO, he raised to 100,000 on the button and Sternheimer known as.

Hoenig guess 75,000 on the flop and 350,000 on the flip as Sternheimer known as all the way down to the river. Hoenig then moved all in, and Sternheimer took a number of minutes, interrogating Hoenig your entire time, earlier than calling for his final 1,100,000. Hoenig confirmed a flopped queen-high straight, and Sternheimer mucked a nine-high straight because the UK excessive curler was despatched to the rail in third place.

Hoenig led Smith 7,650,000 to 1,400,000 in the beginning of heads-up. He then scooped a pot of Badeucy with an 8-7 and three-card Badugi to drop Smith to 1,000,000. Hoenig ramped up the aggression, taking down most pots with preflop and third avenue raises earlier than Smith gave up on the river in a pot of Omaha Hello-Lo to depart himself with simply 300,000.

Smith then acquired his final chips in as the sport switched again to PLO. Hoenig ended up making a flush on the flip, and Smith was already drawing useless by the river as Hoenig locked down the title.

It guarantees to be the primary of many. When on the brink of take his winner’s picture, Hoenig instructed the photographer to get used to him as a result of he could be again. The aggressive fireplace that burned inside him, beginning as a younger man, continues to today as Hoenig took his spot atop some of the loaded fields on the WSOP calendar.

“I’m simply able to win day-after-day. I used to be going to benefit from the expertise, no matter occurred. I like to play. I really like the creativity of poker,” he mentioned.

“I simply get to be a model of myself. There’s a image of myself once I was a child. I’m taking part in basketball with my uncles. I’m half their dimension and I’ve this critical look on my face prefer it’s crucial factor on the earth. And I’m like that on the poker desk. I keep that very critical exterior presence, however inside, I’m only a child dancing on the cellphone.”

That concludes PokerNews‘ protection of the $10,000 Sellers Alternative Championship. Keep tuned for extra updates all through the 2025 WSOP.