Nick Schulman ended 2024 on a excessive notice, taking down the $5,000 turbo bounty occasion on the World Collection of Poker Paradise for his sixth profession bracelet.
The 40-year-old poker professional additionally began his 2025 off with a bang by rising victorious within the first PokerGO Tour occasion held within the new 12 months.
Schulman overcame a subject of 111 complete entries within the kickoff occasion of the PGT Final Probability sequence. He earned $283,050 because the final participant standing within the $10,100 buy-in no-limit maintain’em match. He now has practically $22.1 million in profession earnings after this triumph contained in the PokerGO Studio at ARIA Resort & On line casino Las Vegas.
This victory got here with 600 Card Participant Participant of the 12 months factors, which provides Schulman the early lead within the 2025 POY standings offered by World Poker.
Schulman additionally earned 283 PGT factors, sufficient to maneuver him to ninth in that high-stakes-centric factors race, which implies that he has all however assured himself a spot within the forthcoming PGT Championship which is able to run subsequent week.
The ultimate day started with seven remaining and Schulman within the lead. The primary knockout arose from a traditional preflop race, with bracelet winner Aram Zobian (seventh – $44,400) holding pocket fives in opposition to the Okay-Q suited of two-time bracelet winner Joao Simao, which ended up making king-high straight to slim the sector to 6 contenders.
The following huge conflict noticed Schulman try to make use of a key straight blocker to bluff Simao. Sadly for Schulman, Simao had made the straight himself on the tip and rapidly known as Shulman’s shove to double into a large lead.
Dangerous Enterprise! Nick Schulman Goes For It on the River! pic.twitter.com/WeqKxMKGW1
— PokerGO (@PokerGO) January 3, 2025
Schulman was left brief after that, however managed to bounce again rapidly with a double up via Matthew McEwan. He then received a flip with pocket sixes in opposition to the Okay-Q of Nguyen Le (sixth – $55,500) to maneuver again into second chip place.
In line with the theme so far, it was one other race that resulted in McEwan’s knockout. His pocket threes have been counterfeited by a double-paired board, which despatched the pot to Bryce Yockey and his A-Okay. McEwan earned $72,150 for his fifth-place exhibiting.
Regardless of scoring that elimination, Yockey was in the end the following to fall. He received all-in with A-10 on a ten excessive flop, however came upon that prime pair, prime kicker was no good. Simao had been dealt pocket kings, which remained finest via the flip and river to present him a wholesome lead going into three-handed motion. Yockey earned $99,900 because the fourth-place finisher. The 2-time bracelet winner now has greater than $6.1 million in profession earnings to his title.
Victoria Livschitz received her final chips in with A3 main the Okay5 of Simao, however a Okay544Okay runout gave Simao kings full and the knockout. Livschitz cashed for $127,650. This rating noticed her surpass $2.2 million in recorded reside earnings.
Heads-up play started with Simao holding 9,800,000 to the 4,075,000 of Schulman. The hole had expanded barely within the early going earlier than Schulman discovered a double up with A-Okay holding in opposition to Okay-9 to almost even the enjoying subject.
Because the stack depth decreased, the swings elevated. Simao retook the lead and held it for some time, but it surely was Schulman who was out in entrance with higher than a 3:1 benefit when the ultimate hand arose. Simao shoved from the button for 9 huge blinds with J2 and Schulman known as with J7 out of the massive blind. The board got here down Okay6657 and Schulman made sevens and sixes to win the pot and the title.
Simao earned $177,600 because the runner-up. He’s approaching $8 million in profession earnings because of this newest deep run, which marked his 182nd recorded money.
Here’s a take a look at the payouts and rankings factors awarded on the remaining desk:
Place
Participant
Earnings
POY Factors
PGT Factors
1
Nick Schulman
$283,050
600
283
2
Joao Simao
$177,600
500
178
3
Victoria Livschitz
$127,650
400
128
4
Bryce Yockey
$99,900
300
100
5
Matthew Mcewan
$72,150
250
72
6
Nguyen Le
$55,500
200
56
7
Aram Zobian
$44,400
150
44
Picture credit: PokerGO.