Eelis Parssinen and Matthew Wantman Kick Off PGT PLO Series II in Style

The latest PokerGO Tour series to take place is the PGT PLO Series II, and the opening two events have shown that the ‘four-card game’ is in rude health ahead of the forthcoming WSOP Paradise and WPT World Championship festivals. Both Matthew Wantman and Eelis Parssinen starred in the first two events, winning six-figure sums as they got off to a great start in pursuit of Pot Limit Omaha glory.

Wantman Wins Opening Event for $150k

“It’s been a long time coming and [I’ve] wanted to win one for a long time!” – Matthew Wantman

The opening event of the PGT PLO Series II saw Matthew Wantman capture the title and a top prize of $150,500 as the $5,100-entry event saw an amazing 172 entrants reduced to 25 paid players in the money. Top of the shop were the final six players, and when they final table was reached, it was the American Jim Collopy who led the field with a massive $8.05 million chips. The eventual champion Wantman began on just 1,125,000 chips – the equivalent of 11 big blinds, but after a fast run to the top prizes, the tables were turned heads-up.

Josh Arieh was the man who reached the min-cash of $8,600 in 25^th place, as a discussion erupted on X, formerly known as Twitter, about who might be considered the best in the world in Pot Limit Omaha. Arieh, who now has six WSOP bracelets, believes he’s “definitely in the conversation” and it’s hard to argue with that belief.

Believe dat!!!! I’m definitely in the conversation!!! https://t.co/v7haw5G0SX

— Joshua Arieh (@JoshuaArieh) October 19, 2023

An early double-up through Ben Juhasz suited Wantman just fine, and after Mattyeu Provost became the first to leave the final table, Jukasz himself busted in fifth. An all-American final four saw Quan Tran depart first, cashing for $64,500 before Evgeni Tourevski scored $86,000 but missed out on the heads-up battle.

Wantman had close to a 2:1 chip lead when the final duel began and no sooner had it started was it all over. Wantman flopped top two pair to hold against Collopy’s top pair on the flop.

“It’s been a long time coming,” Wantman said after winning his debut PokerGO Tour title. “I love playing in the studio and wanted to win one for a long time. It’s extra special to win it in PLO, my favorite game.”

Eelis Parssinen Finnishes Off Le to Take Event #2

The Finnish player Eelis Parssinen achieved the same as Wantman in winning a PGT PLO Series II event, but did it the much easier way, leading the final table as play began, and seeing it through to take the trophy. With 149 entrants, the field was a strong one again and after players such as Daniel Negreanu, Jim Collopy, Chino Rheem and Alex Foxen all departed outside the money places, Brent Roberts snuck into profit, cashing for $11,175 in 22^nd place having bought in for $7,600.

Outside the final table, players such as Jeremy Ausmus (12^th for $22,350), Joao Simao (10^th for the same amount) and Isaac Kempton (8^th for $29,800) all came close to the denouement, but the final six were led by the Finnish pro Parssinen. Other big names loomed at the final table, but after Brian Rast was the first to depart in sixth for $37,250, Dylan Weisman busted in fifth for $44,700. That opened the door for a dominant display from Parssinen and he wasn’t about to pass up that opportunity.

After seeing off Sean Winter in fourth place for $59,600 in a pot that doubled up Dustin Goldklang, Parssinen still maintained a massive lead, holding 10.77 million to Goldklang’s 4.22 million and Allan Le’s 3.62 million. Surprisingly, Le performed miracles to grind back above Goldklang then eliminate him with a flush beating the latter’s two pair.

The stacks were almost dead level, but Parssinen dominated the final stages, and after making a full house against Le’s two pair, the writing seemed on the wall. Parssinen’s was better than 2:1 and although Le did at one stage double up with quads, a sizeable gap remained. A flop of saw Parssinen holding a pair of tens with a doubled straight draw. Le only had a pair of queens, and on a turn the money all went in. An on the river changed nothing and Eelis Parssinen was the second PGT PLO event winner of the series, banking a top prize of $149,000.

Who Is Selling Action During the Series?

With plenty of events still to come in the PGT PLO Series II, it couldn’t be easier to stake some players in the forthcoming PGT PLO events on PokerStake. Brandon Shack-Harris is Mr. Consistent in WSOP events and is no stranger to playing PLO at the very highest level, finishing in 12^th place from 1,013 entries in a $3,000-entry PLO event just this summer in Las Vegas at the World Series of Poker.

Ky Nguyen is selling action to not one but three events, also going into battle against Shack-Harris in Event #6. He’ll be playing the 9^th and 14^th events of the series too, and is selling at only 1.05 markup, with a recent $453,000 score on the WPT advertising Nguyen’s tremendous form in 2023.

Michael Wang needs no introduction as a strong investment in any live poker tournament. With over $5.5 million in live winnings alone, Wang is selling action across a huge raft of events with markup from just 1.04. Wang finished 5^th in a high roller PLO event as recently as just four weeks ago on the Gold Coast, and with eight live cashes since the start of August is in unmissable form.