Epic hand at World Series of Poker helped settle Player of the Year race

This past summer, poker players from around the world descended on Las Vegas for the 50th annual World Series of Poker. Thousands of rounders competed for gold bracelets and millions in prize money. A select few also vied for the prestigious honor of being crowned WSOP Player of the Year.

The race was hotly contested. Australian Robert Campbell, who won two bracelets at this year’s WSOP, wound up atop the summer leaderboard with 3,418.78 points. Hot on his heels were Shaun Deeb (3,280.13 points) and Daniel Negreanu (3,166.24 points). Months later, all three men, along with other players still in contention, traveled to the Czech Republic for the WSOP Europe at King’s Casino, which was their last chance to accrue Player of the Year points.

Campbell and Negreanu wound up battling each other in the 25,500- euro Platinum High Roller No-Limit event. There were 11 players left in the tournament, and things were already tense when a rare hand took place on Level 21, with blinds at 120,000-240,000 plus an ante of 240,000.

It began with Alex Foxen opening for 510,000 from the hijack seat (the spot two to the right of the button). Campbell moved all in for 2.44 million holding Qs Js on the button. Reigning WSOP Main Event champ Hossein Ensan then moved all in over the top from the small blind with 8s 8d, and Foxen got out of the way.

It was a classic “race,” or “flip” — two poker terms commonly used when one player holds a pair and the other holds two overcards, giving them roughly even odds of winning the hand. In this instance, Ensan was a 50.1 percent favorite, with Campbell having a 48.7 percent chance of winning. (In rare instances the board could give them identical hands, and they’d chop the pot.)

A flop of 10s 7h 10c made Ensan a 2-to-1 favorite, but the As turn made things interesting, as Campbell picked up a royal flush draw. That gave him a 45.5 percent chance of improving on the river and winning the hand.

Not only did Campbell improve, he did so by spiking the Ks, the one card he needed for a royal flush, the rarest hand in all of poker.

That double-up allowed Campbell to survive, and a short time later Negreanu bowed out in 10th place. Campbell would follow him out the door in eighth place, giving him more Player of the Year points for the event than “Kid Poker.”

Those turned out to be critical points, as Campbell went on to win the POY title with 3,961.31 points. Deeb finished second with 3,917.32, and Negreanu came in third with 3,861.76.

Negreanu nearly became the first player to ever win WSOP Player of the Year three times, having earned that honor in 2004 and 2013.

You’ll never lose a hand of poker holding a royal flush, but making one doesn’t mean you’ll wind up Player of the Year.