Justus Held Flip & Gos His Way to $107K and a WSOPC Ring

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Dec 19, 2022 4 min read

The latest batch of WSOP Winter Circuit champions has been crowned at GGPoker, with three more grinders getting their hands on a coveted World Series of Poker Circuit ring, in addition to massive boosts to their bankrolls. Justus "taxidriver" Held, Samuel "FishIdiot" Saariaho, and popular streamer "Kostya_Jock" now have some poker hardware to show for their efforts.

Held's victory came in the $100 Jingle Bells FLIP & GO NLH event. Some 5,924 bought into the FLIP stage, but only 721 of those starters progressed to the GO stage. Thanks to the $1 million prize pool, everyone at the final table locked in a five-figure score for their $100 buy-in, with the eventual champion receiving $106,873.

Andorra's "alikola" was the first of the nine finalists to find themselves with fresh air where their chips once stood. "rottenberg," Chen Chu, Santtu "84562" Ojala, and Maksim "sp!ke" Bura joined the list of busted players, the latter scooping $33,799.

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The pay jumps were so huge that nobody would have batted an eyelid if the players stuck a deal. However, the remaining four players did not discuss a deal, instead deciding to play out the tournament as initially intended.

Fourth place and $45,060 went to "Pyra lubi sos" of the Netherlands before Peruvian star "mascaclavos" fell by the wayside and banked $60,076. Heads-up saw Justus "taxidriver" Held take on "Yu rong quan88" of Hong Kong. Held defeated his final opponent to capture the WSOPC ring and $106,873, leaving the runner-up to head into the night with an $80,100 consolation prize.

#9: $100 Jingle Bells FLIP & GO NLH Final Table Results

Saariaho Crowned Pot-Limit Omaha Champion

The best Pot-Limit Omaha players in the world descended on GGPoker for the $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Championship, 369 of them. Those hopefuls created a $525,825 prize pool, with $108,318 reserved for the worthy champion.

Seven players made up the final table but soon became six when Kristof "ultrafish" Segers bowed out. Jose "MEMEKING" Koistinen's tournament ended in sixth place, with "spiritomaha," Aleksey "ImLuckPads" Savenkov, and Dorel Eldabach joining the long list of busted players and sending this championship event into the heads-up stage.

Brazil's "cachorradadoart" locked horns with Samuel "FIshIdiot" Saariaho in a one-on-one battle for all the glory. It was Saariaho who emerged victoriously and with $108,318 in tow, leaving the Brazilian to console themselves with a $78,316 second-place payment.

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#7: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Championship Final Table Results

GGPoker Streamer Kostya_Jock Rides Off With Santa's Sled

The eighth ring-awarding event was the $320 "Santa's Sled" Ultra Deepstack Turbo Bounty, and GGPoker Streamer "Kostya_Jock" rode off in the sled, accompanied by a WSOPC ring and $58,565 in prize money. A bumper crowd of 2,104 players bought into the event, creating a $624,888 prize pool.

Six of the nine finalists saw their $320 investment swell into five-figure hauls. "Teefan05," Arsenii Karmatckii, and "slimedao" being the trio who missed out on a five-figure payment but still logged off with between $5,222 and $8,251 for their efforts.

"fourfingaz" must be commended because the Austrian scooped a $17,430 prize for their sixth-place finish, thanks, in part, to helping themselves to $9,899 worth of bounties. Only the eventual champion won more money from the bounty prize pool.

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Alexey "@ndr0med@" Badulin busted in fifth, "THE EDUCATOR" in fourth, with the elimination of Brazil's "vng_" in third, leaving only two players in contention for the title and the lion's share of the prize pool.

Those two remaining players were "Kostya_Jock" and Slovenian "AngeloMirabella." Both guaranteed themselves more than $25,000 from the main prize pool, but the final bounty payment weighed in at more than $33,000. That chunky bounty found its way to Kostya_Jock after he defeated his Brazilian opponent in the final clash of the tournament.

#8: $320 "Santa's Sled" Ultra Deepstack Turbo Bounty Final Table Results

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