The 2018 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Event #62: $888 Crazy Eights N-Limit Hold’em 8-Handed drew 8,598 players over four starting flights, which created a $6,871,521 prize pool. Of that, $888,888 was set aside for the eventual winner.
The massive turnout blew by both the 6,761 and 8,120 fields from 2016 and 2017 respectively to make it the largest $888 Crazy Eights to date. We were there every step of the way to capture the action, which included a deep run by 888poker Ambassador Chris Moorman.
Here are some highlights:
Day 1A Action
The first of four starting flights attracted a massive field of 1,703 entries. After 18 levels of play, just 99 remained including chip leader Anthony Reategui with 369,000. Among the notables to advance were 8-Team Canada wingman Mike Leah (155,000) and bracelet winner Jeremy Ausmus (106,000).
Some players to cash in the opening flight were Shannon Shorr (106th - $1,999), 2016 WSOP Little One for One Drop champ Michael Tureniec (163rd - $1,634) and Alex Foxen (229th - $1,407).
Day 1B Action
The 1B flight proved to be even bigger with 1,908 entries of which just 90 bagged and tagged. No one finished with more than Christian Liel (793,000), though bracelet winner Matthew Schreiber (662,000) wasn’t too far behind.
Others to bag were Men “The Master” Nguyen (256,000), Jason Wheeler (128,000) and Galen Hall (64,000). Also, bagging was Hung Le, who won the 2016 WSOP Crazy Eights for $888,888.
In Level 24 (2,500/5,000/500), Le actually got involved in a hand against Sebastian Pauli. The latter got his short stack all-in preflop holding the A♠J♥ against Le’s pocket eights. The board ran out 7♦6♦6♥5♠8♠, and Le made a full house to eliminate Pauli.
Le would go on to finish in 238th place for $4,492.
Day 1C Action
Day 1C drew 2,492, entries and only 131 of them bagged with Moorman and his stack of 511,000 leading the way. Others to advance were Mohsin Charania (307,000), two-time bracelet winner Eric Baldwin (250,000), and Yevgeniy Timoshenko (122,000).
Regarding Moorman, he won a big flip in Level 13 (800/1,600/200). It happened when a preflop raising war resulted in him getting his stack of 60,000 all-in with the 10♠10♣ against an opponent holding the A♥K♦. The J♠J♣5♣ flop kept Moorman in the lead, and the 3♣ turn was a great card as it meant both the ace and king of clubs would give him a flush. As it was, the 2♠ river was a brick, and Moorman doubled to 123,000.
Day 1D Action
The fourth and final flight attracted 2,495 runners and brought the total field up to 8,598 entries and created a $6,871,521 prize pool. That blew by both the 6,761 and 8,120 fielders from 2016 and 2017 respectively to make it the largest $888 Crazy Eights to date.
Former World Poker Tour Player of the Year Matt Salsberg (483,000) finished with the big stack among the surviving 138 players. He was joined by the likes of Martin Finger (255,000), 11-time WSOP Circuit ring winner Maurice Hawkins (194,000), 2013 WSOP Main Event champ Ryan Riess (150,000), and 888poker Ambassador Martin Jacobson (149,000).
Loni Harwood took a big hit in Level 15 (1,200/2,400/400) when a player in late position raised to 5,200 holding the Q♦Q♠ and Harwood three-bet to 12,000 with the A♠J♦ in the cutoff. Action folded back to the original raiser who four-bet all-in for 38,000 and Harwood called. The board ran out 10♣7♣J♥3♣10♦ to leave Harwood with just 18,000. She busted a short time later.
Day 2 Action
Day 2 began with 458 players returning to action, each guaranteed $2,702 in prize money. By the end of the night, 429 of them would hit the rail including Day 1B chip leader Raymond Trujillo (47th - $14,804), Day 1D chip leader Matt Salsberg (68th - $8,478), bracelet winner Mohsin Charania (101st - $6,075), 2013 WSOP Maine Event Champ Ryan Riess (139th - $5,203), 8-Team Canada wingman Mike Leah (227th - $4,492), and 888poker’s own Jacobson (272nd - $3,908).
However, one player that continued to thrive was Moorman. In Level 23 (8,000/16,000/2,000), he raised to 34,000 from the hijack and Men “The Master” Nguyen three-bet to 81,000 from the big blind. Moorman called and then called a bet of 66,000 on the 9♠5♥8♠ flop. When the 8♦ appeared on the turn, Nguyen checked, and Moorman bet 140,000.
Nguyen called, and the 10♥ completed the board on the river. Nguyen checked, and Moorman jammed for 344,000. Nguyen called with the 9♦5♦ for two pair, but it was no good as the 888 Ambassador fittingly had trip eights with his 8♥Q♥. Moorman doubled to 1.125 million on that hand.
The night ended with Galen Hall leading the 29 survivors with 6.595 million while Moorman sat ninth in chips with 2.62 million.
Moorman Falls on Day 3
Hopes were high that Moorman would capture his second bracelet, but it was not meant to be as his run came to an end in 23rd place for $27,661. In his final table of the tournament, which took place in Level 32 (60,000/120,000/20,000), Moorman opened to 225,000 on the button, and Paul Vas Nunes three-bet shoved for 2,200,000 from the small blind. Moorman called off his last 2,100,000.
Paul Vas Nunes: Q♦Q♠
Chris Moorman: A♥Q♣
Moorman’s best shot at surviving was to catch an ace, but he was left wanting as the board ran out an uneventful 5♦J♥2♠2♣7♠. Moorman had to settle for 23rd place and $27,661 in prize money.
Others to bust on Day 3 were Josh Turner (29th - $22,292), Men “The Master” Nguyen (21st - $27,661), Hunter Fray (10th - $70,546), Alexander Kuzmin (5h - $201,888), and Andrey Zaichenko (4th - $266,888).
Impromptu Day 4
A fourth day was added to the schedule to accommodate the final three players, who took a day off in between so they could each play Day 1C of the 2018 WSOP Main Event. Hall came in with the chip lead, something he’d held for two days straight, and all he had to do to win his first gold bracelet was to outlast Latvia’s Eduards Kudrjavcevs and Belgium’s Niels Herregodts.
Hall took care of the latter in third place with ace-king winning a flip against pocket fours, and six hands later it was all over. In Level 41 (500,000/1,000,000/150,000), Kudrjavcevs moved all-in for 10.9 million with the J♥10♣ and Hall called holding the 9♠9♦.
Hall just needed to hold, but he did more than that as he improved to a straight on the 8♥6♦5♣7♠K♠ runout. Kudrjavcevs exited in second place for $476,688.
Meanwhile, the 33-year-old Hall, a full-time hedge-fund manager and part-time high-stakes poker pro, collected $888,888 for the win to bring his lifetime earnings up to $5,137,259.
“I thought both of the other players were a little on the tighter side, and I had the chip lead, and my ICM was a little less than normal,” Hall said after the win. “There was a small third-to-second pay jump, but I thought it still mattered a reasonable amount. I was hoping that if one of them got short, then I could apply a lot of pressure to the other one. I planned to get a lot of chips from that, and then I generally planned to be aggressive.”
888poker congratulates Galen Hall on his 2018 WSOP $888 Crazy Eights victory!
Official Final Table Result
1st Galen Hall (United States) $888,888
2nd Eduards Kudrjavcevs (Latvia) $476,888
3rd Niels Herregodts (Belgium) $355,888
4th Andrey Zaichenko (Russia) $266,888
5th Alexander Kuzmin (Russia) $201,888
6th Jeremiah Miesen (United States) $153,888
7th Martin Stausholm (Denmark) $117,888
8th Philip Tom (United States) $90,888
