WPT Alpha8 Las Vegas Goes to Andrew ‘LuckyChewy’ Lichtenberger

Andrew Lichtenberger’s bank account got a boost over the weekend as he took out the World Poker Tour (WPT) Alpha8 Las Vegas.

The event had a US$100,000 buy-in and attracted 55 entrants, which led to an overall prize pool of just under $5.4 million for the tournament's final six players. That resulted in the top prize being a whopping $2,104,245, which went to ‘LuckyChewy’ after he was the last man sitting at the final table.

Such an event usually attracts some of the biggest and best names in poker, and the WPT Las Vegas was no different as players like Antonio Esfandiari,Erik Seidel and Phil Laak participated for their shot at the huge prize pool.

None of those players made it in-the-money, although Laak came close by finishing in eighth place after being eliminated by Brian Rast.

Bryn Kenney was the first player to exit from the final six (who were all in-the-money). It started when Kenney lost a big hand to Noah Schwartz after Schwartz’s Ace held on the board to beat Kenney’s Jacks.

That loss put Kenney down to just 5,000 chips and he lost them in the very next hand against Tom Marchese after his Queen-Seven was unable to beat Marchese's Ace-Four. Rast also claimed the second scalp of the final six after he knocked Jason Les out of the event.

Rast was ahead with Pocket Eights before the flop, while Les had potential outs with a6 . However, Rast’s hand held on the board to give him the pot while eliminating Les in fifth place.

Next to go was Schwartz, who was sent to the rail by the eventual winner. Schwartz went all-in pre-flop with Pocket Fives and was called by Lichtenberger, who was ahead with Pocket Tens. He stayed ahead as no Five came on the board, which put the event down to three players.

Third place went toBrian Rast, who also fell to Lichtenberger as he continued his pursuit to the championship.

Rast moved all-in pre-flop with 67 and was called by Lichtenberger, who had j10 .

The flop did not improve the hand of either player, but the Ten of Spades on the turn put Lichtenberger further ahead, while another Jack on the river was the cherry on top for the eventual winner.

Rast’s elimination put Lichtenberger and Marchese in heads-up play, and although Lichtenberger claimed the previous two scalps, he was only slightly ahead of his rival.

The lead changed hands several times as neither player wanted to give up easily. However, Lichtenberger finally got the edge before he took out the event.

In the tournament’s final hand, Lichtenberger moved all-in pre-flop after a series of raises and re-raises and was called by Marchese, whose stack was covered by Lichtenberger’s.

With Pocket Eights, Marchese initially had a slight lead over Lichtenberger and his q9 , but he was put in grave risk after two more Clubs came out on the flop.

Marchese’s worst fears became a reality when the King of Clubs appeared on the turn, giving Lichtenberger a Flush.

It was not all over, however, since there were Two Fours on the board, which meant an Eight or a Four would have given Marchese a Full House.

It was not to be, though, as the 5 completed the runout, which meant Marchese was eliminated and Lichtenberger was crowned the winner of the WPT Alpha8 Las Vegas.

Photo: WPT Blog