The latest edition of the WPT Pro Hunt went in favor of Sergey Yashur, a Ukrainian player who usually takes part in freeroll and low-stakes tournaments. The decision to pay $33 for the tournament turned out well for the banking tech specialist as he managed to outclass a 1,374-entry field to walk away with a total payout of $5,340, including $2,736 in bounties.
Apart from that, Yashur also earned a free ticket into an even bigger tournament, the $5,300 WPT World Online Championships Main Event, which guarantees $5 million.
WPT Pro Hunt Victory Strategy
In a post-win interview, Yashur shared his WPT Pro Hunt journey and his goals for the Main Event which gets underway in less than a week.
The Ukrainian player shared that he only found out about WPT Pro Hunt less than two weeks before it took started. During that period, Yashur played three tournaments on partypoker, including the Double Jab. He qualified for the said tournaments for free and had a successful run as he managed to make the final table of each event.
Fresh off from his three final table finishes, he then decided to take a shot at the $33 buy-in WPT Pro Hunt and ended up being the winner! Climbing his way to the top wasn’t easy for Yashur as he needed to battle it out with some of the game’s best players, including Isaac Haxton and Louise Butler whom he rubbed shoulders with at some point in the tournament.
Both Haxton and Butler are part of Team partypoker, who participated in the tournament as players with special bounties in their heads. Other partypoker ambassadors who competed in the WPT Pro Hunt were Patrick Leonard, Jamie Staples, Joao Simao, and Santi Gonzales. Unfortunately, none of them reached the final table.
Yashur shared that he opted to be more careful with his play and avoided chasing the big names and their special bounties as it was hard to eliminate them given their level of skills.
He focused on building up his stack by knocking out his smaller stacked opponents, and when the tournament reached its climax, Yashur played with more restrain. He even experienced being one of the shorter stacks, but he managed to pull through and ultimately made the final table.
As soon as the final action began, Yashur conditioned his mind for success, with his eye on the trophy. Even days before the tournament, he already decided to give it his best and reach the final table by any means. He had nothing to lose anyway.
He managed to eliminate three of his final table opponents before reaching heads-up play against Danish player Laust Mejer Nielsen, who was ahead in chips when the one-on-one battle started. It was an intense heads-up match, which led to Yashur doubting himself at some point. After the scheduled break, things started to go in favor of the Ukrainian and he ultimately claimed the title with flush versus two pair.
Yashur Prepares For WPTWOC Main Event
Yashur just could not contain his joy after making four final tables in a row, and he could add another major score to his already impressive run if he manages to make the finale of the upcoming $5,300 WPTWOC Main Event. That’s actually his main goal right now.
According to Yashur, the upcoming big event would allow him to change his and his family’s lives. And that is why he is wasting no time preparing for the tournament. He’s been watching live streams and reviewing sessions, and plans to read MTT books as well.
WPT Pro Hunt Donates $8,244 to Poker Gives Charity
The WPT Pro Hunt event was able to donate 20% of its total prize pool worth $8,244 to the Poker Gives charity which was originally launched by industry legends Mike Sexton, Jan Fisher, Lisa Tenner, and Linda Johnson. The money raised by WPT Pro Hunt will help it big time as it continues with its worthwhile causes.