Ian Matakis, who had earlier won the WSOP Player of the Year title, walked off with the winners amount of $117,668 at the 2023 Canterbury Park Fall Poker Classics $1,100 buy-in Main Event. To achieve this, Matakis was required to win over his immediate opponent, Wesley Cannon. The poker tournament took place in Minnesota, where Matakis resides.
According to poker news, for the FPC Min Event, Matakis found himself up against 679 competitors, with a prize pool amounting to $651,840. The last round had Blake Bohn, who was fourth in line and managed to take away $44,977. There was also Nghia Le, who left with $33,896. Following the exit of Ben Frisch, who reached the third position, he made for himself $60,621. Then came Matakis and Cannon, who decided to do an ICM chop ahead of the ultimate trophy.
The situation went slightly out of hand for Cannon, followed by Matakis landing up with a further pile. From then on, Matakis carried on doubling four continuous times and created a level playing field, which was then followed by his winning. He emotionally dedicated the winner’s share to his deceased mother.
Matakis’ winning streak had begun when he went in for five of his six career games, where he also managed to rake in the amount of $205,696 after finishing third in line. This was at Event #82: $3,000 Pot-Limit Omaha (6-handed) at the 2023 WSOP.
In the early part of the year, Matakis managed to walk away with $120,686, along with a bracelet, at the WSOP Online $500 Bankroll Builder. In between, there was the winning at the WSOP POY race. Matakis has pulled in $1.7 million in tournament winnings and placed himself in the 13th position, according to the PokerNews Podcast.
