After three long days of play, it is Aaron “AJ” Cummings who reigns victorious in Event #22: $1,500 Limit 2-7 Lowball Triple Draw.
After a 90-minute heads-up duel with Yuichi Kanai, Cummings won his first bracelet along with $146,516 in prize money for his efforts. None of the final six players were bracelet holders, so everyone at that table was starving for WSOP gold.
Cummings only has a handful of previous WSOP cashes and this cash is bigger than all of his career earnings combined.
There was an upbeat and cordial atmosphere at the final table. As Cummings described it, “We had a blast, and I just ran the best.” Aside from running well, Cummings played extremely well throughout the day, with well-timed bluffs paving the way for getting value with his strong hands.
“There’s not a whole lot of poker [in Montana], so I just sneak down here every once in a while for fun.”
If winning a bracelet qualifies as fun, then it was a mission accomplished for Cummings.
13 players started the day, including bracelet winners Ilija Savevski and Danny Wong. Yuichi Kanai entered the day with the chip lead, but it was a close race with many contenders right on his heels. Eventually, champion AJ Cummings came into the day tied for third in chips.
The first casualty was Amir Nematinia, who got his short stack in against Kanai and was drawing dead on the final draw as Kanai had made an eight-six low.
Draw game crusher Jon Turner came in 12th, followed by James “AR” Williams in 11th and Alex Ferrari in 10th, who entered the day second in chips.
After the elimination of bracelet winner Ilija Savevski and Steven Gray, the final table of seven was reached, and play moved to a feature table.
Shortly after combining tables, bracelet winner Wong exited in seventh place. He patted out of position with a jack after Heather Alcorn drew one. He soon got the bad news as Alcorn patted behind after making a seven-six low.
Alcorn was also responsible for the next knockout of Anthony Lazar in sixth place. Alcorn was drawing to an eight-seven, whereas Lazar was drawing to a nine-eight. Alcorn peeled a four on the final draw, which left Lazar drawing dead and heading to the payout cage.
The next bustout came almost 90 minutes later when Sean Yu was eliminated in fifth place. Yu has had plenty of success in mixed games at the World Series and was chip-leader at the start of the final table. However, his day ended when he peeled a queen on his final draw against the made jack of Wilkinson.
Alcorn was the next casualty, coming in fourth place. With her performance throughout the tournament, the former WSOP Dealer of the Year proved she can be just as successful outside the box. She fell at the hands of Wilkinson, who spiked a three-outer on the final draw to eliminate Alcorn.
The remaining three players then took a short dinner break.
The first post-dinner bust out was Alexander Wilkinson. He showed bravery and skill during the entire tournament, but his luck eventually ran out. On the final draw, Cummings had paired his seven, and Wilkinson needed to fade a two or seven to avoid making a straight. Unfortunately for him, he peeled one of the five outs as he rolled over a seven and was eliminated after making a straight.
Cummings and Kanai played heads-up for around 90 minutes, trading blows to one another as the chip lead switched back and forth. Eventually, Cummings gained a chip advantage and continued his aggression as he built his lead.
On the final hand, both players were drawing one on the final draw. Cummings bet enough to put Kanai all-in. Kanai was put to a tough decision after making a ten-eight low. After about a minute in the tank, Kanai sent the remainder of his chips into the middle, to which Cummings exclaimed, “We got ’em!” to his rail, and he threw his hands into the air in celebration.
Cummings will go back to Montana with an extra $146,516 and the coveted WSOP gold bracelet for his fantastic performance in Event #22: $1,500 Limit 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball.
Final Table Results
1 Aaron Cummings United States $146,516
2 Yuichi Kanai Japan $95,981
3 Alexander Wilkinson United States $64,256
4 Heather Alcorn United States $43,984
5 Sean Yu United States $30,800
6 Anthony Lazar United States $22,075
7 Danny Wong United States $16,204
