Kahnawake, QC (May 23, 2024) – The World Poker Tour® returned to Montreal for a fully-loaded festival, which culminated with David Dongwoo Ko becoming the newest member of the WPT® Champions Club. Ko earned his spot on the Mike Sexton WPT Champions Cup and CAD $434,600 (~USD $319,217), which includes a seat in the Season XXII WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas.
“I really wanted to prove to myself and to the world that I can compete in these higher level tournaments, and today I think I did,” said Ko when asked how he felt after the win. “Being a WPT Champion is something that will last forever, you know, so that just by itself means a lot”
WPT Montreal, the CAD $3,500 Championship event, drew a field of 882 entrants through three starting flights, generating a prize pool of CAD $2,822,400 (USD $2,071,642). The top 111 players walked away with a cash prize of at least CAD $6,400 (USD $4,698).
“Returning to the Montreal area and Playground certainly lived up to the expectations,” said WPT CEO Adam Pliska. “The nonstop competition led to some spectacular victories during the festival, and none greater than David Dongwoo Ko’s rise to WPT Champion status.”
Dan Stavila finished as the runner-up, banking CAD $280,000. He was preceded by his fellow final tablists Tommy Nguyen (3rd place – CAD $205,000), Rayan Chamas (4th place – CAD $155,000), Tamer Alkamli (5th place – CAD $117,000), and Charles Kassin (6th place – CAD $89,000).
Other notable players claiming a WPT Montreal cash were three-time WPT Champion Eric Afriat (19th place), WPT Co-Commentator and Champions Club member Tony Dunst (34th place), WPT Global* Ambassador Xuan Liu (54th place) and WPT Champions Mike Leah (57th place) and Darryll Fish (61st place).
There were two other WPT victories during the Montreal festival. First was Jonathan Willis who topped a field of 1,395 entrants in the WPT 500 Montreal event, winning CAD $105,860 (USD $77,384). Then, the CAD $1,150 buy-in WPT Prime Montreal Championship event saw Jikai Zhang defeat 1,290 opponents to earn CAD $191,300 (USD $139,840). Both players also won a seat to the WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas as a part of the first-place prize.
All photos from WPT Montreal festival can be accessed via our Flickr Page.
For more information regarding this and a list of all upcoming World Poker Tour events, visit WPT.com.
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About the World Poker Tour®
World Poker Tour® (WPT®) is the premier name in internationally televised gaming and entertainment with brand presence in land-based tournaments, television, online, and mobile. WPT has hosted live poker tournaments in 48 countries, drawn more than 400,000 total entries, and awarded more than $1.5 billion in prize money. Leading innovation in the sport of poker since 2002, WPT ignited the global poker boom with the creation of a unique television show, which has broadcast globally in more than 150 countries and territories, and is currently producing its 22nd season, which airs on Bally Sports in the United States. Season XXII of WPT is sponsored by ClubWPT.com. ClubWPT.com is a unique online membership site that offers inside access to the WPT, as well as a sweepstakes-based poker club available in 43 states and territories across the United States, Australia, Canada, France, and the United Kingdom. WPT also participates in strategic brand license, partnership, and sponsorship opportunities. In 2012, the WPT Foundation was launched, which has gone on to raise $45 million over 10 years and 50 events. For more information, go to WPT.com.
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