Phil Bertram finally added a World Series of Poker (WSOP) circuit ring to his poker resume after two years of grinding in the WSOP Circuit Series. He won the 2024 WSOP-C Choctaw $1,700 Main Event, claiming a career-high payday of $237,307, along with his first-ever gold ring.
Bertram from the United States opened his Hendon mob profile in 2022, with a money finish in the WSOP C $1,700 Main Event in the same venue, and went on to finish 37th in the 2023 WSOP C Tulsa Main Event. This time Bertram sealed the deal. He overcame a big chip lead in the heads-up to defeat Zak Baron to win the coveted title.
The event took place at Choctaw Casino and Resort in Oklahoma and saw an impressive field of 944 entrants across two starting flights, crushing the $1 million guarantee to generate a total prize pool of $1,430,130. A total of 106 players made it to the money, kicking off the Day 2 play of the main event. The Day 2 of the Main Event ended with the elimination of Will Pengelly in 9th place. 8 Players advanced to Day 3 to battle and find a champion.
Bertram scored the first elimination of the final day, by eliminating Ben Anderson in 8th place. He then sent Vincent Rubianes in 7th place, starting the six-handed play that lasted for an hour.
The six-handed play broke, as Lawrence Wayne busted out in 5th, followed by Vincent Pratt in 5th by the hand of Zak Baron. Robert Peacock and Michael Perrone soon followed the railbirds, exiting in 4th and 3rd place, respectively, beginning the heads-up showdown.
Bron held a 3:1 chip advantage over Bertram, which didn’t help him win the Showdown. Bertram scooped some big pots with his top-notch play and took the lead that he held until the final hand.
It was Zak Baron’s second final table finish of this year, as he made a 3rd place finish in the same event way back in July 2024. This time, he came close to his first-ever circuit ring, but lost it against Bertram, and collected $158,217.
2024 WSOP-C Choctaw $1,700 Main Event Final Table Payouts
| Rank | Player | Prize (USD) |
| 1st | Phil Bertram | $237,307 |
| 2nd | Zak Baron | $158,217 |
| 3rd | Michael Perrone | $110,000 |
| 4th | Robert Peacock | $78,345 |
| 5th | Vincent Pratt | $56,538 |
| 6th | Lawrence Wayne | $41,509 |
| 7th | Vincent Rubianes | $31,013 |
| 8th | Ben Anderson | $23,587 |
| 9th | Will Pengelly | $18,268 |
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Images & Hands Courtesy: WSOP/Poker.Org
