Adil Atif Morkos, a recreational poker player from Vaughan, Ontario, won his career maiden poker title, the prestigious World Series of Poker International Circuit Playground Poker Club $1,700 CAD NLH Main Event, securing his first circuit gold ring. For his victory, Morkos earned a life-changing $214,200, pushing his lifetime poker earnings past $300k.
Morkos began his poker career in 2018 and has cashed in 13 events since then. His previous career-best score was $38,190 after he rounded out the podium in the 2024 WSOP International Circuit C$3,300 NLH High Roller. After nearly seven years, Morkos finally struck gold with his recent victory at the Playground poker room. Here is a quick recap of the 2025 WSOP International Circuit Playground Main Event, along with the final table.
2025 WSOP International Circuit Playground Main Event Quick Recap
The C$1,700 buy-in Main Event drew a gigantic field of 1,414 entries across three starting flights, crushing the C$1.5 million GTD for a total prize pool of C$2,121,000, which is over $1.5 million in USD. Of the massive playing field, the top 141 players ended up sharing the $1,569,540 total prize pool.
The final day of the main event kicked off with 14 players, which was eventually down to the final nine, setting up the final table action. Jorge Pacheco led the charge with 12 million chip stacks, narrowly followed by the eventual winner, Adil Morkos, as the second in chip lead.
Morkos soon reversed the role, leaving Pacheco with just half of what he held. He soon knocked out the short stack, William Blais, in 9th place, with a $21,000 payday. Stephane Roux and Ruoxia Shi soon headed to the rail in 8th and 7th place, respectively, earning $26,600 and $33,250 each.
Danesh Luthra was the next victim of Morkos’ top-notch performance. Luthra, with nearly two big blinds shoved with queen-seven of spades and got called by Morkos’ seven-three offsuit. The board, unfortunately, brought Ad-5d-4c-2d-8c, giving Morkos a straight, sending Luthra out in 6th place for $42,700.
Omkar Deshmukh was the next to follow Luthra, as his ace-jack wasn’t enough to beat the pocket nines of Morkos. Deshmukh was eliminated in 5th place for a payday of $56,000. Soon, James Pilon jammed his stack with 10d-9c, only to be called by the pocket aces of Morkos. The flop Kc-8h-6h gave him a gutshot draw, but 4d-10c couldn’t save him. Pilon collected $75,600 for his 4th place finish.
With that elimination, Morkos was leading the table with a massive chip stack of 42 million compared to the other two players. Soon, he extended the lead to 48 million, sending out the former chip leader, Jorge Pacheco, to the podium with a $105k payout.
Final Hand
Three hands into the heads-up play, Arya Ghai moved all-in holding Js-10d, and Morkos called with Kd-5c. The board ran out Qh-8h-5h-7h-Qs, securing an easy victory for the recreational player Adil Morkos.
2025 WSOP International Circuit Playground Main Event Final Table Payouts
| Rank | Player | Payout in USD |
| 1st | Adil Morkos | $214,200 |
| 2nd | Arya Ghai | $140,700 |
| 3rd | Jorge Pacheco | $105,000 |
| 4th | James Pillon | $75,600 |
| 5th | Omkar Deshmukh | $56,000 |
| 6th | Danesh Luthra | $42,700 |
| 7th | Ruoxiao Shi | $33,250 |
| 8th | Stephane Roux | $26,600 |
| 9th | William Blais | $21,000 |
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Source – PokerOrg, WSOP and CardPlayer
