The 2024 World Series Of Poker (WSOP) Paradise is running full stream inside the luxurious Atlantis Bahamas poker room and in this report we will delve into the recent victories achieved by Jeffrey Hakim and Eric Wasserson.
Both of them claimed their first bracelet victories after nearly a decade of grinding at the WSOP. Jeffrey Hakim won Event #1: $2,500 Mini Main Event, while Eric Wasserson emerged victorious in Event #5: $25,000 Dealers Choice Championship.
2024 WSOP Paradise Event #1: $2.5k Mini Main Event Recap
The opening event of the World Series of Poker Paradise saw an impressive turnout of 2,031. As the dust settled, WSOP regular Jeffrey Hakim secured the coveted gold bracelet and a career-high payday of $575,050. Hakim’s poker career reached new heights after his recent bracelet victory, an achievement he was looking forward to since his twenties, “I dedicated so much time and effort to this in my twenties, so to accomplish it now feels like a sense of vindication.”
The $2.5k buy-in no-limit hold’em mini main event registered 2,031 entrants over five starting flights and crushed the $5 million guaranteed for $5,077,500 total prize pool. Only 306 players advanced to Day 2, all locking up a minimum payout of $5,630. 17 players advanced to the final day and formed the final table.
Belarus’s Andrei Piatrushchanka led the final table, followed by her partner Alina Paliahoshka. Hakim entered the final table holding the third-highest chip stack and avoided getting into big pots. The couple dominated the table with aggressive play and knockouts. All three of them made it into the three-hand play. Hakim managed to extend his lead and went on to snatch the stack of Andrei. Andrei Piatrushchanka exited in 3rd place to collect $344,000.
The heads-up was quick, with Alina being unable to overcome the chip deficit. After a few hands in the heads-up, Hakim open-shoved with pocket threes and Alina called holding ace-six. Neither of them connected on the board, but Hakim’s pocket threes were enough to seal him the coveted victory. Alina earned $445,400 for her impressive play.
2024 WSOP Paradise Event #1: $2.5 Mini Main Event Final Table Payouts
| Rank | Player | Payout |
| 1st | Jeffrey Hakim | $575,050 |
| 2nd | Alina Paliahoshka | $445,400 |
| 3rd | Andrei Piatrushchanka | $344,000 |
| 4th | Viktor Ustimov | $261,500 |
| 5th | Ryan Gebow | $202,100 |
| 6th | Mathew Frankland | $152,300 |
| 7th | Paul Newey | $120,600 |
| 8th | Matas Cimbolas | $91,020 |
| 9th | Aram Oganyan | $70,135 |
2024 WSOP Paradise Event #5: $25k Dealers Choice Championship Recap
Eric Wasserson, well known as one of the best players in mixed game, cemented his position further by winning his maiden WSOP gold bracelet in Event #5: $25k Dealers Choice Championship at the 2024 WSOP Paradise. Wasserson has numerous final table finishes in the WSOP, along with two runner-up finishes and three third-place finishes, but didn’t collect a bracelet until now. He earned a six-figure payout of $353,340, pushing his earnings past $2.8 million.
The $25k buy-in mixed-game dealers choice championship drew 49 entrants, building a total prize pool of $1,225,000. Only seven players took home a payout from the seven-figure prize pool. The final table was filled with bracelet winners, who fell short of adding another bracelet, which includes Nacho Barbero (7th), five-time bracelet winner Benny Glaser (6th), two-time bracelet winner John Racener (5th), Daniel Zack (4th), and Mike Gorodinsky (3rd).
Wasserson faced six-time bracelet winner Josh Arieh in the heads-up but managed to lock up the victory after almost two-hours of forth-and-back battle. The final hand of the tournament came in no-limit hold’em—Wasserson jammed with queen-jack and Arieh snapped with ace-quen. The board brought a jack to give Wasserson a top pair, securing his first bracelet, while Josh Arieh had to settle for a $262,090 payday for his runner-up finish.
Event #5: $25k Dealers Choice Championship Final Table Payouts
| Rank | Player | Payout |
| 1st | Eric Wasserson | $353,340 |
| 2nd | Josh Arieh | $262,090 |
| 3rd | Mike Gorodinsky | $194,430 |
| 4th | Daniel Zack | $144,230 |
| 5th | John Racener | $107,000 |
| 6th | Benny Glaser | $79,370 |
| 7th | Nacho Barbero | $60,040 |
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