Following the record-breaking WSOP 2024 in Las Vegas, the first World Series of Poker Circuit stop has wrapped up crowning its main event champion in Justin Lapka. The online poker phenom overcame a field of 1,017 entries, claiming his third WSOPC ring a seat into the 2025 Tournament of Champions.
The three-day event concluding on July 29 comfortably surpassed the $1 million guarantee, collecting a massive $1,540,755 in the final prizepool. The top 152 players were paid out, with Justin Lapka earning the lion’s share as the last player standing. The two-time bracelet winner from Saint Paul, Minnesota banked a whopping $252,282, which happens to be the largest score of his career.
Many big names finished deep in this event, including 2019 World Poker Tour Aria Summer Championship winner Matthew Wantman (20th – $8,503), two-time bracelet winner Michael Wang (16th – $10,248), and 2023 Lodge Championship Series main event winner Preston Duron (11th – $15,696).
The final day began with 12 players in contention with Lapka sitting in fifth chip position. He had climbed into second in chips by the time the final table was reached.
Kalyan Chivukula started the final table as chip leader but Lapka moved into the lead early at the final table. He then busted Tim Faro (8th – $25,754) and Derek Normand (7th – $33,828) to extend his chip lead. Nicholas Splawn was the next player to fall. He ran J-2 into the A-9 of Mack Khan and lost, exiting in sixth place for $45,165. The start of the final table chip leader Chivukula exited in fifth place ($61,281) when his 10-8 suited was unable to beat the pocket sixes of Lapka, who then won another big all-in with overcards of K-J against the pocket fives of Mack Khan (4th – $84,475) to take the massive lead. He continued on his elimination spree and busted Zak Baron (3rd – $118,278). Zak Baron got all-in with A-4 against pocket aces for Lapka and found no help on a queen-high runout.
Lapka held a 4:1 chip lead over Gregg Merkow at the start of the heads-up. In the final hand Lapka limped in for 300,000 total and Merkow moved all-in for around 7 million with As 3s from the big blind. Lapka thought for a while and made the call with Ad Qd. The board ran out Ks Jh 9d Ac 8h to give Lapka the coveted title.
Event #18: $1,700 Main Event final table results
1st place: Justin Lapka – $252,282
2nd place: Gregg Merkow – $168,169
3rd place: Zak Baron – $118,278
4th place: Mack Khan – $84,475
5th place: Kalyan Chivukula – $61,281
6th place: Nicolas Splawn – $45,165
7th place: Derek Normand – $33,828
8th place: Tim Faro – $25,754
9th place: Kaleb Harwell – $19,936
Other Notable Winners
The series ran from 17th to 29th July and featured an impressive 20 tournaments, with the main event being the key highlight. Apart from the main event, there were several other exciting events, which crowned winners in Michael Brown and Gary Ware.
Michael Brown from Texas won Event #5: $500 No-Limit Hold’em The Gargantuan, claiming his second WSOPC Circuit ring and a career-high $68,326. He overcame a large field of 1,048 players and eventually defeated Jamie Kempf in the final heads-up, with Kempf earning $42,229 as the runner-up.
Gary Ware, another player from Texas, took down Event #13: $600 Mystery Bounty, earning $52,900, including $28,000 in bounties. This victory earned his first Circuit ring and a spot in the 2025 WSOP Tournament of Champions. Rodney Baker placed runner-up, taking home $15,326 for his efforts.
List of 2024 WSOP Circuit Choctaw Winners
| Event | Entries | Winner | Prize |
| Event #1: $130 Seniors Kick-Off | 597 | Gregory Knighton | $10,619 |
| Event #2: $250 No-Limit Hold ’em | 264 | Marshal Decker | $11,690 |
| Event #3: $300 Monster Stack | 463 | Allesandro Bertoncini | $21,169 |
| Event #4: $300 No-Limit Hold’em 6-Handed | 189 | Rachel Sawye | $10,669 |
| Event #5: $500 The Gargantuan | 1048 | Michael Brown | $68,326 |
| Event #6: $250 No-Limit Hold’em | 208 | Ben Ross | $9,784 |
| Event #7: $300 No-Limit Hold’em Bounty | 286 | Joseph Ferguson | $11,803 + bounties |
| Event #8: $250 Ladies Event | 125 | Gloria Davila | $6,335 |
| Event #9: $300 No-Limit Hold’em | 414 | Erick Argote | $19,452 |
| Event #10: $500 Big O | 225 | Kelechi Amadi | $21,873 |
| Event #11: $250 Seniors Event | 429 | Peter Clive | $16,606 |
| Event #12: $300 No-Limit Hold’em Double Stack | 394 | David Soskin | $18,751 |
| Event #13: $600 Mystery Bounty | 404 | Gary Ware | $24,700 (+ $28,200 in bounties) |
| Event #14: $250 No-Limit Hold’em | 185 | James Pupillo | $8,790 |
| Event #15: $250 No-Limit Hold’em | 214 | Micheal O’Neill | $9,978 |
| Event #16: $400 Ring And Seat | 183 | Shawn Fakhimi | $6,529 |
| Event #17: $400 No-Limit Hold’em One-Day Turbo | 177 | Jay Allen | $14,006 |
| Event #18: $1,700 WSOP Million Dollar Main Event | 1017 | Justin Lapka | $252,282 |
| Event #19: $300 No-Limit Hold’em – The Twilight | 373 | Van Vandergriff | $16,698 |
| Event #20: $400 No-Limit Hold’em – The Finale | 193 | Benjamin Thomas | $14,977 |
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Image Credit: WSOP & Poker.Org
