The long-time British poker pro continues to find new ways to win
British poker pro Stephen Chidwick was the big winner in the final event of the 2024 US Poker Open, surviving the 52-player field to win the $25,200 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em event and the $429,000 top prize. His 44th live tournament win brings his career earnings to over $57.6 million, which is third all-time.
The $1,300,000 prize pool was split among the top eight finishers, with David Coleman the first sent home after the bubble. His 11th cash of the year earned him $52,000 and 70 POY points, making him the player to beat in this year’s title race.
The event’s final day started with Chidwick ahead of the seven players returning to the PokerGO Studio at ARIA Resort & Casino Las Vegas. Jesse Lonis was the first to fall in seventh place ($52,000) for his fourth cash of the series, putting him second in the POY standings.
Player of the series winner Aram Zobian would be next to the rail in sixth place for $78,000. He had four final-table finishes, one title, and $613,540 in earnings as the USPO champion.
Short stack Cary Katz would earn $104,000 for fifth place, and Dan Smith’s run ended in fourth place for $130,000 to surpass $54.8 million in career earnings. Chidwick then sent Brandon Wittmeyer home in third ($182,000), giving him over $1.9 million in career cashes.
In heads-up play, Chidwick and Andrew Lichtenberger were virtually even on the decisive hand when Lichtenberger pushed all in. The runout saw Chidwick pick up a pair of aces to take the pot.
Lichtenberger was left with just 1.5 small blinds before his night ended as runner-up ($273,000), increasing his career earnings to over $21 million.
