The Grinder Makes History With Fourth Poker Players Championship

Before he landed in Las Vegas in June, Michael Mizrachi had played exactly one poker tournament since the end of last summer, when he took down the final WSOP Online event, the $888 Crazy 8’s Encore for his sixth World Series of Poker bracelet.

His warmup for this summer? It was a $300 All In For Saint Jude charity event during the Lucky Hearts Poker Open festival at Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood.

Of course, he won that one too, banking a cool $5,000 for his troubles. A modest amount, for sure, in a career with over $19 million in cashes.

“Prior to the World Series of Poker, I hadn’t really played a tournament since the last WSOP event I won, so it’s been a year,” said Mizrachi. “I’ve probably played 15 events [since I got] here, had 11 cashes.”

Mizrachi’s sixth bracelet win capped off an otherwise quiet summer for ‘The Grinder,’ although he did manage yet another deep run in the $50,000 Poker Players Championship. His 12th-place finish in 2024 was a reminder of his dominance in the most prestigious mixed game tournament poker has to offer. Previously, he finished first (2010), first (2012), fourth (2016), and first (2018).

An Unprecedented Feat

The tournament now known as the PPC made its debut in 2006. The first four years saw the event contested over the classic mixed-game format of H.O.R.S.E., with the late legend of the game David ‘Chip’ Reese capturing the very first win. After Reese’s passing in late 2007, the champion of this event has had their name added to the David ‘Chip’ Reese Memorial Trophy. In the years since, the format has changed to include eight games, 10 games, and now sits at nine games.

Mizrachi’s motivation at winning a fourth title was reignited after Brian Rast won his third in 2023 to tie his record (and boost himself into the Poker Hall of Fame.) Two years later, in 2025, Mizrachi reclaimed his spot at the top with an unprecedented fourth trip to the winner’s circle.

In the 19-year history of the PPC, Mizrachi has cashed 32% of the time, and won it 21% of the time. In total, he’s cashed for $6,064,262 in the tournament, which accounts for nearly 32% of all his tournament earnings.

Winning the same tournament twice is a rare feat on its own, and the three-timers club is incredibly small. But four? You’d have to go all the way back to the beginning of the series, when Bill Boyd dominated the no-limit five card stud tournament from 1971-1974. (Of course, Boyd beat only a dozen people for those four titles, and series records show that he apparently he was so feared in the game that he didn’t have a single opponent in 1973 and was just given the bracelet by default.)

Mizrachi latest triumph earned him his seventh career bracelet and $1,331,322. It was also his seventh career seven-figure cash, fourth via the PPC and fifth at the WSOP overall including his fifth-place showing in the 2010 main event for $2,332,960.

He also has a win in the 2019 $1,500 stud eight-or-better event and a ₡10,000 no-limit hold’em event during the 2011 WSOP Europe. But it often feels like the 2006 Card Player Player of the Year award winner and two-time World Poker Tour champion comes out of nowhere to dominate after taking long layoffs from tournament action.

“Right now, I’m working out a little bit. I’m a little out of shape,” said Mizrachi. “But I spend a lot of time with my kids, hang out with my mom. We always go to the casino together, a lot of casinos, and sometimes the beach. We just enjoy the weather in Miami.”

Despite taking more time for himself these days, Mizrachi never feels like he’s out of his element against the best players in the world.

“It’s like riding a bike, baby,” said the 44-year-old. “It’s just poker. I’ve been doing this my whole life, and when I’m not in tournaments, I’m playing a lot of cash, too, a lot of cash games. My experience carries me.”

Mizrachi accepted his latest bracelet surrounded by his poker-playing family and friends. Jack Effel, Senior Vice President of Poker Operations and the World Series of Poker, presented the hardware at the end of the first break on day 3 of the main event, which Mizrachi was busy making a deep run in as well. (Check out next issue for a full breakdown of the main event.)

The Grinder Gets It Done

The always-aggressive pro closed out this year’s PPC in dominant fashion, running away with the title at the final table with little resistance.

“I got a lot of cards, got lucky a few times, but I played great… the best poker I’ve ever played, probably, in any $50K,” Mizrachi told PokerGO.

The 19th running of this event drew 107 entries, the second-largest turnout of the past decade. The $5,162,750 prize pool was divided amongst the top 17 finishers this year, with a min-cash being worth $100,000. The bubble burst at the end of day 3, with two-time bracelet winner and former runner-up Chris Klodnicki being the last player eliminated outside the money.

Several big names ran deep, including 2013 champion Matthew Ashton (17th), bracelet winners Ali Eslami (15th) and Justin Liberto (14th), three-time bracelet winner Chris Vitch (13th), four-time bracelet winner Mike Matusow (12th), two-time bracelet winners Erick Lindgren (11th) and Marco Johnson (9th), and four-time bracelet winner Ben Yu (8th).

The fifth and final day began with Mizrachi out in front of the final seven contenders, and he quickly added to his lead by taking out three players in the opening level. Two-time bracelet winner and two-time WSOP main event final-table finisher Ben Lamb was the first to fall, with a low draw bricking out in stud eight-or-better against Mizrachi’s flush.

With Lamb’s elimination, Esther Taylor officially set a new record for the deepest run ever made by a woman in this event. That distinction had belonged to Melissa Burr, who placed seventh in 2014. Taylor was not yet satisfied, though. She won a couple of healthy pots during a round of triple draw, including taking down a big one with 7-6-5-3-2 that left Albert Daher on fumes. He was soon eliminated by Mizrachi in a no-limit hold’em flip to leave just five contenders remaining.

Portuguese tournament star Joao Vieira soon flamed out in fifth place, earning $298,614 for his efforts. This deep run came just weeks after winning his fourth bracelet in and $2.6 million in the $100,000 no-limit high roller and fourth-place showing in the $10,000 razz championship. Vieira was forced to abandon a bluff attempt and was left short, getting the rest of his stack in during a hand of stud, where Mizrachi was waiting to collect.

Andrew Yeh, also a top mixed-game pro who won the $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. event at the series a few years ago, battled for a couple hours before bowing out to Mizrachi in fourth place during the pot-limit Omaha round.

Three-handed action began with Mizrachi holding 19.9 million of the 32.1 million chips in play. The final three competed for around two hours before the next elimination, with the chip leader relentlessly leaning on his opponents as they both jockeyed to outlast each other.

Taylor ultimately doubled up Bryn Kenney to fall to the clear short stack. Soon after, she was dealt a pat 9-8-6-4-2 in deuce-to-seven single draw. She shoved from the button, and Kenney called with and drew one with 5-4-3-2. Kenney made the wheel, hitting one of his few outs with a seven on the end to send Taylor home in third place.

Taylor earned a career-best score of $595,136, topping the $543,713 she earned as the third-place finisher in the 2017 $25,000 PLO high roller at the series. Her record-setting run in this event put her on the verge of surpassing $3 million in career tournament earnings, which puts her just outside the top 10 of the women’s all-time money list.

“I’m proud to represent women in poker,” she said in her bustout interview on PokerGO. “That was my whole goal in playing this event and throwing my hat into the ring in a huge tournament where I’m not even 100 percent comfortable in all the games… I am really hoping that more women in poker will transition into mixed games, because there are very few [of us]. That being said, there are many very good women poker players. I’d love to just start a little movement on getting some of these killers into the game.”

Heads-up play began with Mizrachi holding a massive 29,975,000 to the 2,125,000 of Kenney. The first few hands saw Kenney hang around in no-limit deuce-to-seven, and he was more or less in the same position at the end of the stud eight-or-better hands.

On the first deal of triple draw deuce-to-seven lowball, Kenney called on the button with Q♥Q♦10♥5♠2♣. Mizrachi checked with A♠Q♠6♣5♦4♦ and drew two, making 6♣5♦4♥4♦2♦. Kenney took three and made 9♣7♥6♦5♠2♣. Mizrachi bet and Kenney raised. Mizrachi called and drew one, making 10♣6♣5♦4♥2♦.

Kenney stood pat. Mizrachi checked, Kenney bet, and Mizrachi check-raised all-in. Kenney called, and Mizrachi patted with his 10-6.

This sent Kenney into the tank, telling his opponent that he didn’t want to break the winner. He eventually made the wrong decision, opting to throw away his nine. The disappointed high roller paired up with the 2♠ and was eliminated in second place for a $887,542 payday.

Kenney was already poker’s all-time tournament earnings leader. With this score, he increased his lifetime haul to more than $80.8 million. The New York native will have to wait for another day to earn his third career bracelet, though, as he fell just short in this massive event.

Final Results

Player  Payout (POY)
1 Michael Mizrachi – $1,331,322 (1,020)

2 Bryn Kenney – $887,542 (850)

3 Esther Taylor – $595,136 (680)

4 Andrew Yeh – $413,740 (510)

5 Joao Vieira – $298,614 (425)

6 Albert Daher – $224,077 (340)

7 Ben Lamb – $175,096 (255)

• Photos by PokerGO, Card Player, Drew Amato