David Baker Wins $5,000 Seniors High Roller For Fourth WSOP Bracelet

David Baker has rightly built a reputation as one of the most consistent tournament poker players on tour over the last two decades. Since 2007, the only years in which Baker didn’t make at least one final table at the World Series of Poker were 2009, 2016, and 2022.

His breakout year came in 2012, with four final tables and Baker’s first career WSOP bracelet. While the majority of his results have come outside of no-limit hold’em, Baker has proven himself on that front as well. Baker won over $1 million and a World Poker Tour title at the 2019 L.A. Poker Classic, and finished 17th in the 2010 WSOP main event.

Baker checked off another major accomplishment on Sunday, capturing the $5,000 no-limit hold’em seniors high roller. The $646,845 first-place prize for topping a field of 801 is the second-largest result of Baker’s career. The triumph brought the 52-year-old poker pro’s total bracelet count to four.

“This one just felt different,” Baker told PokerGO. “This was like a real score. Not only did I win the bracelet, but I won a lot of money, and just knowing that I’m going to be able to take care of my wife and not have to grind so damn much.”

“I put my heart and soul into the World Series, and I put my heart and soul into poker, and I try every day to be a good example of being a pro.” — @audavidb

David “ODB” Baker has always shown up, always played hard. Today, it paid off with his fourth @WSOP bracelet. pic.twitter.com/snavlrLWCp

— PokerGO (@PokerGO) June 16, 2025

Seniors Show Out

In just its second year, the $5,000 seniors no-limit hold’em high roller at the WSOP has made itself a tentpole event. After drawing 680 players in its 2024 debut, the field grew by more than 15 percent in 2025 to 801 entries.

The final two tables of this tournament featured quite a few serious players in the mix. There was four-time WSOP bracelet winner Mike Matusow, and WPT Champions Club member Scott Eskenazi. 1999 WSOP bracelet winner John Esposito was there, as was high-stakes regular David Stamm.

By the time day 3 of the tournament came to an end, though, Baker held a significant experience advantage over the four remaining players. He also held a slight chip lead.

A Fourth Day To Close It Out

After losing half of his stack getting sandwiched between pocket aces and pocket kings on the first hand of the day, it never got better for Ron West. His last four big blinds went into the middle with K♣ 2♣ against Chuanshu Chen’s Q♠ 10♦. West’s king-high stayed best through the 9♦ 8♥ 5♥ flop and 4♣ turn, but the J♦ river gave Chen the nut straight.

With West out in fourth, Chen assumed top stack status. Baker had two good chances to eliminate Carmino Argiero, with A♣ 4♣ vs. K♣ 6♣ and A♠ J♥ vs. Argiero’s A♥ 8♦. But Argiero flopped a pair on each occasion, and Baker was left holding the shortest stack.

There was still plenty of play left in Baker’s stack. In just over an hour of action, Baker picked his spots well and the three remaining stacks were pulled virtually even.

After getting unlucky twice against Argiero, Baker got doubly lucky with his own tournament life on the line. Baker three-bet all-in with pocket sixes and Argiero woke up with pocket kings in the big blind.

There was a 6♣ on the flop and an additional 6♥ on the turn, and with quads, Baker pulled himself back from the brink.

Argiero’s few remaining chips went in with K♦ Q♥ and ran headfirst into Chen’s pocket aces. Argiero was drawing dead by the turn, and it was down to heads-up between Baker and Chen.

A Blitz To The Finish

Chen held a slight lead to start heads-up, and the stacks were relatively deep. But in just over an hour’s worth of play, Baker steamrolled to the victory.

With everything from trips, to straights, to pocket fives and ace-high, Baker took down the lion’s share of pots whether it went to showdown or not.

Chen committed his last 12 big blinds with K♠ 10♦, and Baker called with A♣ 3♥. Baker got all of an A 7 3 flop, but Chen picked up a sliver of hope with the Q turn. The straight did not materialize, and with one final 6 on the river, Baker was officially a four-time WSOP champion.

A Fantasy Beyond The Table

Over the last 10 years, as the $25,000 buy-in WSOP fantasy contest rose in popularity, Baker has shepherded a much more accessible version for the masses. The $500 buy-in ‘ODBFantasy’ contest, which utilizes the draft values established in the $25,000 draft, is in year 10.

For 2025, there are 873 entries in Baker’s contest, with a first-place prize of $80,000. Of all of those entries, only 21 rosters feature Baker, owing largely to his $51 price tag with a $200 overall budget.

After Baker’s win, however, he features on the ODBFantasy perfect lineup, along with the likes of Viktor Blom, Patrick Leonard, Andrew Lichtenberger, Jason Koon, and Chris Moorman.

Final Table Results

Photo credit: PokerGO / Enrique Malfavon.