After three days of battling it at poker tables, Kayhan Mokri went all the way to top the field of 133 entries and secure his first WSOP bracelet and most significant score of his career.
Mokri had to beat Gabriel Andrade in a heads-up battle to win the whole thing. Andrade also got paid well for his second-place finish, pocketing $5,240,000, which was almost twice his previous total live earnings of $2,490,959.
According to Hendon Mob, Mokri had total live earnings of $13,120,132, with the most significant win of $3,835,059, which significantly raises the bar to $20,845,134, making him the number one ranked player on Norway’s all-time money list, ahead of 2022 WSOP Main Event winner Espen Jørstad.
The $250,000 Triton Invitational event attracted 133 entries, generating a prize pool of an astonishing $33,250,000. The top 23-ranked players received a minimum cash payout of $389,000.
$250,000 Triton Invitational Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kayhan Mokri | Norway | $7,725,000 |
| 2 | Gabriel Andrade | Ecuador | $5,240,000 |
| 3 | Albert Daher | Lebanon | $3,490,000 |
| 4 | Jonathan Jaffe | United States | $2,860,000 |
| 5 | Thomas Boivin | Belgium | $2,290,000 |
| 6 | Tyler Stafman | United States | $1,780,000 |
| 7 | Sergio Aido | Spain | $1,320,000 |
| 8 | Cong Pham | United States | $967,000 |
| 9 | Monika Hrabec | Poland | $771,000 |
After the win, Mokri said: “You get immune to the happiness and adrenaline that comes with winning, but this one was really special. It reminded me of the good old days when I felt good about winning, like, really good. And this felt just like that. This one felt great.”
The Final Table
Entering the final table, Mokri held the chip lead with 77 big blinds, ahead of Gabriel Andrade, who was in second place with 46 big blinds, while Cong Pham had the shortest stack with 17 big blinds.
It took more than an hour and a half to get our first final table elimination, and it happened when Monika Hrabec shoved from in EP, and Tyler Stafman called while the rest of the table folded. Hrabec had 8s8h and ran into AhAs of Stafman, and things were not looking good for her. The board ran Ac3c9cTh7d, leaving Hrabec with thin chances from the flop till the river.
Hrabec was eliminated in ninth place for $771,000.
Not much time had passed before we saw another elimination, and it was Cong Pham who opened from the HJ and called a shove from Kayhan Mokri, who was in the BTN. Pham turned AsKs and was flipping against Mokri’s 9d9c.
The board ran AcAh7hQs9h, and Morki managed to hit the two outer on the river to eliminate Pham in eighth place for $967,000.
Things really got wild as the next elimination came just a few minutes later when Sergio Aido shoved from HJ with 7c7d and got called by Albert Daher, who had AsJh in SB. The dealer put down Js5ckc5h2h, eliminating Aido in seventh place for $1,320,000.
After losing a big hand, Tyler Stafman was left short-stacked, and he decided to shove the remaining chips from the UTG holding Ac5h, and he got called by Albert Daher, who was in SB holding QsJd. 2dKc9s flop was good for Stafman, and he was still ahead, but the turn Th was a dagger in his heart and the end of the road for him in sixth place for $1,780,000.
Things were not slowing down, and Gabriel Andrade opened from CO, Thomas Boivin shoved from BB, and Andrade quickly called. Boivin had AhTc and was dominated by Andrade’s ThTd, and the board was not of much help as JhQhTsAsQc gave Andrade a set, and only a gutshot or a miracle full-house could save Boivin from that point. The miracle didn’t happen, and Boivin was eliminated in fifth place for $2,290,000.
Kayhan Mokri shoved from BTN, and Jonathan Jaffe didn’t hesitate to call for his whole stack in the BB. Mokri turned up KdQd, and Jaffe showed 9c9h. Flop came 5s5dKc, putting Mokri in the lead, while Jaffe was hoping to hit his two outer. The turn came 7d, and the river was Qh, which marked the end for Jaffe, who won $2,860,000 for his fourth-place finish.
After Jaffe, Albert Daher was next to hit the rail after he shoved from SB, and Kayhan Mokri snap-called from BB. Daher had Qh8c and was against Morki’s AdKh. The board ran 3dQsKc2d6d, giving both players a pair, but Mokri had a better one, eliminating Daher in third place for $3,490,000.
The Heads-Up
Coming into the heads-up battle, Mokri had a significant chip lead of 5:1 and was the big favorite with all of the momentum on his side, but there was still some poker to be played, as we have seen crazier turnarounds before.
It was a back-and-forth battle before Gabriel Andrade opened from the BTN, and Kayhan Mokri called in the big blind. Flop came Qd9c7d, Mokri checked, and Andrade c-bet and got shoved on by Mokri. Andrade called with 9s5h and was in a disastrous spot against Mokri, who had two pair with 9h7c. The turn came Ks, and the river was 2d, and Andrade was eliminated in second place for $5,240,000.
Mokri was crowned the new champion, and the celebration could start.
*Images courtesy of Triton.
