High-stakes tournament star and two-time GPI Player of the Year, Alex Foxen entered 2022 World Series of Poker (WSOP) as one of the most accomplished players in the game without a gold bracelet to his name. He had more than $22.2 million in live MTT earnings, including multiple seven-figure scores and a WPT Main Event title. The 31-year-old pro finally got the monkey off his back by winning Event #50: $250,000 Super High Roller NLH for his first bracelet and a career-best $4,563,700.
Foxen went to wire-to-wire as he began the final day as a chip leader and kept his lead throughout, eventually beating his fellow countryman Brandon Steven (2nd for $2,820,581) heads-up for the win.
“It definitely means a lot to me,” Foxen said after taking down his maiden WSOP bracelet. “It has kind of been a bit of a monkey on the back. I’ve always wanted a bracelet and had some close spots. I was always disappointed to not get one and this feels like a really special one to get my first in.”
The top nine players were paid in this most expensive event of the ongoing series. Two-time bracelet winner Nick Petrangelo exited as the unfortunate bubble boy, with his A-K losing to Foxen’s pocket fours. The first player to finish ITM was Henrik Hecklen who finished ninth when his A-J lost to the pocket eights of two-time bracelet winner Martin Kabrhel. Soon after Hecklen’s exit, the remaining 8 players bagged for the night. Alex Foxen (24,150,000) held the overnight lead coming into Day 3.
After a little under an hour of play on Day 3, Dan Zack exited in eighth place. He was followed by the ten-time bracelet winner Phil Ivey in seventh place and two-time bracelet winner Martin Kabrhel in sixth place. Up next, it was Sam Soverel who bowed down in fifth place. The defending champion Adrian Mateos crashed out in fourth place and he was followed by Chris Hunichen in third place.
Heads-Up
The heads-up between Alex Foxen (76,050,000) and Brandon Steven (9,150,000) began with the former holding a massive 9:1 chip advantage. It did not take long for Foxen to convert his lead into a title. On the final hand, Foxen had Qd 10h and Steven held 5s 2h. The board ran out Qh 5h Kh 2s 10c, giving Foxen higher two pairs to win the title. Steven had to settle for $2,820,581 as a runner-up.
Final Table Payouts (USD)
- Alex Foxen – $4,563,700
- Brandon Steven – $2,820,581
- Chris Hunichen – $1,931,718
- Adrian Mateos – $1,367,206
- Sam Soverel – $1,001,142
- Martin Kabrhel – $759,362
- Phil Ivey – $597,381
- Dan Zack – $488,095
- Henrik Hecklen – $414,815