Isaac Haxton is again streaking to the top of poker tournament standings at the PokerGO Tour Poker Masters now taking place in Las Vegas. But that’s not so usual for the $50 million man, who is spending a good portion of 2024 cashing in the highest buy-in events around the globe.

Haxton, the 2023 PGT Tour Player of the Year, won the $15,100 event for $352,800, after he and Jim Collopy agreed to chop the money and flip for the points so they could register for the next event before late registration closed. Collopy is the current points leader of this year’s Poker Masters, sitting 64 points in front of Haxton with two events left.

If he manages to stay there, he’ll win player of the series and gets a Purple Jacket as a trophy. Haxton is also in the hunt, just behind Collopy.

Both Haxton and Collopy are having a great series. This was Collopy’s fourth straight four final table. He finished second twice with a third and a sixth as well. Haxton also cashed four times, with two sixth-places and an eighth-place to go along with his victory here.

Heads-up play lasted more than two levels, with the chip lead trading back and forth. The deal was made after Haxton, at a two-to-one disadvantage, moved all in pre-flop with ace-four off-suit. Collopy called with pocket jacks, which failed to hold. They chopped right after.

The first $15,100 event of the series attracted 84 entrants who built a prize pool of $1,260,000. The top 12 players cashed at least $31,500. Daniel Weinand was the bubble boy when he ran ace-king into jacks and failed to improve. Dan Smith (12th), Jesse Lonis (11th), Filipp Khavin (10th), and David Coleman (9th) all snuck in under the bubble.

Tough final table

As usual in these big buy-in events, the final table was loaded with poker killers and savants who are really good at stacking chips and taking names. But even these players are left to the will of the poker Gods, who seem to have a wicked and sick sense of humor.

Nick Schulman was the first to exit after moving his 11 bigs all-in with ace-nine of diamonds. Dylan Linde made the call with pocket eights, and looked dead in the water as Schulman turned the nut flush. But Shulman’s gin card was an eight of diamonds, and the board paired on the river, knocking him out.

Linde was next to go after losing all but two blinds to Jeremy Becker and his rivered two-pair. Collopy knocked him out the next hand.

Sean Winter managed to level-up despite coming into the final table with the short stack. He was eliminated in fifth by Collopy after they both hit the flop. This was Winter’s second cash and second final table of the series.

Aram Zobian finished fourth after getting extremely unlucky. All his chips went in the middle with ace-king offsuit, but was called by Jeremy Becker’s ace-king of clubs. A third club on the turn was curtain’s for Zobian, who cashed twice this series.

Becker’s poker life might have changed this series. He went from having zero six-figure cashes to two after two deep runs playing against some of the best players in the world. The Florida resident looks like he’s trying to make a run in these big buy-in events.

The last two players would then battle to what is essentially a tie, but Haxton got the trophy, the PGT points, and an extra $126,000 after three hands of flipping for the title. They then ran off to enter yet another big buy-in event a the ARIA, simply because they can’t get enough.