Playground 100 Champion: Paul “PK” El-Khouri

The Playground 100 was a multi day event that started with one online Day 1 flight and another five live Day 1 flights. Players started with 20,000 chips and played through 20 minute levels on Day 1 until 10% of the field was reached, at which point the players bagged their chips for Day 2 and would come back to play knowing that all were already “in the money.” The tournament featured a $50,000 guaranteed prize pool however with the 1,054 runners who entered the event, the prize pool swelled to over $100,000!

Day 2 saw many of the short stacks exit the tournament early from failed shove attempts to double-up. There were many solid players who chipped up nicely but in the end, one by one, many of them were sent to the rail and would not see the final table. Once the final table was reached, play began ten handed and within the first level of play, there were two bustouts. Once play went four handed the players tried to reach an ICM chip chop deal but it was ultimately refused. Then when play became three handed an ICM deal was finally reached between the trio.

Heads-up play between Paul El-Khouri, a very skilled cash game regular here at Playground, and George Rombotis, a skilled tournament and cash game player, lasted for at least a full 30 minutes. El-Khouri had most of the chips but Rombotis refused to die easily. They went all in many times and Rombotis kept doubling up, until the eventual last hand of play came to be.

On the last hand, Rombotis got it in with , and was up against the of El-Khouri. The flop came , and one more time, Rombotis hit the flop, catching a five. El-Khouri just smiled. Then came the turn, the , and all of the sudden El-Khouri jumped into the lead. The river was the , which changed nothing, and just like that, the Playground 100 crowned a champion, Paul “PK” El-Khouri.