2013 WSOP Ladies Event Winner


Monday July 1, 2013 :  CANADA'S TENTH WORLD SERIES OF BRACELET THIS YEAR AWARDED
 
Ontario’s Kristen Bicknell claims the honours in the Ladies No-Limit Hold’em Championship.
 
Canadian players are enjoying a successful World Series of Poker this year, repeatedly winning gold in important events.
 
Over the weekend a tenth bracelet was added to the Canadian total when Ontario  poker player Kristen Bicknell (26) saw off a field of 953 to win the Ladies No-Limit Hold’em Championship, and the $173,922 main prize.
 
And thanks to a rules change and buy-in revision, there was no repeat of the unpleasantness of past years when some male players crashed this ladies event.
 
Bicknell is no stranger to the WSOP – although she had never cashed in the annual festival before this year she has been a regular player, contesting over 15 tournament events over the years.
 
She is also a cash game and internet player, using the nom de plume Krissyb24 on Pokerstars.
 
When the final table formed after several hectic days of poker action, Bicknell faced Leanne Haas, Julie Mansacre, Shana Matthews, Connie Bruce, Eleanor Gudger, Chris Priday, Cindy Kerslake and perhaps her potentially biggest obstacle in the hunt for the bracelet, respected poker pro Amanda “MandyB” Baker (32).
 
However, as it turned out Bicknell did not have to deal with Baker in the heads up; the American pro was bundled out at seventh, and the Canadian player had to beat Australian Leanne Haas in the final confrontation. This she managed to do with aplomb, to the cheers of a Canadian contingent on the rail celebrating Canada's tenth bracelet out of the 51 awarded so far this year.
 
Haas collected the runner-up check for $107,616.
 
In related news, ten-bracelet poker legend Doyle Brunson (79) created plenty of interest when he took his seat at the $50,000 buy-in Players Championship over the weekend, upending his Twitter assertion in June that he was going to give the World Series of Poker a miss this year in favour of less energy-sapping cash games.
 
Doyle was his usual affable self and clearly very sharp, mixing pleasantries with bets as the event got underway.