Sheng Ye beats record field to win WPT Prime Gold Coast

Sheng Ye became the youngest-ever WPT Prime champion after beating a record-breaking field in Star Gold Coast, Queensland on Monday.

Sheng Ye claimed his first WPT Prime title after beating a record field at Queensland’s Star Gold Coast Casino. (Image: Flickr/WPT)

The Aussie pro traveled from his hometown of Sydney to compete in the second Prime Event of the WPT on the Gold Coast. Hundreds more did the same, meaning the AU$2,000 tournament surged to record highs after three launch flights.

After the final buy-in was collected, the total number of entries was 1,224. This number surpasses the previous WPT Prime record of 1,071 entries, set in Paris in early 2023.

Another WPT Prime record falls in 2023

The record-breaking field of entries meant Ye was playing for the lion’s share of a prize pool of AU$2.2 million. That’s a lot of money to play for, but Ye had already hit several deep runs at Star Gold Coast ahead of Monday’s final table, so he probably wasn’t feeling the pressure.

In fact, he won a WSOP Circuit event there in November 2022. That high roller win was worth AU$156,211, so his latest deep run was another chance to add six figures to his career

WPT Prime Gold Coast result

1. Sheng Ye – AU$374,953*
2. Ben Richardson – AU$238,978
3. Mo Haidary – AU$176,753
4. Josh Foster – AU$132,048
5. Anita Savage – AU$99,654
6. Gary Lin – AU$75,981

*First prize includes a WPT World Championship winner’s package.

That was motivation enough for Ye to deliver a dominant performance. He started with six chips remaining on top and never gave up his position. Although he never slipped, Ye had to defend his position on several occasions.

One of the players who posed the biggest threat to Yes’s WPT title hopes was Ben Richardson. The Aussie pro had over $760,000 in live cash ahead of the WPT Prime Gold Coast Main Event, nearly adding a major title to his record.

Richardson was strong but Ye makes it

Richardson doubled three times during his heads-up against Ye. However, try as he might, Richardson could not gain enough momentum to advance. He remained the shortest stack through the final showdown and eventually gambled it all with a far from weak poker hand. A♦ 5♦.

Ye took advantage of his stack and position by going all-in from the button with Q♦ 2♥. Richardson made an easy call and found a pair on the J♦ 6♠ 5♣ flop. The hand was far from over, however, and the advantage quickly turned in Ye’s favor after the Q♥ fell on the turn.

Richardson had outs with one card but didn’t get there. The 8♣ brought the hand and the tournament to a close. Ye conceded the last pot and with it his first WPT Prime title. The Australian also picked up his biggest payout of his career.

With another record-breaking event in the books, the WPT Prime team now heads to Cambodia. The action begins at Nagaworld Integrated Resort on March 9th ahead of the WPT Prime Cambodia Main Event which begins on March 16th.

Written by

Daniel Schmidt

Dan Smyth is a fellow in the poker media who politely reminds CardsChat readers that poker is played all over the world, not just in America.