James Bord Wins WSOPE Main Event Championship

James Bord, a 29-year-old professional poker player from Stanmore, England, became the 2010 World Series of Poker Europe Main Event Champion after outlasting eight others at the final table Monday. Bord won £830,401, or a little over $1.3 million, for his first place finish.

The win gave Bord his first World Series of Poker bracelet, as well as his biggest cash ever. However, Bord didn’t exactly come out of nowhere to win. Bord had cashed in five previous WSOP events, though he had never won more than $30,000 in a live tournament during his career.

That said, Bord certainly wasn’t on the radar heading into the final table. He came into the final table 5^th in chips, and was the short stack for much of the day, including when play became three-handed. When Bord entered heads up play against Monte Carlo’s Fabrizio Baldassari, he was down by about a 3-2 chip margin.

But Bord won several key pots, including a confrontation where his AK held up while all-in against Baldassari’s Q9 suited. Finally, Bord finished off the tournament by tabling TT against Baldassari’s 55. Baldassari found no help on the board, and was eliminated in second place, earning £513,049.

The favorites heading into the final table did not fare as well. Though he did not have an overwhelming advantage, Victory Poker CEO Dan Fleyshman did enter the final table as the chip leader, making it surprising to see him eliminated in 7^th place. Fleyshman won £118,643.

The best known member of the final table nine was Roland de Wolfe. The former World Poker Tour champion and WSOP bracelet winner fought for a long time, but was ultimately eliminated in fourth place when his KQ ran into Baldassari’s A9.

Bord’s victory gave the United Kingdom their first home-grown winner of the WSOPE Main Event in the four year history of the tournament. In fact, Bord – who hails from the Stanmore area of London – barely had to travel at all to attend the tournament he is now the champion of.

The final table payouts were as follows:

1^st: James Bord - £830,401

2^nd: Fabrizio Baldassari - £513,049

3^rd: Ronald Lee - £376,829

4^th: Roland de Wolfe - £278,945

5^th: Nicolas Levi - £208,119

6^th: Danny Steinberg - £156,530

7^th: Dan Fleyshman - £118,643

8^th: Brian Powell - £90,617

9^th: Marc Inizan - £69,754