Josh Arieh wins $1 million and WSOP bracelet

22 October 2021

The 2021 World Series of Poker crowned another gold bracelet winner at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino on Friday in Event #39: $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha, a tournament that attracted 821 players and offered up a $1,096,035 prize pool.

The PokerGO live-streamed final table contained three former bracelet winners, Josh Arieh, Tommy Le, and Ivan Deyra. In the end, it was Arieh collecting his third WSOP bracelet, claiming victory for $204,766.

An emotional Arieh was still letting it all sink in during his post-victory interview.

"I was just texting my girls," said Arieh. "It's like the whole reason why I work, and it's tough being out here for so long. I actually just came back, had some good times with them. But I was just thinking about my girls and life, and thinking about everything, and just really f***ing excited."

It took Arieh just three hours to finish off the victory, and he reflected on his legacy.

"I mean I don't know, I think I'm really good, just like everybody else," he said. "But I haven't won a bracelet in 15 years, I've come close. I think I have three or four seconds in the last six years and I f***ing dog it, like I choke, and I started feeling that pressure again right at the beginning. But I was lucky enough to hold some cards and fought through the mental weakness I guess. But it's always good, winning money and winning bracelets is always good. I don't know there's part of me that like, I feel like I should, that I could be a Hall of Fame inductee. I don't know inducted but at least a chance to be inducted. So I've been thinking about that for a few years, get a third bracelet and maybe I'll get on the ballot. But now I'll try to get four."

Arieh, 47, admittedly doesn't play as much he used to but said he loves the competition.

"I don't play that much, I'm a gambler at heart and I gamble at anything that I feel like I have an edge or I gamble at anything that's close to 50-50 because I feel like I'm lucky," said Arieh. "I just like competing, I'm a competitor, whatever it is, I'm competing hard. If it's me, Shaun, Daniel, and Matt playing video games, you know we're competing hard, we like to win. It gets us going in the morning and that's just how I'll be until the day I die."

Other players to cash on the final table included Nitesh Rawtani (6th -$35,278), Lior Abudi (7th - $26,603), and Charles Wilt (8th - $20,371).

All eyes were on the former two-time bracelet winner Arieh, as he came in with the chip lead and was looking to add to his impressive resume.

"Nothing against anybody, but before we started the final table I knew that it was going to be me and Tommy heads-up," he said. "I can show you a text from my phone that says it's going to be me and Tommy heads-up, and I hope I have more chips when we start and that's what happened. I've been playing Pot-Limit Omaha since, what am I 47, and I've been playing Pot-Limit Omaha for 30 years or something like that and I just get it. I understand the flow and I understand the thought process of the guys trying to ladder up. So I just caught some good cards and everything worked out. I've been in this situation plenty of times before and it didn't work out."

Gabriel Andrade entered the day as the short stack and he was the first to go when he got it in preflop and was knocked out by Robert Blair to bring the action to four-handed.

Next to go was Ivan Deyra. He was left short by the constant pressure of Arieh and ultimately was eliminated by him to exit in fourth. Robert Blair followed him out the door shortly thereafter, also dispatched by Arieh after being down to under ten big blinds.

That left Arieh and Tommy Le to play for the bracelet, with a 3-1 chip advantage for Arieh. The two exchanged a few pots, including an all-in that resulted in a chop. But Arieh whittled Le down and eventually got it in good against Le to hold for the win.

Arieh won 32 of 58 final table hands, a masterful performance for the well-known pro.

"Overall the competition, poker is alive and well in the lower buy-in stuff," said Arieh. "But I'll try to parlay tomorrow and play the 10k. I feel really comfortable playing Pot-Limit Omaha, so I'll play with anybody."

Final Table Results
1st Josh Arieh United States $204,766
2nd Tommy Le United States $126,549
3rd Robert Blair United States $89,968
4th Ivan Deyra France $64,890
5th Gabriel Andrade Ecuador $47,492

(Article courtesy of World Series of Poker)

Related Links
Ranked Online Poker Rooms
Rio Hotel & Casino Details
World Series of Poker Gaming Vendor Information

Featured Vendors
Goldfinger Monitors
OCR - Online Casino Reports
Goldfinger Monitors
Innovative touch-screen solutions - vibrant lighting, high-def imagery, bright, bold colors
OCR - Online Casino Reports
Delivers highly targeted casino traffic from over 70 countries! Get your casino listed today at OCR!
Global Gaming Expo (G2E)
Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association (OIGA) Conference
Global Gaming Expo (G2E)
The largest gathering of global, commercial and tribal gaming professionals in North America.
Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association (OIGA) Conference
The biggest little show in Indian gaming! Save the date: August 12-14, 2024 Oklahoma City
Slot Machines Unlimited
Casino Trac - Table Trac, Inc.
Slot Machines Unlimited
Exporter of IGT, Williams, AVP, Trimline, Aristocrat, Konami, Bally, & parts over 20 yrs experience
Casino Trac - Table Trac, Inc.
CasinoTrac™ is a full CMS platform, operating in 225 locations, across 13 countries, since 1995.
Top One Tech Limited
Sunkist Graphics, Inc.
Top One Tech Limited
GLOBAL TOUCH SOLUTION PARTNER OF CHOICE,10+ years OEM manufacturing,100+ thousand units application
Sunkist Graphics, Inc.
Specializing in the creation of best-of-breed gaming graphics - slot glass, sign faces, and more
Kallop
TribalHub
Kallop
Reward every play like a VIP with exclusive luxury brands at affordable prices.
TribalHub
25th Annual TribalNet Conference Sept 16-19, 2024 Westgate Las Vegas
Casino Schedule Ease
Dable Advisory & Consulting Services
Casino Schedule Ease
Full Featured & customizable for the complex scheduling needs of table games & other casino depts
Dable Advisory & Consulting Services
Advisory & consulting services services for Indigenous entrepreneurs, businesses & organizations
Patriot Gaming & Electronics, Inc.
Acres Manufacturing
Patriot Gaming & Electronics, Inc.
Patriot Gaming…Parts is what we do. Visit us: www.patriotgaming.com
Acres Manufacturing
Cashless Loyalty & Bonusing in a Single Mobile App
Talisman Group Creators of EZ Baccarat
Casino Network
Talisman Group Creators of EZ Baccarat
With over 800 tables in 150+ casinos, EZ Baccarat is the number one brand in baccarat.
Casino Network
20+ years experience selling refurbished slot machines, parts & glass for all major brands
Betson Imperial Parts & Service
Regulatory Management Counselors, PC
Betson Imperial Parts & Service
Your one stop shop for all your gaming and OEM needs!
Regulatory Management Counselors, PC
Over 45 years of experience serving the legal and regulatory needs of casino industry clients
GamblersPick
House Tech Ads
GamblersPick
Share & Read other players' reviews! A top player community-driven portal for online casinos.
House Tech Ads
Drive quality casino-gambling traffic to your brand from over 70 countries from our premium assets!
AmericanChecked
Casino City Press
AmericanChecked
Background checks for the gaming industry with key & non-key packages & fingerprinting solutions
Casino City Press
A leading publisher and distributor of casino and gaming business data and market research reports.


Your Guide to 14,848 Gaming Industry Suppliers