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Philipp Gruissem, best known for his exploits in high-stakes tournament poker, has won the $200 buy-in No-Limit Hold’em One Day event at the WPT Global Festival in Panama. The tournament drew 138 entrants and generated a $27,600 prize pool, modest figures that were overshadowed by the identity of the winner.
Gruissem, who ranks 12th on Germany’s all-time money list with over $11.5 million in live tournament earnings, hadn’t cashed since December 2023, when he finished in the money at the WSOP Paradise Main Event for $8,500. His latest result will now top his Hendon Mob record, worth $5,650.
Gruissem entered the nine-player final table as the overwhelming chip leader, holding roughly 1,800,000 chips, nearly double his closest rival, and translating to around 60 big blinds at the time.
The final table saw Canadian Estefan Foster exit first, followed by Mike Chapman, Carlos Aguad, and Daniela Orta, who had earlier doubled up with pocket jacks against Fernando Arias’ ace-king before eventually finishing sixth.
Colombia’s Christian Correa took fifth place, marking his third cash in Panama this year after previous results in WSOP International Circuit events in May. Gruissem then eliminated Arias and Carlos Uribe to reach heads-up play with a commanding lead over Panama’s Alexis Zhu, whom he defeated to claim the title.
Gruissem is reportedly also leading the field in a separate $350 PKO event at the same festival, according to Poker Noticias, with 18 players remaining out of an original 172.
