Blake Ellinghaus Turns a $580 Satellite Into a WPT Title
He beat Jared Reinstein heads-up in Jacksonville for $294,900 and a seat in December’s WPT World Championship.
Blake Ellinghaus turned a $580 satellite into a WPT bestbet Scramble Championship win in Jacksonville, Florida, earning $294,900 and a $10,400 seat into December’s WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas. He beat Jared Reinstein heads-up to close out his first WPT title and become the newest member of the WPT Champions Club.
As reported in August, the series returned to bestbet Jacksonville with a $1 million guarantee. The event drew 294 entries and built a $1,337,700 prize pool that paid 37 players. Before this run, PokerNews said Ellinghaus had about $140,000 in prior live tournament cashes.
He was near the top all week, finishing Day 1a and Day 2 second in chips before taking over the lead on Day 3. WPT’s live update showed him starting the final table with 3,625,000 chips, about 91 big blinds, as the chip leader among the final nine.
The final table swung a few times. Bryan Paris briefly took over the lead, Reinstein won a big pot during that stretch, and Hugh Membrino doubled up before Ellinghaus started cutting down the field. Ellinghaus knocked out Membrino in sixth for $57,000, Skyler Dennis in fourth for $100,000, and Paris in third for $135,000.
Heads-up began with Ellinghaus holding about a 6:1 chip lead, and the title ended on Hand No. 158. On a board of J-8-5-3-7, Reinstein called off with 7-6, but Ellinghaus tabled 6-4 for an eight-high straight and locked up the win. Reinstein finished second for $184,000. The title also put Ellinghaus on the Mike Sexton WPT Champions Cup, WPT’s hallmark trophy that travels to every Main Tour event and carries each champion’s name and winning hand.
