Heads-up play between Steve Daraiche and Xin Qi went on for over a little over 2 hours, where we saw both players gain and lose the lead at some point. Steve was on the brink of elimination at least twice during this time, but managed to regain the lead and eventually claim the victory! On the last hand, both players were holding strong heads-up hole cards, as Xin had and Steve . The board ( ) gave Steve aces-up, and that was good enough to win him the pot and the tournament. He earned $21,500 for his first place finish, as well as a Playground Poker Montreal Festival bracelet!
Congratulations Steve!
Event 12 champion: Steve Daraiche, $21,500
Event 12 Runner-Up: Xin Qi, $15,500
Last hand of play