This year has flown by so fast; it is hard to believe that the 2022 World Series of Poker is here already! The WSOP kicked off this week with its traditional casino employee event. This is the traditional start of the series, and it is always interesting to see which employee will take home the gold.
Event #1 was a $500 Casino Employees tournament with a No-Limit Hold’em format. A total of 832 players took part in the event, at Bally’s and Paris Las Vegas. In the end, it was Katie Kopp who earned the first-place finish and a five-figure payday. Kopp is a dealer and poker player from Cleveland, Ohio.
Pushing for the Win
Once the event’s final table began, Kopp would find herself short-stacked. She would eventually turn things around and eliminate three players before earning the win. Eventually, Kopp would find herself in the heads-up round against Wyatt Frost.
When the duel began, Kopp would hold a five-to-one chip lead. Frost was able to double up at one point but it was not enough to gain the lead. Kopp would continue to hold the majority of the chips in play and earn her first WSOP gold bracelet after taking down Frost who shoved all-in with A-9. Kopp held A-Q and was able to take down the hand and the title.
In speaking with PokerNews, Kopp stated that dealing and playing give individuals a great appreciation of the poker game. She says it also gives players more opportunity to grow their game if they pay attention.
Top Five of the Final Table:
| Place | Player | Prize |
| First | Katie Kopp | $65,168 |
| Second | Wyatt Frost | $40,273 |
| Third | Brandon West | $28,356 |
| Fourth | Shaun Colquhoun | $20,275 |
| Fifth | Joe Chang | $14,725 |
WSOP Details
The 2022 WSOP kicked off on May 31 and will continue through July 20. The series takes place at Bally’s and Paris Las Vegas this year after the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino hosted the events for the past 17 years.
This year’s schedule includes 88 bracelet events with several tournament highlights. Players can compete in the Housewarming NLH with $5 million up for grabs or the $1,000 GGPoker Flip & Go online. There is also a Lucky 7’s event that offers $777,777 in prize money!
For those interested in the Main Event, it takes place from July 3-16. There are four starting flights this year. The starting fields will come together on July 9 and play to the final table on July 13. Players then have a day off and will compete on July 15 and 16 to see who will be crowned the title champion.
We will continue to cover the exciting events of the WSOP so fans can see who takes down the title wins of the major tournaments within the series!