Angel Guillen has clinched the 2023 WPT Prime Gold Coast $5K Challenge title, defeating a field of 139 entries for $182,594 in prize money.
The Mexican-born pro – whose previous best result at The Star Gold Coast was a runner-up finish in last year’s WPT Australia Opening Event – locked horns with 2005 WSOP Main Event Champion Joe Hachem in an epic heads-up battle that lasted for more than two hours, with the chip lead changing hands six times before Guillen was able to break through for the elusive Aussie victory.
The win adds to Guillen’s poker tournament CV worth more than USD $2.1 million, including his first WSOP bracelet back in 2009, good for USD $530,548 (AUD $791,165) and still his biggest tournament result to date.
There may have been no prouder moment in Guillen’s career, however, than when he was coaching his wife and WPT Anchor Lynn Gilmartin in preparation for last year’s WPT World Championship Main Event in Las Vegas, where she was one of three Aussie players to have reached the money.
And for Guillen, the support of family means everything, even from afar.
“Lynn just called me (from Melbourne), she’s so happy!” Guillen told PokerMedia Australia. “It always feels like she’s here, even if she’s not. I also had Lynn’s parents here, and my friends … I didn’t feel like she had missed this at all.”
WPT PRIME GOLD COAST $5K CHALLENGE ($5,000 buy-in, 139 entries, 18 players paid)
| Place | Name | Country | Amount |
| 1st | Angel Guillen | Mexico | $182,594 |
| 2nd | Joe Hachem | Australia | $114,981 |
| 3rd | Adrian Pacheco | Australia | $68,270 |
| 4th | Mata Ye | Australia | $41,158 |
| 5th | Joseph Vinecombe | Australia | $32,012 |
| 6th | Zhimeng Zhu | Australia | $26,785 |
| 7th | Jason Sampson | Australia | $23,192 |
| 8th | Marco Perri | Australia | $20,612 |
| 9th | Brandon Bailey | Australia | $18,260 |
| 10th | Emmanuel Seal | Australia | $16,006 |
| 11th | Anthony Hachem | Australia | $16,006 |
| 12th | Leo Kamiya | Australia | $16,006 |
| 13th | Daniel Hachem | Australia | $13,883 |
| 14th | Chao Duan | Australia | $13,883 |
| 15th | Gautam Dhingra | Australia | $13,883 |
| 16th | Sean Ragozzini | Australia | $11,923 |
| 17th | Gary Lin | Australia | $11,923 |
| 18th | Liam O’Rourke | Australia | $11,923 |
PokerMedia Australia‘s Live Reporting coverage of the WPT Prime Gold Coast series will continue tomorrow (Thursday) with Day 2 of the Mystery Bounty, followed by Day 2 of the $3K PLO before returning for the start of the $10K Super High Roller on Sunday.
PMA will also be providing social media and feature article coverage throughout the WPT Prime Gold Coast Main Event, together with live updates from our international media partners at WPT.com.
Be the first to comment