New Zealand-based Sosia Jiang has once again proved her skills and claimed the latest World Poker Tour (WPT) Big Game title last Monday.
Major tournaments, having transitioned to the online poker scene given the current restrictions on live poker, have been simultaneously running on leading platforms giving way for players all around the globe to take part in this year’s biggest events. The WPT World Online Championships running on the partypoker site is one of the anticipated events for 2020 with the whole series posting a combined guarantee of $100 million. A full schedule which began last July 17 and continuing through September 8 is set to host a total of 12 numbered events with some broken down into different levels to cater to players of all bankrolls. The WPT Big Game which concluded last Monday had likewise ‘Mini’ and ‘Micro’ versions of the tournament running alongside the main for $530 and $55 respectively.
Sosia Jiang for the win
A stacked online tournament, top level pros graced the scene with players like Kahle Burns, Daniel Dvoress, Alex Foxen, Fedor Holz, Kristen Bicknell and Jason Koon jumping in on the action, but it was Team partypoker duo Ludovic Geilich and Patrick Leonard who successfully reached the final table. Up against the industry’s biggest names, Sosia Jiang was however, the opponent to look out for having led the game from start to finish. The well-versed Kiwi pocketed a whopping top prize of $206,110 for her feat after beating opponent Philipp Hofbauer in heads up play.
The $5,200 event drew in a total of 202 entries slightly passing the $1 million mark and built up a $1,027,215 prize pool. With 8 players making the final table, each was already guaranteed a $25k payout with Canada’s Allan Berger being the first casualty. Scotland’s Ludovic Geilich was next to go in seventh followed by contender Adam Boyd for $43,143 in consolation. Daniel Martinez and Ivan Gabrieli soon ducked out having missed a few spots off a six figure score. With three left in the game, Patrick Leonard cashed in soon after for third with a sweet $107,035 payout for his deep run. A $56k difference between first and second, no deal was struck and Jiang continued to dominate, leaving Austrian opponent Hofbauer to settle for a runner-up finish and a $150,024 addition to his bankroll.
2020 WPT Big Game Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Payout |
| 1 | Sosia Jiang | New Zealand | $206,110 |
| 2 | Philipp Hofbauer | Austria | $150,024 |
| 3 | Patrick Leonard | United Kingdom | $107,035 |
| 4 | Ivan Gabrieli | Malta | $80,122 |
| 5 | Daniel Marinez | Mexico | $56,496 |
| 6 | Adam Boyd | Canada | $43,143 |
| 7 | Ludovic Geilich | United Kingdom | $33,384 |
| 8 | Allan Berger | Canada | $25,680 |
An impressive live pedigree
Sitting on second place for New Zealand’s all time money list, Jiang has a couple notable achievements under her belt. It wasn’t until 2017 when Jiang recorded her first six figure score, banking a massive $498,073 for winning the PokerStars Championship High Roller event in Macau which reportedly serves as her best live cash. She then followed 2018 with another big win cashing in on a $197,536 payout after topping the A$20,000 NLH High Roller event in that year’s Sydney Championships. Three more hefty scores followed closely with her total live earnings continuously building up, having now amounted to over $1.4 million.
Within a short span of time, Jiang was able to quickly rise up in the world of live tournament poker with her most recent win proving that her skill set is likewise is above the rest in the online poker scene as well. In an interview with nzherald.co two years ago, Jiang shared the difficulties she faced early on in life being an immigrant and having lived in harsh conditions. A true rags to riches tale, Jiang’s hardships and her love for the game of poker pushed her to what she is today. Being a woman in a male-dominated sport, Jiang shares some thoughts on how many would think her gender may be a factor in the game.
“Do I have an advantage because I’m a woman? That’s a question I get a lot,” Jiang says. “If someone is going to play poorly against me because of some irrational assumption or stereotype they’ve made, they’re just going to be a poor player, full stop,” she says. “So when they play poorly, I can’t say it’s because I’m a woman because honestly those people are just bad against everyone.”
“Poker is unadulterated competition and because it’s a strategic game I don’t see any reason it needs to be the purview of mostly white, male under 30-year-olds. Anyone is capable of getting better at the game. It’s different from other sporting pursuits because you don’t have physical limitations in that respect.”
The interesting article similarly presented some insight on what separates Jiang from regular amateur players. Having played with numerous big names in the industry, Jiang’s outlook may be significantly useful for many poker players looking to boost their careers. Given Jiang’s tough mentality and driven spirit, the world of poker can definitely expect to see more of this outstanding woman’s prowess in the coming years.
“I don’t want to sound callous because we’re talking about big sums, but you can’t think about the monetary value of what you’re doing.”, said Jiang. “Your thoughts just need to be about chips and decisions about chip accumulation and strategy. If who you’re playing with and the amount of money at stake is going to faze you, you need to be playing in a different environment.”
