“I Defended” – Back To Back Victories For Shiina Okamoto At WSOP Ladies Championship

Japan’s Shiina Okamoto set poker social media ablaze after doing the unthinkable – winning the WSOP Ladies Championship for the second year in a row! At the recently concluded event, Okamoto entered the final table as chip leader, and after a slight hiccup, she was unstoppable to claim her career second WSOP gold bracelet and a personal high payout of US$ 184,094. 

Back To Back Wins For Shiina Okamoto

Taking a quick glance back, in 2023, Shiina Okamoto announced her presence on the world stage with a runner-up finish in this very event. That performance was then overshadowed the following year when she took it the only notch higher, claiming victory for her first ever WSOP bracelet.

This year, the stakes were higher still as it was the largest Ladies Championship event in WSOP history with a record 1,368 entries. After three days of play, Okamoto entered the final day as the chip leader with 7 players remaining. Not only was pressure high to maintain her lead but also to bring home a repeat for her fans and supporters. In an interview with Pokernews, Okamoto shared,

There was still a lot of pressure, with everyone expecting me to win back-to-back. I thought that as long as I stayed calm and did everything right, I would eventually come out on top. So I was really conscious about not panicking and keeping my composure.

Okamoto certainly showed no lack of composure at the final table, not even after she bluff-shoved and had to pay a double up that cost her the lead. Retelling the hand, in a battle of the blinds, the board completed 3♦A♥A♣10♠8♥, Okamoto shoved on the river with Q♠7♣, Sonia Shashikhina snapped with A♦K♦.

Although this setback knocked her down one spot on the leaderboard,  it only took a few hands for Okamoto to reclaim her footing and be toe-to-toe with chip leader Stephani Hagberg. And as the momentum continued, she surged, dusting fellow Japanese contender Sumire Uenomachi in 7th place to regain command. She also ousted Juliet Hegedus in 6th place on a flip then carved down Shashikhina who eventually finished in 5th place followed by Julie Huynh in 4th place.

Winning Moment

At three-handed, Okamoto three-bet pushed on a turn board 7♣J♥10♣9♣ holding 6♣5♣ flush. Second in chips Hagberg with 42 big blinds at the start of the hand tank-called for her tournament life with 10♦9♥ two pair. The river 7♠ was a huge knockout for Okamoto as she entered heads up with a massive 125 big blinds against Heather Alcorn’s 11 big blinds. It didn’t take long for the winning hand to come. Okamoto’s 9♣9♠ prevailed over Hagberg’s A♦2♠.

Social Media Erupts

With thousands of spectators watching from all over the world via livestream and fans on the WSOP rails as well, news of Okamoto’s back-to-back triumph sent social media erupting with congratulatory messages especially after she posted on X:

*Click here to head to X

Even the great Phil Hellmuth dropped by before heads up commenced and after, to  congratulate Okamoto on her stunning performance.

2025 WSOP Event #70: $1,000 Ladies Championship

• Buy-in: US$ 1,000
• Entries: 1,368
• Prize pool: US$ 1,203,840
• ITM: 206 places

Final Table Payouts

Other notables running deep were Nana Sanechika who fell in 12th place to Okamoto on a brutal two-outer with Q♦Q♠ cracked by 9♦9♣, JJ Liu in 13th place, 2023 WSOP Ladies Champion Tamar Abraham in 20th place, and three-time WSOP champion Barbara Enright in 34th place to name a few.

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*Original photos by Pokernews.