The most affordable tournament in the 2024 World Series of Poker (WSOP) lineup, Event #20: $300 Gladiators of Poker, has concluded. This monster event attracted an astounding 20,647 entries, generating a prize pool of $5,079,162.
Turning a $300 buy-in into a $401,210 winning prize feels almost like hitting the lottery, but Stephen Winters proved that it takes much more than that as he showed his skill and perseverance to come out on top in such a massive field. Winters triumphed over Simon Britton in heads-up play, securing the victory after just one hand, thanks to a massive chip lead he brought into the final battle arena.
This victory marks Winter’s first-ever WSOP bracelet and, by far, his best result to date. “I guess this is for the little guys,” Winters said to WSOP. “I just play a few small tournaments each year, so it was exciting just to be relevant for once.”
He really lived up to the Gladiator title, as Winters also knocked out two former WSOP winners deep into the event. Seven-time WSOP winner Men “The Master” Nguyen finished in 19th place, and Hungarian Tamas Lendvai placed 18th, who had a deep run in the $500 WSOP Kickoff as well.
Event #20: $300 Gladiators of Poker Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
| 1 |  Stephen Winters | United States | $401,210 |
| 2 | Simon Britton | United States | $253,300 |
| 3 | Quang Vu | United States | $192,030 |
| 4 | Brendon Herrick | United States | $146,450 |
| 5 | James Morgan | United States | $112,350 |
| 6 | Sung Pil Kim | United States | $86,710 |
| 7 | Steve Foutty | United States | $67,320 |
| 8 | Jordan Johnson | United States | $52,590 |
| 9 | Caleb Levesque | United States | $41,337 |
100% up to $600 Bonus or $100 Free Tickets&Cash
Sign-up for the best GGPoker deal!
New Customers Only | 18+ | T&C Apply
Event #20: $300 Gladiators of Poker Final Table Recap
Day 3 of Event #20: $300 Gladiators of Poker No-Limit Hold’em began with 14 players from the original 757 warriors who survived the four grueling Day 1 flights. With such a fast structure, it was still anybody’s game, as the average stack was 18 big blinds. Simon Britton led with 27 big blinds, closely followed by Stephen Winters and Rami Hammoud with 26 big blinds. Proving the unpredictable nature of poker, Hammoud didn’t even make the final table and was eliminated in 12th place.
The action intensified when Mario Lopez was eliminated in 10th place, forming the official final table with Winters already on top. Short-stacked Caleb Levesque saw K♣Q♦ as good enough to put all his chips in, and Winters quickly called with pocket sixes. The board 3♠J♠2♣9♠ gave ample opportunity for Levesque, but the river bricked, and he exited in ninth place.
The next elimination came when Britton opened with pocket fives from the early position, and Jordan Johnson put his remaining chips in with A♣Q♥. The flop 10♥3♥2♥ brought a flush draw for Johnson, but the turn 10♦ and river 6♦ didn’t save him, eliminating him in eighth place.
Brendon Herrick took the lead by eliminating Steve Foutty in seventh place. Foutty moved all-in on the button with ace-eight, and Herrick called from the big blind with jack-ten suited. The flop sealed the deal with two tens, sending Foutty to the payout table.
Sung Pil Kim was forced all-in on the blinds after losing a massive pot against Winters. Winters and Simon Britton both joined the pot and checked it down to showdown. Kim showed eight-six on a 4♦K♣4♠A♣Q♥ board, while Winters paired his queen with queen-six, sending Kim home with $86,710.
Quang Vu first doubled through Britton and then eliminated James Morgan in fifth place with pocket eights against king-queen for a massive chip lead. However, Vu’s fortunes soon changed. He moved all-in from under the gun with ace-five, Herrick moved all-in with ace-jack, and Winters saw ace-queen and had a tough decision to make. Winters eventually made the call and scooped up a massive pot, sending Herrick to the rail not even 30 minutes after being a chip leader and leaving Vu short-stacked.
In the next crucial hand, Vu squeezed with pocket fives over Winters and Britton. Britton folded while Winters called with ace-eight suited. The board ran out 9♠J♣8♠K♣J♠, eliminating a shocked Vu in third place.
Winters brought a five-to-one chip lead over Britton into heads-up play, which lasted only one hand, but it wasn’t without drama. Winters raised on the button, and Britton called. The board opened 9♣10♥Q♣, and both players checked to see J♠ on the turn. Winters moved all-in out of turn and apologized for the mistake, saying it wasn’t an angle. The action moved back to Britton, who checked, and Winters went all-in correctly this time. Britton thought it over and decided to call, tabling two pair with jack-ten, while Winters showed a straight with king-nine. Britton needed one of seven outs to stay alive, but the blank Q♠ appeared on the river, and Stephen Winters emerged as the winner of Event #20: $300 Gladiators of Poker, earning his first-ever WSOP bracelet and a $401,210 prize.
100% up to $1,000 Deposit Bonus
Join our club for the best KKPoker deal!
New Customers Only | 18+ | T&C Apply
FREE $55 Ticket + 100% up to $1,200 Bonus
Sign-up for the best WPTGlobal deal!
New Customers Only | 18+ | T&C Apply
* Images and hands courtesy of WSOP and PokerNews
