The NY poker pro now has over $3.2 million in lifetime live earnings
Francis Anderson has experienced several near victories at the World Series of Poker (WSOP) over the past few years. His first close call came in 2019 when he secured a fourth-place finish in the $2,620 ‘Marathon’ event. In 2022, he achieved a career-best payday of $449,912 by finishing third in the ‘Monster Stack’ event. Most recently, Anderson finished fourth in the 2023 Poker Hall of Fame bounty event. After these numerous close finishes, Anderson finally secured his first WSOP gold bracelet in 2024. He triumphed over a field of 4,263 entries in the $800 buy-in Independence Day Celebration No-Limit Hold’em event, claiming his maiden bracelet and a top prize of $501,040.
A native of Wappinger Falls, New York, Anderson now boasts over $3.2 million in lifetime live earnings. The substantial turnout for this event, held from July 3-5, resulted in a final prize pool of $3,630,213. The top 365 players cashed, with the top 53 finishers earning five-figure payouts or more.
Several well-known players made deep runs, including two-time bracelet winners John Riordan (97th) and Mark Seif (41st), three-time bracelet winner Ari Engel (35th), bracelet winner Benjamin Ector (21st), and two-time bracelet winner Martin Zamani (7th).
The top six finishers all secured six-figure payouts. Notably, Bamshad Azizi eliminated Tom Cohen in sixth place ($105,960) with pocket sixes against pocket Kings. However, Azizi’s luck ran out when his pocket nines lost to Brent Lee’s pocket Jacks, resulting in a fifth-place finish ($138,490).
Donnie Barnard’s Q-9 suited couldn’t overcome Lee’s pocket Queens, despite flopping an open-ended straight draw, leading to Barnard’s fourth-place finish ($182,350). Lee continued his momentum, knocking out Taylor Williams in third place ($241,850) when his pocket 5s held against Williams’ A-4.
The heads-up battle began with Lee holding a significant chip lead over Anderson. However, Anderson closed the gap significantly when his A-J won a crucial flip against Lee’s small pocket pair. Anderson then took the lead when his pocket kings defeated Lee’s flopped top pair of Queens in a sizable pot, calling all-in on the river to secure his advantage.
In the final hand, Lee pushed all-in from the button with Q-2 suited, and Anderson called with pocket 4s. The board came 10-9-6-3-5 with no diamonds, and Anderson’s hand held up, winning him the pot and the title. Lee earned a career-best payday of $323,080 as the runner-up.
This victory marks a significant milestone for Anderson, rewarding his persistence and skill with his first WSOP gold bracelet and a top prize of $501,040.
Emma Rodriguez is the Proofreader at the Big Blind, with seven years of experience and five years in online gambling. She plays a crucial role in maintaining content quality by ensuring error-free, reader-friendly information about the gambling industry.