The Los Angeles pro entered the tournament only as part of a weekend birthday celebration
Gal Yifrach turned his 39th birthday into a career highlight after winning the PokerStars North American Poker Tour Las Vegas Main Event. The Los Angeles pro entered the tournament as part of a weekend celebration and ended up outlasting 738 players to earn the Golden Shard trophy and a top prize of $543,025. He said the trip was meant to be a fun birthday getaway, made even better by a surprise visit from his mother.
His victory comes during a complicated chapter in his personal life, as he remains tied to a lengthy legal dispute involving allegations dating back to 2018. Despite the off-table challenges, he kept his focus throughout the event and mounted a remarkable comeback on the final day. Yifrach started with a significant chip deficit behind heavy favorite Thomas Boivin, one of the most respected tournament players in the field.
Early momentum was all Boivin, who entered the final table with more than half of the chips in play and used his stack to pressure the rest of the table. Yifrach began to fight back with timely double-ups, including key moments where he picked up strong hands at the right time. Slowly, he closed the gap until the heads-up match was nearly even.
The turning point came when Yifrach made a flush against Boivin’s two pair, surviving an all-in that could have ended his run. From there, he took the lead and never looked back. The two agreed to a deal that locked up $518,575 each, leaving an additional $24,450 to play for. Shortly after the deal, Yifrach sealed the win by completing the nut flush against Boivin’s pocket tens.
Yifrach said the tournament’s deep structure played to his strengths, especially his comfort in long sessions and short-handed play from years at high-stakes cash tables. He rarely played PokerStars events before this week, but said this one fit his style perfectly.
The victory is one of the most dramatic comebacks of the series, showing how quickly momentum can shift—even against a dominant chip leader. Yifrach walked away with a birthday memory few players will ever match.
