Jeremy Ausmus Captures First PGT Title in 684 Days in Event #7: $15,100 Pot-Limit Omaha

It had been 684 days since Jeremy Ausmus lifted a trophy inside the PokerGo Studio, but after a grueling two-hour heads-up battle with Gruffudd Pugh-Jones, he emerged victorious to capture the title and $288,000 first-place prize in Event #7: $15,100 Pot-Limit Omaha of the 2024 PGT PLO Series II, presented by PLO Mastermind. 

The win gives Ausmus his 25th cash of the 2024 PGT season, bringing his yearly point total to 2,789, over 700 points clear of second-place Daniel Negreanu. He is also just shy of six million in earnings on the season, as he currently sits just north of $5.8 million.  

Pugh-Jones started the day with the chip lead, but Ausmus picked up a double through Samuli Sipila early in the first level of play to move out in front and keep the gas throughout the entire day. 

Ausmus would solidify the chip lead with a double knockout of Artem Maksimov and Alex Foxen. With both opponents in the sub-fifteen big blind range and facing a jam from Maksimov on the button, Foxen re-potted from the small blind only for Ausmus to wake up with aces in the big blind. 

Ausmus re-potted, Foxen called all in with his pocket queens, and Maksimov's ace queen was in third place. The board ran out clean, eventually giving Ausmus a set of nines on the river to send Maksimov out in sixth place for $52,800 and Foxen in fifth place for $72,000. 

Transform Your PLO Game with PLO Mastermind’s Free PLO Trainer Preflop Pass. Unlock free access to optimal 6-max preflop ranges for 4-Card and 5-Card PLO, and start elevating your game today. This 30-day limited offer gives you the tools and community you need to boost your skills and win more. Sign up for free today—no credit card required. Visit PLOMastermind.com before the offer expires!

Pugh-Jones would then get in on the elimination action when he sent Sipila to the rail in fourth place for $96,000 when he turned a ten-high straight to leave Sipila's turned top two heading for the exit. 

Nick Schulman and Pugh-Jones were nearly dead even in chips as three-handed play, but an ill-timed move by Schulman saw him send all but one big blind of his stack to Ausmus, who held the nut flush. 

Leaving himself one big blind was fortuitous for Schulman as he managed to find a double and a triple before his luck finally ran out when his flopped pair ran into Ausmus's pocket aces, sending him out the door in third place for $129,600. 

The knockout gave Ausmus a nearly three-to-one chip lead into the heads-up match with Pugh-Jones, but in a sign of things to come, Pugh-Jones would river quad sevens against Ausmus jacks-full to find a double into the chip lead fifteen minutes in. 

Ausmus would whittle down Pugh-Jones once more, only to see him turn a straight to double a second time. The cycle would repeat again as Ausmus whittled his opponent down, getting it all in with pocket aces, only to see Pugh-Jones flop two pair. 

Pugh-Jones took his first lead of the heads-up match moments later when he rivered a seven-high straight to best Ausmus's flopped top set of queens and had Ausmus down to his last out before he would find broadway on the river to double back into the chip lead. 

Ausmus looked to have the tournament again in the bag as he turned aces up, but Pugh Jones would find a straight on the river for his fourth double of the heads-up match to pull even once again. Pugh-Jones then turned the tables once more as his flopped set of sevens cracked Ausmus's pocket aces for his fifth double to take another big chip lead. 

Not to be deterred, Ausmus once again clawed his way back into the chip lead and got all the money in on the turn as a big favorite as his flopped wheel had Pugh-Jones turned two pair in rough shape. 

For a moment, it appeared Pugh-Jones had found another double as the river paired one of his hole cards, but in the end, three pair were not enough to crack the straight, and he was sent to the payout desk in second place for $187,200 which doubles his career earnings of $141,982.

Event #7: $15,100 Pot-Limit Omaha Final Table Payouts 

Matthew Wantman Remains in the Overall Series Lead

Event #7 saw an increase in the buy-in to $15,100 and attracted 64 hopefuls into the PokerGo Studio, creating a prize pool of $960,000, with the top 10 finishers finding a share of the cash. 

Matthew Wantman failed to find his sixth cash in a row during Event #7 but still sits atop the overall series leaderboard with 439 points, 19 points ahead of Event #7 winner Ausmus for the series lead. 

Daniel Negreanu nearly made back-to-back final tables but bowed out in seventh place to pick up 38 points, but that opened the door for Alex Foxen, who made his third final table in a row to pick up 72 points, which was enough to move in front of Negreanu for third place with 378 total points for the series. 

Rounding out the top five is Event #5 winner Isaac Haxton, who is the only other player with over 300 points and trails Negreanu by just eight points heading into the final event of the series. Runner-up Pugh-Jones picked up his second cash of the series and now sits in ninth place with 218, while third-place finisher Schulman picked up his third cash, good enough for tenth place with 206 points. 

Event #8: $25,200 Pot-Limit Omaha Championship is already underway, and the PGT live has got you covered as they play down to the final table before the remaining six players make their way into the Triangle Studio on October 22nd to crown a champion exclusively on PokerGo starting at 1:00 p.m. PST.  

PGT PLO Series II presented by PLO Mastermind Leaderboard

Connect with PokerGO.com on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok. Watch daily poker clips on the PokerGO YouTube channel. Join the conversation on the PokerGO Discord server. You can save $20 off an annual subscription to PokerGO.com by using the code “PGT2024” at checkout.