The Elmer Vs Gansel Game That Won Gansel Her First WSOP Gold Ring

If you are a professional poker fan, you are probably well-versed in the expected and unexpected winners of last year’s 2021 World Series of Poker tournament. It was a highly anticipated match that resulted in a showdown between Lori Gansel and Grant Elmer, however, that attracted the attention of thousands of professional poker fans around the world. If you missed out on the action of this particular event or just want to be reminded of what happened on the day, continue reading to find out everything you need to know.

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An action-packed match

It was during the $280 + 70 No-Limit Hold’em Bounty Event at the Choctaw Casino and Resort in Durant, Oklahoma, where professional poker players Lori Gansel and Grant Elmer came head to head in a battle for first place. It may have started out with 284 entries comprised of players from throughout the United States with a guaranteed prize pool of $50,000 but it resulted in a total prize pool of $79,520 with Gansel eventually walking away with winnings of $17,349 to add to her already impressive career winnings of $39,765 to date and her first WSOP gold ring. In third place was Trung Tran with match winnings of $7,734 and in fourth place was Justin Bassett with match winnings of $5,673.

A definite up and comer

It may not have necessarily been the first win for Gansel, who has now shot up to 25,204th on the United States All Time Money List and 4,554th on the Global Poker Index Ranking, but it marked a significant win in her journey towards global recognition within the wider world of professional poker. In the past, for example, she has participated in a number of in-person poker tournaments and online poker tournaments, such as those available at GGPoker, having played in Prague, London, and Las Vegas, but has yet to beat so many worthy opponents to walk away with a first-place prize. It has, therefore, cemented her place as a definite up-and-comer and one to watch during future installments of the WSOP.

A worthy opponent

It would have been a monumental win for Gansel regardless of who she ended up playing against but the win is somewhat more impressive when you learn that it was against professional poker player Grant Elmer. In 2010, for example, he recorded his first professional poker achievement by finishing in 263rd place at the 2010 WSOP $1,000 No-Limit Hold’em event and winning $2,387 in the process. In 2012, however, he returned to the WSOP with a vengeance to finish in 74th place and win $6,270 during the $1,500 No-Limit Hold’em event. In the years that followed, he continued participating in the tournament and achieving consistent results during both online and live events that have seen him grow and develop as a professional poker player on the global stage and become a worthy opponent.

It was on January 12 of this year when Lori Gansel beat Grant Elmer to walk away with a first-place prize of $17,349 and her first WSOP gold bracelet. It was an action-packed match from start to finish that saw her triumph over 284 entries in total to become a definite up-and-comer in the WSOP rankings as well as in the wider world of professional poker. In addition, her monumental win was also more notable given the fact that she beat a professional poker player that has performed consistently well at past WSOP tournaments over the years.