Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania was the arena for the second edition of the epic King of the Hill winner-take-all heads-up challenge. Of all four poker pros who took part in the exciting event, including defending champion Phil Hellmuth, it was Olivier Busquet who collected the $200,000 prize and the King of the Hill champion’s belt.
Busquet was crowned King of the Hill after tough heads-up matches first against Shaun Deeb and then against Parker Talbot, also known as TonkaaaaP. Talbot was in fact the player to bust Hellmuth during the semi-final round of matches, stripping the fourteen-time WSOP bracelet winner of the chance to defend the King of the Hill title he scooped back in August during the inaugural addition of the Poker Night in America-presented live poker event.
How King of the Hill II Action Unfolded
The King of the Hill challenge required a $50,000 buy-in from all four participants. As mentioned above, the accumulated amount of $200,000 went all to the winner. The event was held over two days – October 6 and 7. The first day saw Busquet square off against Shaun Deeb and Talbot face Hellmuth in the semi-finals. A participant had to win two of three matches in order to secure a seat into the final, which was played on the next day.
As mentioned above, Busquet eventually played against Talbot at the final. The two players showed great appreciation for the skills demonstrated by their opponent. Busquet also modestly admitted in his post-victory interviews that the right cards often appeared at the right time for him during his face-off against Talbot. However, his opponent did not agree with that statement, arguing that Busquet was really good at the game.
The two players were scheduled to play three matches for the eventual winner to be determined. However, Busquet emerged victorious from the first two and there was no need for a third one to be played.
The second match, which turned out to be the final one, saw Busquet accumulate a massive chip lead over Talbot. And it was not long after the final hand for the evening was dealt. It saw the eventual King of the Hill move all in with [Jh][9c] and Talbot call for his last 29,200 with [As][Kh]. The [3c][7d][9h][10h][2h] landed on the board to lock the title for Busquet.
The poker pro is thus adding $200,000 to his poker bankroll which now exceeds $8 million. As it can be seen, Busquet is quite a prolific player. He has taken part in some of the world’s most prestigious live tournaments and has performed quite well in most of them. His best poker achievement was his first-place finish in the EPT Season 11 Barcelona €50,000 Super High Roller for a cash prize of nearly €900,000.
Busquet will have the chance to defend his King of the Hill title later this month. The third edition of the high roller heads-up challenge will take place on October 25-26 at SugarHouse Casino in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Dan Colman, Brandon Adams, and 2017 WSOP Main Event Champion Scott Blumstein will be the other three players to take part.
