Colby Covington, one of the top welterweights in the UFC, is having quite a week at the poker tables during the 2022 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open.
On Thursday, he won his third-ever Hendon Mob recorded live poker tournament, this one at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida, a $25,875 score in a $1,100 buy-in pot-limit Omaha/8 event.
Plenty of Knockouts for UFC Fighter
The tournament attracted 84 entrants, none of whom were able to knockout a skilled mixed martial artist. This wasn’t the first large score of the week for the South Florida local. Covington took seventh place for $48,295 for finishing in seventh place in the largest field poker tournament in the Sunshine State’s history — $400 Deep Stack No-Limit Hold’em (7,703 entries).
“I wanted to come back and prove that wasn’t just a fluke,” said Covington, “And show that I could play with the best players in the world.”
He certainly did prove he can compete at a high level in more than just mixed martial arts. The new poker champ was ecstatic to have won the tournament so close to home.
“It’s a surreal feeling,” Covington said of his win. “It’s been a long journey to finally get a trophy here at Seminole Hard Rock. This is my home casino, and I love playing here.”
The second ranked UFC welterweight was one of 11 players who cashed. He defeated David Shmuel, who received $15,890 for second place, heads up to win the title outright.
Covington said following his victory that part of his strategy was to avoid entering pots against three-time WSOP bracelet winner Phil Hui, who ended up in fourth place for $6,680. The strategy worked like a charm as the athlete won his first recorded poker tournament since 2018 when he shipped a $150 daily in Pompano Beach, Florida for $2,702.
2022 SHRPO Event #22 Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colby Covington | $25,875 |
| 2 | David Shmuel | $15,890 |
| 3 | Salvatore Pipitone | $9,985 |
| 4 | Phil Hui | $6,680 |
| 5 | Tony Cousineau | $5,095 |
| 6 | Aaron Schaff | $4,075 |
| 7 | Errol Massey | $3,380 |
| 8 | Damjan Radanov | $2,850 |
Learn More About the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood Here!
Covington in the Octagon
As a UFC fighter, Covington has been almost unbeatable, so long as he isn’t facing Kamaru Usman, whom he’s lost to twice. Outside of those defeats, he’s 17-1 in the octagon.
The 34-year-old is one of the toughest and also most controversial fighters around. His open support of former US president Donald Trump has made Covington a love-him-or-hate-him fighter. Whichever side you site on (love or hate), you can’t deny his talents.
Covington also has a highly publicized feud with his former close friend and fellow MMA fighter, Jorge Masvidal, whom Covington defeated via unanimous decision at UFC 272 back in March, his most recent fight.
The two UFC stars had an infamous fallout over Masvidal disrespecting the poker player by saying he was “being a b***h.[” Over the past year, the feud has become perhaps the nastiest spat in UFC history.
“I’ll f*****g kill you, bro,” Masvidal told ESPN that Covington shouted. “Don’t ever talk to me like that.”
A decade ago, Masvidal had taken Covington under his wings and helped the young fighter grow. They held a strong bond for quite some time, but those days are long gone.
2022 SHRPO Winners Thus Far
| *Date | Tournament | Entries | Prize Pool | Winner | Prize* | |||||
| July 27-August 1 | Event #1: $400 NLH Re-Entry | 7,703 | $2,541,990 | Andrew Pecina | $225,906 | |||||
| 27-Jul | Event #2: $400 Seniors NLH 50+ | 272 | $91,120 | Robert Garcia | $15,364 | |||||
| 27-Jul | Event #3: $400 Big Stack Big O | 129 | $43,215 | Hal Rotholz | $11,860 | |||||
| 27-Jul | Event #4: $200 Quad Stack Double Green Chip Bounty | 212 | $23,320 | Eric Halpern | $5,495 | |||||
| 28-Jul | Event #5: $600 Limit Omaha 8 | 109 | $57,225 | Aaron Kupin | $17,015 | |||||
| 28-Jul | Event #6: $400 8-Handed PLO | 144 | $48,240 | Kahlil Francis | $13,220 | |||||
| 28-Jul | Event #7: $150 Big Stack NLH | 297 | $35,046 | Darrell Carril | $7,196 | |||||
| 29-Jul | Event #8: $400 Omaha 8/Stud 8 | 81 | $27,135 | Chris Labrie | $5,328 | |||||
| 29-Jul | Event #9: $600 Double Black Chip Bounty NLH | 188 | $61,100 | Steve Olivier | $12,478 | |||||
| 29-Jul | Event #10: $600 Black Chip Bounty 5-Card PLO | 149 | $63,325 | Vincent Fiorenza | $17,240 | |||||
| 30-Jul | Event #11: $400 Pot-Limit Omaha 8 | 124 | $41,540 | Sheila O’Connor | $10,000 | |||||
| 30-Jul | Event #12: $300 Ladies NLH | 66 | $17,160 | Mica Lamar | $5,000 | |||||
| 31-Jul | Event #13: $400 Deep Stack NLH | 505 | $169,175 | Donna Stutts | $19,197 | |||||
| July 31-August 1 | Event #14: $1,100 Six-Max NLH | 262 | $254,140 | Vincent Chauve | $58,030 | |||||
| July 31-August 2 | Event #15: $600 Deep Stack PLO | 500 | $260,000 | Duff Charette | $48,075 | |||||
| 31-Jul | Event #16: $600 NLH Turbo | 100 | $53,000 | Jennifer Borsini | $12,500 | |||||
| August 1-2 | Event #17: $1,100 Seniors 50+ | 137 | $132,890 | Neil Blumenfield | $31,670 | |||||
| August 1-3 | Event #18: $200 Big Stack NLH | 2,532 | $405,120 | Carlos Pino | $54,720 | |||||
| August 1-2 | Event #19: $600 HORSE | 86 | $45,150 | Phil Hui | $14,460 | |||||
| 1-Aug | Event #20: $400 NLH Turbo | 86 | $29,240 | Rob Brown | $9,320 | |||||
| 2-Aug | Event #21: $600 Deep Stack 6-Max NLH | 257 | $134,925 | Nick Yunis | $31,415 | |||||
| August 2-3 | Event #22: $1,100 Pot-Limit Omaha 8 | 84 | $81,480 | Colby Covington | $25,875 | |||||
| 3-Aug | Event #25: $600 Double Black Chip Bounty PLO | 158 | $52,930 | Brandon Duvdivani | $13,660 | |||||
| 3-Aug | Event #26: $200 Double Green Chip Bounty NLH | 395 | $43,500 | Jarett Minkoff | $8,460 | |||||
| 3-Aug | Event #27: $1,100 Deep Stack Turbo NLH | 97 | $97,000 | James Rodriguez | $29,185 |
*Images courtesy of SHRPO.