Three years after the last edition, World Series of Poker Circuit returned to Casino de Marrakech, inside beautiful Es Saadi Resort, and after three days of competition, the 15,000 MAD Main Event crowned Portuguese player Silvio Domingues Costa as the champion after he defeated Antony Lellouche after a three-hour heads-up battle.
Costa took home the WSOPC Gold Ring, a huge prize of 2,000,000 MAD (around €180,423), and a WSOP Global Casino Championship package to play the Tournament of Champions in Las Vegas in June 2023. A total of 1,041 entrants registered for the tournament, and the field generated a prizepool of 13,585,000 MAD.
2023 WSOPC Marrakech Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize (in MAD) | Prize (in EUR) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Silvio Domingues Costa | Portugal | DH 2,000,000 | €180,423 | |
| 2 | Antony Lellouche | France | DH 1,450,000 | €130,806 | |
| 3 | Hicham Mahmouki | France | DH 1,025,000 | €92,466 | |
| 4 | Andrey Cherkashin | Russia | DH 750,000 | €67,658 | |
| 5 | Paul-François Tedeschi | France | DH 570,000 | €51,420 | |
| 6 | Maher Achour | Tunisia | DH 450,000 | €40,595 | |
| 7 | Ali Habbab | Morocco | DH 370,000 | €33,578 | |
| 8 | Waldemar Kopyl | Germany | DH 310,000 | €27,965 | |
| 9 | Thierry Oldak | France | DH 260,000 | €23,455 |
Final Day Action
A total of 24 players came back at 1:00 p.m. for the final day, all of them guaranteed 60,000 MAD (€5,439). German player Waldemar Kopyl was leading the field at the start of the day, and he managed to reach the final table. Meanwhile, notable players Mohamed Mamouni, Michel Leibgorin, Rony Halimi and Antonin Teisseire all made it do the final day but fell early.
The final table started at 6.30 p.m., and Thierry Oldak was the first out in ninth when he couldn’t improve with tens against queens. Former chipleader Waldemar Kopyl was the next to bust in eighth place after losing with jacks against queens and ace-nine against ace-jack. Seven players went on dinner break, and local Moroccan player Ali Habbab (seventh, 370,000 MAD) hit the rail soon after they returned.
Still in contention, Hicham Mahmouki wasa favorite of the rail, and a massive crowd gathered to see him in action. The French player eliminated Maher Achour in sixth before Corsican player Paul-François Tedeschi busted in fifth place.
Russian player Andrey Cherkashin was soon out in fourth and the final three players battled for the win. In front of a cheering rail, Hicham Mahmouki finishedthird for his best live score. Around 3.30 a.m., Costa and Lellouche started heads-up play, and after a three-hour battle, the Portuguese player triumphed when his ace-seven outdrew the pocket sixes of Lellouche.
That wraps up coverage of the WSOPC Main Event in Marrakech. Be sure to keep it with the PokerNews team for live updates from all of your favorite tournaments from around the world.