Perry Shiao Goes from Poker Dealer to 2015 WSOP Monster Stack Millionaire
![[user153638]](/img/avatars/avatar.svg){kind=avatar}
Event #28 of the 2015 World Series of Poker, the famed $1,500 buy-in Monster Stack – the seventh-largest poker tournament in history with 7,192 entrants – saw the final nine players return Wednesday night to battle it our for a share of the $9,709,200 prize pool, and when the dust settled 25-year-old Florida poker dealer name Perry Shiao emerged victorious to capture the $1,286,942 first-place prize. He also captured a gold bracelet it what was only his second WSOP event.
Shiao, who began the final table as the second-shortest stack, persevered and made it all the way to heads-up play, which he began at a 3-1 chip disadvantage, against 31-year-old Canadian investor Eric Place.
"I stayed sharp," said Shiao. "He obviously knocked out somebody and chipped up. I didn't look much into it that he had a bigger advantage than me. I believe I'm a great heads-up player and as you can see I put a lot of pressure on him."
Indeed he did. Shiao managed to erase the chip deficit and pulled out to a lead of his own. In what would be the final hand of the tournament, which happened in Level 44 (1,000,000/2,000,000/300,000) on Hand #139 of the final table, Place opened for 4 million and Shiao called to see a flop of 
. Shiao led out for 4.5 million and then wasted little time in calling when Place shoved all in.
Shiao: 
Place: 
Place had flopped top pair, but he needed to dodge the flush draw of Shiao. That proved easier said than done as the dealer promptly burned and turned the 
to seal the deal.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Hometown | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Perry Shiao | Pembroke Pines, FL | $1,286,942 |
| 2 | Eric Place | Willington, NS, Canada | $796,834 |
| 3 | Asi Moshe | Tel Aviv, Israel | $594,397 |
| 4 | Kevin Kung | Newport Beach, CA | $445,166 |
| 5 | Christian Rodriguez | Boynton Beach, FL | $335,938 |
| 6 | Josh Wallace | Somerville, MA | $255,351 |
| 7 | Fernando Konishi | Brazil | $195,543 |
| 8 | Caio Toledo | Campinas, Brazil | $150,783 |
| 9 | Hoyt Corkins | Glenwood, AL | $117,092 |
For more on Shiao's Monster Stack win, click here.
*Lead photo courtesy of WSOP.com