Race to the Top: Ben Farrell Turns Turbo Flight into Zynga Poker WPT500 Win

By Sean Chaffin

The old cliche that hard work pays off was certainly on display this week at ARIA. For Ben Farrell, putting in the hours working on his live tournament skills led to a championship in the Zynga Poker WPT500 Las Vegas on Thursday. After winning the title, the Englishman was surrounded by friends who railed him throughout the day and helped celebrate the victory.

Farrell topped a field that included 1,932 entries to claim not only his first WPT title, but his first major tournament win. He takes home the Zynga Poker WPT500 trophy and $155,000 in cash, his largest live tournament score.

“There were a lot of people to get through,” he says. “It feels really good.”

The win seemed unlikely when he jumped in the last starting flight on Tuesday. The turbo flight allowed for only 15-minute levels and he entered the field just before the re-entry period ended – and would be at a distinct chip disadvantage.

“I only played the last turbo flight and registered at the last second,” he said before the final table. “At one point I only had 10,000 chips, only 12 big blinds, and was texting my girlfriend that I’d be done soon.”

Finding some momentum winning a few pots, Farrell went on to lead his flight with almost 800,000 chips. He also led the final table when play got underway on Thursday.

A native of Birmingham, England, Farrell now adds significantly to his $286,221 in live tournament winnings. Usually a player at the online tables, over the last year he’s tried to transition to more of a live tournament player. That includes events in Europe and playing regularly Las Vegas.

Prior to his Zynga Poker WPT500 win, his biggest score came in the €10,300 partypoker MILLIONS Grand Final in Barcelona for $49,346. 

Now in Vegas with friends to play the World Series of Poker and some other tournaments, Farrell already took sixth in the $3,000 Shootout last week for $37,342 and has four other cashes at the series. His win at ARIA only makes it a sweeter summer.

After entering the final table as chip leader, Farrell locked horns often with third-place finisher Sung Joo Hyun after play reached three-handed. He then faced a tough heads-up opponent in adda52.com sponsored pro Nikita Luther. The two battled about a half-hour with Luther as chip leader for much of that.

A key hand late in the matchup, however, turned the tide in Farrell’s favor. Both got all the chips in the middle before the flop with Luther holding Ace-King to Farrell’s Ace-Queen. A Queen on the turn gave Farrell a massive pot and the tournament was over soon afterward.

“I’m happy it went that well at the end,” he says. “I wasn’t super happy about calling it off, but I had to. I guess I’m kind of numb to it. I’ve played so many tournaments and so many hands, I try not to let emotions get in the way.”

For her finish, Luther takes home $109,300. Farrell has played with her before in the U.K. and complimented her play on the table.

“We only played a couple hands,” he says of their previous encounter. “I bluffed off all my chips to her. She’s super solid from what I’ve seen and she got unlucky.”

While luck is involved with any tournament, Farrell played well throughout and was pleased to see his efforts at improving in live tournaments pay some big dividends.

“It feels really good,” he says. “I’ve been working on my game mainly by talking with friends. I’m mainly an online player, so I haven’t had many results live. But I’ve had a lot of close runs, so I always knew that I’d eventually win a tournament. I just had to put in the volume and keep studying.” 

Sean Chaffin is a freelance writer in Crandall, Texas, and his work appears in numerous websites and publications. Follow him on Twitter @PokerTraditions.

Photography by Joe Giron / PokerPhotoArchive

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