Hand #164: Simon Lam Wins WPT Gardens Poker Festival ($565,055); Jake Schindler Finishes as Runner-Up ($366,740)

Simon Lam raises to 600,000, and Jake Schindler calls.

The flop comes , Schindler checks, Lam bets 500,000, and Schindler thinks for a while before he check-raises to 1,500,000.

Lam thinks for the full 30 seconds before he moves all in, and Schindler quickly calls all in for 4,675,000 with for a pair of jacks.

Lam turns over for a pair of jacks with a higher kicker, and Schindler needs to improve to stay alive.

The turn card is the , the river card is the , and Simon Lam wins the pot — and the first WPT title of Season XVII — with a pair of jacks and a nine kicker.

Jake Schindler finishes as the runner-up, earning $366,740.

Simon Lam wins the WPT Gardens Poker Festival, earning $565,055, which includes his $15,000 entry into the season-ending WPT Tournament of Champions. Lam also receives a brand-new 2018 Mercedes-Benz SLC Roadster (valued at $50,000+) courtesy of the Gardens Casino, and his name will be inscribed on the one-and-only WPT Champions Cup, alongside every other WPT champion from all 17 seasons.

Congratulations to Simon Lam!

1st:  Simon Lam  –  $565,055* + 2018 Mercedes-Benz SLC Roadster (valued at $50K+)
2nd:  Jake Schindler  –  $366,740
3rd:  Men Nguyen  –  $270,430
4th:  Craig Varnell  –  $201,615
5th:  Saya Ono  –  $151,995
6th:  Jared Griener  –  $115,885

* First-prize amount includes the winner’s $15,000 entry into the season-ending WPT Tournament of Champions.

Photography by Joe Giron / PokerPhotoArchive.com