George Danzer had one heck of a year to capture the 2014 World Series of Poker Player of the Year (POY) award. In total, he managed 10 WSOP cashes including 7 final tables and combined won three gold WSOP bracelets to go with his earnings of $867,649!
But even with such a strong showing in WSOP events this year, Danzer didn’t run away with the POY title by any stretch of the imagination. In actual fact, it was such a closely fought battle for Player of the Year this year that the World Series of Poker Player of the Year award wasn’t decided until the WSOP APAC festival had concluded in Melbourne, Australia.
The coveted title was reduced to a two-horse race between George Danzer and Brandon Shack-Harris and the two contenders were trading blows over the course of WSOP APAC. It wasn’t until Shack-Harris was eliminated from the final tournament to conclude the Asia-Pacific festival that ultimately decided who the award went to this year.
Team PokerStars Pro George Danzer would have preferred to have captured the WSOP POY title in less stressful circumstances, but he certainly won’t be complaining. Danzer’s results at the WSOP in 2014 included taking down the $10,000 Seven Card Razz event in Las Vegas for $294,792. This was followed up with a second gold bracelet just two weeks later by winning the $10,000 Seven-Card Stud Hi-Lo Championship event, which was good for $352,696.
The German continued his good run of form in WSOP events in 2014 when he arrived in Australia by winning the AU$5,000 8-Game Mixed tournament just last week for AU$84,600 when it really mattered. Danzer’s third WSOP bracelet in the same year makes him join an illustrious group of past and present players who have managed the same feat. Most recently, Jeff Lisandro won three bracelets during the 2009 WSOP series, as has Phil Ivey, Phil Hellmuth and Ted Forrest. Walter Clyde “Puggy” Pearson also achieved the same back in 1973.
But the 2014 World Series of Poker POY race wasn’t over after Danzer won his third bracelet. Shack-Harris registered to play the WSOP APAC Main Event knowing that a second or first would be enough to claim the WSOP POY title. Although unlikely considering the tournament began with 329 runners, it was beginning to look like a real possibility with Shack-Harris still in contention on the second last day of the tournament, which started with just 18 players.
When the Main Event was down to the last two tables, Shack-Harris got himself involved in a pot where his tournament life was on the line after three-bet shoving with JJ, which was called by 2010 WSOP Player of the Year Frank Kassela. Kassela tabled A9, so he was in good shape. However, the ace on the flop meant that Shack-Harris was no longer a big favorite in the hand and no jack on the turn or river could save him, so he was resigned to the rail in 17th place.
However, not letting the setback deter him, Shack-Harris jumped straight into the AU$25,000 High Roller event but quickly busted in that tournament. His bust out from the high roller event wasn’t just devastating from a 2014 WSOP Player of the Year title perspective, in the last hand he actually got his chips in really good holding KQ on a flop of QQ8 up against his opponent’s AA. The 9 on the turn didn’t change anything but one of the 2 aces remaining in the deck fell on the river.