Brandon Wilson Wins Event #6, Grabs Third PGT Title

Summary:

• Brandon Wilson won PokerGO Studio’s Event #6: $15,100 No-Limit Hold’em. 
• The player took home $382,200 and the third PGT title after beating Matthew Wantman in a heads-up battle.
• In January, the upcoming star grabbed two back-to-back PGT Last Chance titles.

A record-setting 98 players turned up at the PokerGO Studio for Event #6 ($15,100 No-Limit Hold’em) of the 2025 U.S. Poker Open. 

The number marked the largest field ever for a $15K event on the PokerGO Tour. 

When the dust settled, it was Brandon Wilson who stood tall, claiming his third PGT title and banking $382,200 along with 306 tour points after defeating Matthew Wantman heads-up.

Good Day for Wilson

Wilson entered the final day near the top of the leaderboard, but it was Martin Zamani who came out swinging early. 

Zamani scored back-to-back knockouts, first sending Darren Elias out in seventh place for $58,800 and 47 points with quads over queens, then eliminating David Coleman in sixth ($73,500, 59 points) when his pocket fours held up.

That left Matthew Wantman and Alex Foxen short-stacked, setting up a showdown between Foxen’s queen-jack and Wantman’s ace-king suited. 

Foxen made two pairs on the turn. However, his adversary completed a straight, sending Foxen to the rail in fifth for $102,900 and 82 points.

Meanwhile, Zamani lost momentum after doubling up Sean Winter and then trying to muscle him off a pot. 

Zamani shoved with ace-queen on an eight-high board, but Winter had the top pair and made the call. A jack and king on the turn and river weren’t enough, and Zamani exited in fourth, good for $132,300 and 106 points.

Winter looked in control heading into three-handed play, holding over half the chips. However, Wantman closed the gap quickly with a big flush-over-flush win and another pot off Brandon Wilson. 

The stacks evened out, and a gritty three-way battle followed for nearly two hours, with all three taking turns as chip leader.

Turning Point

The turning point came when Wilson’s ace-eight beat Winter’s ace-five in a pre-flop clash, leaving Winter crippled. 

He busted the next hand when his king-queen couldn’t hold against Wantman’s pocket tens, despite an ace in the window giving Wilson brief hope of a double KO. 

Winter settled for third place and $176,400 (141 points).

Heads up, Wilson nearly evened the stacks right away. Then Wantman shoved with ace-four, running into Wilson’s ace-king. The board ran out safely, vaulting Wilson into a dominant lead.

Wantman’s final stand came with jack-nine against Wilson’s five-four of diamonds. A five on the flop followed by a backdoor flush sealed the deal, knocking Wantman out in second for $242,550 and 194 points and crowning the upcoming star on the U.S. poker circuit the champ.

In January, Wilson won Event #3: $10,100 No-Limit Hold’em at PGT Last Chance and his first PGT title. Less than 24 hours later, the promising player won Event #4: $10,100 No-Limit Hold’em and his second PGT crown.