Poker Stories: 10 for 10

“I honestly don’t think about the money that much. I’m all for winning that title and becoming a world champion.”

Even if it wasn’t front-and-center in his mind, it’s hard to imagine that Martin Jacobson, winner of the 2014 World Series of Poker Main Event, ignored the $10 million he won for too long. In one of the most iconic WSOP final table moments of all time, Jacobson took the title, the bracelet, and the money home to Sweden.

This is how it all went down.

The Lead Up

Like all good stories, we begin well before the fateful moment that would go down in poker history. Martin Jacobson, a young pro hungry for glory, began training in earnest after busting out of his first WSOP after just three hands. Between collaborating with other poker pros, working on his physical fitness to increase his stamina, and taking up meditation to aid his focus, Jacobson goes all-in on preparing for the tournament.

He set himself up to grab his dream, and, as the tournament progresses, everything goes according to plan. He progressed through the levels, amassed a larger and larger stack, and eventually found himself among eight others at the highly coveted final table.

Once the final rounds begin, however, his fortune begins to turn. He just can’t catch a hand. The button goes round and round the table as Jacobson is whittled down to a short stack of merely 7 big blinds.

However, he kept his cool. He says he didn’t feel any pressure, that he was adapting to the situation, and that he was just trying to play his best. Eventually, he starts to win some pots as other players get knocked out.

Photo: PokerNews

The Final Hand

After over 20 hours of grueling play, all that stands between Jacobson and glory is Felix Stephensen, a great player in his own right. That’s when Stephensen wakes up with A9h and raises it up. Looking down at his own pair of tens, Jacobson puts in the re-raise all-in. Stephensen calls, they flip up their hands, and the crowd goes wild.

Seeing that Jacobson has a pair of tens with ten million on the line, his fans begin chanting “Ten for ten! Ten for ten!”, as they know that another ten would mean almost a certain victory. After a hug and a good sweat, the dealer flips over the flop, and the very first card up—the window card—is another ten, giving Jacobson a set of 10s and virtually eliminating any chance for Stephensen to win.

Jacobson’s fans hoist him into the air as the room goes crazy over the 10 for 10: when they’re worth 10 million dollars, we wouldn’t be surprised if 10s became Jacobson’s new favorite hand.