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5 Major Bust Out Hands Ft. Game Of Gold

One of the most popular poker shows of 2023, GGPoker’s Game of Gold aired its 12th and final episode on 8th December. Maria Ho emerged victorious and claimed the title after battling it out against some of the best poker players from across the globe over the course of the show. Let’s have a look at the best hands that panned out in the final episode of Poker After Dark: Game of Gold.

The final six players participated in the finale, in one last sit-n-go with 10,000/20,000/20,000 blinds and 50-minute levels. Players’ seats were determined  based on the chip stacks that were based on gold coins players earned during the competition. Here’s how the chip stack looked ahead of the final episode.

Big Blinds

Kyna England – 81 BB 

Daniel Cates – 109 BB

Fedor Holz -195 BB

Josh Arieh – 220 BB

YoH ViraL – 239 BB

Maria Ho – 261 BB

The button was drawn randomly and ended up on Josh Arieh, and it was all get, set, and action soon! Let’s look at the elimination hands of all the five players at the Game of Gold finale.

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Arieh is the first to go! 

Despite starting with the second most chips in hand, Arieh failed to get going since the start and began to dip right out of the gate. Eventually, he ended up being the short stack.

The blinds sat at 20,000/40,000/40,000, as Arieh had 830,000 chips to his name; he raised to 80,000 from his under-the-gun position while holding J♠ 9♠ . Cates, who was playing as the big blind, held A♣ 8♣ and defended himself during heads-up action.

The flop of 7♥ J♣ 5♦ gave Arieh a top pair as he bet 80,000 after Cates checked before making the call to see 2 ♣ pop up, to which he again checked. Arieh bet 200,000, and Cates called to see 6 ♣ pop up on the river and the board. Cates checked his flush while Arieh moved all in for 470,000. All that was left for Cates was to quickly call and make Arieh the first casualty of the final table.

England Departs 

Fedor Holz (Q♠ Q♥ ) raised to 130,000 from under the gun while playing Level 4 (30,000/60,000/60,000), as a short-stacked Kyna England (A♥ 4 ♥) jammed for 1.6 Million from the cutoff. Maria Ho A♦ K♥ just called from the small blind position. Holz also called to see the flop of Q♦ 8♦ J♦ come down. 

Despite having a nut flush straight draw, Ho checked to Holz, who managed to flop a top set. He bet 600,000, which was called by Ho, creating a side pot before the 2♥ on the turn.

She checked again as Holz upped the bet to 1.35 Million. Ho called to see the river as the T♥ popped up, giving her a straight. Ho came out firing to 1.8 Million as Holz made the call and received the bad news. This hand saw Ho taking a massive chip lead as England walked away in fifth place.

Holz Bows Out 

During Level 5 (40,000/80,000/80,000), Cates with 9♥ 9♣ from the button raised to 160,000 and called after Holz with A♠ T♥ shoved in 1.1 Million from small blind while saying, “Time to gamble,” in a leprechaun accent.

The flop of 2♦ K♣ 5♥ didn’t help Holz, nor did the 6 ♣ on the turn do him any favours. Aiming for a spike on the river to stay alive, the final card on the board came up as 4♦ and ended his journey in the Game of Gold in fourth place. Speaking about the experience, Hold said, “I would play another season. I’m a bit disappointed, but let’s party tonight.”

YoH ViraL Finishes Third 

Maria Ho (8♠ 7♣ ) raised to 170,000 from the button when the blinds were 40,000/80,000/80,000 as Cates (Q♣ T♣) three-bet to 580,000 from the small blind position. Johan ‘Yoh Viral’ Guilbert (A♥ 6♥) shoved in roughly 1.2 Million as Ho folded while Cates called the 510,000.

Yoh Viral was a 55% favourite before the flop. However, the board of J♠ K♣ 5♣ handed Cates an open-ended straight as well as a flush draw with two cards to go, which propelled his winning percentage to 68%. The T♥ on the turn card gave Cates the much-needed lead, while the 5♦ on the river eliminated the YouTuber turned poker player. YoH hugged the Cates and Ho while wishing them the best of luck before exiting the stage.

The Final Frontier

Ho and Cates were the only two players left, and they squared off in heads-up play to determine the winner. Ho managed to get the better of Cates in that battle and was playing with a chip lead of 15.25 Million against Cates’s 6.85 Million.

Both the players jostled for a while, which also saw Cates narrow in the gap and bring it down to just less than a million. Playing Level 7 (80,000/160,000/160,000 blinds), Ho (K♣ 8♠) raised 320,000, as Cates (Q♦ 7♦) three-bet to 1.15 Million. Ho called as the flop popped up as 9♦ 2♣ 7♣, which handed Cates 7-pair.

He placed a bet of 800,000, which was called once again by Ho, who had a backdoor straight and flush draw. The 4♣ was drawn out on the board, which kept her hopes of a flush alive. Cates checked, and she bet 2.7 Million without any hesitation. After calling Ho’s bet, it was all down to the river, which was 3♣, that handed Ho her flush. 

Cates picked up a bad time to bluff as he decided to move all in with his remaining stack of 6.1 Million. After taking off her shades and looking at the board, Ho made the call and shipped the title. The Taiwanese-American poker player won Game of Gold Season 1 and pocketed $456,000 in winnings for her performance. 

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Maria Ho in Poker After Dark: Game of Gold

Ho was one of the best performers on the first season of Poker After Dark: Game of Gold. One of her best performances came in the 8th episode, aired on 27th November. Viewers saw how Ho ruled the felts as she went up against ‘Jungleman’. Cates fell for Ho’s bluffs and was forced to bow out after playing some hands.

During that particular episode, Ho seemed to be very chatty as Cates was focused on the game. At one point during the round, Ho called out Cates, saying how he was acting rude for not answering her question.

The female pro’s table talk left Cates feeling miffed as he was seen folding a hand against Ho while determining if it was a bluff or not. After busting, Cates asked Ho about the bluff, to which she responded positively. It seemed an insult to injury for Cates, who had to walk away knowing he made a wrong call. 

Kyna England also faced an aggressive Ho on the table as she acted like a chicken against a lioness. England tried to battle the fierce player, but Ho’s bet sizing saw the GG Poker ambassador fold.  Ho did not let England survive for long and was busy ruling thanks to her bluffing skills, with the board also favouring her from time to time.

Maria Ho Net Worth 2023 

Fluent in Mandarin, Ho moved from Taiwan to the United States when she was four years old. Her early childhood was nothing different and similar to any normal child as she grew up with her family. She developed a keen interest in poker when she was in college, and started playing the card game as a time pass hobby at this stage of her life. However, Ho started to enjoy the psychology involved in poker as well as the competitive spirit amongst participants which led to her playing small cash games at casinos around her.

She graduated with a minor in law and a degree in communication from UCSD in 2005. later on she moved from participating in low-limit cash games to high-stakes poker to high-stakes cash games before becoming a professional poker player.

Maria Ho was already one of the richest female poker players in Taiwan. Apart from poker winnings, Ho’s value also goes up, citing her work as the host of multiple shows. The Taiwanese-American poker star competed on ‘The Amazing Race 15’ in 2009. She was also on American Idol and a panelist on Anderson Cooper 360. 

Ho was also named as a team manager in the inaugural season of the Global Poker League. At the same time, being involved with the Amazon eSports Mobile Masters Invitational series and the Battle of Malta. An inductee to the Women in Poker Hall of Fame, Ho has also worked with ESPN coverage as a break desk commentator for the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event between 2017 and 2019. 

As of 2023, Maria Ho net worth is roughly estimated to be $5 Million. However, It is worth noting that her winnings at Poker After Dark: Game of Gold will substantially increase her net worth. 

Ho will end 2023 on a very successful note following the completion of Game of Gold. She also recorded a 3rd place finish in a WSOP Paradise event. Be it poker reality shows or on the tables of any tournament, seeing Ho on the field is always a pleasure to the eye! With many mega tournaments by various organisers already lined up for 2024, it remains interesting to see if Ho continues her winning run into the next year. 

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