John Hashem takes top prize at 2019 SIGA Poker Championship
The 2019 SIGA Poker Championship has come to an end, with 346 total entries creating a prize pool of $263,800. The event was hosted by the Dakota Dunes Casino in Saskatchewan with John Hashem of Regina taking home the first-place prize.
Fast Game Play:
By Day 2 of the event, only 80 players remained. The day would go by fast as the field was narrowed down to the final table of nine players. The first to go would be Bin Xu, who put his pocket jacks up against Hashem’s two kings. It would be kings taking out the next player in the competition as Warren McCallum’s hand held up against an all-in by Todd Derdall.
According to Pokernews…
Hashem would continue his dominance of the final table by knocking out two players, Dallas Larson and Jason Topp. Both shoved this smaller stacks and got caught, with six players now remaining at the table. Eventually, the field would narrow down till only two remained Lyndon Knutson and Hashem.
The heads-up round would only last a few hands before Knutson would decide to shove with an ace. Hashem would call holding pocket jacks and they held up to give him the poker tournament win win.
Final Table Results of the 2019 SIGA Poker Championships:
| Place | Player | Prize |
| First | John Hashem | $34,347 (CA$45,769) |
| Second | Lyndon Knutson | $23,262 (CA$23,262) |
| Third | Warren McCallum | $15,540 (CA$20,708) |
| Fourth | Josh Hopkins | $12,570 (CA$16,751) |
| Fifth | Kyle Stronski | $10,591 (CA$14,113) |
| Sixth | Ray Hallett | $8,809 (CA$11,739) |
| Seventh | Dallas Larson | $7,225 (CA$9,629) |
| Eighth | Jason Topp | $5,839 (CA$7,782) |
| Ninth | Todd Derdall | $4,651 (CA$6,199) |
The Dakota Dunes Casino hosted the event on October 4th, 5th and 6th. The buy-in was $800 + $80, with a solid turnout as players registered to compete in the regular event as well as in satellites that ran from the 1st to the 3rd.