Five of his six biggest career cashes were from this year, including a career-best score of $205,696 from a third-place finish in Event #82: $3,000 Pot-Limit Omaha (6-Handed) at the 2023 WSOP. The victory at his hometown Canterbury Park is the latest in what has been a breakout year for the young Minnesotan. It was a heartfelt victory for Matakis as it took place on the three-year anniversary of his mother's passing, as he noted on social media.

In remarkable fashion, Matakis went on to double up four consecutive times to even things out before a similar preflop matchup where Matakis' ace-seven beat out the pocket threes of Cannon, who busted the next hand after being left with a single small blind. Matakis paired his ace on the turn to become a big favorite to win the event, but a four on the river gave Cannon a miracle double as the WSOP POY was left with crumbs. Things got crazy when Cannon three-bet jammed with pocket fours to put himself at risk and Matakis called with ace-eight and a slightly bigger stack, according to Canterbury Park updates on X. Early into heads-up play, Cannon double through Matakis with ace-jack against ten-eight to even things out. The final table included Mid-States Poker Tour Hall of Famer and Minnesota all-time money leader Blake Bohn (4th - $44,977) and fellow Minnesota crusher Nghia Le (5th - $33,896).Īfter the elimination of Ben Frisch in third for $60,621, Matakis and Cannon agreed to a modified ICM chop before playing it out for the trophy. Taking down the FPC Main Event was no easy feat and Matakis had to navigate through a field of 679 runners in an event that created a $651,840 prize pool.

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