Ravee Mathi had other plans.
The unheralded software engineer from Dublin, California, was also playing his second consecutive WPT final table but this time he'd see it through to the end.
Busting former PCA champ Harrison Gimbel in hand #43 to jump into the chip lead Mathi outlasted Paur and Jesse Rockowitz to claim his first WPT title.
Adding the $266k first-place prize to the $166k he claimed for finishing sixth at WPT Bay 101 last week - his only two career live tournament cashes - it's safe to say Mathi has had a week of poker he'll never forget.
Paur Denied Back-to-Back
The centerpiece story coming in to the final table was Taylor Paur in contention for back-to-back WPT titles - directly on the heels of Anthony Zinno pulling off the same feat less than two weeks ago.
Things looked promising for Paur early on as he busted Rex Clinkscales and Jeff Griffiths to jump up over 3m in chips with Gimbel and Mathi.
A steady Mathi and climbing Rockowitz kept him at bay, though.
When Mathi busted Gimbel in fourth - calling with QQ on a K446 board against Gimbel's flush draw - the big chip boost was enough to carry him through to the finish despite Rockowitz pulling even at one point three-handed.
Paur eventually busted in third, bringing the back-to-back dream to a close before Mathi finished Rockowitz off heads-up. Complete final-table results and payouts:
1. Ravee "Om" Mathi Sundar - $266,857 2. Jesse Rockowitz - $176,018 3. Taylor Paur - $113,154 4. Harrison Gimbel - $83,818 5. Rex Clinkscales - $62,864 6. Jeff Griffiths - $50,291
On top of the $266,857 prize Mathi claims a $15,400 seat in the WPT World Championship, a WPT Champion's Trophy and a pair of Monster DNA headphones. Check the WPT Live Updates for a full recap of the final table.
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