Blake Ellinghaus Wins WPT bestbet Scramble Title in Florida

Blake Ellinghaus captures the WPT bestbet Scramble crown

The World Poker Tour made its late-summer stop back in northern Florida, and the 2026 WPT bestbet Scramble quickly delivered the kind of live-event drama that keeps players circling the schedule year after year. The centerpiece was the $5,000 No-Limit Hold’em Main Event with a $1 million guarantee, a format that always attracts a mix of ambitious grinders, seasoned pros, and regional regulars looking for a breakthrough score.

Across three starting flights at bestbet Jacksonville, the tournament drew 294 entries. That pushed the prize pool to $1,337,700, comfortably above the guarantee and a strong sign that the event retained its status as one of the more reliable live stops in the Southeast. After six days of play, the biggest share of that pool went to Blake Ellinghaus.

The Plainfield, Illinois resident earned $294,900, the first major title of his career, and in the process put his name on the Mike Sexton WPT Champions Cup. For any tournament player, that’s more than a payday: it’s a public stamp of legitimacy on the live circuit.

Why this WPT result matters beyond one trophy

bestbet Jacksonville has long been one of Florida’s most recognizable poker rooms, and WPT’s return there matters because it offers exactly what live players want: a meaningful guarantee, a solid structure, and a field that is large enough to create real value but still beatable with the right mix of patience and aggression.

Ellinghaus’ win also highlights a point many players miss when they focus only on buy-ins and first-place payouts. The real value in a stop like this is the combination of prestige, points, and momentum. A WPT title can reshape a player’s year far beyond the immediate cash.

For players mapping out live schedules, events like this often sit at the center of the plan, while online practice and satellite hunting happen in [poker rooms]( /en/pokerrooms ) and [poker clubs]( /en/pokerclubs ). If you are trying to turn a smaller bankroll into a shot at bigger live fields, that ecosystem matters a lot.

The money bubble and the road to the final day

Only the top 37 finishers made the money, which meant the bubble phase still had teeth and plenty of tension. Among the early finishers after the payout line were TK Miles, Toby Boas, and Tyler Phillips, while other recognizable names such as Ray Qartomy, Andrew Ostapchenko, Jessica Cai, and Justin Zaki all made meaningful runs.

The final day was set when Florida tournament regular Raminder Singh exited in seventh place for $43,500. His elimination was especially painful: he flopped trips full of kings, only to run into a turned aces full for Michael Macchia. It was the kind of cooler that can completely reshape a final table, especially when stacks are already shallow and pressure is high.

Kelly Slay finished ninth for $29,000 and Edward Mroczkowski took eighth for $34,000, both coming up just short of the televised-style final-day stage that every player at a WPT event wants to reach.

Key hands that gave Ellinghaus control

Ellinghaus entered the final table as the chip leader, with Macchia as his closest challenger. In six-handed play, he widened the gap with a crucial top-pair battle against Hugh Membrino. On a queen-high flop, the chips went in, and Ellinghaus’ A♣Q♠ held through the runout to send Membrino out in sixth place for $57,000.

That hand mattered because it did more than eliminate a player. It reinforced Ellinghaus’ table image as someone willing to apply pressure with the best of it and extract full value when a strong top pair is likely good.

From there, the pressure kept mounting on the rest of the table:

• Macchia was all-in with pocket nines against Jared Reinstein’s pocket aces but survived the runout and finished fifth for $75,000;
• Skyler Dennis, down to 14 big blinds, three-bet jammed A♠6♥ over a button raise from Ellinghaus and ran into Q♥Q♦, finishing fourth for $100,000;
• Bryan Paris then shoved pocket nines into Ellinghaus’ pocket jacks, and the future champion improved to jacks full by the river to lock up third place and $135,000.

By the time heads-up play began, Ellinghaus held roughly a 5:1 chip lead. That is not an automatic win, but in live poker it is a huge structural edge that lets the bigger stack control pot sizes, pressure the shorter stack, and force difficult decisions.

Expert analysis: what players can learn from this run

Ellinghaus’ victory is a strong case study in how to close out a live event. He did not win by spewing or by waiting for a miracle river; he won by combining position, stack leverage, and value extraction at the right moments.

A few strategic takeaways stand out:

• Chip leaders should use their leverage early, especially at a six-handed final table where pay jumps start to matter more;
• in live no-limit hold’em, top pair is powerful, but kicker quality and board texture remain critical;
• big final-table stacks still need discipline in heads-up play, because even a 5:1 lead can shrink quickly if the short stack finds back-to-back doubles;
• tournament success often comes from converting premium holdings into maximum value rather than trying to outplay every opponent in every pot.

For players studying late-stage tournament poker, this is exactly the kind of situation that should be reviewed in a [poker school]( /en/pokerschool ) setting. And if you are looking to cut down on your entry costs or satellite into bigger events, [promotions & bonuses]( /en/blog/promotions ) can be a real part of the path.

The heads-up finish against Jared Reinstein

Reinstein did well to fight back once heads-up began, even after Ellinghaus had built a commanding lead. The shorter stack found back-to-back doubles and made the match more interesting than the chip counts initially suggested.

The final hand started with an Ellinghaus limp on the button holding 6♥4♦. Reinstein checked his option with 7♥6♦, and the flop came J♠8♦5♥. After the 3♦ turn, Reinstein bet 200,000, Ellinghaus raised to 850,000, and Reinstein called.

The 7♣ river gave Ellinghaus a straight. When Reinstein checked, Ellinghaus shoved, and after some thought Reinstein called with his rivered pair of sevens. That ended the event and confirmed Ellinghaus as the champion.

Reinstein earned $184,000, the largest live score of his 58 recorded cashes. It was a strong runner-up finish even without the trophy.

Final thoughts on the WPT bestbet Scramble

Ellinghaus’ first major title is the kind of result that can change a player’s year. It brings money, ranking points, and a champion’s identity that follows you into future fields.

For WPT, the event again proved that bestbet Jacksonville remains a valuable stop on the calendar: healthy turnout, a prize pool well over the guarantee, and a final table with enough swings to satisfy any live poker fan.

For players, the lesson is simple. Big live events reward patience, value betting, and the ability to convert a chip lead into controlled pressure. Those who want to keep improving should study spots like this, build experience in [poker rooms]( /en/pokerrooms ) and [poker clubs]( /en/pokerclubs ), and treat late-stage tournament play as a skill set rather than a guessing game.

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