Shellac frontman, Nirvana/Pixies/Page & Plant engineer and US underground rock legend Steve Albini pocketed $196,089 on Friday night (June 17) after triumphing in a field of 773 card sharps to win his second World Series of Poker bracelet.
Having previously won one of the prestigious, coveted bracelets in 2018, winning the Seven-Card Stud competition, Albini emerged victorious this year in the $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. event.
When this writer asked Albini last year what buzz he got from playing poker, he responded: "I play poker for money. It’s a fascinating game, and it stimulates my brain, but if I didn’t make money from it, I wouldn’t do it. It’s become a significant part of my income, and I rely on it as part of my livelihood. I don’t do it for amusement."
Bracelet winner Steven Albini reigns as the Event #32: $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. champion. Albini's triumph earned him $196,089 and a second piece of WSOP hardware.📸 @_RKMusic_ https://t.co/eiDrd88VfZ pic.twitter.com/1BIJCSUqJkJune 18, 2022
After his win, Albini told the event website: "Everything in my life comes in pieces, in parts. Poker is one part of my life. So when I'm playing poker, I try to commit to it. I try to take it seriously. I try to make sure I devote the attention to it that it deserves as an occupation. But it's only part of my year. I only play tournaments at the World Series of Poker. I play cash games informally in Chicago. It's a part of my livelihood, but it's not my profession.
"In the Stud tournament, the bracelet that I won in 2018, I was never all-in in that tournament. I was never short of chips. But it still felt like I kind of fluked it because I beat a table full of really great players that I didn't expect to beat. This time it felt like a fluke because I was so short on chips so often, and I kept getting all in, and I kept surviving."
