RbPkr Field Reports
Jim Collopy Claims 2024 Poker Masters Purple Jacket
High-stakes tournament action returned to the PokerGO Studio at ARIA Resort & Casino in September 2024 for the prestigious Poker Masters. The festival featured eight high-roller events, with buy-ins ranging from $10,000 to $50,000, attracting the absolute elite of the poker world.
Consistency is Key
The story of the series belonged to Jim "Bighusk" Collopy, who claimed the coveted Poker Masters Purple Jacket through sheer consistency.
As covered by Poker.org, Collopy actually didn't win a single event during the festival. Instead, he put on a masterclass in deep runs, cashing in four of the eight tournaments. His run included two runner-up finishes and a third-place finish, allowing him to accumulate 522 PGT leaderboard points—enough to narrowly edge out Isaac Haxton and Jeremy Ausmus for the overall series victory.
Collopy's performance is a testament to the fact that surviving the money bubble and consistently laddering up is just as crucial to tournament success as outright victories.
Reads and High Roller Strategy
High roller tournaments are famous for intense stare-downs and incredibly complex Game Theory Optimal (GTO) play. On r/poker, fans dissected Collopy's unique table presence and his ability to deviate from standard solver lines to exploit his opponents' specific tendencies.
Play Like a Master at Home
You don't need a $50,000 buy-in to appreciate good poker strategy. If you want your home game to feel more like the Poker Masters, the first step is improving your game's efficiency. High rollers use shot clocks to ensure they get enough hands in per hour to let their edge play out.
At your local game, the biggest time-sink isn't player tanking—it's dealing. Using a tool like RbPkr allows you to deal cards digitally to players' phones, instantly increasing your hands per hour. The faster the game moves, the more hands you play, and the more your actual poker skill can shine through, just like Collopy's consistency at ARIA.