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Peiyuan Sun Made Decision to Skip WSOP Main Event Final +EV

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2020 WSOP Main Event

By now, most of you have heard that Damian Salas won the international leg of the 2020 World Series of Poker Main Event. He will advance to the finals to face the winner of the American leg of the event.

One story that has been glossed over is that of ninth-place finisher Peiyuan Sun. Sun did not get knocked out at the final table but rather opted out of traveling to Rozvadov to play the final table. With the pandemic raging globally, Sun may have made the best +EV move out of all the players, regardless of how much money they win.

Peiyuan Sun Opts Out of Main Event Final Table

Imagine that you have earned a spot at the WSOP Main Event final table. What are the odds that you’d skip the final table? Normally, you wouldn’t. There is simply too much money at stake to pass on the opportunity.

However, this is not a normal year. There is a global pandemic raging and traveling could expose one to the coronavirus. One player that decided not to take that risk is China’s Peiyuan Sun. Sun opted out of the final table and settled for ninth-place money of $75,360.

Sun has not spoken as to why he decided to opt-out, but most everyone assumes that he did so because of the pandemic. COVID-19 is assumed to have originated in China, so it would be logical that someone that lives there would opt not to leave the country. He would be subject to strict quarantine measures if he left and returned.

Granted, Sun would have started the final table eighth in chips. That could have played a factor in his decision making. It is likely he would have finished eighth or ninth, and the extra hassle involved in traveling may not have been worth it to him.

Is Online Cheating a Reason?

An alternative theory that has been floated around by some is that Sun was possibly cheating to advance as far as he did in the Main Event. Those floating this point to his lack of results in the live arena to this point.

Sun’s largest cash to date was for $9,265 in a PokerStars Championship Macau event in 2017. He did have three cashes this summer during the World Series of Poker Online, but nothing close to what he did in the Main Event.

Personally, I don’t subscribe to this theory. While Sun doesn’t have the pedigree of some of the players at the final table, he does have some results that suggest he has enough skill to go on a deep run in the Main Event.

What is much more likely is that Sun went on a great run. Not knowing his background in online poker, it could have been his best run to date. Those things happen in online poker tournaments. That is much more likely what happened over any form of cheating.

Sun Made a Smart Decision That Most Poker Players Will Not Make

If you look at comments from poker fans, you will see many that say that Sun should have taken a shot at the Main Event final table. Maybe he would have gotten lucky and won it all. He could be on his way to America to try and win a bracelet.

Then again, he may have finished in 9th place, which is what he wound up with anyway. His stack relative to the other players was not enough where one could reasonably expect him to make a comeback. Maybe he ladders a spot or two, but it is much more likely he would be first or second out.

What happens if Sun came in contact with someone carrying COVID-19? He goes home, gets sick, and maybe infects others along the way. Maybe he recovers with no issues. Maybe he starts having heart problems from the illness. Perhaps he infects a family member that dies. He could have even died.

There are too many variables out there to assume that making the trip to the final table was a smart play. If he were in the top four, maybe there is some EV on the trip. Otherwise, the +EV decision was to stay home. Winning the Main Event doesn’t help you if you’re dead.

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