Chess star and content creator Alexandra Botez added another major poker result to her résumé over the weekend, winning the ClubWPT Gold Poker Champs heads-up tournament and its $250,000 top prize.
The special event brought together eight popular streamers for a $500,000 prize pool, with names such as Félix “xQc” Lengyel, Tyler “Tyler1” Steinkamp and Chance “Sodapoppin” Morris among the participants. The action was played on ClubWPT Gold and streamed on Doug Polk’s YouTube channel.
Botez entered the competition with considerably more poker experience than the average streamer. Best known as a chess player and one half of the hugely popular BotezLive brand, she has also been a regular presence at major poker events in recent years.
According to The Hendon Mob, Botez had collected more than $150,000 in live tournament cashes before this event. Her biggest recorded live result came at the 2024 WSOP Paradise, where she finished 187th in the $25,000 Super Main Event for $67,300.
Her latest victory, however, was worth almost four times that amount.
Botez and Sodapoppin Reach the Final
The Poker Champs tournament used a heads-up format in which players needed to win two matches in a best-of-three series to advance.
Botez first eliminated Erobb before getting past Paymoney Wubby to book her place in the final. On the opposite side of the bracket, Sodapoppin defeated xQc and Tyler1.
The two finalists had also impressed Doug Polk with their play during the tournament, and their final promised to be one of the most competitive matchups of the event.
Botez quickly took control.
She won the opening match, handing Sodapoppin his first defeat of the tournament, and then had the opportunity to finish the job without requiring a deciding third game.
That is exactly what she did.
Pocket Tens Seal the $250,000 Victory
By the time the decisive hand arrived, Botez had established a lead of more than two to one. She held around 55 big blinds compared with Sodapoppin’s 26.
Sodapoppin picked up K♦4♠ on the button and min-raised. Botez looked down at T♥T♦ in the big blind and three-bet to eight big blinds. Sodapoppin called.
The flop came A♠ A♦ 2♠.
Botez continued for another eight big blinds despite being out of position. Sodapoppin responded with a minimum raise as a bluff, leaving himself with only a few big blinds behind.
Botez then moved all-in.
With very little left in his stack, Sodapoppin made the call and discovered that his king-high was well behind Botez’s pocket pair. The 6♦ turn and J♣ river changed nothing, giving Botez the pot, the match and the tournament title.
Another Poker Milestone for Alexandra Botez
Botez’s poker appearances have gradually become more serious over the past few years. While chess remains the foundation of her career, she has competed in major live tournaments and appeared in numerous poker streams and creator-focused events.
Her ClubWPT Gold victory is by far the largest poker payday of her career to date.
The $250,000 first prize also provides another example of the growing crossover between poker and the wider streaming world. Poker Champs was built around some of Twitch’s biggest personalities, but when the final pot was pushed, it was the chess player with an increasingly substantial poker résumé who walked away with the title.
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