Mike Eise, who grew up in Troy, Mo. and still lives in the St. Louis area, won $639,331 by claiming the title in the $1,500 buy-in no-limit Texas hold 'em event this week at the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas.

The 30-year old who works as a pipefitter, competed in a field of over 2,640 players over the course of three days, including some of the big names in poker such as Jason Mercier, Amarillo Slim and JC Tran, just to name a few.

Four players from his Eise's poker club entered the tournament, but Eise would be the only one everyone cheered on as the field decreased and when a champion was crowned. "I always wanted to come to Las Vegas and play in the World Series," said Eise. "I had one chance to get into this event, and here I am. I won the bracelet."