Defending a title in the poker world is always worth mentioning, but it's rare for someone to pull it off at a tournament with such a massive entry field. American player Ryan Stiner caused a worldwide sensation when he conquered the Arizona State Poker Championships for the second year in a row.

This $1,130 buy-in NLH event is held annually in Scottsdale at the Talking Stick Resort, and its last two years have produced a combined 3,646 entries. Only one champion came out of this large field of players twice - American and Scottsdale native Ryan Stiner.

Last year, he managed to fight his way to victory from all 1,580 entries and took home a beautiful $221,200. This year, he was able to not only repeat the success, but even surpass it - he defended the title in a field of 2,066 entries and recorded a lifetime hit of $262,392 on his account!

In the final heads-up, he defeated fellow countryman Mark Graffius, who finished as runner-up for $203,501, far surpassing his biggest live win to date of $12,765. In the final hand of the tournament, Graffius moved all-in with a hit flush with Q 9  on board 8 5 5 3 6. At the same moment, however, Stiner hit a straight full house flop with 8 8  to take the last pot.

Additionally, these two straight wins make up the vast majority of Ryan's live earnings of $549,162 according to hendon mob. This is his second win of the year, after he cashed $39,992 for first place in the $500 tournament at the same location. Talking Stick Resort also posted Stiner's celebratory dance and fans' ovations on social media.

Source: CardPlayer, PokerStrategy, Twitter, HendonMob