When we sit in our terraformed Martian homes, popping the cork on our sparkling water while watching pigeons failing miserably to remove their little space helmets with deformed feet, we will think about the history of high stakes poker and Australia will be where it all began.
The Aussie Millions.
Phil Ivey.
Erik Seidel.
Sam Trickett.
It was THE place to be when it came to the biggest buy-in tournaments anywhere in the world, and so, this week, it was nice to be back there, for another high stakes poker tournament, albeit in Sydney, not Melbourne, and the World Series of Poker (WSOP), not Australia’s annual poker extravaganza.
The World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC) was at The Star in Sydney, and there was an AUD 20,000 (USD 15,000) No-Limit Hold’em High Roller on the menu.
The two-day event attracted 50-entrants, and by the end of Day 1, Luke Martinelli led the final nine players. It was an unfamiliar feeling for Martinelli who had never played in a game this big and only secured a seat after selling action.
But one bullet later here he was – the boss.
Day 2 Starting Chip Counts
1. Luke Martinelli – 570,000
2. Michael Egan – 381,500
3. Jan Suchanek – 304,000
4. Ebon Bokody – 291,500
5. Sosia Jiang – 283,500
6. Qiang Fu – 280,000
7. Gautam Dhingra – 224,500
8. Robert Spano – 131,000
9. Jason Pritchard – 84,000
The Action
Here are the highlights of Day 2.
Robert Spano Ousted in 9th Place.
Ebon Bokody opened to 11,000 holding A7ss, Robert Spano moved all-in for 13,000 holding Q6ss, Michael Egan called in the small blind with QTcc, and Qiang Fu made it a family pot by calling in the big blind holding K7hh.
Flop: Ks7c5c
The action checked to Fu, holding the top two pairs, and he bet 30,000, and only Egan stuck around with the flush draw. That ended the conflict as both players checked the turn (Jh) and the river (Qd). Fu took the pot, and Spano left the party.
Jason Pritchard Erased in 8th Place.
Gautam Dhingra opened with a raise to 13,000, Martinelli called in the hijack seat, Pritchard moved all-in for 106,000 in position, Dhingra folded, but Martinelli made the call.
Martinelli: 8h8d
Pritchard: AcQd
Board: JsJh9c4c5d
With the boardless devoid of the right type of regality, Pritchard headed to the rail, and Martinelli extended his chip lead.
Michael Egan Wiped Out in 7th Place.
Michael Egan was the next to vacate his seat, and this time it was the boot of Gautam Dhingra catching an ass.
Jan Suchanek opened to 16,000 in the cutoff, Egan moved all-in from the button holding KTcc. Dhingra moved all-in from the big blind for 147,000 and AcKs, and Suchanek folded. The board ran out Qc6s2d7h7c, and Dhingra swallowed every single one of Egan’s chips sending the tournament into the bubble.
Dhingra Doubled Through Martinelli
Dhingra clipped the ear of the chip leader after his JJ beat AJ in an all-in race to the death.
Dhingra – 472,000
Martinelli – 395,000
Sosia Jiang Axed on The Bubble
Ebon Bokody opened the action to 16,000 from the button, Sosia Jiang moved all-in from the small blind for 276,000, and Bokody made the call.
Bokody: KsKd
Jiang: TsTd
Cooler.
The dealer placed five community cards into the middle of the table, neither of which was a ten, and as Jiang left, smiles broke out amongst the five remaining players who had all made money.
Chip Counts
1. Ebon Bokody – 1,000,000
2. Jan Suchanek – 780,000
3. Qiang Fu – 410,000
4. Luke Martinelli – 290,000
5. Gautam Dhingra – 228,000
Martinelli Dropped to the Bottom; Then Double Doubled
Martinelli opened UTG for 21,000 holding pocket kings, and Bodoky called in the big blind holding Jd9s. The JsJh7s flop was brilliant for Bokody, but he missed a spot of value when both checked. The 7h arrived in the turn, and Martinelli called a 25,000 Bokody bet. The river card was the 3d, and Martinelli called a 70,000 Bokody bet and promptly dropped to the bottom of the chip counts.
Moments later, and Martinelli doubled through Dhingra when he moved all-in holding pocket aces, and Dhingra made the call with K9dd. And then Martinelli did the same thing to Suchanek after the pair got it in on 5s4d3d with Martinelli flopping top pair with the flush draw (Jd5d), and Suchanek flopping a flush draw (T7dd). The 4h and As completed the action and Martinelli’s pair of fives was good.
Gautam Dhingra Liquidated in 5th Place.
With Martinelli climbing through the ranks, it was Dhingra who took his place at the bottom. Then with 20 big blinds in front of him, Dhingra moved all-in from UTG holding AThh, and Fu made the call with pocket tens, flopped the third ten, and that was the end of that.
Chip Counts
1. Luke Martinelli – 794,000
2. Jan Suchanek – 770,000
3. Ebon Bokody – 636,000
4. Qiang Fu – 584,000
Bokody Doubled Through Martinelli; Suchanek Expelled in 4th Place.
Bokody moved all-in over a Martinelli three-bet, and the chip leader made the call. Bokody showed AdAc, Martinelli held KsQc, and the best hand in poker held up.
Bokody then took the chip lead when he called Suchanek’s all-in during a spot of button v big blind bartering. Suchanek showed 87ss, and Bokody had him smashed with pocket kings. Suchanek did flop a seven, but the turn and river evaded him, and Bokody rose to the top of the ranks.
Qiang Fu Dismissed in 3rd Place.
If Martinelli was going to have any chance of winning this thing, then he needed to be the man holding the knife when the scalp of Qiang Fu vanished from the top of his head, and that’s what happened.
Fu opened to 33,000 on the button holding pocket treys, Martinelli three-bet to 135,000 from the big blind holding KdQd, Fu moved all-in, and Martinelli called. The 7d4d2s flop maintained Fu’s lead but did give Martinelli flush outs. The Tc changed nothing, but the Kc changed everything. Fu was out, and Martinelli began his heads-up encounter with Bokody with a 1m v 1.5m chip deficit.
Martinelli Wins The AUD 20,000 High Roller
After trading blows for a while, Bokody failed in a bluff that saw Martinelli take a 1.9m v 600k chip lead, making a brave call with the second pair.
And then this happened.
Bokody opened to 40,000 holding 8d7cm, and Martinelli made the call holding 9h6s. The dealer fanned the 7h6h6d onto the flop giving them both a reason to be happy. Bokody continued his momentum with a 45,000 c-bet, Martinelli check-raised to 110,000, Bokody three-bet to 250,000, and Martinelli called.
Turn: Td
Martinelli checked, Bokody moved all-in for 400,000, and Martinelli made the call. Only the sevens in the deck would help Bokody, and they remained there. The Ah came out to play, and with it, Martinelli had won the biggest tournament of his life.
ITM Results (Payouts in USD)
1. Luke Martinelli – $257,675
2. Ebon Bokody – $159,278
3. Qiang Fu – $112,342
4. Jan Suchanek – $85,955
5, Gautam Dhingra – $79,821
Martinelli is also well positioned for a good run in the WSOPC Main Event bagging the third largest stack on Day 1A.