The 2020 World Series of Poker (WSOP) has started, and it’s unlike anything the world has ever seen. The irresistible interlocutors of the live realm have to make to do with a comfortable chair, banging playlist and a box full of Pot Noodles as the WSOP moves wholly online. The first quotidian bracelet events are in the bag, and two of the biggest names in WSOP history enjoyed deep, deep runs.
We start with the man who has won more bracelets than anyone breathing or not, Mr Phil Hellmuth Jr. Playing under the pseudonym ‘Lumestackin’ (an anagram of ‘Luckiest Man’), Hellmuth came close to bracelet #16, with an 11th place finish in Event #1: $500 No-Limit Hold’em. It’s a feat worthy of an affectionate salute given that Hellmuth had to compete in a field of 1,715 runners.
Hellmuth wasn’t the only recognisable pro to come close to turning their palm readers into bona fide psychics. The World Poker Tour (WPT) commentator, Tony Dunst finished third, and Taylor Von Kriegenbergh finished ninth.
Here are those results.
Event #1: $500 No-Limit Hold’em
1,715 entrants
Results
Jonathan ‘Art.Vandelay’ Dokler – $130,426
Justin ‘MadTitan’ Turner – $80,416
Tony ‘Panoramic’ Dunst – $57,881
Shawn ‘SayGoodNight’Daniels – $42,060
Michael ‘DDSpade’ Balan – $30,947
Kyle ‘ChefShap’ Shappelle – $22,998
Daniel ‘djp1006’ Park – $17,287
Mark ‘ NostraDonkus’ Liedtke – $13,120
Taylor ‘ZeroTo100’ Von Kriegenbergh – $10,110
Daniel Negreanu Runs Deep in Event #2 $1,000 No Limit Hold’em Deepstack 8-Max
The man with the most publicised side action in the WSOP enjoyed a deep run in the second event. Daniel Negreanu has offered the world dibs on a $1m+ array of bracelet action, and he nearly closed the book, early.
Negreanu, who is grinding from his Las Vegas pad, finished 18th from 919-entrants in the first $1k event of the series. The man who put poker streaming on the map, Jason Somerville, finished sixth, and Roland Israelishvili extended his WSOP in the money (ITM) record with 225 cashes (bracelet & ring events).
Here are those results.
Event #2: $1,000 No Limit Hold’em Deepstack 8-Max
919-entrants
Results
Louis ‘PokeThese’ Lynch – $168,586
Ryan ‘KOVID19’ Ko – $104,242
Kevin ‘GoneBananas’ Garosshen – $73,424
Daniel ‘IntoTheRiver’ Fischer – $52,38
Sean ‘bahbababa’ Prendiville – $37,890
Jason ‘haderade’ Somerville – $27,763
Jon ‘jonnyg93’ Gisler – $20,691
Matthew ‘Michmeister’ Mich – $15,628
WSOP All-Time Cashes Leaderboard (Rings and Bracelets)
Roland Israelishvili – 225
Douglas Carli – 196
Allen Kessler – 177
Phil Hellmuth – 154
Chris Ferguson – 150
Maurice Hawkins – 144
Ari Engel – 142
Chris Conrad – 141
Daniel Negreanu – 133
Vincent Moscati – 130
When it comes to the World Series of Poker (WSOP), Daniel Negreanu is the Lord of the Manor, forcing everyone else into servitude.
Since his first in the money finish (ITM) in 1998 (winning a $2,000 Pot-Limit Hold’em title) Negreanu has gone on to win five more bracelets (including events in Australia, France and Las Vegas). He has also finished ITM on 133 occasions and is the only player to win the WSOP Player of the Year accolade twice.
So when ‘Kid Poker’ offers bracelet bets, you had better have a profound moment of serenity before getting involved.
A couple of days ago, Negreanu shook up the poker world like a 12-bore shotgun sticking its barrel into a bouquet of pheasants, offering two big money bracelet bets.
The first is a 2.5 to 1 bet that Negreanu will win a 2020 bracelet. On June 8, the WSOP revealed plans to schedule 31 bracelet events on WSOP.com, and a further 54 with their online partner GGPoker (of whom Negreanu represents).
Here is the tweet.
Looking for action:
I’ll take 2.5 to 1 that I win a WSOP bracelet in 2020
Negreanu plans to compete in every WSOP.com event from his pad in Las Vegas, before jetting off to Mexico to compete in the GGPoker events.
There is a $1m ceiling on that bet, and during a phone call with Negreanu, this morning, he told me that there are very few takers on that bet, as it stands.
Should the WSOP reschedule the WSOP live event in the Fall or Winter, and surprise us all with an impromptu World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE) or World Series of Poker Asia-Pacific (WSOP-APAC), those both count towards the bet.
The Wizard Bet
In the other bet, Negreanu is willing to take on anyone in a “versus Negreanu” style bracelet race.
Here is the tweet.
I will also bet myself against another player of your choice, you can pick yourself or a wizard.
There is a $100k ceiling per player, and at the time of writing Negreanu confirms that both Ali Imsirovic and Connor Drinan have taken up that offer.
Both Imsirovic and Drinan are online beasts, so Negreanu has his hands full. Imsirovic is a reg in the high stakes tournaments on GGPoker, and Drinan became a record-breaker after winning five titles during the 2020 PokerStars Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP). Negreanu also confirmed to me that ‘many others’ are interested in backing both Imsirovic and Drinan in the bet against Negreanu.
Another player who has expressed an interest in taking on Negreanu is Laurynas Levinskas. Negreanu confirmed that he’s received a lot of interest in GGPoker or WSOP.com only action, and will consider changing the rules of the agreement to meet demand, but hasn’t made a decision, yet. The other logjam in this one is the unavailability of a GGPoker schedule, so people know what games are on the menu.
One plus for his opposition – Negreanu won’t arrive in Mexico to play in the GGPoker bracelet events until August 1, and the series starts on July 19.
Why do this?
“It’s just fun really,” said Negreanu. “I’m a gambler at heart, and this is just an extension of that really. Figured since I’m going to do the full grind I might as well have some action on it!”
And is there anyone out there that has Negreanu quaking in his boots?
“Absolutely not. I really don’t care who comes at me for a bet!”
The teachers in Los Angeles have been striking for better working conditions; astronauts have been learning that a trip to Mars is likely to increase their risk of cancer – so what’s been going on in the world of the high stakes professional poker player?
Welcome to this week’s edition of the Pinnacle.
We begin our ride on the rainbow of risk with the most famous face in poker: Daniel Negreanu.
What a tough week it’s been for the outspoken hero/anti-hero/villain (delete as you feel fit) as his willingness to share his thoughts with the world came back to bite him in the arse this week.
Three streams of tweets seemed to annoy a large contingent of the poker community.
There were a series of tweets focusing on ‘loaning money’ and taking ‘100% responsibility for your life.’
I’ve loaned money and been stiffed. It’s unfortunate, but I don’t hate those people. I don’t whine about how “unfair” it is, because I know who made the decision to loan the money: me.
No one put a gun to my head.
I’m not at “fault”, but I am responsible.
You are 100% responsible for every decision you make
Sometimes people will lie to you, and YOU will make a bad decision as a result
Sometimes you will make a bad decision under stress.
However it happens, it’s always YOU making the decision. Always. 100%
Negreanu aired his views on what constitutes a ‘good’ and ‘bad’ poker player, amending his ‘bad’ tweet after a tsunami of pain rained down on him.
5 things that make you good for a poker game:
– Lose Money
– Act Quickly
– Friendly/Engaging
– Generous/Give Action
– Positive Attitude
If you are 4 of these things but also win money, you are likely to be a pleasant addition to any poker game.
Here are Negreanu’s views on what traits constitutes a ‘bad’ poker player.
– Winner
– Slow
– Quiet (Also miserable)
– Nit (Cheap/Selfish)
– Hater (Complainer/Negative)
If you match all of these categories then you are probably a real treat t have at parties. 2 out for 5 is still bad.”
And he continued.
“This type of player is a cancer to poker. The Nits are like a disease. Some just don’t know any better, they aren’t bad people, but they do way more damage than good by playing poker.”
In response, Unibet Ambassadors, and Chip Race co-hosts, Dave Lappin & Dara O’Kearney both wrote blog posts airing their disappointment, and criticism of Negreanu’s actions, who in turn wrote a blog post apologising for the tweet, but pointing out that he felt some of the accusatory feedback felt too personal, and likely a smear campaign against him.
And then came the old chestnut courtesy of Sam Greenwood.
“How much damage does receiving a salary to promote a site that stole millions of dollars from its players do?”
Shaun Deeb was more personal than most in his vitriol predicting that Negreanu’s marriage to Amanda Leatherman will only last two years.
“I am a flawed human being as we all are to a certain extent, but I am always striving to be a better version of myself, and digesting feedback both positive and negative to look for areas where I can be better,” Negreanu wrote in his apologetic blog post. “I’d love to see a return to “I hate your ideas” rather than “I hate you.” Would do us all some good.”
You can read Dave Lappin’s thoughts right here (http://rocshot.com/lappin/265-yesterdays-faith/), similarly Dara O’Kearney’s view (http://dokearney.blogspot.com/2019/01/oh-danny-boy.html), Daniel’s reactionary blog post (https://fullcontactpoker.com/the-state-of-poker-2019/), and and my opinion on the debacle (https://calvinayre.com/2019/01/30/poker/negreanu-stars-enemies-musings-bad-faith-things/).
In stark contrast to the abuse Negreanu experienced, a terminally-ill man, Zachary Butler, suffering from the genetic disease Friedreich’s Ataxia, had his wish come true when the Dream Foundation (a non-profit that helps the terminally ill’s dreams come true), organised for him to visit Daniel Negreanu at his home to play poker with him.
To Butler, Negreanu is a star, who makes him laugh.
Pure.
Simple.
Negreanu will also be the emcee at the next Charity Series of Poker (CSOP) event scheduled to take place March 2 at Red Rock Casino Resort & Spa with proceeds going towards St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Jason Koon Joins Triton Poker, Andrew Robl Interview Airs, Badziakouski Joins partypoker; Leonard Wins Triple Crown
Jason Koon agreed to join Triton Poker in an ambassadorial capacity this week. Koon will promote the Triton Super High Roller Series to his buddies in the west, and will personally attend each tour stop throughout 2019.
The first of these stops are in Jeju, South Korea, and this week the Triton crew announced a schedule that includes six events including for the first time a No-Limit Hold’em Short-Deck Ante-Only Bounty tournament.
Although unconfirmed, one person you would imagine will be in Jeju, taking his daily pew in the biggest cash games in the world, will be Andrew Robl, and this week we released our interview with the man during his time at the 2018 Triton Super High Roller Series in Montenegro.
Check it out.
The current Triton SHR Series Main Event champion of the Montenegro and Jeju series is Mikita Badziakouski, and this week, the Belarusian joined partypoker as an ambassador. And finally, partypoker Ambassador, and high stakes star, Patrick Leonard, won an online Triple Crown (he thinks) by taking down the $500 buy-in Blade on the GG Network for $19,663.10, the $1,050 Thursday Thrill on PokerStars for $19,342.01, and the partypoker Sunday High Roller Bounty Hunter for $40,100.15.
Phil Hellmuth Wins a Title; Gets His Hair Done; Plans for Brazil.
Phil Hellmuth was in the news this week for a variety of different reasons. The World Poker Tour (WPT) Raw Deal host took down his first title since winning his 15th World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet in the summer.
Hellmuth defeated 64-entrants to win the $37,248 first prize in the $1,590 No-Limit Heads-up side event at the WPT Borgata Winter Poker Open. Hellmuth beat Joseph Cappello in his final heads-up match.
If you ever wondered what was underneath that ARIA cap, now you know.
Nothing.
Well, I went for a hair replacement procedure w these guys, Dr Lieberman and Dr Parikh, at @ForTheFaceBay In four months my hair will be everywhere, and one year from now, should be at its best #NoMoreBaldSpotpic.twitter.com/228G1z0qDM
Finally, Hellmuth set himself a new bucket list goal of winning “at least four WPT’s”, told himself to “man up”, “attend more WPT’s”, and then declared an intention to do that by “ramping up my poker schedule.” Although it may not be a WPT event, Hellmuth is sticking to his word by appearing in South America for the first time as a guest of partypoker in the MILLIONS South America event scheduled for Rio.
Take ten!
The legendary @phil_hellmuth proved he is human after making a few bloopers while filming his recent #MILLIONS South America Main Event videos we’ve been publishing on Twitter! Check out some of the best of them: https://t.co/7koH8OxUS7 18+. Play responsibly. begambleaware pic.twitter.com/qifPhI6tGI
Live Tournament News: Kempe and Lewis Pick Up Wins in Melbourne; Elias Likewise in California
Three high stakes live tournaments to get you up to speed on, and we will start in Melbourne at the Aussie Millions. There seems to have been a resurgence in High Stakes Action at the Crown Casino, after a dismal showing last year.
The AUD 25,000 Challenge attracted 151-entrants, and Rainer Kempe agreed on a heads-up deal with Toby Lewis before winning the flip for the title. Lewis would go on to win the deciding flip in the AUD 50,000 Challenge after overcoming 62-entrants, including Manig Loeser in heads-up action to round off a fantastic few days for the man from the UK.
Here are the podium places. $25k Final Table Results
1. Rainer Kempe – $595,055*
2. Toby Lewis – $566,074*
3. Chino Rheem – $300,067
4. Guillaume Nolet – $221,789
5. Gautam Dhingra – $156,557
6. Luke Marsh – $110,894
7. Jack Salter – $84,802
*Denotes a heads-up deal 50K Final Table Results
1. Toby Lewis – $588,999*
2. Manig Loeser – $556,017*
3. Thomas Muehloecker – $296,856
4. Dominik Nitsche – $233,244
5. Bjorn Li – $169,632
6. Tobias Ziegler – $148,428
7. Michael Zhang – $127,224
*Denotes a heads-up deal
The WPT Gardens Poker Championships also held a $25,000 event, but with people jetting between the Bahamas and Melbourne it didn’t pull in the numbers the organisers hoped. Darren Elias defeated 11-entrants, including Chance Kornuth, heads-up, to win the $192,500 first prize.
Finally, Dan Smith beat the seven-time US Chess Champion, Alex Shabalov, in a PRO Chess League match, showing he has many arrows in that quiver of his.
And that’s this week’s Pinnacle.
Often, when writing about poker, an image of the little old woman who lived in a shoe pops into my head. She had so many children she didn’t know what to do. And here I am writing about poker, a game that builds beautiful butterflies, while the rest never make it out of the chrysalis, drowning in their juices.
Another day.
Another article.
The little old woman who lived in the shoe is here again. I can see her fragility, and I can hear the echoes of her screams. The blinkers lost, the earplugs not to be found.
It’s the final day of the Super High Roller Bowl V (SHRB). A $300,000 buy-in, a $10m prize pool, and a £3.67m first prize.
That’s more than enough shoes.
I can choose any angle, like the one where partypoker’s Isaac Haxton finally binks his major title.
He is the chip leader after all. What about the thought of Ali Imsirovic or Stephen Chidwick winning their second major Poker Central title in 12-months. The Poker Masters and US Poker Open winners are choosing to avoid a leg wax to play in the final, later, today.
What about the brilliant Spaniard, Adrian Mateos, who is in the frame to win his fifth major title, after leaving his homeland as a pup, and is now travelling the world, tearing poker games apart like a rottweiler.
And then you have the most obvious angle of all.
Alex Foxen.
The Global Poker Index (GPI) #1 ranked player in the world, and the favourite to take the mantle of GPI Player of the Year (PoY) from the savvy Spaniard who just filled the paragraph above.
He has made the final table of the SHRB.
If I were 12, I would write OMG.
But I am not going to focus on any of these stories (or the caterpillars that crawl over the eyes of the man sitting opposite me), I am going to focus on Igor Kurganov and Talal Shakerchi.
£3.67m is life-changing money.
If Kurganov or Shakerchi win it, then it becomes life-saving.
The two of them have made it their vocation to serve others through philanthropy. Shakerchi ploughs millions into his vision of a better future for earthlings, and Kurganov does the same as a board member of Raising for Effective Giving (REG),
I know I could be doing everyone else at the table a disservice, but I know, like a toothpick knows where the Chia Seeds hangout, that these two people will save lives.
So that’s where I am going to go with it.
Life-Savers Talal Shakerchi & Igor Kurganov Make the SHRB Final Table
Here’s how they did it.
Day 1 began with 36-entrants, and Rick Salomon ended the day leading the final 27-players.
You can read the write up of Day 1, right here.
Here are the hits of Day 2.
Alex Foxen’s TT Bests AK & AK For Triple Up
Alex Foxen’s tournament line was at risk nice and early when he got it in three-ways with Dan Cates and Dan Smith. Cates was the only player not at risk of elimination. Foxen was the aggressor, and showed TT, and was as cheerful as chips when he saw the two Dan’s both held AK. The tens held up; Smith fell into the rail, Cates took a considerable blow to the solar plexus and Foxen tripled-up.
Alex Foxen v David Peters
If you were to let AI choose the two best live multi-table tournament (MTT) players in the world so we could see them duke it out like Ali v Frazier style, then the names Alex Foxen and David Peters would fly out of the printer.
The GPI #1 & #2 clashed in a cooler of a hand that left Peters on life support. Both players flopped huge on QdQs2h with Foxen holding QTo, and Peters ahead with QJcc. Peters check-raised to 58,000, and Foxen called. The 7h arrived on fourth-street and both players checked. The river was the Ts, giving Foxen the best hand. Peters bet 150,000, Foxen shipped it for 278,000, and Peters called. Foxen showed the nuts and Peters fell to 9k. A hand later, and Salomon snaffled them up when his pocket nines beat a K7o that looked as depressed as the man holding them.
Stephen Chidwick Takes the Chip Lead
Before Alex Foxen was on top of the world, Stephen Chidwick held that position for a very long time. The UK pro became a real force in this one when he opened from the first position, Rick Salomon called in late position, and then Alex Foxen three-bet from the big blind. Both Chidwick and Salomon called, and the dealer placed Tc8s4c onto the felt. Foxen checked, Chidwick bet 42,000, Salomon raised to 142,000, Foxen folded, and Chidwick called. The 3s arrived on the river, and Salomon maximised the pressure by moving all-in once checked too. Chidwick took his time before making the call. Salomon was chasing with 96cc, and Chidwick held the slight advantage with T9ss for top pair. The 4d floated down the river, and Chidwick doubled into the chip lead.
Daniel Negreanu Eliminates The Former Champion
Justin Bonomo became the only former champion in with a shout of creating deja vu after Daniel Negreanu eliminated the 2015 winner, Brian Rast. The PokerStars man opened to 12,000 from midfield, Dan Cates and Ali Imsirovic called in position before Brian Rast moved all-in for 145,000 from the big blind. Negreanu followed suit, and neither Cates nor Imsirovic wanted a piece of the action. Negreanu showed queens, Rast ATo, and the ladies reigned supreme.
We Lose The Day 1 Chip Leader
Rick Salomon has featured in three $1m buy-in Big One for One Drop Final Tables. He knows the way to reach the end zone of these things, but won’t be repeating that feat. After falling short, the Day 1 Chip Leader moved all-in with A5o, and Sean Winter called and beat him with A9cc.
Alex Foxen Takes Control
Then we had two huge hands that propelled Foxen into the lead.
The GPI #2 raised to 14,000 from the button, Sean Winter three-bet to 55,000 from the blinds and Foxen called. The dealer placed 9h6c3d onto the flop. Winter had flopped top set, and Foxen an open-ended straight draw. Winter bet 60,000 and Foxen called. The Qh appeared on fourth-street to give Foxen a flush draw. Winter bet 145,000, Foxen shipped it, and Winter made the quick call. The players focused on the space where the river would land, and after a daydream or two, the Ts took its place. Foxen hit his straight. Winter was out.
Then Alex Foxen opened from the cutoff, Justin Bonomo called in the small blind, Nick Petrangelo three-bet from the big blind to 70,000, Foxen raised to 178,000, Bonomo left the party, and Petrangelo called. The dealer delivered Kh5h3s onto the flop, Petrangelo checked, Foxen bet 95,000, and Petrangelo called. The action checked through to the river on a 3c and Th board. Petrangelo bet 175,000, Foxen moved all-in for 1.2 million, Petrangelo called and was shattered to see that his full house (TT) never stood a chance against the KK of Foxen. The GPI #1 was the chip leader. Petrangelo was out.
We Lose the SHRB V Champion
We know one thing.
Whoever wins this thing will be doing so for the first time.
Justin Bonomo, who was first to act, opened to 14,000, Isaac Haxton called in the hijack, Foxen squeezed to 57,000 from the button, Bonomo moved all-in for 710,000, Haxton folded, and Foxen made the call and had his opponent crushed KK>A4hh. Bonomo found no joy on the board and would have to sit this one out, after winning the Las Vegas and Macau events earlier this year.
Daniel Negreanu Eliminated by Stephen Chidwick
The play moved into the bubble phase after Stephen Chidwick removed the dangerous Daniel Negreanu from the equation. Both players were staring at a 6c3s2d flop when the US Poker Open Champion bet 50,000, Daniel Negreanu raised to 100,000, Chidwick made it 250,000, and Negreanu called. The 9d arrived on fourth-street, Chidwick bet 150,000, Negreanu moved all-in for 444,000, and Chidwick called. Negreanu showed pocket sevens but was way behind the T9o of Chidwick who had turned a pair of nines. The 4s ended the action, and Negreanu left his seat.
Mikita Badziakouski Bubbles the SHRB V
Stack depth saw the remaining eight players compete for three hours before we anyone made any money. Mikita Badziakouski opened to 40,000 from the first position and then moved all-in after Stephen Chidwick had three-bet to 150,000 from the big blind. Badziakouski called and showed AK; Chidwick showed TT and won the flip to set up our final table.
And I never even mentioned Shakerchi or Kurganov once.
Why did I choose that poxy headline?
Maybe tomorrow.
Here are the final table chip counts: The Super High Roller Bowl V Final Table
1. Ali Imsirovic – 875,000
2. Stephen Chidwick – 2,405,000
3. Isaac Haxton – 2,415,000
4. Igor Kurganov – 1,550,000
5. Talal Shakerchi – 995,000
6. Alex Foxen – 1,590,000
7. Adrian Mateos – 975,000
The action begins at 4 pm (ET) on Wednesday 19 December where we will crown a winner. In the meantime, the remaining seven players have had some broth without any bread, and after being whipped soundly are now all in bed.
I’m listening to William Shatner on Spotify.
What’s going on?
William Shatner?
He’s banging on about mountains in the air, and the need to get it together man. I would have thought a man like Shatner would have been on the scrapheap by now. What versatility.
TJ Hooker.
James T. Kirk.
Singer.
I need serenity.
I need peace.
It hasn’t happened yet.
Well, let’s see if I can bang out the week’s top stories from the world of the High Rollers before it does.
Online Poker News: Record-Breaking Online MILLIONS; Greenwood Doing His Bollocks; Talal Shakerchi Making Sunday Million Final Table
I don’t know how much air to put into a tyre. I don’t understand when the oil needs topping up. Temperature means nothing to me.
But I know this.
partypoker made history this week.
The online poker behemoth hosted the wealthiest online poker tournament since the days of the Allosaurus, when 4,367-entrants created a $21,385,000 prize pool, easily beating the $20m guarantee that many (including me and Shatner) thought they had no chance of achieving.
Four people had their siblings hoping for a handsome handout.
Manuel Ruivo won the world-record prize of $2,329,944 after cutting an ICM deal with Pim de Goede that saw the Dutchman become only the fourth player in history to win a $2m+ prize, collecting $2,309,995.
And check this out.
The Slovenian, Scarmak3r, parlayed a $5 online satellite win into a $1,364,688 windfall.
The dream is still alive.
Pedro Marques was the fourth player to bank a seven-figure score = $1,091,750.
And there was another record, but one Sam Greenwood likely didn’t want.
12 bulleted online Millions. Is that the high score?
So that’s how they make these imperious guarantees!
partypoker didn’t reserve all big money for the partypoker tournament tables. Sam Trickett and Rob Yong had a good week, collecting $300k+ each from a $200/$400 Pot-Limit Omaha (PLO) game that included the likes of Matt Kirk. Trickett used the money to buy himself a nice new shirt in preparation for handing Team USA their first Mosconi Cup win since 2009.
Moving from partypoker to PokerStars, and Talal Shakerchi, finished sixth in the $215 buy-in Sunday Million, showing his love for the game. The Global Poker Index (GPI) World #1, Alex Foxen, also had a good week picking up his third PokerStars High Roller Club title. Fellow high rollers, Joao Vieira, Ivan Luca and Alex Papazian also picked up PokerStars High Roller Club titles.
Live Poker News: SHRB Draw; Million Dollar Cash Game; WPT Garden and WSOP Sydney HRs
The organisers of the Super High Roller Bowl V (SHRB) had a brain fart this week. The live lottery to determine the first 24-picks should have gone ahead on Nov 27, but Poker Central cancelled it without telling any of the players.
Hey @ARIAPoker@PokerCentral@PokerGO@TDPaulCampbell
I really don’t know what’s up this year, but not giving out any information regarding #Shrb is really annoying. Would be great to know whether I should book a flight to Vegas or not in a couple of days.
The lottery did happen, albeit late, and 34-names came out of the hat, not 24.
Here they are:
1. Justin Bonomo
2. Daniel Negreanu
3. Fedor Holz
4. David Peters
5. Dan Smith
6. Bryn Kenney
7. Phil Hellmuth
8. Jason Koon
9. Jake Schindler
10. Brian Rast
11. Mikita Badziakouski
12. Isaac Haxton
13. Christoph Vogelsang
14. Stephen Chidwick
15. Cary Katz
16. Rainer Kempe
17. Dominik Nitsche
18. Adrian Mateos
19. Nick Petrangelo
20. Igor Kurganov
21. Steffen Sontheimer
22. Sean Winter
23. Koray Aldemir
24. Ben Tollerene
25. Sam Soverel
26. Alex Foxen
27. Dan Cates
28. Ben Yu
29. Talal Shakerchi
30. Bill Klein
31. Matthias Eibinger
32. Ali Imsirovic
33. Seth Davies
34. Chris Kruk
That leaves 14-spaces left.
The SHRB V takes place December 17, 18 & 19.
One player who is not on that list is Patrik Antonius, and this week the fabulous looking Finn was in India where he guested at Deltin Corporation’s 10th-anniversary celebrations aboard the Deltin Casino in Goa. Antonius finished runner-up to Justin Bonomo in the inaugural Super High Roller Bowl China earlier this year, earning $3.1m.
In other high rolling live tournament news the World Poker Tour (WPT) announced a $25k buy-in event as part of the WPT Gardens Festival 16 January, and the World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC) at The Star in Sydney has an AUD 20,000 buy-in event penned in for 12th/13th December.
From tournaments to cash games and the Bicycle Casino in Los Angeles has announced a million dollar cash game. The game is $100/$200 No-Limit Hold’em with a $100k Minimum buy-in scheduled for ten hours of action Friday, December 14 – Garrett Adelstein and Nick Vertucci feature.
And Ben Lamb seems to have created a new game.
Short-Deck is so last week.
New invention. Medium deck plo. Now being spread @ARIAPoker only the 2s and 3s removed. One seat open. 10k buy in.
Lamb joined Justin Bonomo, and a whole host of degens as Short-Deck, Medium-Deck, Call-It-What-You-Want-Deck appeared on Poker After Dark for the first time this week.
Thor Hansen Passes; Smith Charity Drive; Bathroom Bet Update
The Norwegian legend Thor Hansen finally lost his battle with cancer this week, but boy, did he put up a fight. Six years ago, doctors gave Hansen three months to live after diagnosing him with cancer, and yet Hansen was still riffling chips at the WPT Seminole Rock ‘N’ Roll Poker Open in Hollywood, Florida last month. Tributes poured in from all over the poker globe, but I particularly like this one from Mike Sexton.
Thor Hansen-great memories is right @padraigpoker. After being chip leader in an early WPT, reporter asked him, “What are you going to do with $1m if you win?” Thor said, “I’ll pay off a few debts.” Reporter said, “What about the rest?” Thor said, “They’ll have to wait.” #classichttps://t.co/e1gHzvuZSA
Rich Alati’s father (also Richard) has told the poker media that the $100k Bathroom Bet is more to do with the personal challenge than the money. Cash game grinder, Rory Young bet Alati $100k that he couldn’t stay in a darkened bathroom without human contact or any external stimuli for 30-days, and although his father is ‘concerned’ about the bet, you sense he feels confident that Alati junior will get the job done.
Finally, Dan Smith launched his fifth annual charity drive. This year, Smith has labelled his philanthropic effort DoubleUpDrive, and the plan is for Smith and his team to match donations up to a ceiling of $1,140,000.
If you want to make a difference in the world, then donate to one of Smith’s charities, and send your receipt to receipts@doubleupdrive.com.
And that’s this week’s Pinnacle.
Welcome to another round-up of all the news, views and gossip from the world of high stakes poker, and we will begin with the World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE).
The 2018 WSOPE ended with Jack Sinclair taking down the €10,300 buy-in Main Event for €1,122,239, and although Sinclair doesn’t spend most of his time hanging out in the bowels of the high stakes universe, he did win the €25,000 No-Limit Hold’em (NLHE) High Roller at the 2017 partypoker LIVE German Poker Championships for €250,000, and came 16/132 in the €111,111 NLHE One Drop High Roller at the 2017 WSOPE, so the British pro is likely to dabble when the bankroll suits, and it suits.
Regular high rollers that went deep in this one included the former WSOP Main Event Champ Ryan Riess (4th), the former Triton Poker Series Champion, Koray Aldemir (7th), the Russian powerhouse Vladimir Troyanovskiy (11th), PokerStars ambassador Igor Kurganov (22nd), and the Triton Poker High Roller Sochi winner Aymon Hata (24th).
The most profitable high roller throughout the WSOPE was Martin Kabrhel. The #1 All-Time Czech Live Tournament Money Earner, won two gold rings in the World Series of Poker Circuit (WSOPC) side of things before beating 95-entrants to bank the €2,624,340 first prize in the €100,000 NLHE Super High Roller, and then finished second to Ivan Leow in the €100,000 NLHE LEON’s High Roller for another €773,457 (the second event wasn’t a bracelet event).
LEON’s High Roller attracted 23-entrants, and Leow banked €1,251,455. Leow also finished second to Mikita Badziakouski in the €25,000 NLHE King’s Short Deck Championship. The planned €50,000 Short-Deck Championship didn’t run.
Here are the final table results from those two €100k events.
€100k LEON’s High Roller
Ivan Leow – €1,251,455
Martin Kabrhel – €773,457
Michael Soyza – €521,471
Tony G – €351,579
Dominik Nitsche – €237,038
€100k Bracelet Event
Martin Kabrhel – €2,624,340
David Peters – €1,621,960
Julian Thomas – €1,116,308
Mikita Badziakouski – €789,612
Dominik Nitsche – €574,466
Jan Schwippert – €430,217
Adrian Mateos – €331,943
Michael Addamo – €264,110
Not everyone was thrilled with Martin Kabrhel’s promising run. It seems Daniel Negreanu feels the Czech star is a little noxious. During an appearance on Dat Poker Podcast, (http://datpodcast.libsyn.com/) around the 40-min mark, Negreanu had this to say about Kabrhel. “If I ran a tournament series, I would seriously consider banning Martin not because he is cheating but because he is disruptive to the players in several ways,” said Negreanu. “His tanking, his poor behaviour and incessant whining and complaining and just being a disruptive force. Every time Martin is at the table, there are problems.
“I would let him play my series first. Then I would say to him, you are on the shortest leash ever, if you are UTG and take 30 seconds to make any fucking decision, you are out. I am going to take your chips and throw you out of the tournament. If you say anything past four words to a Tournament Director, you’re out. He is the number one worst experience player to play with in all of poker, today. We can’t let behaviour like that destroy the game.”
Ouch.
Rounding off the news from the WSOP, and Shaun Deeb took down the Player of the Year award. He is the 14th player to win the prize (Negreanu won it twice), and every single one of them has had experience playing high stakes poker.
Here are the final results of what turned out to be a one-horse race.
Shaun Deeb – 5,073.92 pts
Ben Yu – 3,746.04
Joe Cada – 3,531.86
John Hennigan – 3,499.91
Scott Bohlman – 3,155.88
Michael Addamo – 3,028.78
Paul Volpe – 2,859.76
Anthony Zinno – 2,593.34
Eric Baldwin – 2,516.30
Romain Lewis – 2,460.14
Super High Roller Bowl Changes
I won’t go into great detail here, because I covered the full story in my article Super High Roller Bowl: December Move, Lottery, Aria Picks, Hr Leaderboard Selections – Have They Got This Right? (https://paulphuapoker.com/super-high-roller-bowl-december-move-lottery-aria-picks-hr-leaderboard-selections-got-right/), but here are the cliffs.
The ARIA and Poker Central have shifted the 2019 SHRB from May to December of this year, so they can use it as a way of putting the cherry on the top of the High Roller of the Year Series.
In moving the SHRB back to December, it means that the Triple Crown of Poker Masters, US Poker Open, and SHRB are all contained within the calendar year.
The other change the SHRB has made is giving the players who finish in the top five positions in the High Roller of the Year leaderboard a spot in the SHRB should they choose to pay the $300,000 needed to compete.
This means those five will avoid the lottery. Yes, there will still be a lottery, this time choosing 25-entrants, and the ARIA will handpick the final 18 positions.
partypoker High Roller News
partypoker’s high rollers were in the news, this week.
I was fortunate enough to spend an hour talking to Jason Koon at the Triton Poker Series in Montenegro, where he put a lot of his success down to his relationship with his girlfriend Bianca Armstrong, and this week, she became his fiancee.
Sam Trickett knows how Koon feels after getting hitched in 2015, and this week the former One Drop runner-up, talked to the UK daily rag The Mirror about his high stakes jinks, including talking about players competing in pots worth $50m during his time in Macau. You can check out the nitty-gritty, right here (https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/other-sports/inside-life-high-stakes-poker-13515378).
Finally, Kristen Bicknell isn’t someone that we consider a regular high roller, but hopefully, that will change after the Global Poker Index (GPI) #1 Female Poker Player competed in her first €100,000 at the WSOPE. Bicknell didn’t make it past Day 1, but speaking to PokerNews, she confirmed that the experience didn’t feel that much different than playing a €25k. Let’s hope the experience has left her wanting more because we could desperately do with some female players in these games.
The Best of the Rest
Doug Polk doesn’t seem to be doing a great job of quitting poker. This week, the YouTube star was a guest on Joe Ingram’s Poker Life Podcast where he talked about poker’s corporate shills, suggesting that for most people, a PokerStars contract is the Holy Grail and that being the person shouting from the rafters is not the way to go about landing that sort of lucrative gig.
Check it out, right here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qnS5UpIjJA
Patrik Antonius continued his recent decision to spend more time in the limelight by making a surprise appearance at the €500 buy-in Battle of Malta this week, and the ARIA is running a full schedule of events that include several $10k and $15k events. The ARIA is also considering hosting a nightly $140 or $240 Short-Deck event, in a bid to boost interest in the format that became a global superstar thanks to the Triton Poker Series.
Here is the schedule:
10/30 – $10K PLO
10/31 – $15K PLO
11/1 – $10K NLH
11/2 – $10K Short Deck
11/3 – $25K NLH
11/4 – $10K Short Deck
11/5 – $50K NLH
11/6 – $100K NLH (2-day event)
And that’s this week’s Pinnacle.
Ryan Riess had beaten 6,352 entrants to become the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event winner, Daniel Negreanu had won the WSOP Player of the Year award for an unprecedented second time, and a young poker enthusiast from Switzerland decided to open a thread on 2+2 and write this: “I’m 19 years old living in Switzerland and been playing poker for a few months, and I’ve read a few books and tons of threads on this forum. I’m gonna start a challenge, where I update graphs, hands and other stuff. With this new challenge I switched to a new site, Pokerstars and I’m starting at NL10 6 max with a 15 BI – BRM. My goal is to get to 100NL by the end of the year 2013.”
His name? “My stars-name is “llinusllove.”
A month later, and the 19-year old writes: “Worst. Day. Ever. -200USD just today.”
A poster responds:
“Gl in this project, I’ll be following! You can make it to NL20 one day; I have faith!”
Over the weekend, LlinusLLove, topped a field of 105-entrants to win Event #43 (H) $25,000 Eight-Max No-Limit Hold’em Super High Roller at the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) securing $587,747.32 in the process.
Whaddya know, the kid must have gotten out of 10NL. LlinusLLove remained anonymous for the first three years of his bankroll challenge. Years later, when asked why he didn’t come out sooner, he would tell PokerStars’ Brad Willis usually there’s nothing good coming from it.
He has a point.
He was 22 when someone leaked his full name to HighStakesDatabase (HSDB), and fast forward to today, and in addition to the half a million dollars he has just put away playing an online tournament, Loeliger has won $807,000 pure profit in 2018 alone playing No-Limit Hold’em and Pot-Limit Omaha cash games. All told, Loeliger is $1.4m in profit since depositing $240 on PokerStars to begin his bankroll challenge.
It couldn’t have been a smooth ride for Loeliger on the $25,000 High RollerFinal Table. Both Chris ‘Big Huni- Hunichen and Patrick ‘pads1161′ Leonard are former PocketFives World #1’s, not to mention the quality of the likes of Henrik “hhecklen’ Hecklen, Michael ‘mczhang’ Chi Zhang and Rachid ‘SkaiWalkurrr’ Ben Cherif.
But this lad is mustard.
Here are the final table results.
Final Table Results
Linus “LLinusLLove” Loeliger – $587,747.32
Henrik “hhecklen’ Hecklen – $451,251.38
frozZy – $346,454.88
Michael ‘mczhang’ Chi Zhang – $265,995.69
Chris ‘Big Huni- Hunichen – $204,221.95
Rachid ’SkaiWalkurrr’ Ben Cherif – $156,794.30
Bartek901 – $120,391.17
Patrick ‘pads1161’ Leonard – $92,424.30
See what can happen when you read a few books.
‘Leicester’.
‘Definitely’.
‘Vacuum’.
‘Rhythm’.
Words that for the life of me I cannot spell correctly.
I have a new one to add to the collection.
‘Imsirovic’.
It doesn’t matter how my brain soaks it up; my fingers still want to type ‘Ismirovic.’
It’s a problem I need to fix pronto because something tells me I am going to be banging his name out on my keyboard more frequently in the next 18-months.
Five down.
Two to go.
Ali Imsirovic is in with a shout of winning a Purple Jacket after taking down Event #5: $25,000 No-Limit Hold’em at the 2018 Poker Masters.
The event pulled in 66 entrants.
After the end of Day 1, here was the final table.
Final Table
Seat 1: Brian Rast – 1,200,000
Seat 2: Jake Schindler – 2,725,000
Seat 3: Ali Imsirovic – 1,615,000
Seat 4: Daniel Negreanu – 215,000
Seat 5: Jason Koon – 905,000
Seat 6: Ben Yu – 1,695,000
Jake Schindler, Jason Koon and Daniel Negreanu are together again after the trio made the final table of Event #3: $25,000 No-Limit Hold’em. Ben Yu was also making his second final table after finishing third in Event #4: $25,000 Pot-Limit Omaha.
The Run-In
Daniel Negreanu Eliminated in 6th Place.
He began things with a few grains of rice in his bowl, so it was no surprise when Daniel Negreanu registered as the first elimination.
Ben Yu opened to 100,000 from late position holding pocket eights, and Negreanu called from the big blind holding 52cc, leaving 10,000 chips behind (the rest went in on the flop), and despite flopping a five, there was no bad beat in the jukebox, and Negreanu was out for $99,000.
Jason Koon Eliminated in 5th Place.
Only Justin Bonomo ($24.9m) and Mikita Badziakouski ($12.4m) have won more money than Jason Koon this year ($11.5m), but his name would not end up engraved in this trophy.
Ali Imsirovic put in a raise with AKo in late position, and Koon moved all-in from the small blind holding ATo, and you all know that these little struggles don’t end up well for ATo. This hand was no exception. Imsirovic flopped the top two pairs, and Koon never recovered. His consolation prize was $132,000.
Brian Rast Doubles Through Ben Yu
Brian Rast opened to 115,000 from the first position holding A2cc, and Ben Yu looked him up from the big blind holding 7d5s. The flop of Ah6d2s handed Rast a two-pair hand, but Yu must have had a plan because he check-called a 110,000 Rast c-bet holding a bag of bones.
The dealer burned and turned the 4c on the Fourth Street, and now Yu had something to chew. Rast fired 250,000, Yu check-raised all-in with his straight draw, and Rast made the call. An uncontroversial river card later, the man had doubled into the chip lead.
Chip Counts
Brian Rast – 3,815,000
Ali Imsirovic – 2,120,000
Ben Yu – 1,310,000
Jake Schindler – 1,010,000
Jake Schindler Eliminated in 4th Place.
The action folded around to Schindler in the small blind. He peeked at his cards and saw the unremarkable looking 8c6d staring back at him. Schindler moved all-in for 440,000, and Imsirovic called in the big blind with Ac9s. The flop missed both, and a much-needed Ad arrived on the turn for Imsirovic, because Schindler did find a pair of eights on the river.
Schindler walked away with $165,000.
Imsirovic Doubles Through Rast
And then we had a pivotal moment in the competition.
Imsirovic limped on the button holding pocket jacks, Yu called in the small blind holding K8hh, and Rast moved all-in from the big blind, holding Ac5s. Imsirovic called, and Yu folded. The board ran out KsQc4s2h7h and Imsirovic was the new chip leader.
Brian Rast Eliminated in 3rd Place.
Nobody has won more money playing live tournaments in the ARIA than Brian Rast, and he added to that significant lump by banking another $214,500 after hitting the rail in third.
Ben Yu moved all-in with Ah2s, and Rast took him on with pocket sevens. An ace on the river sent new hope into the lungs of Yu, and Rast became the short-stack.
Then Imsirovic moved his big stack into the middle on the button holding pocket sixes, and Rast called in the big blind with Ac3d. The aces and wheel combos stayed in the deck, and Rast was out, giving Imsirovic a big chip lead going into his heads-up encounter with Yu.
Heads-Up
Ali Imsirovic – 5,895,000
Ben Yu – 2,360,000
The finale lasted as long as a plastic bag containing half-opened tins of fish left too close to Bagpuss and his buddies.
Imsirovic limped on the button holding pocket fives, and then called when Yu moved all-in holding Ac6d. The flop of Kh8d5d handed Imsirovic a set, and the 2h turn card left Yu drawing dead.
It was all over.
Imsirovic had won his third title of the year. Final Table Results
Ali Imsirovic – $462,000 (300)
Ben Yu – $330,000 (210)
Brian Rast – $214,500 (150)
Jake Schindler – $165,000 (120)
Jason Koon – $132,000 (90)
Daniel Negreanu – $99,000 (60)
Poker Masters Leaderboard
– Brandon Adams – 510 points
– Isaac Haxton – 480
– Ben Yu – 360
– Ali Imsirovic – 360
– David Peters – 300
– Keith Lehr – 300
– Jake Schindler – 270
– Jonathan Depa – 270
– Jason Koon – 240
Results to Date
Event #1: $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em – David Peters ($193,200)
Event #2: $25,000 No-Limit Hold’em – Brandon Adams ($400,000)
Event #3: $25,000 Pot-Limit Omaha – Keith Lehr ($333,000)
Event #4: $10,000 Short-Deck – Isaac Haxton ($176,000)
The PokerStars European Poker Tour Barcelona slapped a €100,000 buy-in Super High Roller on the card for the first time, and when it came down to form, there was one man everyone had to beat.
Justin Bonomo is the hottest player in the world right now. But when Bonomo doesn’t turn up for work, that mantle becomes the responsibility of Mikita Badziakouski.
The Belarusian star came into this event after winning back-to-back Triton Poker Series Main Events in Montenegro and Jeju. Add a fourth-place finish in the Super High Roller Bowl to that collection, as well as a series of other sterling results, and you’re looking at an annual haul of $12,411,966 – only Bonomo has won more ($24,945,435). Badziakouski’s form would have seen him top the live yearly tournament earnings charts in three of the past four years.
Could anyone stop him?
The headline is a bit of a giveaway.
Let’s see how he took it down. Day 1
44 entrants participated in eight levels of 60-minutes, at the end of the day 28 remained with Badziakouski bagging up 402,000 chips, good enough for 80 big blinds.
Top Ten Chip Counts
Ahadpur Khangah – 1,155,000
Pascal LeFrancois – 647,000
David Peters – 638,000
Seth Davies – 622,000
Timothy Adams – 587,000
Jan-Eric Schwippert – 545,000
Patrik Antonius – 517,000
Jean-Hoel Thorel – 496,000
Bryn Kenney – 494,000
Benjamin Pollak – 469,000
Day 2
Ten people took advantage of the late registration, making the final field size, 54. The prize pool was €5,239,080.
Here were the payouts:
Payouts
€1,650,300
€1,191,900
€759,680
€576,300
€445,300
€340,550
€274,050
Level 10, with blinds at 4,000/8,000/8,000, and a critical hand for Badziakouski.
Badziakouski opened to 21,000, Adams three-bet to 69,000 and Badziakouski called. The flop was Ts6h2c; Adams bet 38,000, Badziaouski raised to 100,000, Adams moved all-in, and Badziakouski called for his tournament life. The Belarusian showed ATcc for top pair, and backdoor flush draw, but Adam was ahead with pocket queens. The As landed on the turn to give Badziakouski two pairs, and after a blank river he doubled up to 780,000.
By the time we reached the final three tables, Badziakouski was third in chips.
Top Five Chip Counts
Ahadpur Khangah – 1,819,000
Matthias Eibinger – 1,200,000
Mikita Badziakouski – 960,000
David Peters – 940,000
Daniel Negreanu – 685,000
With blinds at 8,000/16,000/16,000, Badziakouski took care of Pascal LeFrancois. Le Francois opened to 36,000 on the button, Badziakouski three-bet to 140,000 from the small blind, and LeFrancois called. The flop was 8d5h2d, Badziakouski made an 80,000 c-bet, LeFrancois moved all-in, and Badziakouski called.
Badziakouski: KhKd
LeFrancois: Kc5c
Badziakouski was light years ahead, and another king on the turn sealed the deal. Badziakouski moved up to 1,550,000 to solidify his #3 spot behind Matthias Eibinger (the new runaway chip leader), and Khangah.
The next player to feel the power of Badziakouski’s hands was Christoph Vogelsang. The former Super High Roller Bowl winner opened to 44,000 (with blinds at 10k/20k/20k), Badziakouski three-bet to 135,000, and Vogelsang made the call.
Flop: 5h3s2s
Both players checked.
Turn: 7s
Vogelsang bet 120,000; Badziakouski called.
River: 9s
With four spades on the board, Vogelsang checked his option, and Badziakouski put him all-in. The German star made the call and left the building after Badziakouski’s pocket aces (with the ace of spades) beat the pocket tens (ten of spades) of Vogelsang.
At the dinner break, Badziakouski had moved into the second spot.
Top Five Counts
Matthias Eibinger – 2,580,000
Mikita Badziakouski – 2,300,000
Bryn Kenney – 1,200,000
Daniel Negreanu – 1,040,000
Cary Katz – 910,000
Timothy Adams eliminated Daniel Negreanu, Ahadpur Khanga took care of Adrian Mateos and Bryn Kenney, and we had a final table.
Nine players remained.
Only seven would win any money.
Final Table Chip Counts
Matthias Eibinger – 3,040,000
Mikita Badziakouski – 2,570,000
Ahadpur Khangah – 2,105,000
Cary Katz – 1,425,000
Timothy Adams – 1,245,000
Rui Neves Ferreira – 1,020,000
Benjamin Pollak- 765,000
Jean Ferreira – 720,000
Byron Kaverman – 610,000
Day 3
The first player to exit was Cary Katz, and it was a brutal way to go. The Poker Central founder got it in with pocket queens against the KTcc of Matthias Eibinger. The ultra dry flop of Qs6c2h gave Katz an incredible opportunity to double up, only for the Austrian to hit runner-runner clubs to eliminate Katz with a flush.
The elimination of Katz led to the bubble, and the last player to leave with nothing was Byron Kaverman. Once again Eibinger played the role of Albert Pierrepoint, tightening the noose around the American’s neck with 87o>A8dd, and letting the trap door go when a seven hit the turn to give Eibinger the win.
Jean Ferreira earned €275,050 for a seventh-place finish after running AJo into the pocket kings of Khangah all-in, pre-flop. Badziakouski doubled up through the chip leader, Eibinger, when his pocket tens won a flip against the AQ of the Austrian. And Rui Neves Ferreira became the second Ferreira to leave the final table when his pocket queens lost out to the KQ of Khangah after the Iranian flopped the second cowboy.
The former November Niner, Benjamin Pollak, took €445,300 for a fifth-place finish when Eibinger sent him packing 86cc>AJo after flopping an eight and rivering a six in an all-in, pre-flop encounter. Timothy Adams banked €576,300 after losing a flip 88<KQ to Eibinger. And we reached heads-up play after Badziakouski’s AQ found an ace on the flop to eliminate Eibinger who was holding pocket tens.
Khangah finished sixth in the 2016 €50,000 Super High Roller in this very building, and also finished seventh in the €111,111 One Drop High Roller at the 2017 World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE), but he is no match for the silky skills of the Belarusian.
Khangah would need the luck to be on his side, and it stayed in the deck.
Badziakouski won a succession of pots to take a commanding chip lead before busting his opponent after both players flopped top pair. The money went in on the turn after Badziakouski turned his weaker top pair hand into two pairs.
It was an excellent run for the Iranian, but he was up against one of the hottest poker players in the world.
Here are the final table results.
Final Table Results
Mikita Badziakouski – €1,650,300
Ahadpur Khangah – €1,191,900
Matthias Eibinger – €759,680
Timothy Adams – €576,300
Benjamin Pollak – €445,300
Rui Ferreira – €340,550
Jean-Christophe Ferreira – €275,050
“Are you going to be in Manila for Triton in December?” I asked Badziakouski after his win.
“I guess I have to be now,” said a calm as you like Badziakouski.
That’s not good news for anyone else heading that way.
Cary Katz hadn’t played Short-Deck before arriving in the Landing Casino, Jeju, South Korea, resplendent in his trademark black jacket and peaked cap.
Not that it matters.
People like Katz don’t fear games of poker, even one without the deuces, treys, fours and fives. Successful men like Katz adapt, evolve and more often than not come out on top.
After testing the water in the HKD 100,000 (USD 13,000) and HKD 500,000 (USD 64,000) buy-in Short-Deck events without coming up with as much as a conch shell, the Poker Central founder, finished second in the HKD 1,000,000 (USD 127,000) buy-in event for HKD 13,920,000 (USD 1,773,722).
The game had flung out a lure, and you could see it, flashing brightly, from his stiff upper lip.
The man who created the ARIA High Rollers, and has cashed in more of them than anyone alive or pushing up tulips, went home to the US, and I get the feeling there was only one thing on his mind.
The Poker Masters is Back
The second edition of the Poker Masters is back, and the ARIA and Poker Central have released the menu.
It looks tasty.
Events #1 – #5 are double re-entry Events #6 – #7 are single re-entry
As you can see, Katz has introduced a Triton Hold’em event (Short-Deck) into the schedule, and I think that’s a good thing for the high roller stratum.
The Triton Poker Series is the father of the Short-Deck Ante-Only variant. The brand has become THE tour for the games biggest winners, but only a select few top-tier pros have given this format a shot because the buy-ins are so huge.
In offering a $10,000 price point (which isn’t Triton’s niche), it allows a broader tranche of players to have a taste of the newest meat in town. If they like the marble; they are likelier to compete in what is fast becoming the most significant high stakes tournament variant in the world.
Last year, Steffen Sontheimer won the Waraire Boswell designed Purple Jacket when he made four of the five final tables, winning two of them, including the $100,000 Main Event for $1.5m, leaving Las Vegas with $2,733,000 in winnings. “Including Short-Deck is fine since it’s just the ’10k'”, Sontheimer told me in a brief interview.” It’s a little tryout for everybody and won’t influence the overall results. I’d prefer to make The Poker Masters pure NLH since we have the USPO for mixed games, but it’s fine either way.”
A lot of players coming into the Poker Masters spending more time in the zone than out of it. Justin Bonomo has to be the favourite after winning both Super High Roller Bowls and the Big One For One Drop, Jason Koon is another man picking up seven-figure scores at the rate a hammerhead shark picks up jokes about his face from other sharks, and Mikita Badziakouski has just won back-to-back Triton Poker Series Main Events.
Form.
Heat.
Luck.
Call it what you want, it’s essential coming into an event like this. “I felt good going into the event last year,” said Sontheimer. “I had a great summer doing alright in Vegas; cashing big in Montenegro and Velden, and cashing in Rozvadov. Life was great. For me, it was the first time experiencing Vegas with nice weather. My friends and I got there two days early, and we hung out and had a good time. I felt like my game was great, confidence was at an all-time high at that point.”
The Poker Masters is still in its infancy. Given its annual calling, it will take time to settle into a rhythm, and become one of the genuinely great poker events. The schedule and lineup will ebb and flow depending on the times, and feedback from those involved. “I loved the idea and the concept of having a week-long grind of those tourneys,” said Sontheimer. “I figured out early that the overall ranking was kinda messed up; pretty much guaranteeing the winner of the Main Event the title. But since you only win the jacket with no money on top, it’s not a big deal. There wouldn’t be any point where I play differently to win the title. My job was to go max $-EV. Everything that comes along with that is a cherry on top. They changed the ranking system for this year which makes sense. They should’ve asked players earlier to start like that right away.”
After Sontheimer won the Purple Jacket, Daniel Negreanu called him the best No-Limit Hold’em live tournament player on the planet. High praise from the undisputed Player of the Decade.
“I felt great getting so many warm words from a legend and poker icon like Daniel,” said Sontheimer. “I always enjoy playing and competing with him. It feels great to be seen as one of the top guys by people that play the same stuff. Whether it is being picked early in a draft, getting asked for swaps by the best players or getting those kinds of articles written about you.”
And media folks looking forward to writing more Poker Masters articles about Sontheimer are going to be sorely disappointed. PokerGO relies on the story arc of poker, and there is no better narrative than a man returning to defend his title.
Not this year. “I won’t play this year,” Sontheimer confirmed. “I don’t think it’s the best value of the year and I have private things during that week that I value a lot. So I decided to skip and watch some of the streams. I’m a bit sad for sure, but I’m happy with my decision.”
I imagine there are twenty plus other people who are also happy with his decision.
