PokerStars Caribbean Adventure ends on a high – posted 01.14.10
An extraordinary ten days of poker ended in the Bahamas last night with American William Reynolds becoming the new PokerStars Caribbean Adventure High Roller Champion.
The 21-year-old pro from Sioux City, Iowa won $576,240 in the $25k event after beating Canadian pro Will Molson. It was a bitter disappointment for Molson, 22, from Montreal, who was runner-up last year as well. A total of 84 players entered, creating a total prize pool of $2,058,000.
Reynolds, who came fourth at EPT San Remo last season, said: “I feel ecstatic. It was the most rollercoaster ride I’ve ever been on.”
2009 World Series Ladies Champion Lisa Hamilton, a high stakes cash game pro, came fifth. She was one of only two women to enter. The other was Team PokerStars Pro Sandra Naujoks who came ninth. Team PokerStars Pro and 2009 World Champion Joe Cada was eliminated in 11th place.
This year’s PCA schedule featured 50 events and attracted more than 6,000 entries overall, the biggest tournament series ever held outside of Las Vegas.
The $10k PCA Main Event attracted record numbers with 1,529 players from 57 countries, generating a total prize pool of $14,831,300.
Harrison Gimbel, 19, was the event’s youngest ever champion and won $2.2 million as well as a seat in the Grand Final of either the LAPT, the APPT or the EPT.
Team PokerStars Pros also thrived at the PCA: EPT founder John Duthie was knocked out of the main event in 12th place for $130k. Vanessa Rousso won the $1k Ladies Event for $24,725 against a 91-strong field. The players included 33 women who won their trips to the PCA on PokerStars. William Thorson won the PLO $5k event while Benjamin Kang and his friend Mathias Kuerschner won the PL
Hold'em/PLO Tag Team event. Katja Thater was the $1k 8 Game champion while Pieter de Korver triumphed in the $1k No Limit 6 Max for $ 110,050. Team PokerStars Pro Marcin Horecki from Poland cashed in three events for a total of $21,855.
A total of 55 Team PokerStars Pros attended the event including poker legend Daniel Negreanu, world champion Joe Cada, former world champions Peter Eastgate, Greg Raymer, Tom McEvoy and Chris Moneymaker. Team PokerStars SportStars Boris Becker, Swedish NHL star Mats Sundin and Dutch hockey pro Fatima Moreira De Melo, baseball legend Orel Hershiser and UK football legend Teddy Sheringham also competed.
The Haiti earthquake disaster happened just before the PCA ended and PokerStars immediately set up an appeal to raise funds for victims. The Haiti Fund was promoted continuously during the last day of live broadcast from the PCA with PokerStars matching all player donations. More than $100,000 was raised in the first few hours. Players can transfer funds direct to “Haiti Fund” on the PokerStars client or enter “dummy” tournaments to donate varying amounts from $1 to $1,000.
Tobias Reinkemeier leads field as PCA High Roller goes into final day – posted 01.13.10
German pro Tobias Reinkemeier is chip leader with 1,072,000 as the PCA $25k High Roller goes into its final day.
The 22-year-old has run deep in numerous events –including 11th at EPT London and 46th here in the main event a few days ago – but said it was an amazing feeling to make a final.
Team PokerStars Pro Sandra Naujoks just missed out on the final, finishing in ninth place for $56,995. The only other woman to enter the event – high stakes cash game player Lisa Hamilton – goes into the final with 440,000. Hamilton, who won the $1k Ladies Poker Championship at the World Series last summer, is one of eight players still in the running for a first prize of $576,240. The event kicked off three days ago with 84 runners, generating a total prize pool of $2,058,000.
The other finalists are EPT London High Roller finalist Adolfo Vaeza from Uruguay, PokerStars SuperNova Elite Matt Marafioti, Dutch pro Michiel Brummelhuis. Russian player Dmitry Stelmak and EPT San Remo finalist William Reynolds. Will Molson, who was runner-up in last year’s PCA High Roller event, was the short stack when today started but he has also made the final while Team PokerStars Pro Dario Minieri, chip leader at the start of the day, bubbled in 17th place.
Those who have already received a share of the $2,058,000 prize pool include world champion and Team PokerStars Pro Joe Cada – out in 11th place, EPT Barcelona winner Carter Phillips – out in 12th, Team PokerStars Pro Greg Raymer –13th and LAPT1 Punta del Este runner-up Alex Brenes – busted in tenth place.
Close to the High Roller event in the Imperial Ballroom today - but significantly louder and more boisterous – was the final of the PokerStars World Cup of Poker VI. Cheers and roars erupted all day as scores of spectators cheered on their national teams.
The eventual winners were Team Chinese Taipei who beat Team Croatia heads-up to the coveted title and share of $100,000. The event was televised and broadcast live on pokerstars.tv.
Dario Minieri leads pack in $25 PCA High Roller event – posted 01.12.10
Now that the PCA main event is safely out the way, attention in the Atlantis Imperial Ballroom has switched to contest offering the next biggest prize: the ever-engrossing $25k High Roller event.
A total of $2,058,000 is up for grabs with $576,240 for the winner – not quite the $2.2 million that main event winner Harrison Gimbel walked off with last night but still an amount not to be sniffed at.
The man currently leading the pack as the event goes into its third day is Italian Team PokerStars Pro Dario Minieri with 430,700. It’s less than three months since Minieri scooped the High Roller event at EPT Warsaw for $77k. Now he’s set to do it all over again, although he faces arguably stiffer competition among the 24 players who remain here in the Bahamas.
If the 25-year-old from Rome does win, it will be the biggest cash of his career which already includes a World Series bracelet and three EPT main event finals.
Numerous big names are still in the running however including world champion and fellow Team PokerStars Pro Joe Cada, former world champion Greg Raymer, EPT Dortmund winner Sandra Naujoks and EPT Barcelona winner Carter Phillips. Minieri doesn’t scare easily though – as Howard Swains puts it in the PokerStars blog tonight: “He plays every single tournament as though it costs him a dollar: relentless raise, raise, raise until all the damage is done.”
On the other side of the cavernous Imperial Ballroom, Day 2 of the PokerStars World Cup of Poker VI heats were being played out.
Finland, who started sixth today, moved to the top of the points chart and become the closest rival to Team Croatia. Teams start tomorrow’s final with chip stacks relative to the points they won today. That means the following:
1st - Croatia (100,000 starting stack, 20,000 per player); 2nd - Finland (90,000, 18,000 per player); 3rd - Canada (80,000, 16,000 per player); 4th - Chinese Taipei (70,000, 14,000 per player); 5th - Norway (60,000, 12,000) 6th - Italy (50,000, 10,000 per player); 7th - USA (40,000, 8,000 per player) 8th - Germany (30,000, 6,000 per player); 9th - Chile (20,000, 4,000 per player).
Harrison Gimbel, 19, wins $2.2 million in PCA main event – posted 01.12.10
American Harrison Gimbel turned $1,000 into $2.2 million tonight when he became the youngest ever winner of the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure at Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. The 19-year-old from Jupiter, Florida bested a 1,529 strong field to snatch the PCA Champion’s title.
“I’m so excited. It feels amazing.” he said. “A lot of these players were very good but I had a lot of confidence in myself coming into today and it really showed. I’m now going car shopping!”
Before the PCA, Gimbel ‘s best live result was $70k for winning the 2009 Florida State Poker Championships.
Runner-up Tyler Reiman from Morton, Illinois, won $1.75 million while third place finisher Barry Shulman, 63, owner of CardPlayer magazine, won $1.35 million. Shulman, whose son is WSOP finalist Jeff, won the World Series of Poker Europe event this year for £801k.
The 2010 PCA main event attracted some of the best players in the world as well as stars from the world of sport and entertainment, generating a total prize pool of $14,831,300.
Cracked aces knocked EPT founder John Duthie out of the tournament in 12th place for $130k. Other Team PokerStars Pro to cash were Florian Langmann, Johnny Lodden, Ivan Demidov, Vicky Coren, Matthias De Meulder, Victor Ramdin, Luis Medina and former PCA champion Steve Paul-Ambrose. More than 50 Team PokerStars Pro competed including world champion Joe Cada and poker legend Daniel Negreanu.
American rapper Nelly, Playboy Playmate Jayde Nicole, tennis legend Boris Becker, NHL star Mats Sundin, baseball legend Orel Hershiser, UK football star Teddy Sheringham, US talk show host Montel Williams and Dutch hockey pro Fatima de Melo all took part. Only Hershiser made the money – 219th out of 224 – for a $15k payday.
Since it started in 2004, more than $53 million has been won at the PCA, with more than 6,000 players taking part including thousands of PokerStars qualifiers. Previous winners include Gus Hansen and Team PokerStars Pro Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier.
Elsewhere in the Atlantis Imperial Ballroom, the poker action continued to generate big crowds. The $25k High Roller event kicked off attracting more than 80 runners – nearly double last year’s 48-strong field. The entrants included Team PokerStars Pros Joe Cada, Daniel Negreanu, Barry Greenstein, Greg Raymer, John Duthie, Peter Eastgate, Alex Gomes, Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Jason Mercier, and Andre Akkari. At the time of writing Dario Minieri, Lex Veldhuis and EPT Barcelona winner Carter Philiips were all thriving.
The World Cup of Poker final also started today with nine teams taking part in rounds comprising nine-handed, six-handed and then four-handed sit n gos. The ultimate prize is a share of $100,000. Croatia are now through; Norway, Italy, Canada, Germany, Taiwan, USA, Chile and Finland return tomorrow for a day of heads-up heats.
In other news, Team PokerStars Pro Vanessa Rousso won $24k for taking down the two-day $1k Ladies Event which involved 91 players and finished last night. William Thorson won the $5k PLO and Team PokerStars Pro Benjamin Kang won the Tag Team event with his friend Mathias Kuerschner.
Pokerstars Qualifier Ryan D’angelo Still in the Lead as PCA goes into Final Day – posted 01.10.10
Ryan "g0lfa" D'Angelo is still in the lead as the PCA main event goes into its final day tomorrow. The 24-year-old PokerStars qualifier from New York has more than 10 million. In second place is fellow online pro Tyler “puffinmypurp” Reiman who has 9,350,000.
Among the 24 players who started Day 5 today who are now out was EPT founder John Duthie. He was the last surviving member of Team PokerStars Pro and was in good shape until his Aces were cracked Tyler Reiman’s QQ. Reiman hit a Q on the flop to take nearly all Duthie’s five million chips in the biggest pot of the tournament.
Many players today were probably nursing massive hangovers after enthusiastic celebrating at the PokerStars party last night. Celebrities such as Slash, Entourage star Adrian Grenier, England footballer Teddy Sheringham, the 2008 Playboy Playmate Jayde Nicole and tennis legend Boris Becker mingled with over a thousand PokerStars players and their guests at the lavish do which included a performance by R&B star Kelly Rowland.
At the time of writing this, Team PokerStars Pro Vanessa Rousso was heads-up in the PCA $1k Ladies event – and looking likely to win the $24k first prize. A total of 91 women took part in the event including 33 who won their seats – and trip to the Bahamas - online with PokerStars. Apart from the WSOP Ladies Event (which men can enter), this is the biggest ladies event that has ever been held. The EPT London Ladies winner Dagmara Aleksandrowicz from Poland also competed as well as Norwegian poker pro Annette Obrestad.
Pokerstars Qualifier Ryan D'angelo Steams Through Day 4 – posted 01.09.10
Ryan "g0lfa" D'Angelo(pictured)- our soaraway chip leader with nearly 7.5 million at the end of Day 4.
Day 4 was also great for John Duthie, Team PokerStars Pro and founder of the European Poker Tour. Duthie, a TV director by trade, first came to fame when he won the Poker Million in 2000. He also picked up $386,636 this summer for coming second in the WSOP $10k World Championship Heads-Up and is now in second place at the PCA.
Wayne Bentley, who led the field on Day 1a, had a rollercoaster ride today. The 28-year-old taxi driver started with half a million, slipped right down to 75,000 but managed to recover to 2,878,000 and is now in third place. All 24 players who return tomorrow are guaranteed at least $66,000 but no one is interested in that - it's the $2.2 million first prize they want to get their hands on.
The early finish tonight - around 7pm - means everyone has plenty of time to get ready for the PokerStars PCA party where R&B star Kelly Rowland will be performing to around 1,000 PokerStars players and their guests. Celebrities such as Nelly, Guns N' Roses lead guitarist Slash, Jayde Nicole, the 2008 Playboy Playmate of the Year, supermodel Joanna Krupa and US talk show host Montel Williams were also all set to attend.
Stars steal the show at the PCA – posted 01.08.10
The poker continued fast and furious in the main event of the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure today, with 280 players whittled down to just 62 by the end of day.
But it was hard to keep focused on the $10k main event when stars such as hip hop singer Nelly, Guns N’ Roses lead guitarist Slash and Destiny’s Child founder Kelly Rowland were all competing in the special amfAR and PokerStars charity tournament just a few yards away.
A host of celebrities from the world of entertainment and sport turned up to help raise funds for the AIDS research organization including Jayde Nicole, the 2008 Playboy Playmate of the Year, supermodel Joanna Krupa and US talk show host Montel Williams. With at least half the tournament prize pool going direct to amfAR, the event was set to raise around $100,000 for charity.
Also taking part were world champion Joe Cada, tennis legend Boris Becker, former England footballer Teddy Sheringham, Spanish football legend Poli Rincon, Estonian NBA star Martin Muursepp and 11 members of Team PokerStars Pro.
The event was run as a shootout with two winners from each table going through to the final. At the time of publication, eight players were left: Carlos Bernard, who plays Tony Almeida in TV hit “24”, US talk show host Montel Williams, NHL Olympic medalist Mats Sundin, Dutch hockey pro Fatima de Melo, Team PokerStars Pros Luis Medina, Leo Fernandez and Alex Gomes as well as PokerStars qualifier Spencer Benjafield from the UK.
Meanwhile in the main event, Team PokerStars Pros John Duthie, founder of the PokerStars.com European Poker Tour, Florian Langmann and Johnny Lodden are all still in the running for the $2.2 million first prize. Last night’s chip leader – Briton Praz Bansi - is also still in good shape but it is three American players who lead the field – Harrison Gimbel in first place and PokerStars qualifiers Matthew Haugen and Ryan D'Angelo close behind.
The action continues in the Atlantis Imperial Ballroom tomorrow at noon. As well as the main event, there are loads more side events planned including the Ladies $1k, the final of the 8-game, and the first day of the PLO Championships.
Yet again however, celebrities may distract all but the most diehard poker fans –the PokerStars party takes place tomorrow night with all PokerStars players invited and set to hear an exclusive performance by Kelly Rowland.
Praz Bansi leads field in PokerStars Caribbean Adventure - posted 01.07.10
British pro Praz Bansi is leading the field as the $10k PCA Main Event goes into Day 3. The former recruitment consultant, who came third at the WSOP-E in September, is sitting on 960,800 in chips. Canadian Marc Etienne Mclaughlin is in second place while British player Wayne Bentley is third with 602,500 .
Day 2 started with 884 players but just 280 will be returning to the Atlantis Imperial Ballroom tomorrow for Day 3. Team PokerStars Pros prospered and a dozen are still in the running for the first prize of $2.2 million. The survivors include Italian maverick Dario Minieri, Russian 2008 WSOP runner-up Ivan Demidov, EPT founder John Duthie from the UK and Norwegian star Johnny Lodden.
The seventh PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, the biggest and richest tournament ever held outside of the USA, attracted record numbers with 1,529 players competing from some 57 countries.
This year’s entrants hail from all over the world – more than half are American and 164 from Canada while over 500 players crossed the pond from Europe. Other players have come from as far away as India, Korea, South America, Australia and New Zealand – lured by a festival boasting more than 50 events.
The $14,831,300 prize pool will be shared between 224 players but it’s the $2.2 million first prize that everyone has their eyes on, as well as the illustrious PCA Champion’s title.
The side events also continued to draw big numbers with massive lines for the NL Freezeout 6 Max which kicked off with 452 players. A total of 64 players entered the 8 Game Championship and more than 360 took part in the $200 No Limit Turbo. Among those who have made the money so far are Matt Woodward, EPT5 San Remo runner-up, who came 2nd in the Badugi/ 2-7 Mix, Team PokerStars Pro Marcin Horecki who cashed in a nightly turbo turbo and EPT Vilamoura runner-up Pierre Neuville.
Excitement is also building for tomorrow’s amFar charity poker tournament. Eight PokerStars players will be sitting alongside Entourage star Adrian “Vince” Grenier, Playboy Playmate Jayde Nicole, supermodel Joanna Krupa, US hip hop star Nelly, Slash from Guns N’ Roses as well as tennis legend Boris Becker, Teddy Sheringham, the former England footballer, NHL legend Mats Sundin and former Spanish footballer Poli Rincón. The $5k tournament kicks off at 6pm, with half the prize pool going to raise funds for AIDS research.
2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure breaks own record – posted 01.06.10
It’s official – the 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure is not just the biggest PCA ever held, it’s the biggest and richest tournament ever held outside of the USA.
A total of 1,529 players competed in the $10k main event including some of the biggest names not just in poker but in the world of sport and entertainment as well. Today’s Day 1b entrants included USA hip-hop star Nelly – who wowed guests at the spectacular PokerStars WSOP party in July, stunning Playboy playmate and Million Dollar Challenge contestant Jayde Nicole, US talk show host Montel Williams, German tennis legend Boris Becker, Major League baseball great Orel Hershiser, Dutch hockey pro Fatima de Melo and NHL star Mats Sundin.
Hershiser, de Melo (pictured) and Sundin all made it through and will be joined for Day 2 tomorrow by plenty of Team PokerStars Pros. They include last year’s world champion Peter Eastgate (82,900), EPT3 London winner Vicky Coren (69,700), Mexican WSOP bracelet winner JC Alvarado (109,600), Italian Pier Paolo Fabretti (117,00), Portuguese pro Luis Medina (21,000), Sweden’s William Thorson (45,100), Thierry van den Berg from Holland (64,600), Victor Ramdin (61,300), the 2008 PCA champion Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier (19,900) and Juan Manuel Pastor from Spain (30,000).
Heading the pack of today’s 498 survivors is Anibal Tacla from Curitiba in Brazil, the same home town as Team PokerStars Pro Alex Gomes, but Tacla's 166,000 is totally eclipsed by the 329,500 stack bagged up by British PokerStars qualifier Wayne Bentley on Day 1a.
A total of 884 players return to the fray tomorrow for Day 2 including a host of other female pros including Annette Obrestad, Team PokerStars Pros Vicky Coren and Vanessa Rousso, Kathy Liebert, Liv Boeree and Liz Lieu. New Team PokerStars Pro Matthias De Meulder from Belgium has made it through but his twin brother Christophe will have to content himself with supporting from the rail.
A bunch of side events took place today, including the $500 PLO Freezeout, the Badugi / 2-7 Mix event, the first High Roller Super Satellite steps and the $200 PLO8 turbo but the day’s biggest story was the official announcement that PokerStars is to launch a brand new poker series in North America. The NAPT debut event is the PCA, stop #2 is the spectacular Las Vegas Venetian casino in February followed by the Mohegan Sun in Connecticut in April.
PokerStars’ global reach is amply reflected by the large numbers of prestigious media attending this year’s PCA. Around 100 journalists from all over the world are reporting on the event including publications like Vanity Fair, daily nationals such as The Sun, Correio da Manhã and Le Monde as well as TV film crews, radio stations and dozens of poker outlets.
Just under 400 make it through Day 1a of the PCA – posted 01.05.10
A total of 386 players have survived Day 1a of the 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure $10k Main Event from a starting field of 668. Well over 700 players are expected for Day 1b tomorrow ensuring that this year’s event will smash all previous PCA records.
The current chip leader is British PokerStars qualifier Wayne Bentley (pictured)who has 329,500. Last year's winner Poorya Nazari from Canada is also through as well as Kevin Saul, who came eighth last year. Saul currently lies in third place with 175,500.
Today’s survivors also include the PokerStars-sponsored 2009 WSOP finalist Eric Buchman who has 159,100. Team PokerStars Pro and poker legend Daniel Negreanu is in 12th place with 124,000. He will be returning to the Imperial Ballroom on Thursday alongside 2008 WSOP finalist Dennis Phillips, Italian maverick Dario Minieri, EPT4 Barcelona winner Sebastian Ruthenberg and WSOP bracelet winner Angel Guillen.
Phillips won a huge pot when he flopped quad kings against Bert Van Doesburg's flopped full house. He now has 113,000. Phillips finished the day sitting next to this year's PokerStars-sponsored WSOP finalist Kevin Schaffel who has 53,200.
Also through to Day 2 is “frenchie73” from the US Virgin Islands who invested just 40 Frequent Player Points to make it out to the Caribbean after carving his way through the PokerStars Megapath satellite series.
A host of stars are set to play Day 1b tomorrow including German tennis legend Boris Becker, Swedish NHL star Mats Sundin and Dutch hockey pro Fatima De Melo as well as baseball legend Orel Hershiser and PokerStars-sponsored UK football legend Teddy Sheringham. Belgian twins Christophe and Matthias De Meulder are making their debut appearance as members of Team PokerStars Pro and will be joined by nearly 30 team mates including world champion Joe Cada from the USA and the 2008 PCA champion Bertrand "Elky" Grospellier from France.
Also playing tomorrow is former New York police sergeant and 9/11 hero Mike Kosowski, winner of the PokerStars Million Dollar Challenge, the most watched poker show in USA TV history. Kosowski, who was awarded the Medal of Valor for his rescue efforts at Ground Zero, was one of 20 PokerStars players who made it through the online freerolls and a tough video audition process to take part in the celebrated TV show. He faced competition from celebrities, Team PokerStars Pros and Daniel Negreanu to win first prize and a seat in the PCA main event.
Kosowski will be up against fellow MDC finalist Brian Barbosa who won his PCA seat after beating four other MDC finalists in a special freezeout contest today. Also playing will be Playboy 2008 Playmate of the Year Jayde Nicole, one of the MDC’s celebrity contestants.
The main event is not the only action taking place tomorrow – other tourneys include the $500 PLO Freezeout, the Badugi / 2-7 Mix event, the first High Roller Super Satellite steps and the $200 PLO8 turbo.
One day to go in Paradise! - posted 01.03.10
With less than a day to go, the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas is now buzzing with excitement as the world’s top poker players gather for the PCA, the biggest tournament series ever held outside of Las Vegas. Since it started in 2004, over $39 million has been awarded in prize money at the PCA, with more than 4,800 players taking part - including hundreds of PokerStars qualifiers. This year’s PCA is set to be the biggest and best yet with over 50 tournaments scheduled between January 4 and 14.
Onsite registration for the event opens on January 4 at 4pm but nearly 1,100 players are already signed up via PokerStars including world champion and Team PokerStars Pro Joe Cada, former world champions Peter Eastgate, Joe Hachem, Greg Raymer and Chris Moneymaker as well as poker legend Daniel Negreanu, PCA high roller champion Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier and last year’s main event champion Poorya Nazari.
There’s no shortage of celebrities and sports stars at this year’s PCA either – tennis legend Boris Becker, NHL star Mats Sundin, baseball legend Orel Hershiser, UK football star Teddy Sheringham and Dutch hockey pro Fatima De Melo are all competing in the main event while Entourage star Adrian “Vince” Grenier, rock star Slash, fashion designer Kenneth Cole, Carlos Bernard from 24 and Jimmy Wahlberg are all set to play the $5,000 amFar charity event on January 8.
PokerStars’ live webcast team are expanding their coverage at this year’s PCA to provide five days of top-quality broadcasting which will include the amfAR and PokerStars Celebrity Charity Tournament, the last two days of the PCA main event, the World Cup of Poker final and the final of the PCA $25k High Roller event.
The poker action kicks off tomorrow (January 4) at 18:00 with a Super Satellite to the Main Event but for those who can tear themselves away from the tournament area, the fun starts with PokerStars’ Welcome Party from 7pm-9pm on the Atlantis Grand Ballroom.
PokerStars Qualifier wins over half a million dollars at APPT Sydney Grand Final – posted 12.06.09
Over half a million dollars – that’s what you can win by playing in PokerStars.net’s live events and it’s what PokerStars online qualifier Aaron Benton has just done today.
The 32 year old recruitment consultant from Australia beat a field of 396 at the Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) Grand Final poker tournament, which was held over a marathon six days in the glorious city of Sydney, and walked away with a cool AUD $594,000.
The showdown came between Benton and fellow online qualifier Ernst Hermans from the Netherlands.
Ernst Hermans called a pre-flop button raise from Aaron Benton of 325,000 to see a flop of 7d-9c-7s.
Hermans checked, Benton fired out 375,000 and Hermans called. The dealer produced the Qc on the turn; Benton checked, Hermans snap-shoved and Benton snap-called, miles ahead with Kd-Kc against Hermans 9d 8d.
The river ran out with a 6c and made Benton the champion.
Benton, who qualified on PokerStars for every season three APPT events this year, said he planned to buy himself a house if he took the tournament down. Whatever he decides, starting the New Year with half over a million dollars is a good beginning.
The Final table is here! – posted 12.05.09
The final table of the APPT Season 3 Grand Final is here, but just who are the faces among the final nine? Find out with our final table player profiles.
Seat 1: David Formosa, Sydney, Australia (856,000 in chips): This 41-year-old father of two sports centre manager satellited his way into this tournament via Star City Casino and has been playing the game for six years. "I played a couple of the $1500 events in the WSOP, but this will be my biggest tournament cash - I've really enjoyed it," he said. He's been one of the surprise packets of the tournament, staying under the radar for the first two days until joining the chip leaders midway through day three.
Seat 2: Thomas Slifka, Dayton, Ohio, USA, PokerStars Qualifier (758,000 in chips) - a former criminal justice student turned full-time poker player, the 25-year-old has already recorded some considerable live tournament results. Before qualifying, Slifka had already won more than USD $60,000 in tournament cashes, including a win in the $500 No Limit Hold'em Event in this year's Deep Stack Extravaganza Series II in Las Vegas worth $37,000. He'll have his hands full against the seven Aussies, with Ernst Hermans the only other non-Australian at the final table.
Seat 3: Wayne Carlson, Sydney, Australia (1,014,000 in chips) - an operations manager with an electrical company, this father of three makes his home in Sydney's leafy inner-north. After twice winning $2000 for runner-up finishes in PokerStars tournaments, he decided to make up the difference and enter the APPT Grand Final for the third year in a row. His poker experience is mainly limited to pub/club and home games over the past four years, and he's quietly confident of a good showing at the final table but has "no aspirations, but it would be nice to pay off the mortgage."
Seat 4: Andrew Hiscox, Sydney, Australia (848,000 in chips) - this 50-year-old who works in the IT industry was born and grew up in South Africa before moving to Australia. A father-of-two and former professional blackjack player, he only started playing poker 12 months ago and enjoys the challenges of online poker at sites like PokerStars. He bought in directly to the APPT Grand Final and said victory in this event would mean a "change in lifestyle - for the better". He brings one of the smaller stacks to the final table but can't really be considered a short-stack with the chips spread so evenly.
Seat 5: Leo Boxell, Melbourne, Australia, PokerStars Qualifier (1,236,000 in chips) - the patriarch of one of Australia's great poker families, his record is one of the most extensive in this part of the world - he won the 2000 Australasian and 2001 NZ Championships. In 2003, he went within a whisker of becoming the first local to win the Aussie Millions when he finished runner-up to Peter Costa. A mechanic by trade, his rugged appearance hides a gentle soul but fiercely competitive spirit. And he'll be assured plenty of support at the final table from wife Bev, who rarely misses a hand that Leo plays.
Seat 6: Barry Forrester, Sydney, Australia (1,087,000) - another player who quietly picked his way through the day three field to earn a slot at the final table, this 63-year-old from Mooroopna, NSW is retired. The father-of-one (whose son watches dad's progress from a photo in his card protector) was a professional blackjack player and only started playing poker two years ago. He final-tabled the $2700 High Stakes event at the Joe Hachem Deep Stack Series in March 2009. "I've been a gambler all my life and I'll gamble some more if I win this tournament," he said.
Seat 7: Aaron Benton, Wollongong, NSW, Australia, PokerStars Qualifier (1,785,000 in chips) - having qualified for every season three APPT event this year online, the 32 year-old recruitment consultant known online as azzabentonaces was working in Singapore when he finished runner-up in a major online tournament and has been on the grind since then. "I used to play more for the entertainment in pub games, but I'm loving my poker and I want to take it to the next level," he said. Benton also plans to buy himself a house if he takes this tournament down.
Seat 8: Tom Grigg, Sydney, Australia (1,950,000 in chips) - it's been a breakout week in the poker career of this 24-year-old. He recovered from a 10:1 chip deficit in last week's APPT Sydney $1650 Semi-Shootout/Bounty event to capture the trophy and more than $33,000. The Sydney manager for his parents' New Zealand liquer company, Grigg has been the dominant player of the APPT Grand Final, holding the chip lead at numerous points over the three days he's played. As tollgate on PokerStars, he's also built a respectable record, and is placed inside Australia's top 40 online tournament players.
Seat 9: Ernst Hermans, Leiderdorp, Netherlands, PokerStars Qualifier (2,048,000 in chips) - one of only two non-Australians at the final table, this 28-year-old marketing student considers himself a full-time poker player. He is already assured a career-high tournament cash. He bubbled the final table of a $1500 NLHE event at the 2009 WSOP and finished in the top 40 at the PokerStars EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo two years ago. He is the narrow chip leader heading into the final table.
Weekend of cashes loom as 66 enter Day 3 – posted 12.04.09
We’re into the home stretch of the APPT Sydney Grand final with 66 survivors entering the gates of the weekend. Only 48 can cash so expect high drama as dreams are made and broken in the next two days.
Leading the field into Day 3 is Tom Grigg from Australia who has 598,600. In second place is Jimmy Tran from Australia with 541,300 and in joint third is the PokerStars online qualifier Ernst Hermans from the Netherlands and Joseph Allis from New Zealand with 398,800.
Team PokerStars Australia Pros Eric Assadourian (2007 APPT Macau High Roller Champion) is still in the running on 338,600 as is Grant Levy (2007 APPT Grand Final Champion) on 123,900, with the average stack around 176,555. In addition, there are 17 PokerStars online qualifiers playing tomorrow (Day 3).
The total prize pool is AUD $2,376,000 and players cash from the 48th place with a first prize of AUD $594,000.
226 survivors see the dawn of Day 2 – posted 12.03.09
The total field of 396 for APPT Sydney has been whittled down to 226 who will see Day 2 after a grueling three days of poker. The front runner is Day 1c player Anton Blagov who has 166,800 and the average stack stands at around 51,000.
Holding second place is Australian player Hai Bo Chu on 151,300 with fellow countryman Leo Boxell on 147,700.
Casualties of the day included PROs Joe and Tony Hachem, Emad Tahtouh, Celina Lin, Jonathan Lin and 2008 WSOP Main Event winner Peter Eastgate. Lee Nelson and Eric Assadourian remain to see the cards on Day 2.
PokerStarsblog was on hand to report one of the departures: “The departure of ANZPT Player of the Year Tony Hachem was particularly cruel. In the final hands of the day, he lost the bulk of his chips with A-K against the pocket kings of Ben Delaney before being sent to the rail when he shoved with A-10 against the pocket jacks of Mark Vos.”
Join us back here tomorrow as the countdown to the bubble begins.
Prize pool hits AUD $2,376,000 for APPT Sydney Grand Final – posted 12.03.09
Registration for the Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) Sydney Grand Final closed today and the headline figures are now in: the total field hit 396 creating a prize pool of AUD $2,376,000 which pays out to the top 48 finishers.
Play is underway at the SkyCity Casino here on Day 1C of the Main Event where 206 players turned up to complete the final field.
Poker Royalty was part of the field today in the form of Team PokerStars Nordic Pro Peter Eastgate (2008 WSOP Winner). Also on the felt were Team PokerStars Australia Pros Joe Hachem (Winner 2005 WSOP Main Event and winner 2007 APPT Tournament of Champions), Emad Tahtouh (2006 EPT London runner up), Tony Hachem (2008 NZ Poker Champs runner up) and Grant Levy (2007 APPT Grand Final Champion).
Join us back here at the end of the day for live updates on who’s still in and who’s out at this exciting grand final.
68 make it through the gate at the end of Day 1b & High Roller Champ Crowned – posted 12.02.09
From the field of 109 players that entered the APPT Sydney Main Event at the start of Day 1B, 68 go forward to Day 2 on Friday Dec 4.
The current chip leader is the PokerStars Online Qualifier Leo Boxell from Australia who has 147,700. In second place is Thomas Grigg from Australia with 141,500. 
Starters on Day 1B included many of the region's elite performers, including past APPT winners Simon Watt and Martin Rowe (last year's winner here in Sydney), ANZPT Sydney winner Paren Arzoomanian and Amanda De Cesare, who won the first series of Joe Hachem's reality television series The Poker Star.
Entries for Day 1C to date is +155 players making it approx. 350+ players.
In High Roller news, jaws hit the flaw as last year’s winner took the title again. Jarred Graham achieved one of the most remarkable feats in Australian poker history with successful defense of the APPT Sydney High Roller title he won in 2008. He won AUD $156,000 for victory in this year's AUD $15,300 buy-in High Roller tournament.
APPT Sydney Day 1b: 109 enter the arena – posted 12.02.09
The Grand Final of APPT Sydney succeeded in drawing a further 109 players here at the start of Day 1b, bringing the total number of registered players for the Main Event up to 350+.
Registrations for the AUD$6,300 are open until Thursday December 3 16:00. The prize pool stands at an estimated AUD$1,230,000 – making it the richest poker tournament to take place in Sydney before the end of the year.
Back to today’s action and play is firmly underway.
PokerStars sponsored players Simon Watt and Amanda De Cesare from Australia play today. Amanda recently won the Joe Hachem Deep Stack Series Main Event and was crowned the inaugural “Poker Star” as part of the poker reality TV series. In addition, there are 28 PokerStars Online Qualifiers playing today who won their seats by playing online with PokerStars.net.
Kudos for the hand of the day came in early.
Player Joel Cohen shoved all in with pocket tens only to be called by Robert Damelian with pocket aces. A flop of A-T-3 made it set versus set. A three on the turn filled houses for both players, but gasps from the crowd echoed from the rails when a T fell on the river making quads for Cohen.
APPT Sydney Dunst and dusted for Day 1a – posted 12.01.09
The name’s Dunst, Tony “Bond18” Dunst, and he leads the field of 51 players from Day 1a who are now through to Day 2 of APPT Sydney.
The countdown to the Grand Final of Asia’s richest poker tournament began today with 81 players bustling through the doors of the lavish SkyCity poker room.
Players seated for Day 1a included PokerStars Sponsored Player Lee "Final Table" Nelson and PokerStars.net Team Australia Pro Eric Assadourian. Both move forward to Day 2 with 27,500 and 61,900 respectively.
Hot on the heels of the chip leader is Australian Carmelo Graziano on 104,000 while PokerStars Online Qualifier Alan Brown from UK holds third with 99,300. In addition, there are 10 PokerStars Online Qualifiers that move forward to Day 2.
Day 1b gets underway tomorrow at 12:30pm with Day 1c on Thursday December 3rd the last day of registration.
APPT Season 3 Grand Final gets underway in Sydney today- posted 11.30.09
The PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour is set to end its third season in spectacular fashion this week with the AUD$6,300 buy-in APPT Grand Final running from December 1-6 at the Star City Casino in beautiful Sydney, Australia.
A wealth of different tournaments are taking place at the Grand Final which looks set to be one of the most exciting poker “festivals” ever held in the Asia Pacific region. Among the stars taking part are Team PokerStars PROs and former world champions Peter Eastgate and Joe Hachem as well as fellow team members Lee Nelson, Emad Tahtouh, Tony Hachem, Eric Assadourian and APPT Season 1 Grand Final winner Grant Levy. This season’s APPT champions - Simon Watt, Dermot Blain and Dong-bin Han – have also won a seat into the Grand Final.
Jeffrey Haas, President of the PokerStars.net APPT, said: “This season’s APPT has been a great success with over a thousand players competing in the three events already held in Macau, Auckland and Cebu in the Philippines. This has been made possible by massive enthusiasm for the tour right across the region. This season’s Grand Final in Sydney is set to cement the tour’s reputation for providing incredible events in great locations.”
A host of other events are taking place every day in the run-up to the APPT Grand Final, including a deep stack tournament, PLO event and mega satellites to the Main Event.
Once the Main Event is under way, side events include the: AUD $15,300 High Roller, a bigger buy-in (AUD $550) Ladies Tournament, an AUD $1,100 team event, an AUD $3,200 Heads-Up event and the AUD $340 Camp Quality Charity Event in aid of the Australian Children and Families Cancer Charity.
On December 7, the annual APPT Tournament of Champions event will take place. This invitation-only Tournament of Champions features winners from the APPT as well as some of the biggest names in poker, all competing to help their favorite charities. In its first year, the event was won by former world champion and Team PokerStars Pro Joe Hachem from Australia and last season by American Team PokerStars Pro Vanessa Rousso.
Dong-bin rings Korean win in Cebu – posted 11.15.09
The first Korean player to win an Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) Maine Event was crowned today in Cebu, setting yet another precedent for this recording break stop.
Dong Bin, a 37 year old businessman from Korea, swept the board to win PHP $7,410,000 (approx. USD $158,000) in what was a tense final hand.
PokerStars Qualifier David Hilton (2nd place, approx. USD108,552) shoved all in from the small blind with Qc-Js and was snap called by Bin who held dark pocket queens.
The flop raised gasps in the room with Td-4s-9c, giving Hilton an open-ended straight.
However, the board ran out to Th-9h, the queens held up and Dong was crowned champion.
APPT Cebu has been a record breaking event.
The final field of APPT Cebu rolled in at a record breaking 319 players and a prize pool of PHP 29,086,420 (approx USD630,312). APPT Cebu tops last year’s event in the Philippines which drew an impressive 285 players and USD 542,853 prize pool.
The next stop is the APPT Grand Final in Sydney which runs December 1st –December 6th.
“PCA of Asia” heads to Final Table – posted 11.14.09
The heat in the Philippines rises a few notches above boiling point tomorrow as the final nine players left in the APPT Cebu tournament will battle it out for the title of champion and a cool PHP 7,410,000 (approx. USD158,029).
Sim Somyung from Korea is in pole position with 1,442,000 chips. Hot on his heels in second place is PokerStars Qualifier David Hilton from the USA with 996,000. Hilton had a rollercoaster of a day in the lead up to the final table. He pushed all in with pocket kings only to be called by pocket aces and pocket queens. A tense flop fell, delivering a life saving king, but the drama came on the river when Hilton made quads to crack the over and under pair.
Today also saw the APPT Cebu event pay out PHP 6,950,000 (approx. USD 149,430.24) to places 10-40 after reaching a record breaking prize pool of a USD 630K prize pool.
The final table starts tomorrow at 12:15 local time so join us back here for all the action.
Players tap the money at APPT Cebu – posted 11.13.09
A total of 40 players are through to Day 3 of the PokerStars.net APPT Cebu Season 3 Main Event. All remaining players are in the money as players cash from 40th place with a first prize of PHP $7,410,000 (approx. $158,000) and a total prize pool of PHP $29,086,420 (approx. $622,000).
The current chip leader is Dong-bin Han from Korea with 478,500. In second place is PokerStars Online Qualifier Phillip Willcocks (Second, ANZPT Queensland 2009 Main Event) from New Zealand) with 435,000. In third place is PokerStars Online Qualifier Beng Hong Ker from Singapore with 408,000.
In addition, there are 13 PokerStars Online Qualifiers and 3 PokerStars Cebu Satellite Winners playing tomorrow (Day 3).
Record breaking Cebu event moves to Day 2– posted 11.12.09
From the field of 319 players that started Day 1A and Day 1B, 152 now move forward to Day 2, which makes it the biggest poker tournament ever in the Philippines. Players cash from 40th place with a first prize of PHP $7,410,000 (approx. $158,000).
The current chip leader is PokerStars Player Terry Fan from Taipei who has 158,500. In second place is Bold Uundai from Mongolia with 144,000. In sixteenth place is Team PokerStars Asia Pro Raymond Wu (Third, High Roller Challenge Macau Poker Cup July 2009 and Seventh, EPT London Main Event 2009) from Taipei with 90,400.
PokerStars Team Asia Pros Celina Lin (champion for the 2009
July Red Dragon tournament), Bryan Huang (Third 2008 APPT Macau Main Event), Jonathan Lin (Runner-up Red Dragon event, Macau Cup Oct 2008), Raymond Wu (Third, High Roller Challenge Macau Poker Cup July 2009 and Seventh, EPT London Main Event 2009) and PokerStars Sponsored player Van Marcus (2008 APPT Manila Champion) all move forward to Day 2 and will play tomorrow.
APPT Cebu prize pool hits over USD630k – posted 11.12.09
The final field of APPT Cebu has rolled in at a record breaking 319 players and a prize pool of PHP 29,086,420 (approx USD630,312).
APPT Cebu tops last year’s event in the Philippines which drew an impressive 285 players and USD 542,853 prize pool. The year on year growth showcases the phenomenal growth of poker in Asia and the island of Cebu as a hotspot venue for international poker.
Indeed, APPT Cebu drew its field from over 36 countries around the world, with players coming from such varied locations as Mongolia, the UK, Russia and Australia.
Check back here later today when we’ll bring you the latest of who’s made the cut to Day 2 of APPT Cebu.
Raymond Wu sees Day 2 at APPT Cebu – posted 11.11.09
Team PokerStars PRO Asia player Raymond Wu could be on his way for his third PokerStars tournament cash as he makes his way to Day 2 of APPT Cebu.
Wu, who cashed third at the High Roller Challenge during the Macau Poker Cup in July 2009 (USD $11,613) and seventh at the EPT London Main Event 2009 (USD $139,172), moves to Day 2 in fifth place with a stack of 90,400.
In pole position is the PokerStars player Terry Fan from Taipei who has 158,500. Hot on his heels in second place is Bold Uundai from Mongolia with 144,000.
Tomorrow sees the last chance for registration with over 100 players already in contention. These include a quartet of Team PokerStars PRO Asia players including Tae Jun Noh, Celina Lin, Bryan Huang and Jonathan Lin.
APPT Day 1a starts with 106 – posted 11.11.09
Cards are flying between 106 players who have started play on Day 1a of the fantastic Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) Cebu Main Event.
Players were treated to an exotic “Sinulog” performance - a traditional Filipino celebration dance – before PokerStars Sponsored Player and 2008 APPT Philippines champion Van Marcus gave the order to shuffle up and deal.
PokerStars Team Asia Pro players Raymond Wu (Third, High Roller Challenge Macau Poker Cup July 2009), Daniel Schreiber (Winner 2007 WSOP Heads-up bracelet) and PokerStars Sponsored Player Van Marcus (2008 APPT Manila Champion) are some of the celebrities playing today.
In addition, there are 22 PokerStars Online Qualifiers and 16 PokerStars Cebu Satellite Winners in the Main Event Day 1A. Players from 25 countries participate today including players from Mongolia, Guam, Russia, Sweden and Ukraine,
APPT hits fantasy island of Cebu for third stop – posted 10.11.09
The luxury resort island of Cebu plays host to Asia’s richest poker tour this week as the PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour lands in the Philippines this week.
Event sponsors PokerStars.net have pushed the boat out for the third leg of the APPT by providing players with a lush playground in which they get to play poker.
Player numbers have hit 150 for the 100,000 PHP (2,150 USD) Main Event and organizers expect between 250-300 before registration closes on Thursday November 12.
Join us back here for the latest player lists, photos and videos from the day.
26-year old PokerStars Qualifier wins NZD$209,000 – posted 08.30.09
A 26-year-old software developer from New Zealand has NZD$209,000 after winning the PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) Season 3 Main Event in Auckland.
Simon Watt from New Zealand, defeated a field of 263 poker players to claim the top prize in a tournament that lasted five days.
The showdown was between Watt, who won entry to the APPT Auckland tournament by playing on PokerStars and fellow Qualifier Gerome Guitteau from France.
Guitteau moved it all in with Kc-7c but found himself in a race against Watt's 5h-5c. The flop of Qh-6d-Js kept the Kiwi ahead, but the almost scripted sweat came when the dealer produced the 9d on the turn. Needing any king or 10 to double through, a repeat Jc fell on the river, eliminating Guitteau in second place.
The fives held up and confirmed Watt as the 2009 PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour Auckland Main Event champion. He takes home the championship trophy and a payout of NZD$209,000 while runner-up Guitteau takes home NZD $ 142,020.
APPT Cebu is due to host the next leg of the tour and confirmed where players can enjoy poker in the lap of luxury. Visit the tournament page for more info.
Final Table of Auckland set for dramatic showdown –posted 10.17.09
Lightening fast eliminations struck Day 3 as a massive 19 players were eliminated within the first two levels. Players continued to hit rails and the final table was decided in just under four hours.
Heading to the final table in pole position is Gerome Guitteau from France with a monster stack of 1,204,000 – almost double that of Jason Brown, currently in second on 709,000, and who has made solid plays throughout the tournament.
Assadour Assadourian, father of Eric Assadourian, Team PokerStars PRO Australia, was critically short stacked, but back to back double ups against Shilton Smith enabled him to make the final nine with 231,000.
Join us back here today for the final table of APPT Auckalnd where players are guaranteed a minimum payout of NZD$14,000.
The bubble bursts on Day 2 of APPT Auckland – posted 10.16.2009
Day 2 was one of high emotions as players entered the money at APPT Auckland. From the starting field of 130, 98 players hit the rails with the remaining 32 returning for Day 3 with a guaranteed payout of at least NZD $5,523.
A new chip leader emerged today after eight hours of tight play in the form of New Zealander Jason Brown. Brown stands on 632,000 with fellow countryman Simon Watt hot on his heels with 430,500.
Defending Champion Daniel Craker could well be on the way to become the first player to win a Main Event in two consecutive seasons as he returns to see Day 3 and starts in 12th place on 131,500.
A father-son showdown is also not out of the question as both Team PokerStars PRO Australia Eric Assadourian and his father Assadour Assadourian take their seats for Day 3 with 94,500 and 69,000 respectively.
Unfortunately, every tournament must have a bubble boy, and APPT Auckland is no exception. The bubble boy at Auckland was a huge favorite to win with KQ against K4 but alas, running cards gave our chip leader Jason Brown from New Zealand a straight to the 7 to eliminate the unlucky player.
Play tomorrow will continue until we are down to our final table of nine players. The draw for the last 32 is attached.
NZD$789,000 prize pool up for grabs at APPT Auckland – posted 10.15.09
Day 1b saw the final stream of players register for APPT Auckland creating a total field of 263 players and a prize pool of NZD$789,000 which pays out to the top 32 places.
A total of 128 players started Day 1b, the second day of APPT Auckland, and 62 survived. This now creates a staring field for Day 2 of 130.
Team PokerStars PRO Australia’s Emad Tahtouh still maintains pole position on 162,900 but Day 1b PokerStars Qualifier Lance Climo jumps to the number two spot 134,400.
Team PokerStars Australia PRO Tony Hachem, who took down the ANZPT overall points leaderboard challenge this summer, is in the running with 53,400 and well above the average stack of 37,669.
Defending champion Daniel Craker sits on 37,000 and Team PokerStars PRO Australia compatriots Grant Levy and Eric Assadourian neighbor each other on 56th and 57th place with 35,200 and 34,700 respectively.
Sun rises on APPT Auckland Day 1b – posted 10.15.09
An estimated 125+ players take to the felt today here in Auckland as the final Day 1 flight – the last chance to enter APPT Auckland – gets underway.
Yesterday, the field of 135 players starting Day 1a was cut to just 67 and Team PokerStars PRO Australia’s Emad Tahtouh was left in pole position on 162,900.
Today’s crop of players will be no push over. Poker professionals lined up to take to the felt include Bryan Huang, Team PokerStars PRO Asia, who came 3rd in the APPT Macau High Roller Event last year to scoop USD$153,841.
Eric Assadourian, Team PokerStars PRO Australia, who took down the very first APPT Macau High Roller for $368,640 makes a welcomed returned to the APPT as does Tony Dunst, who came 2nd in the ANZPT Adelaide tournament winning $111,520.00.
The final field prize pool and payout will be decided today so be sure to check back here when we have the final numbers.
Team PokerStars PRO leads the pack at end of Day 1a – posted 10.14.09
Team PokerStars PRO Australia’s Emad Tahtouh held a tight reign over the action in Auckland by maintaining a chip lead from the start to finish here on Day 1a.
The poker professional took control of a field of 135 players and finished the day as chip leader on 162,900 - over 50,000 ahead of the field.
Hot on his heels in second and third place respectively is Michael Shinzaki from USA with 109,800 and New Zealander James Ciurlionis with 105,600.
A total of 67 players from Day 1a are now through to Day 2 including defending champion Daniel Craker from New Zealand who sits on a stack of 37,000.
There are currently a total of 250 entries to date in APPT Auckland equating to a prize pool of NZD $750,000.
APPT returns to shores of Auckland – posted 10.13.09
The Asia Pacific Poker Tour makes a welcomed return to the city of Auckland, New Zealand, today as the $3,250 Main Event gets underway in a few hours. The prize pool has topped an incredible NZD$615,000 - with two days of registration still open to the public.
Event sponsor PokerStars.net has high hopes for the second APPT event to take place in New Zealand. The APPT premiered the Auckland stop in last season’s tour where 306 players turned out and generated a massive NZD 856,800 prize pool. The inaugural Auckland event saw Kiwi Daniel Craker walk away with the title and prize money of NZD257,040 after he qualified for just $80 in a live satellite.
At least 105 players are confirmed to start Day 1a here and the field includes a mix of legends and professionals alike. Expected out in force today is the Aussie Millions Champion, Lee Nelson, Team PokerStars PRO Australia Tony Hachem – who arrives fresh from his ANZPT win as overall points leader – and Team PokerStars PRO Celina Lin, who took down the July Macau Poker Cup at PokerStars Macau for a USD$50,942 pay day.
Along with the seasoned pros, a total of 44 PokerStars qualifiers, who won their seats online with PokerStars.net, will put their skills to the test to claim the grand prize.
Be sure to check out our coverage page for official statistics and for up to the minute coverage be sure to check out the PokerStars blog.
25-year old from Ireland wins half a million dollars – posted 08.30.09
A 25-year old ex-sales manager from Ireland has won over half a million dollars after winning the PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) Season 3 Main Event in Macau.
Dermot Blain, from Dublin, Ireland, defeated a field of 429 poker players to claim the top prize in a tournament that lasted a grueling six days.
Blain, who won entry to the APPT Macau tournament by playing a PokerStars Macau satellite, staged a remarkable comeback. He took his seat at the final table as an underdog in 7th place with just 507,000 in chips.
The turnaround for Blain came when he eliminated the start of the day chip leader Daoxing Chen with Ad-Ks going up against Ah-Qs and Blain’s Ks kicker holding up.
Heads up play between Blain and Mike Kim then lasted only four hands with Blain once again holding a King kicker with Kd-Th going against Kim’s Td-9s on an all-in call.
The king held up and confirmed Blain as the 2009 PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour Macau Main Event champion. He takes home the championship trophy and a payout of HKD $4,194,000 (USD $541,081 approx.) while runner-up Mike Kim takes home HKD $2,984,100 (USD 385,006 approx.).
The third season of APPT Macau has been a record breaking success. The massive growth in prize pool and payout overshadows last year’s Season 2 prize pool of approx. USD $1,629,819 and the previous Season 1 total of $809,600, which is testimony to the growing interest in poker in Macau and in Asia.
APPT Seoul is due to host the next leg of the tour and confirmed details of how to enter and dates will be posted here soon. For complete coverage of all six days of action of APPT Macau Season 3 please visit our live results archive section here.
‘New-blood nine’ take seats at the final table for half a million dollars– posted 08.29.09
The final table of the APPT Macau Season 3 Main Event has been decided with a host of new blood leading the charge. The final nine are all guaranteed a minimum pay day of USD 30,000 approx. with the winner cashing over half a million dollars.
In pole position is PokerStars Macau's own Daoxing "Bao Bao" Chen (pictured) on 1,747,000. According to reports on PokerStarsblog.com, Chen employed a cheeky strategy of letting the clock run down on every decision. Although it may have infuriated his opponents, the technique worked, as Chen enters the final day as pack leader.
PokerStars Sponsored Player Mike Kim follows Chen in second on (1,653,000) and Kazakhstan's Darkhan Botabayev (1,455,000) sits in third. However, there is a huge drop off in chips between players 4-9. Chinese player, Beijing's Jicheng Su has 778,000 and players completing the final table include Canadian PokerStars Qualifier Dbinder Singh (696,000), US youngster and PokerStars Player Brandon Demes (578,000), Irishman Dermot Blain (507,000) and two Swedish PokerStars Qualifiers - Stefan Hjorthall (454,000) and Pontus Kers (491,000).
In related news, 33 players cashed today with APPT Macau paying HKD 3,080,600 (approx. 397,404.50 USD) in prize money. Notables include PokerStars Team Asia Pro Daniel Schriber, who finished 40th to earn HKD 64,500 (USD 8,320), as well as six other PokerStars Qualifiers including Michael Collins, who placed 11th to earn HKD 177,400 (USD 22,885).
Players enter the money at APPT Macau Season 3 – posted 08.28.09
A total of 42 players are through to Day 3 of the PokerStars.net APPT Macau Season 3 Main Event. All players are in the money as players cash from 48th place with a first prize of HKD $4,194,000 and a total prize pool of HKD $16,130,400.
The current chip leader is Kyle (Suen Kit) Cheong from Australia with 77,500. In second place is PokerStars Online Qualifier Preetinder Bhayana from Canada with 507,000.
In third place is PokerStars Sponsored player Tom Hall from UK with 424,000. PokerStars Team Asia Pro Daniel Schreiber (Winner 2007 WSOP Heads-up bracelet) is in 31st place with 114,500.
In addition, there are 5 PokerStars Sponsored players, 9 PokerStars Online Qualifiers and 6 PokerStars Macau Satellite Winners playing tomorrow (Day 3).
Field of 196 make the cut for start of Day 2 – posted 08.28.09
The field of 429 players has nearly halved here at the start of Day 2 of Asia’s richest record breaking poker tour.
The total prize pool is HKD $16,130,400 which makes it the biggest prize pool ever in Asia. Players cash from the 48th place with a first prize of HKD $4,194,000. The current chip leader is Kristoffer Myhre from Norway who has 183,400. In second place is Peter Nielsen from Denmark with 141,500. In third place is PokerStars Online Qualifier Roel Pijpers from Netherlands with 125,500.
PokerStars Team Australia Pros Joe Hachem (Winner 2005 WSOP main event), Tony Hachem (Runner-up 2007 NZ Poker Championships) and Lee Nelson (2006 Aussie Millions Champion), Bertrand (ElkY) Grospellier (Winner 2008 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure) from PokerStars Team Pro: France,
PokerStars Team Asia Pros Celina Lin (Winner Macau Poker Cup: Red Dragon July 2009) and Bryan Huang (Third 2008 APPT Macau Main Event) all move forward from Day 1C to Day 2.
APPT Macau Season 3 SMASHES prize pool record – posted 08.27.09
Over half a million American dollars – that’s what the winner of APPT Macau will walk away with after the prize pool for the event broke the $2 million mark with a final field of 429.
The official prize pool for the event weighed in at a hefty HKD 16,130,400 (approx. USD 2,081,137) and payout is to the top 48 players from a HKD 48,400 (approx. $6,245) minimum spot to a first place prize of HKD 4,194,000 (approx. USD 541,016).
The massive growth in prize pool and payout overshadows last year’s Season 2 prize pool of approx. USD $1,629,819 and the previous Season 1 total of $809,600, which is testimony to the growing interest in poker in Macau and in Asia.
A total of 429 players were out in force for APPT Macau Season 3 with a strong showing form the Australians (59 players), Americans (56 players) and players from Hong Kong (32 players).
Back to Day 1c, and the stars are out in force for the final day in the series of day one flights. PokerStars Team Australia Pros Joe Hachem (Winner 2005 WSOP main event), Tony Hachem (Runner-up 2007 NZ Poker Championships) and Lee Nelson (2006 Aussie Millions Champion), Bertrand (ElkY) Grospellier (Winner 2008 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure) from PokerStars Team Pro: France, PokerStars Team Asia Pros Celina Lin (Winner Macau Poker Cup: Red Dragon July 2009) and Bryan Huang (Third 2008 APPT Macau Main Event) all play Day 1C.
For live info and the latest results visit our live reporting page.
Norwegian storms to top spot on end of Day 1b – posted 08.26.09
Kristoffer Myhre from Norway has risen to the top of the field here on Day 1b of APPT Macau with a monster stack of 183,400.
Rivals trailing him include Peter Nielsen from Denmark in second with 141,500 and PokerStars Online Qualifier Roel Pijpers from the Netherlands with 125,500 in third.
Average chip stacks for the day hit the 45k mark with approximately 20 of the day’s 55 survivors above the fold.
In addition there are 22 PokerStars Online Qualifiers and five PokerStars Macau Satellite Winners that move forward from Day 1B to Day 2.
Sponsors PokerStars.net expect the field for APPT Macau to double tomorrow on Day 1c – the final day when players can enter APPT Macau.
Day 1c will be a star studded affair and a veritable who’s who of poker champions. These include: PokerStars Team Australia Pros Joe Hachem (Winner 2005 WSOP main event), Tony Hachem (Runner-up 2007 NZ Poker Championships) and Lee Nelson (2006 Aussie Millions Champion), Bertrand (ElkY) Grospellier (Winner 2008 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure) from PokerStars Team Pro: France, PokerStars Team Asia Pros Celina Lin (Winner Macau Poker Cup: Red Dragon July 2009) and Bryan Huang (Third 2008 APPT Macau Main Event).
Macau field marches on to Day 1b with field of 125 – posted 08.26.09
Memories of victories and losses from Day 1a were swept aside this afternoon as a fresh field of 125 took to the felt for the start of the PokerStars.net APPT Macau Season 3 Day 1b Main Event.
Today’s entries bring the total number of players up to 244 and with an additional 74+ scheduled to play tomorrow on Day 1c, the last day of registration, would bring the total field to over 344+ and generate a prize pool of approximately USD1,775,040.
PokerStars Team Asia Pro Tae Jun Noh (Runner-up 2008 APPT Manilla Main Event) and PokerStars Team USA Pro Chris Moneymaker (2003 WSOP Main Event Winner) plays Day 1b.
In addition, there are 56 PokerStars Online Qualifiers and six PokerStars Macau Satellite Winners playing today (Day 1b).
For a complete list of players starting today please visit our live results page where you can also view our live photo stream.
APPT Macau Day 1a: 69 out of 119 move forward to Day 2- posted 08.25.09
Day 1a of the PokerStars.net APPT Macau event saw 119 enter but only 60 survive to see Day 2. PokerStars player Brandon Demes (Winner of PokerStars Sunday 500 earlier this year, pictured) from USA leads the field on 102,200.
In second place is PokerStars Online Qualifier David Steicke from Hong Kong with 82,300. Steicke, a regular at APPT Macau, has an impressive track record and has earned approximately USD $200,000 from all two previous APPT Macau seasons. In third place is the Pokerstars Macau Satellite Winner Jicheng Su from China with 82,000.
PokerStars Team Australia Pros Joe Hachem (Winner 2005 WSOP main event) and Lee Nelson (2006 Aussie Millions Champion), PokerStars Team Asia Pro Tae Jun Noh (Runner-up 2008 APPT Manilla Main Event), PokerStars Team USA Pro Chris Moneymaker (2003 WSOP Main Event Winner) and PokerStars Sponsored Player Van Marcus (Winner 2008 APPT Manilla Main Event) play Day 1B.
In total there are 13 PokerStars Online Qualifiers and 10 PokerStars Macau Satellite Winners that move forward to Day 2.
Provisional seat draws can be found on our live results page.
APPT Macau begins Asia’s richest poker festival – posted 08.25.09
A crowd of 86+ players are taking their seats at the Grand Lisboa Casino as Day 1a of the Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) Macau begins.
With over three days before registration closes the event has already attracted a whopping field of 250+ players making it on course to be the richest poker tour in Asia, said event sponsor PokerStars.net.
The 40,000 HKD (5,160 USD) Main Event has three day one flights meaning players have until August 27th Thursday to get their entrie in.
Last year, it was the turn of 20-something accountancy student, Eddie Sabat, who bested a field of 538 players to earn a pay day of $453,851 (USD) at the event.
With huge payouts on the line, the event has continued to attract the biggest and brightest starts from the world of poker.
Schedule to play over the course of the next few days include Team PokerStars Australia Emad Tahtouh, Joe Hachem, Eric Assadourian and Grant Levy as well as Team PokerStars France’s Bertrand Grospellier and Team PokerStars USA Chris Moneymaker.
Be sure to check our live reporting page for details including seat draws as payouts as they become available.
APPT Seoul Postponed - posted 08.24.09
The PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour event scheduled for September 17-20, 2009 at 7-Luck Casino in Seoul, South Korea, has been postponed due to construction delays at the casino where they are renovating their 3rd-floor for the purpose of hosting the tournament.
The event is planned to be rescheduled pending the completion of this construction, details to be announced as they are available.
APPT apologizes to players for this inconvenience.
Asia’s Biggest Poker Tour returns for Season 3 to set new records – posted 06.22.09
Poker players across Asia Pacific will soon feel the electricity rise under the felt once again as the PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour returns to set new records with Season 3.
Season 2 of the Asia Pacific Poker Tour was a huge success, attracting 1,772 of the region’s best poker players and awarding nearly $5,000,000 in prize money.
Season 3 looks set to break that barrier and stage the finest poker tournaments in the most stunning locations.
The Tour will make stops in Macau, Seoul, Auckland, The Philippines and Sydney with increased tournament capacities.
APPT Season 3 begins in Macau at the end of August at the Grand Lisboa - home to the luxurious PokerStars Macau Poker Room. From there, it’s a whirlwind ride across Seoul, Auckland and Cebu in the Philippines before moving on to Sydney for the Grand Final in December.
Click here to view the most current tournament schedule or click here to find details about the first event APPT Macau Season 3.
Watch PCA and World Cup of Poker V live on PokerStars.tv – posted 01.05.09
PokerStars.tv is giving you a front-row seat to this year’s World Cup of Poker V and PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) final tables, with four days of the best poker action streamed live and direct to your computer. If you’re a fan looking to see great poker or if you’re looking to improve your game, you cannot afford to miss this set of live broadcasts.
PokerStars.tv will be streaming live TV coverage of events on the PokerStars European Poker Tour with expert commentary from Team PokerStars Pros. Fans can follow the drama live as it unfolds and observe the strategies of expert high-stakes players who are playing in $10,000+ buy-in games!
First up, the World Cup of Poker V finals will be broadcast live on PokerStars.tv, with hole cards visible to viewers at 12:00 ET, January 6 2009. The World Cup of Poker V sees teams from around the globe competing for national pride, bragging rights, and $290,000 in cash prizes.
Next up is the $25k PCA High Roller event on January 8, closely followed by coverage of the $10k Main Event on January 9 and 10. Now part of the hugely successful PokerStars European Poker Tour, the PCA is held every year at the ultra-luxurious Atlantis Resort and Casino, located in the beautiful surroundings of the Bahamas.
Players take home a USD$4,998,268 total prize pool with APPT Season 2 – posted 12.11.08
Season 2 of the PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) finished its five month tour as the richest poker tournament for players to enter in Asia Pacific.
A massive 1,772 players from around the world took to the felt to claim a piece of the USD $4,998,268 prize pool that APPT Macau, Seoul, Auckland, Manila and Sydney events made in total.
Players who made it to the final table and won all earned over $128,000 and came from a diverse range of backgrounds and ages.
Hailing from over 70 different nations, with as many as 465 players qualifying via online satellites at PokerStars, the field created a multicultural and high-energy tournament experience.
In September, 22-year-old accountancy student Eddie Sabat beat a field of 538 to earn himself a payday of USD$453,851 and became the youngest player to win an APPT event. In October, it was the turn of 49-year old Yoshihiro Tasaka to become the first Japanese player to win an APPT event, after he took down APPT Seoul for USD$128,250. Elated to win in front of his home crowd, Kiwi Daniel Cracker took first prize at Auckland, winning USD$153,399. After a gruelling 16 hours of final table play at APPT Manila, 25-year-old Van Marcus, from Melbourne, conquered a field of 306 to earn USD$162,856.
Finally, the APPT Season 2 concluded by creating another Australian millionaire when 34 year old insurance worker Martin Rowe won AUD$1,000,000 (USD$648,046).
The APPT has generated unrivalled interest in poker throughout Asia Pacific and Season 3 details will be announced shortly. You can view all our coverage on APPT Season 2 on PokerStars.tv or visit the archive section on PokerStarsblog.com.
34-year old Aussie insurance worker becomes millionaire – posted 12.07.08
Tonight 34 year old Sydneysider Martin Rowe pocketed a massive AUD $1 million to become the newest PokerStars.net Asia Pacific Poker Tour (APPT) Grand Final champion, outplaying 476 rivals over the past five days.
Cheered on in front of his by family, friends and a home crowd, Martin, a father of (almost) two from North Sydney commented directly following his win: “I cannot believe I have won tonight. I felt on edge but not out of control the entire tournament and now to have the title I am just ecstatic – this will be life changing for my family.”
The Final Table began with nine players from an impressive starting field of 477, including the current 22 year old World Champion Peter Eastgate and Team PokerStars Pros Joe Hachem and Chris Moneymaker, competing for a prize pool of over $2.8 million.
With the final table made up of seven Aussies, it was fitting the title remained in Australia (a Pole and Canadian made up the remainder). Final table play lasted a gruelling nine and a half hours. In the last hand of the tournament Rowe raised 250,000 pre-flop. Gray went all-in and Martin called revealing Ac-Qh to Gray’s 9h-5h. The flop came down As-Qc-5s and the turn bought a 9s, but the river held a brick for Gray.
“It is fantastic to see an Australian champion in the APPT Grand Final for the second year in a row. Amongst a great international lineup it represents the calibre of poker in this country,” said APPT President Jeffrey Haas.
Other players who finished on the final table included the PokerStars Online Qualifier Timothy English from Australia, who qualified through PokerStars in a Last Chance Qualifier last Monday for $475 and took fifth place today to cash AUD$ 140,000.
This tournament ends the second season of the PokerStars.net APPT. Season 3 of APPT will be announced shortly.
The standings for the final nine of the Main Event are as follows:
| Place | Name | Country | PS Status | Prize (AUD) |
| 1 | Martin Rowe | Australia | 1,000,000 | |
| 2 | Jason Gray | Australia | 476,000 | |
| 3 | Tony Basile | Canada | 266,000 | |
| 4 | Antonio Fazzolari | Australia | 182,000 | |
| 5 | Timothy English | Australia | PokerStars Qualifier | 140,000 |
| 6 | Frank Saffioti | Australia | 100,800 | |
| 7 | Daniel Kowalski | Poland | PokerStars Qualifier | 72,800 |
| 8 | Hai Bo Chu | Australia | PokerStars Qualifier | 53,200 |
| 9 | Tom Rafferty | Australia | 39,200 |
‡WORLD SERIES OF POKER and WSOP are trademarks of Harrah's License Company, LLC ("Harrah's"). Harrah's does not sponsor or endorse, and is not associated or affiliated with PokerStars.net or its products, services, promotions or tournaments.
| MANILA PAGCOR CUP | ||
| Position | Name | $ |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Binh Nguyen | 260,700 |
| 2. | Gordon Huntly | 166,800 |
| 3. | Charles Chua | 93,850 |
| 4. | Terrence Chan | 71,500 |
| 5. | Sunny Jung | 54,700 |
| 6. | Choon Kwang Lim | 44,300 |
| 7. | Victor Chang | 33,900 |
| 8. | Kirby Te | 26,600 |
| 9. | Jackal Lee | 19,800 |
| 10. | Jae Sin | 13,000 |
| SYDNEY MAIN EVENT | ||
| Position | Name | AUD |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Aaron Benton | 594,000 |
| 2. | Ernst Hermans | 381,348 |
| 3. | Leo Boxell | 213,840 |
| 4. | Wayne Carlson | 166,320 |
| 5. | Tom Grigg | 130,680 |
| 6. | Andrew Hiscox | 106,920 |
| 7. | Barry Forrester | 83,160 |
| 8. | David Formosa | 65,340 |
| 9. | Thomas Slifka | 47,520 |
| 10. | Jarred Graham | 30,888 |
