Viewers and followers of the Triton Tremendous Excessive Curler Sequence will be forgiven for anticipating an enormous identify winner of the opening occasion of the most recent pageant. However the winner of Occasion #1: $25,000 GGMillion$ Stay is arguably one of many largest names of all.
Chris Moneymaker. The 2003 WSOP Most important Occasion champion.
From sitting with one large blind on the bubble, Moneymaker topped a 163-player discipline and defeated a star-studded remaining desk so as to add his identify — that well-known identify — to the lengthy listing of Triton champions.
Triton Tremendous Excessive Curler Sequence Montenegro Occasion 1 – $25,000 GG Million$ Stay Remaining Desk Outcomes
| Place | Participant | Nation | Payout (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chris Moneymaker | United States | $903,000 |
| 2 | Brian Kim | United States | $609,000 |
| 3 | Igor Yaroshevskyy | Ukraine | $419,000 |
| 4 | Ding Biao | China | $341,000 |
| 5 | Danilo Velasevic | Serbia | $272,000 |
| 6 | Adrian Mateos | Spain | $209,500 |
| 7 | Lewis Spencer | United Kingdom | $153,000 |
| 8 | Morten Klein | Norway | $110,500 |
| 9 | Isaac Haxton | United States | $91,300 |
Winner’s Response
“I wasn’t going to lose right now,” mentioned Moneymaker. “I may have put it in with any hand and I’d have gained. I ran pure.
“I may have put it in with any hand and I’d have gained. I ran pure.”
“I hit a three-outer, a six outer. I believed to myself, ‘You recognize what, that is going to be 2003. I’m not going to lose any extra arms right now.'”
It is the third-biggest win of Moneymaker’s profession after the 2003 WSOP Most important Occasion, and a fifth-place end within the $250,000 Luxon Invitational final August.
“I don’t actually play a complete lot of excessive rollers, however once I do I get pleasure from it,” Moneymaker mentioned. “I in all probability gained’t play a ton extra, however I’m positive I’ll be again out at a Triton cease.
“They do a very good job. It’s insane how effectively they run tournaments.”
The win sees Moneymaker transfer to the highest of the Tennessee all-time cash listing with $7.1 million, overtaking Kathy Liebert ($6.9 million.)
Is Chris Moneymaker’s Win STILL the Greatest WSOP Upset Ever?
Remaining Desk Motion
Moneymaker got here into the ultimate desk with the chip lead after eliminating Byron Kaverman to get the desk all the way down to the ultimate 9.
There was a well-known face on the remaining desk, with Biao Ding having beforehand defeated the good Phil Ivey heads-up to win a Triton poker title in Jeju. And he was again in motion in Montenegro, sending Isaac Haxton to the rail as the primary elimination of the ultimate desk.
Norwegian excessive curler Morten Klein then tussled with Brian Kim, solely to fall in eighth as Kim moved to the highest of the chip counts.
A quirk of the construction was that the GGMillion$ blinds improve relative to the variety of arms performed relatively than in set intervals. The typical stack dwindled to round 15 blinds and, maybe inevitably, the chips started to get in.
Moneymaker obtained in on the motion eliminating Lewis Spencer with pocket nines vs pocket threes. Kim then picked up pocket threes towards the jacks of Adrian Mateos, solely to river a set to remove the Spaniard, who earlier this week picked up the sixth SCOOP title of his profession.
It appeared that Kim had hit his stride, cracking the pocket jacks of Danilo Velasevic with ace-queen.
Surviving the carnage? Igor Yaroshevskyy. Having come into the ultimate desk because the quick stack, he may solely look on as Moneymaker and Kim clashed, with Moneymaker doubling as much as regain the chip lead.
The 2 traded eliminations as Kim eradicated Biao Ding earlier than Moneymaker lastly despatched Yaroshevskyy to the rail to deliver issues to heads-up.
Moneymaker held the chip lead, and duly completed issues off on the third hand of heads-up, calling an all-in from Kim to safe victory and write one other chapter in his lengthy and profitable poker profession.
Triton Poker Tremendous Excessive Curler Sequence Montenegro Schedule
The second occasion of the pageant Occasion #2 – $26,150 NLHE 9-Handed obtained underway yesterday, and is scheduled to play to a winner right now. Additionally getting beneath manner is Occasion #3 – $41,800 NLHE 8-Handed.
Photos courtesy of Joe Giron/Triton Poker
Managing Editor
Based mostly in the UK, Will began working for PokerNews as a contract reside reporter in 2015 and joined the full-time workers in 2019.
He graduated from the College of Kent in 2017 with a B.A. in German. He additionally holds an NCTJ Diploma in Sports activities Journalism.
