2016 Aussie Millions Day 18: Fabian Quoss Wins $100,000 Challenge for $1,446,480
After a four-day hiatus so players could participate in the 2016 Aussie Millions Main Event, the six finalists remaining in the $100,000 Challenge returned to the Crown Entertainment Complex in Melbourne to play down to a winner on Saturday.
The tournament actually began with 41 entries (30 unique, plus 11 reentries) and featured a AU$4,018,000 prize pool.
After a short four hours of play, it was German high roller Fabian Quoss who defeated all others to capture the AU$1,446,480 top prize.
It marked the second-largest score of Quoss' career behind the $1,600,000 million he won for taking down the 2014 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure $100,000 Super High Roller.
Quoss had come close to winning an Aussie Millions Challenge title twice before, albeit in the LK Boutique $250,000 Challenge. The first time he flirted with the title in that tournament was in 2013 when he finished third for AU$750,000, and then a year later he took fifth for AU$800,000. Quoss also final table the 2013 $25,000 Challenge, finishing fifth for AU$51,000.
| Place | Player | Country | Prize in AUD | Prize in USD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fabian Quoss | Germany | $1,446,480 | $1,024,645 |
| 2 | Ben Tollerene | USA | $924,140 | $654,634 |
| 3 | Jason Mercier | USA | $602,700 | $426,951 |
| 4 | Connor Drinan | USA | $441,980 | $313,097 |
| 5 | Sam Greenwood | Canada | $321,440 | $227,707 |
| 6 | Fedor Holz | Germany | $281,260 | $199,281 |
The first hand of the day saw Quoss double through Connor Drinan, and that set the fast pace of play. Just five hands later, Fedor Holz fell when he called off his short stack with king-queen and failed to get there against Drinan's pocket fours. Then, on Hand #12, Sam Greenwood followed him out the door after his ace-deuce fell to Drinan's queen-nine after a nine spiked on the river.
On Hand #26 of the final table, it was Drinan who fell in fourth place after getting involved in a big hand with Quoss. Holding a queen-high flush, Drinan was faced with a decision for all his chips. He used both his time extensions to contemplate the decision, and with literally a second left on the clock he called off to discover his queen-high flush was no good against Quoss' ace-high flush.
Three-handed play last for awhile, but eventually Team PokerStars Pro member Jason Mercier bowed out in third place when his ace-eight failed to hold against the king-queen of Quoss, who in turn took a big chip lead into heads-up play against start-of-the-day chip leader Ben "Ben86" Tollerene.
The two jostled back and forth, with Tollerene even receiving a double. However, Quoss' chip lead proved too big to overcome and on Hand #125 of the final table, Tollerene was eliminated after his jack-ten failed to overcome the king-jack of Quoss.
Tollerene had to settle for runner-up and a AU$924,140 consolation prize, which may have paled to the countless millions he's won online, but still marked the largest live score of his career.
Walter Treccarichi Wins $2,500 Shot Clock Six-Max
Italian Walter Treccarichi took down the 2016 Aussie Millions Event #19: $2,500 Shot Clock Six-Max No-Limit Hold'em crown inside Crown Poker Room Saturday night.
After a heads-up chop that gave Daniel Neilson $119,731.73 and Treccarichi $113,118.27, it was Treccarichi that went on to capture the title and LK Boutique Aussie Millions championship ring that came with it, denying Neilson back-to-back $2,500 Shot Clock titles after he won this event in 2015.
A total of 23 players returned Saturday from a field of 246 entries with Christian Nolte in the lead. Neilson snatched the lead as the final table approached, but Nolte wrestled it back heading into the final seven, doubling through Andrew Hinrichsen right before the final table kicked off.
His lead would not last, however, as Nolte gave lost a massive flip to Treccarichi right out of the gate, allowing him to take over top spot.
That lead got even bigger when Treccarichi eliminated Hinrichsen seventh with big slick over a weak, but suited ace, all in on an ace-high flop. Nolte also fell to Treccarichi sixth, getting his sixes outdrawn.
Nielson began to climb at this point, busting Simon Chahine fifth, but Park Yu Cheung actually took the lead, taking a big pot off Treccarichi with trip aces.
Cheung could not hold that lead, however, folding under constant pressure from Neilson until it was Neison on top. Cheung soon ran top pair into Treccarichi's two pair to go broke and Treccarichi took the lead three handed.
Neison's aggression saw him rise to the top once again and despite the fact Treccarichi busted Roberto Damelian third, Neison took the lead into heads-up play.
After they agreed to the chop that made Neilson the cash winner, Treccarichi took control heads up and rolled over Neilson until the title was his.
Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Walter Treccarichi | Italy | $113,118.27 |
| 2 | Daniel Neilson | Australia | $119,731.73 |
| 3 | Roberto Damelian | Australia | $53,965 |
| 4 | Park Yu Cheung | Hong Kong | $40,130 |
| 5 | Simon Chahine | Australia | $29,050 |
| 6 | Christian Nolte | Germany | $20,755 |
| 7 | Andrew Hinrichsen | Australia | $15,220 |
The Deep Freeze Draws 323
Event #20: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Deep Freeze drew 323 players Saturday, creating a $419,900 prize pool that will pay 36 spots. A minimum cash is worth $2,730 while the winner will recieve $98,635 and an LK Boutique championship ring.
The event is scheduled for three days and plans are to play down to the final table on Sunday.
The $5,000 Six-Max Draws Over 70
Event #21 $5,000 NLHE Six Max drew over 70 players Saturday. The plan was to play down to a final table or 2 a.m. and return Sunday to play down to a winner.
The 2016 Aussie Millions Poker Championship Continues
The 2016 Aussie Millions Poker Championship continues Sunday, Jan. 31, 2016 with the final table of the Main Event beginning at 12:30 p.m. local time, with the live stream beginning at 1 p.m.
The biggest buy-in event on the calendar also starts Sunday with the LK Boutique $250,000 Challenge beginning at 12:15 p.m.
Sunday will also see the second of three days in Event #20: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Deep Freeze go off at 12:10 p.m. and the final day of Event #21: $5,000 Six-Max No-Limit Hold'em will start at 1 p.m.
Plus, Event #23: $1,150 Turbo No-Limit Hold'em Shot Clock, a one-day event, will kick off at 2:10 p.m.
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