2020 Aussie Millions Gets Underway with First Opening Event Flight
Table Of Contents
The much anticipated 2020 Aussie Millions got underway today with the first flight of the Opening Event. Last year Muhamed Asad won A$219,980 (US$158,385) after a three-way deal, topping a field of 1,752 entries.
Overall, last year saw 8,658 championship entries from more than 45 countries. The Main Event was the largest in history, and was won by Bryn Kenney.
This year's festival features 23 championship events, including the $10,600 Main Event which PokerNews will be live reporting from January 17.
Shuffle Up and Deal
Before cards got in the air on the first day's play, tournament director Joel Wiliams was on hand to deliver the ceremonial shuffle up and deal.
He was first joined by the head of Crown Melbourne's Indigenous Program Lee-Ann Emzin who acknowledged the traditional owners of the land on which the Aussie Millions is held, and paid respects to elders both past and present.
Williams then welcomed both players and staff to this year's tournament.
"It's an early start and a packed tournament schedule," said Williams. "We remain committed to providing one of the world's top poker offerings, and we're confident that we'll deliver a world-class series that all Australians can be particularly proud of.
"To our players, your continued support is vital to Australian poker, and of course greatly appreciated by all of us here at Crown Melbourne. From locals, who started playing satellites as early as March last year, to international players that arrive earlier and earlier each year.
"To the staff, who help execute the Aussie Millions each and every day, from the back of house staff to dealers, I wish you all a successful and enjoyable Aussie Millions championship."
Williams then welcomed to the stage a familiar face from last year's Aussie Millions in the shape of 2019 $5,000 Six Max champion Jamie Lee.
A first time visitor in 2019, Lee was a former cash game player whose first foray into live tournaments saw him pick up a coveted Aussie Millions championship ring.
"Before the Aussie Millions started last year," said Lee. "I proposed to my wife. We made a conscious decision to give poker tournaments a shot, and I told myself before that as long as she said yes that would regardless of what I did in the poker tournaments I’d leave Australia as a winner.
"I was playing quite badly for the first couple of weeks last year, and the $5,000 Six-Max was the last event on the schedule I was planning to play.
"The day before the event started, I had said to my wife I’m thinking of skipping this event and she talked me out of it. She said 'You came here to play, so stick to the plan.' I played that event and ended up winning. If she hadn’t have talked me out of it, I would have left Australia down. I think I would have given up playing poker tournaments and switched to cash games. So thank you for talking me out of it and that’s the reason why I’m standing here now."
Lee said that his plans for the 2020 Aussie Millions is to "level up" his poker game.
"I'm going to be playing [the Opening Event] and the Main Event, but then also the High Rollers. I'm going to have a crack at the $25,000, $50,000 and $100,000.
"So without any further ado – dealers shuffle up and deal!"
Joey Weissman Enjoying His First Ever Aussie Millions
Joey Weissman admits that his first trip to the Aussie Millions has been a long time coming. After receiving recommendations from the likes of fellow Americans Jesse Sylvia, James Romero and David Peters, Weissman told us that he's been meaning to come for years, and 2020 marks the first time he's made the trip down under for what he says is one of the greatest poker stops in the world.
"The poker community just love it here," Weissman told PokerNews on break in the Opening Event. "Melbourne is so well-known for its food and the people here, but also for the quality of dealers and tournament staff here at the Aussie Millions. I've been hearing about it for a long time and had always said to myself 'Maybe one day!'"
However, with the absence of the PCA on the January poker calendar, Weissman along with his girlfriend decided in late 2019 to make the journey, extending their trip with a holiday to New Zealand and Asia.
"We're just taking the opportunity to travel and taking advantage of being on this side of the world. It's been something that my girlfriend and I have been talking about for the last couple of years, and wanting to do, but never pulling the trigger. We decided we wanted to do it sooner rather than later, before settling down and having a family one day.
"We've got a few days after the series is done to really enjoy the city, and I'm sure I'll take some days off. I'm sure things will work out organically to really enjoy our time here, but you can't beat being here in the summertime, right?"
Now with the long flight behind him, Weissman has thrown himself into a full poker schedule here at the 2020 Aussie Millions, but a unique situation has come up that he says will change his approach to the trip as a whole.
"I'm here for the whole thing and planning on playing most days. It's an interesting situation because most tournaments like this $1,000 don't allow you to re-enter on the same day, so [if you bust] you just have the rest of the day to enjoy!
"Considering the structures, there are going to be early casualties, and some of those days I'm going to be one of them. Sort of forces you to play every day because it's not like you're going to be re-entering until 8pm in each flight. You don't have that excuse, you could be done by 2pm so you're going to be able to play the next day. "
Looking ahead, Weissman admits that his priorities for 2020, at least in the short term, are away from poker.
"I think it would be pretty safe to say that after the Aussie Millions we're going to be taking some time to enjoy being in places like New Zealand and Asia, and who knows how much poker there will be! Probably very little.
"You do see these little tours in the Philippines or Thailand, but I'll definitely be back in Vegas for the full WSOP and after that, who knows!"
Opening Event Flight 1
A total of 242 players jumped into the 2020 Aussie Millions Opening Event on the first of five flights, and after twelve 40-minute levels just 28 advanced to Day 2.
Such is befitting of the historic and prestigious tournament, a whole host of big names joined the field including former Main Event winners David Gorr, Ami Barer and Ari Engel along with Joey Weissman, Dzmitry Urbanovich and Kenny Hallaert.
However, these players will all have to try again on subsequent flights after busting today. Big names who have bagged already up include former WSOP Main Event final tablist Martin Jacobson (169,900) who sits third in chips.
"My first Aussie Millions was in 2013," Jacobson told PokerNews shortly after bagging. "I've been to every one since, except for last year! I just love Melbourne overall as a city. The brunch, the people...I'm a big coffee fan so I like that part!
"It's a great time of the year to be here as well, with the tennis, and the tournaments are just great and very well organised."
Other notables include Julien Sitbon (200,000) who is second in chips behind Zack Lowrie (213,800) along with 2019 $1,150 Six Max runner-up Travis Endersby (74,700), 2019 $5,000 Six Max champion Jamie Lee (68,700) and David Yan (30,800).
The second flight gets underway on Sunday, January 5, at 12:10 pm, with another group of players joining the 2020 Aussie Millions as well as others who opt to re-enter.
End of Flight 1 Chip Counts
| Player | Chip Count |
|---|---|
| Zack Lowrie | 213,800 |
| Julien Sitbon | 200,000 |
| Martin Jacobson | 169,900 |
| Michael Egan | 165,000 |
| Michael Faulkner | 135,000 |
| Dejan Boskovic | 123,400 |
| Paul Altis | 121,500 |
| Giang Fu | 119,800 |
| Andrew Shanahan | 108,200 |
| Javad Etaat | 102,900 |
| Rob Raymond | 93,900 |
| Jason Luttgens | 74,800 |
| Travis Endersby | 74,700 |
| Richard Balkan | 72,200 |
| Jamie Lee | 68,700 |
| Luc Meritan | 63,100 |
| Alboozar Azarnoush | 58,800 |
| Tanya Hill | 57,800 |
| Liu Yu Cheng | 55,000 |
| Jacob Howes | 52,400 |
| Scott Wilson | 49,200 |
| Lucas Morrift | 46,000 |
| Brett Murtagh | 42,600 |
| Alex Palantinis | 37,100 |
| Daniel O'Shea | 36,600 |
| Darryl Gassali | 33,100 |
| David Yan | 30,800 |
| Shoshiro Karita | 24,900 |
Stay tuned to PokerNews for continued updates from the 2020 Aussie Millions including daily highlights for all events until live reporting begins. PokerNews reporters will be on hand for the following events:
| Event | Dates |
|---|---|
| $25,000 Pot-Limit Omaha | January 13-14, 2020 |
| $25,000 Challenge | January 15-16, 2020 |
| $50,000 Challenge | January 17-18, 2020 |
| $10,600 Main Event | January 17-24, 2020 |
| $100,000 Challenge | January 22-23, 2020 |
Based in the United Kingdom, Will started working for PokerNews as a freelance live reporter in 2015 and joined the full-time staff in 2019. He graduated from the University of Kent in 2017 with a B.A. in German. He also holds an NCTJ Diploma in Sports Journalism.
