Aussie Brendon Rubie captured the 2016 Aussie Millions Event #10: $1,650 No-Limit Hold'em Bounty title inside the Crown Poker Room early Monday morning.
Rubie won $116,680 in prize money and an exclusive LK Boutique Aussie Millions championship ring getting the best of a 349-player field over the course of two days.
A total of 32 players returned in the money Sunday, competing at four shootout tables with the final two at each advancing to the eight-handed final.
The final table then began just after 5 p.m. with China's Xixiang Luo holding a slight lead over Rubie.
Short stack Brian Payne was soon eliminated in eighth when Rubie turned a dominated ace into a pair against him. Rubie took the lead when Luo tried to bluff him off a pot and failed before Stephen Woodhead bowed out seventh and Joris Ruijs said goodbye sixth.
The final $1,000 bounty on the head of Dennis Huntly was collected by Shivan Abdine, sending him home fifth, before the final table devolved into a series of all-in pots between Luo and Michael Dix.
The two kept doubling each other up until Lou finally jammed the and Dix woke up with two aces. With Lou out fourth, Abdine was the next to go, getting his hopes and dreams flushed by Rubie, who then took a healthy lead into heads-up play.
The final heads-up match was a back and forth affair that saw each player take a stranglehold at different points over the course of two hours until Rubie took the lead for good in the third, finally getting it in with ace-high versus king-high and holding on to capture his second Aussie Millions title.
Shortly after having his paid off for 240,000 on the river, Brendon Rubie faced the all in of Michael Dix for what looked like 1,200,000 in the very next hand. The bet was called and this time Rubie had his opponent at risk of elimination with the better hand.
Dix:
Rubie:
The board ran out and the straight for Rubie scooped the pot and exclusive LK Boutique championship ring whereas Dix had to settle for a payday of A$79,440.
Michael Dix made it 80,000 and Brendon Rubie three-bet to 215,000.
Dix called and checked the flop. Rubie bet 190,000 and Dix called. Both checked the turn, but when Rubie also checked the river, Dix fired out a bet of 325,000.
Rubie tanked, called and mucked when Dix turned over the , having made trip fives.
Michael Dix defended his big blind and rivered a straight with to get paid off by initial raiser Brendon Rubie for 210,000 on a board of . One hand later, Dix folded the button and Rubie open-shoved into short stack Shivan Abdine. The latter had around 525,000 chips remaining and nodded, then turned over his cards for the showdown:
Abdine:
Rubie:
The flop was a sweat for Abdine, as Rubie had a gutshot and flush draw. It was all over after the turn, making the river meaningless. Abdine takes home A$49,650 for his efforts and Rubie enters heads-up with a 3-2 lead over Dix.
Just one hand after his double up, Xixiang Luo open-shoved as first to act and the action folded around to Michael Dix. He peeked at both his hole cards and then announced the call.
Dix:
Luo:
The board left Luo with only 15,000 chips and 5,000 of those disappeared for the ante. He was forced all in the next hand and Brendon Rubie limped in, Dix called from the small blind. Rubie then bet the flop for 50,000 and Dix "folded a winner".
Luo:
Dix:
Again the ace-rag found no help as the turn and river were both blanks. Luo's story from hero to zero lasted all but 10 minutes after the dinner break and he finished fourth.
Michael Dix opened the betting, making it 72,000 and Xixiang Luo pushed all in for 540,000 behind.
"I hope I'm racing," said Dix, calling with the . He wasn't. Lou had the and was ahead, until the board ran out to the turn, giving Dix a come-from-behind set of fours.
Lou was devastated, but that changed fast on the river. He exploded with happiness when the was revealed on the end, making him a bigger set, doubling him up to over one million in chips and leaving Dix short.
Dennis Huntly moved all in for 41,000 from under the gun and Shivan Abdine reshoved from one seat over. The action folded to Brendon Rubie and he asked for an approximate count of the shove and then quickly let go when it was around 640,000 in total.
Huntly:
Abdine:
The player at risk paired his jack on the flop and stayed in the lead with the turn, however the river gave Abdine the higher pair and he scored the knockout. Huntly was the last bounty in the field and handed over token as well to give Abdine an extra payday of A$1,000.
Brendon Rubie raised to 42,000 from under the gun and then folded to the shove of Joris Ruijs out of the big blind. The very next hand, the action folded around to the Dutchman and he moved all in for approximately 19 big blinds. Rubie glanced at his cards and then quickly called, tabling the .
Ruijs was behind with the and failed to improve despite an added flush draw on the turn of the board . The Dutchman was sent to the rail in 6th place for a payday of A$24,825.
The action folded around to Brendon Rubie and he raised to 25,000. From one seat over in the cutoff, Brian Payne announced all in and all other opponents folded. Rubie asked the dealer for a count and once it had been determined to be 159,000 in total, he took a sip from his coffee.
Half a minute later, Rubie made the call and found himself behind with the worse kicker:
Payne:
Rubie:
The in the window was bad news for Payne and he failed to regain the lead after the board ran out to bust the Aussie in 8th place for A$14,645.