For the past week the 2014 Aussie Millions has been playing out in Melbourne. With a $10,000 Main Event and $25,000/$100,000/$250,000 Challenges, it's no surprise that poker's biggest names have made the trip down under, including Gus Hansen, Doug "WCGRider" Polk, and Viktor "Isildur1" Blom.
Even with all the action in the Crown Poker Room, both Blom and Polk couldn't stay away from the virtual felt for long. Blom actually continued his winning ways this week by banking $123,437 in 2,499 hands over 27 sessions. On the flip side, Polk was the week's biggest loser after dropping $302,742 in 1,245 hands over 14 sessions. Interestingly, Polk fired two bullets in the Aussie Millions $100,000 Challenge, so it's been an expensive week for the pro.
Others who failed to do well this week were "Trueteller" (-$240,768 in 12 sessions/1,902 hands – though he won $137,500 on PokerStars), Alexander "PostflopAction" Kostritsyn (-$229,864 in 14 sessions/1,447 hands), and Hansen (-$173,698 in 19 sessions/1,761 hands).
The week's biggest winner was "kagome kagome," who won $395,912 over 412 hands in just two sessions. "Mikki696" (+$215,966 in 4 sessions/451 hands) and "thecortster" (+$208,237 in 12 sessions/1,330 hands) also had good weeks.
Blom and Polk Close Out January with a No-Limit Hold'em Mêlée
On Thursday, Jan. 30, Viktor "Isildur1" Blom and Doug "WCGRider" Polk were busy mixing it up at various games before meeting one another at four tables of no limit hold'em. The two played a back-and-forth match, but Blom ultimately walked away a $490,000 winner in the match, a score that put him up $2.1 million for the month of January.
Here's a look at a couple big hands from that match.
Doug \"WGCRider\" Polk
Hand #1: With $500/$1,000 blinds, Blom ($57,243.50) opened for $2,000 from the button only to have Polk ($111,809.50) three-bet to $5,500. Blom responded by simply moving all in to cap it with a $30,000 four-bet, and Polk called to create a $60,000 pot.
Blom: A♦J♣
Polk: 9♦9♣
It was flip, and in this hand the coin came down in Blom's favor when the 3♥A♥4♦ flop paired his ace. Neither the 4♥ turn nor 2♥ river changed a thing and Blom was pushed the $60,000 pot.
Hand #2: Polk ($101,437.70) opened for $2,000 on the button and then capped it at $30,000 after Blom ($67,603.30) three-bet to $5,500. Blom made the call and the cards were turned up.
Polk: A♦8♥
Blom: 10♦10♠
Blom got it in good, and he took a commanding lead when the K♣6♣10♥ flop gave him a set. The Q♥ turn gave Polk a Broadway draw to a jack, but it wasn't in the cards as the Q♦ blanked on the river. Another $60,000 pot was shipped to Blom.
Interestingly, Polk and Blom played together in the Aussie Millions $100,000 Challenge, which you can follow by clicking here.
"Kagome Kagome" Takes Blom for $395,500 at the 2-7 Triple Draw Tables
February got off to an extremely slow start – no doubt due to the fact that Blom was busy at the Aussie Millions – but on Tuesday, Feb. 4 he was back at the $2,000/$4,000 2-7 Triple Draw tables. He probably should have stayed away a bit longer though because he found a way to lose $395,500 to "kagome kagome" in two hours.
That said, Blom seemed to turn things around when he won $111,000 in 52 minutes against Ben "Bttech86" Tollerene at the $500/$1,000 CAP pot-limit Omaha tables. Unfortunately for him, he didn't hold onto it as he took on Tollerene a little later on and gave all but $1,300 back in just 45 minutes.
