Mustapha Kanit Remembers Thrill of Capturing His First Sunday Million Title
Back in 2016, popular Italian poker player Mustapha Kanit won the PokerStars Sunday Million for $177,229.79 and take his total online tournament winnings to more than $4.25 million. Kanit is now a Winamax Team Pro and sits with over $5.7 million in lifetime earnings and is a bona fide High Roller super star.
However, we caught up with him before the Winamax SISMIX in Madrid to talk about his Sunday Million memories, and he admitted that it had always been somewhat of a dream to win the prestigious poker tournament.
"It's always been a chase," he told PokerNews. "The Sunday Million was something that I played every Sunday, and I really wanted to win it, especially in the beginning of my career.
"Winning the Sunday million can be a career changer. I decided many times that this was the day I'm going to win the [Sunday] Million, but it was always a dream and it never happened."
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However, that changed after 10-12 years with Kanit adding his name to a long list of poker players who have won the title.
"Even when I was playing in Super High Rollers it was always a dream. I still wanted to win the Sunday Million, and when it happened it was a really nice feeling."
Kanit says that he was never in trouble at the final table, picking the right spots and eventually emerging triumphant for the six-figure pay day.
The fulfilment Kanit says he got from winning the tournament was unparalleled.
"It was just one of those tournaments that I had always chased and wanted to win, and it finally happened. There was this sense of fulfilment, almost. Something that you chase and chase and chase."
"I always had a good stack throughout the tournament. The final table was comfortable and I just took the right spots. I felt good after the final table. It was a great feeling. It was like something you worked hard for and it finally happened so it was a great feeling."
And what did he do with the money? Where there any crazy purchases after his win?
"It was a great win, but I just put the money on my bankroll! I didn't spend any of it, I just added it into my poker bankroll at the time!"
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.
