888poker XL Winter $100K GTD Opening Event Final Table Kicks Off at 7 p.m. GMT
Welcome to the final table of the XL Winter Event #1: $55 Opening Event at 888poker. A total of 2,311 entries ponied up the $55 buy-in for a $115,550 prize pool to smash the $100,000 guarantee. The action was down to just nine players at the end of Day 1, with each returning player guaranteed at least a $1,294 payout with their eyes on the $15,068 top prize.
Three players enter the final table with over 10 million in chips including Day 1 chip leader "zotto18" sporting a huge 71 big blind stack of 17,674,982, "tihonoff1" (11,192,676), and Michael "IHaveAsthma" Wasserman (10,738,078).
Others in the mix include "shippp_it" (7,312,374), "andrey59" (5,852,325), "Ildar0365" (5,045,512), "Pete_444" (5,042,455), "gillatron1" (4,362,812), and "Lucky1IJack" (2,108,786).
XL Winter Event #1 Final Table Chip Counts
| Place | Player | Country | Chips | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | zotto18 | Romania | 17,674,982 | 71 |
| 2 | tihonoff1 | Russia | 11,192,676 | 45 |
| 3 | Michael "IHaveAsthma" Wasserman | Mexico | 10,738,078 | 43 |
| 4 | shippp_it | Canada | 7,312,374 | 29 |
| 5 | andrey59 | Brazil | 5,852,325 | 23 |
| 6 | Ildar0365 | Turkmenistan | 5,045,512 | 20 |
| 7 | Pete_444 | Canada | 5,042,455 | 20 |
| 8 | gillatron1 | United Kingdom | 4,362,812 | 17 |
| 9 | Lucky1IJack | Canada | 2,108,786 | 8 |
| Total | 69,330,000 | 277 | ||
| Average | 7,703,333 | 31 |
The final table will kick off on Monday, January 17 at 7 p.m. GMT (2 p.m. ET) on Level 44 with blinds at 125,000/250,000 with an ante of 31,250 and increase every 12 minutes until a winner is crowned.
David Tuchman and Nick Wealthall will be broadcasted the final table with hole cards exposed at the 888poker YouTube channel, which will also be embedded in our coverage for the remainder of the event.
Final Table Payouts
| Place | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | $15,068 |
| 2 | $10,931 |
| 3 | $7,915 |
| 4 | $5,778 |
| 5 | $4,252 |
| 6 | $3,120 |
| 7 | $2,311 |
| 8 | $1,722 |
| 9 | $1,294 |
PokerNews will live report the final table on the 30-minute stream delay starting at 7:30 p.m. GMT (1:30 p.m. ET) as to not give away spoilers. Stay tuned at PokerNews to see who will win the XL Winter Event #1: $55 Opening Event at 888poker.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
17,684,982
17,684,982
|
17,684,982 |
|
||
|
11,192,676
11,192,676
|
11,192,676 |
|
10,738,078
10,738,078
|
10,738,078 |
|
7,312,374
7,312,374
|
7,312,374 |
|
5,852,325
5,852,325
|
5,852,325 |
|
5,045,512
5,045,512
|
5,045,512 |
|
|
5,042,455
5,042,455
|
5,042,455 |
|
4,362,812
4,362,812
|
4,362,812 |
|
|
2,108,786
2,108,786
|
2,108,786 |
flop and just needed to dodge two outs after the 
followed on the turn. However, the 
rained down on the river to improve "andrey59" to a full house and "Lucky1IJack" was ousted in ninth place for $1,294.
hit the board to eliminate "Pete_444" in seventh place for $2,311.
board, while Wasserman improved to a full house to send his opponent to the rail in fifth place for $4,252.
and was called by "Ildar0365" from the big blind with 
