Final Table Set to Begin

Welcome to Day 4 of the 2011 PokerStars.net APPT Melbourne Main Event! This is it folks, with a final nine eagerly awaiting their fate as the final day of action is set to kick off.

It’s a mostly-Aussie final table, with one of Australia’s all-time tournament earners Leo Boxell in the best position to keep the title on home soil. But, out in front of Boxell, and the man best primed to take home the $330,000 first prize, is New Zealand’s Phillip Willcoks. It wouldn’t be the first time Willcocks has tasted success on Aussie turf, with a runner-up finish and $112,000 coming at the 2009 ANZPT Queensland.

This is how the seating draw looks going into the excitement of the final table.

Seat	Player	Country	Chip Count	BBs	Chip %
1	Eddie Mascardi	Australia	335,000	33.5	4.4%
2	Van Marcus	Australia	346,000	34.6	4.5%
3	William Jones	Australia	730,000	73	9.5%
4	Phillip Willcocks	New Zealand	2,317,000	231.7	30.5%
5	Michael Frydman	Australia	741,000	74.1	9.6%
6	Steve Bouya	Australia	910,000	91	11.8%
7	Julius Colman	Australia	513,000	51.3	6.6%
8	Leo Boxell	Australia	1,170,000	117	15.2%
9	Jackson Zheng	New Zealand	640,000	64	8.3%

While there might be one chip stack towering over all its competitors, this is still anyone’s tournament for the taking. Jackson Zheng is an experienced young player and will also be looking to secure the victory for New Zealand, while 28-year old professional Van Marcus has tasted success all around the word and will be striving to capitalize on his position in this tournament to finish with another victory in his home country. Marcus will have to first get through his uncle though, with Steve Bouya starting with almost a million in chips.

Play at the APPT Melbourne Main Event Final Table is set to kick off at 2:10 PM AEST and PokerNews will be in the midst of all the action, as one player goes home with AUD $330,000 and is crowned the champion!