Aussie Millions

The Aussie Millions (formerly the Crown Australian Poker Championship) is the largest and richest poker festival in the Southern Hemisphere. Since 1998, it has been held at the Crown Casino in Melbourne, Australia.

The Main Event has grown from just 74 entries to over 800, and continues to attract some of the world's biggest poker stars.

PokerNews has provided live coverage from the Aussie Millions since 2007.

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Finished Tournaments

Winner Winning Hand Prize Runner-up Losing Hand
2020 Aussie Millions Vincent Wan 109 1,318,000 AUD Ngoc Tai Hoang a3

Origins of the Crown Australian Poker Championship

The very first Australian Poker Championships were held in 1998. The buy-in was A$1,000 and the Limit Hold'em tournament was won by Alex Horowitz. The following year, the buy-in remained the same but the format shifted to Pot-Limit Hold'em.

In 2000, the buy-in increased to A$1,500. It increased again to A$5,000 in 2002 and then to A$10,000 in 2003 where it has remained ever since.

The very first non-Australian to win the tournament was Englishman Peter Costa in 2003. His victory was followed by that of another Englishman, Tony Bloom, in 2004.

Two players from New Zealand took honours in 2005 and 2006 with Jamil Dia and Lee Nelson the first two players to win A$1,000,000+ first prizes.


Read More: A Historical Look at the Aussie Millions from 2003-2007


2007 Aussie Millions

Costa's 2003 victory came in a field of 122 players. Four years later, at the 2007 Aussie Millions the field had soared to 747 entries and the 2007 Aussie Millions Main Event was won by Gus Hansen. His victory was made famous by the book 'Every Hand Revealed' where he broke down every single important hand he played en-route to victory.

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2007747A$7,470,000Gus HansenDenmarkA$1,500,000

2008 Aussie Millions

The 2008 Aussie Millions Main Event was won by Alexander Kostritsyn. He defeated Poker Hall of Famer Erik Seidel heads-up to win A$1,650,000.

2008 Aussie Millions Main Event Champion Alexander Kostritsyn
2008 Aussie Millions Main Event Champion Alexander Kostritsyn

The festival also saw the likes of Howard Lederer and 2007 Aussie Millions Main Event runner-up Jimmy Fricke win titles, with Mike McDonald capturing his first live career title, winning the $1,050 PokerPro No Limit Holdem

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2008780A$7,758,500Alexander KostritsynRussiaA$1,650,000

2009 Aussie Millions

After two years without an Australian winner, the 2009 Aussie Millions Main Event was won by Stewart Scott who defeated Peter Rho heads-up. Both players became millionaires, with Scott winning A$2,000,000 and runner-up Rho A$1,000,000.

2008 Aussie Millions Main Event winner Alexander Kostritsyn won the A$10,200 H.O.R.S.E., as did 2006 winner and Australian Poker Hall of Famer Lee Nelson in the A$1,100 Pot-Limit Omaha.

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2009681A$6,810,000Stewart ScottAustraliaA$2,000,000

2010 Aussie Millions

Just three years after winning the WSOP Europe Main Event, Annette Obrestad made it to the final table of the 2010 Aussie Millions Main Event, which was won by Tyron Krost.

Obrestad did manage to win one of the side events in the A$1,100 Pot Limit Omaha, with David Bach, Erik Seidel, Dan Shak and Mike Watson also grabbing Aussie Millions rings.

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2010746A$7,460,000Tyron KrostAustraliaA$2,000,000

2011 Aussie Millions

The 2011 Aussie Millions saw the introduction of the A$250,000 Challenge, then the largest buy-in tournament in poker history (it has since been surpassed by the WSOP $1,000,000 Big One for One Drop).

2011 A$250,000 Challenge winner Erik Seidel
2011 A$250,000 Challenge winner Erik Seidel

A field of 20 players assembled, with Erik Seidel emerged triumphant in the event after defeating Sam Trickett heads-up. Trickett would be able to console himself with victory in the A$100,000 Challenge.

The 2011 Aussie Millions Main Event was won by David Gorr. He defeated a field of 721 players to win A$2,000,000.

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2011721A$7,210,000David GorrAustraliaA$2,000,000

2012 Aussie Millions

The A$250,000 Challenge returned in 2012 and was won by Phil Ivey. The A$100,000 Challenge meanwhile was won by Dan Smith, his first major live poker score outside of the United States.

2012 also saw the Tournament of Champions which promised to award lifetime entry to the winner. The youngest player at the final table was 2010 winner Tyron Krost who won the tournament.

The 2012 Aussie Millions Main Event was won by Melbourne Oliver Speidel who defeated Kenneth Wong heads-up for A$1,600,000.

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2012659A$6,590,000Oliver SpeidelAustraliaA$1,600,000
2012 Aussie Millions Main Event winner Oliver Speidel
2012 Aussie Millions Main Event winner Oliver Speidel

2013 Aussie Millions

The High Rollers were out in force in 2013, with the big winner being Sam Trickett, who followed up his 2011 A$100,000 Challenge win with victory in the A$250,000 Challenge.

Mervin "The Cat" Chan from Malaysia was the champion of the 2013 Aussie Millions Main Event, defeating the likes of Dan Shak and Patrik Antonius en-route to winning A$1.6 million and a Chrysler 300C car.

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2013629A$6,290,000Mervin ChanMalaysiaA$1,600,000

2014 Aussie Millions

The first North American Aussie Millions champion was Ami Barer from Canada, who won the 2014 Aussie Millions Main Event. He defeated fellow Canadian Sorel Mizzi heads-up.

Meanwhile, Phil Ivey took down his second A$250,000 Challenge in the space of three years. He defeated a 46-player field to win A$4,000,000. This was the largest field in A$250,000 Challenge history.

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2014668A$6,680,000Ami BarerCanadaA$1,600,000

2015 Aussie Millions

Ivey then went back-to-back, winning his third A$250,000 Challenge and firmly putting his stamp on the event. Many have even dubbed this event the 'Phil Ivey Invitational'.

Phil Ivey Wins 2014 Aussie Millions $250,000 Challenge
Phil Ivey Wins 2014 Aussie Millions $250,000 Challenge

Meanwhile in the Main Event, hometown hero Manny Stavropoulos defeated a final table featuring four-time WSOP bracelet-winner Brian Rast to win the 2015 Aussie Millions Main Event.

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2015648A$6,480,000Manny StavropoulosAustraliaA$1,385,500

2016 Aussie Millions

The Aussie Millions title returned to Canada in 2016, after Ari Engel won the 2016 Aussie Millions Main Event. He beat Tony Dunst heads-up at a final table featuring two popular female players - Sam Abernathy and Kitty Kuo.

Plenty of big names were in action in the side events. Steve O'Dwyer won the A$250,000 Challenge, with the likes of Chance Kornuth, Michael Soyza, Stephen Chidwick and Martin Finger all grabbing Aussie Millions rings.

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2016732A$7,320,000Ari EngelCanadaA$1,600,000

2017 Aussie Millions

The A$250,000 Challenge was not included in the 2017 Aussie Millions schedule, but it was Nick Petrangelo who won the ANTON Jewellery A$100,000 Challenge for A$882,000.

In the 2017 Aussie Millions Main Event, it was Shurane Vijayaram who defeated a star-studded final table that included a certain Fedor Holz before eliminating Ben Heath heads-up to secure victory.

Shurane Vijayaram wins 2017 Aussie Millions Main Event
Shurane Vijayaram wins 2017 Aussie Millions Main Event
YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2017725A$7,250,000Shurane VijayaramAustraliaA$1,600,000

2018 Aussie Millions

England hadn't won an Aussie Millions Main Event since 2004, but it was Toby Lewis who emerged triumphant in the 2018 Aussie Millions Main Event, winning A$1,458,198 after a three-way deal with Stefan Huber and Espen Solaas.

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2018800A$8,000,000Toby LewisUnited KingdomA$1,458,198

2019 Aussie Millions

Lewis followed up his Main Event win with victory in the A$50,000 Challenge the following year, as both Rainer Kempe and Cary Katz took down other High Rollers.

Toby Lewis 2019 A$50,000 Challenge
Toby Lewis 2019 A$50,000 Challenge

In the 2019 Aussie Millions Main Event, it was the very first victory by an American as Bryn Kenney secured victory. In what was the largest Aussie Millions Main Event in history, the final three players agreed a deal which would make them all millionaires, with Mike Del Vecchio second, and Andrew Hinrichsen securing third place.

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2019822A$8,220,000Bryn KenneyUnited StatesA$1,272,598

2020 Aussie Millions

Toby Lewis made it three Aussie Millions titles in three years with victory in the Shot Clock Six Max, with home favorites Kahle Burns and Michael Addamo also picking up Aussie Millions rings in the A$100,000 Challenge and A$50,000 Challenge respectively.

The 2020 Aussie Millions Main Event was won by Vincent "Wonky" Wan. Del Vecchio narrowly missed out on an incredible third Main Event final table in a row, but would have to settle for tenth place.

At the final table, Erik Seidel rolled back the years making his second Aussie Millions Main Event final table after finishing runner-up to Alexander Kostritsyn in 2008. Seidel sits second in the Crown Melbourne all-time money list after a fifth place finish in 2020.

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
2020820A$8,200,000Vincent WanAustraliaA$1,318,000
Vincent Wan wins 2020 Aussie Millions Main Event
Vincent Wan wins 2020 Aussie Millions Main Event

Aussie Millions Main Event Winners

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
199874A$74,000Alex HorowitzAustraliaA$25,900
1999109A$109,000Milo NadalinAustraliaA$38,150
2000109A$173,500Leo BoxellAustraliaA$65,225
2001101A$151,500Sam KormanAustraliaA$53,025
200266A$330,000John MaverAustraliaA$150,000
2003122A$1,220,000Peter CostaUnited KingdomA$394,870
2004133A$1,330,000Tony BloomUnited KingdomA$426,500
2005263A$2,630,000Jamil DiaNew ZealandA$1,000,000
2006418A$4,180,000Lee NelsonNew ZealandA$1,295,800
2007747A$7,470,000Gus HansenDenmarkA$1,500,000
2008780A$7,758,500Alexander KostritsynRussiaA$1,650,000
2009681A$6,810,000Stewart ScottAustraliaA$2,000,000
2010746A$7,460,000Tyron KrostAustraliaA$2,000,000
2011721A$7,210,000David GorrAustraliaA$2,000,000
2012659A$6,590,000Oliver SpeidelAustraliaA$1,600,000
2013629A$6,290,000Mervin ChanMalaysiaA$1,600,000
2014668A$6,680,000Ami BarerCanadaA$1,600,000
2015648A$6,480,000Manny StavropoulosAustraliaA$1,385,500
2016732A$7,320,000Ari EngelCanadaA$1,600,000
2017725A$7,250,000Shurane VijayaramAustraliaA$1,600,000
2018800A$8,000,000Toby LewisUnited KingdomA$1,458,198
2019822A$8,220,000Bryn KenneyUnited StatesA$1,272,598
2020820A$8,200,000Vincent WanAustraliaA$1,318,000

Aussie Millions $100,000 Challenge Winners

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
200610A$1,000,000John JuandaIndonesiaA$1,000,000
200718A$1,800,000Erick LindgrenUnited StatesA$1,000,000
200825A$2,500,000Howard LedererUnited StatesA$1,250,000
200923A$2,300,000David SteickeAustraliaA$1,200,000
201024A$2,400,000Daniel ShakUnited StatesA$1,200,000
201138A$3,800,000Sam TrickettUnited KingdomA$1,525,000
201222A$2,200,000Dan SmithUnited StatesA$1,012,000
201322A$2,200,000Andrew RoblUnited StatesA$1,000,000
201447A$7,486,000Yevgeniy TimoshenkoUkraineA$2,000,000
201570A$6,860,000Richard YongMalaysiaA$1,870,000
201641A$4,018,000Fabian QuossGermanyA$1,446,480
201718A$1,764,000Nick PetrangeloUnited StatesA$882,000
201819A$1,862,000Michael LimMalaysiaA$931,000
201942A$4,116,000Cary KatzUnited StatesA$1,481,760
202054A$5,238,000Kahle BurnsAustraliaA$1,746,360

Aussie Millions $250,000 Challenge Winners

YearEntriesPrize PoolWinnerCountryFirst Prize
201120A$5,000,000Erik SeidelUnited StatesA$2,500,000
201216A$4,000,000Phil IveyUnited StatesA$2,000,000
201318A$4,500,000Sam TrickettUnited KingdomA$2,000,000
201446A$11,270,000Phil IveyUnited StatesA$4,000,000
201525A$6,105,000Phil IveyUnited StatesA$2,205,000
201616A$3,920,000Steve O'DwyerUnited StatesA$951,960