Six of the Best: Aussie Millions Main Events
The Australian Poker Championships, more commonly known as the ‘Aussie Millions’ has been held at the Crown Casino in Melbourne since July 1998. From humble beginnings, 2018 saw a record field enter the Main Event, proving the tournament still has the prestige and appeal to poker players from all over the world.
With the Main Event getting underway in less than a fortnight, we take a look at six of the best Aussie Millions Main Events!
From humble beginnings
The very first Aussie Millions Main Event was an AUD$1,000 Limit Hold’em tournament. It attracted a total of 74 entries and was won by Australian Alex Horowitz who defeated Ken Eastwood heads-up to win AUD$25,900.
Third-place finisher David Gorr would go on to win the Main Event in 2011.
Last year, Horowitz was back in action at the Crown and narrowly missed out on adding to his Main Event victory, finishing second in a AUD$1,150 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo side event for AUD$19,160.
Bigger is better
In 2002, the Aussie Millions was moved to its now traditional January slot in the poker calendar. In addition, the buy-in was also increased to AUD$5,000. The tournament had been averaging around 100 entries, but the increased buy-in knocked that down to 66 entries.
However, John Maver still walked away with AUD$150,000 in prize money, the first six-figure payout in an Aussie Millions Main Event.
‘Every Hand Revealed’
The 2007 Aussie Millions Main Event was made famous by winner Gus Hansen’s book ‘Every Hand Revealed’ in which he documented his win on a hand-by-hand basis.
Hansen kept track of over 300 hands of action during the tournament using a handheld recorder. He ended up outlasting 747 players on his way to winning the Main Event and AUD$1,500,000, defeating internet prodigy Jimmy “Gobboboy” Fricke heads-up.
"I don't know how much that money is. I use a different currency," Hansen joked after his win. "This is my first time to Australia and you can say this has been a pleasant week."
Big Names in Action
These days the festival has a reputation for attracting some of the world’s most well-known poker players, with the likes of Erik Seidel, WSOPE Main Event champion Annette Obrestad and Chris Moorman all recording final tables in the Main Event here in Melbourne.
In 2013, poker fans were treated to not one, but two big names at the final table with Patrik Antonius and Dan Shak squaring off. Sadly, neither player could emulate Hansen’s win and take it down, with the pair finishing in third and fourth place respectively.
The Modern Era
Between 2012 and 2015 the tournament’s entries were hovering in the mid-600s, but 2016 saw an increase to 732 players. This made it the biggest since 2010.
In 2017, the tournament again hit the 700s with Shurane Vijayaram winning the tournament for AUD$1,600,000. Modern legend Fedor Holz finished fifth in the Main Event showing that it still attracts the best and most well-known players.
Record Field
Last year, the tournament surpassed all expectations and hit 800 players for the first time, surpassing the record of 780 which was set in 2010.
Just two Australians made the final table in a tournament with European players occupying the top three positions.
Englishman Toby Lewis won the tournament for $1,458,198 after a three-way deal with Stefan Huber and Espen Solaas.
So what will 2019 bring? Another record field? More international players? A fifth non-Australian champion in seven years?
Stay tuned to PokerNews as we get nearer to live reporting on the 2019 AUD$10,600 Aussie Millions