Players Ready for A$25,000 Challenge
Welcome back to PokerNews for coverage of the 2020 Aussie Millions here at the Crown Casino in Melbourne. Today sees the second of four five- and six-figure High Roller Challenges get underway with the A$25,000 Challenge, won last year by Rainer Kempe.
He defeated a record 151-player field to take home A$826,465 after a heads-up deal with runner-up Toby Lewis who took home A$786,214.
Former A$25,000 Challenge Winners
| Year | Winner | Country | First Prize (AUD) | Entries | Total Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Dominykas Karmazinas | Lithuania | A$200,000 | 20 | A$500,000 |
| 2013 | Igor Kurganov | Russia | A$275,000 | 30 | A$723,000 |
| 2014 | Max Altergott | Germany | A$241,785 | 65 | A$1,560,000 |
| 2015 | Alexander Trevallion | Australia | A$645,150 | 104 | A$2,496,000 |
| 2016 | Chance Kornuth | United States | A$790,560 | 122 | A$2,928,000 |
| 2017 | James Chen | Taiwan | A$861,840 | 133 | A$3,192,000 |
| 2018 | Ben Lamb | United States | A$738,720 | 114 | A$2,736,000 |
| 2019 | Rainer Kempe | Germany | A$826,465 | 151 | A$3,624,000 |
Today, players will have 12 levels to navigate to make it through to the final day's play. The first six levels will be 40-minutes each, with the final six increasing to an hour. There will be a 45-minute dinner break after level eight.
One re-entry is permitted per player, with late registration and re-entry closing after the dinner break.
Several players made their way into this event through last night's A$2,800 satellite including Michael Dyer, Kitty Kuo and Paul Newey.
Day 1 Level Structure
| Level | Duration | Small Blind | Big Blind | Big Blind Ante |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 40 min | 100 | 200 | 0 |
| 2 | 40 min | 150 | 300 | 300 |
| 3 | 40 min | 200 | 400 | 400 |
| Break | 15 min | |||
| 4 | 40 min | 300 | 600 | 600 |
| 5 | 40 min | 400 | 800 | 800 |
| 6 | 40 min | 500 | 1,000 | 1,000 |
| Break | 15 min | |||
| 7 | 60 min | 600 | 1,200 | 1,200 |
| 8 | 60 min | 800 | 1,600 | 1,600 |
| Break | 45 min | |||
| 9 | 60 min | 1,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 |
| 10 | 60 min | 1,200 | 2,400 | 2,400 |
| Break | 15 min | |||
| 11 | 60 min | 1,500 | 3,000 | 3,000 |
| 12 | 60 min | 2,000 | 4,000 | 4,000 |