button in SafariChristoph Vogelsang Completes Triton Hat Trick With 13th $1M Score
Germany's Christoph Vogelsang is now a three-time Triton Poker champion after he triumphed in the $50,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em 7-Handed event on May 21. The methodical 40-year-old came out on top of a 118-strong field and received $1,037,858, the 13th seven-figure score of his glistening career.
Vogelsang's haul would have been even larger had it not been for a deal struck when the contest was three-handed. He struck a deal with fellow German speakers Leonard Maue and Thomas Muehloecker that saw Maue bank $909,127 and Muehloecker take home $1,071,015.
$50,000 NLH 7-Handed Final Table Results
| Rank | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Christoph Vogelsang | Germany | $1,037,858* |
| 2 | Leonard Maue | Germany | $909,127* |
| 3 | Thomas Muehloecker | Austria | $1,071,015* |
| 4 | Alexandros Theologis | Greece | $525,000 |
| 5 | Bryn Kenney | United States | $422,000 |
| 6 | Kayhan Mokri | Norway | $331,000 |
| 7 | Ye Wang | China | $248,000 |
*Denotes three-handed deal
Day 1 saw the field reduced to a more manageable 23 and almost on the money bubble because the tournament paid the top 20 finishers.
The bubble burst early into Day 2, and Cong Pham was the unfortunate soul who popped it. Pham got his short stack into the middle wth ace-nine of hearts and can count himself unfortunate to lose to Maue's queen-deuce of spades.
Top-tier grinders fell by the wayside through proceedings, with the eliminations of Mikita Badziakouski and final table bubble boy Wiktor Malinowski setting the official final table. The tournament director wound back the blinds to a 30 big blind average, and the final table action began.
China's Wang Ye's elimination broke the deadlock at the final table. Ye three-bet all-in for 19 big blinds with ace-king and was flipping against the pocket queens of Alexandros Theologis. The queens held, and Ye crashed out.
Muehlocker eliminated Norwegian Kayhan Mokri in sixth before Triton Poker's all-time money leader, Bryn Kenney, bowed out. Kenney's last action in this event was to call all-in with ace-queen after Muehloecker had open-shoved with what turned out to be pocket fives. The lowly pair held, and the $50,000 NLH 7-Handed event was suddenly being contested four-handed.
Muehlocker claimed another scalp, that of Theologis, to reduce the field to only three hopefuls. The Austrian again open-shoved, this time with ace-ten, and Theologis looked him up with ace-six, committing his last 14 big blinds. The five community cards provided no drama, and Theologis was sent packing; the $525,000 he banked should go some way to numbing the pain of defeat.
The final trio requested the clock be paused while they looked at the numbers an ICM deal would produce. Those numbers locked in $1,071,015 for Meuhloecker, $937,858 for Maue, and $909,127 for Vogelsang, while leaving the trophy and $100,000 to play for.
With a deal in place, Vogelsang climbed to the top of the counts before concluding the tournament in two quickfire hands.
First, Vogelsang three-bet all-in with ace-five after Muehloecker had opened, and the latter called off what remained of his 15 big blind stack with king-jack of hearts. An ace on the flop proved more than enough to halt Muehloecker in his tracks.
On the next hand, Vogelsang completed his blind with king-five of hearts only to see Maue rip in 23 big blinds with ace-queen. Vogelsang called and was rewarded with a king on the flop. No ace on the turn or river, and Vogelsang emerged victoriously once again, reeling in another $1 million score and a third Triton trophy.