button in SafariHero Call Gone Wrong Helps Aleks Ponakovs Win $150k Anniversary Special
Jonathan Jaffe looked poised to capture one of the biggest titles of his career before a brutal hero call swung the entire tournament in the closing stages of the $150,000 10th Anniversary Special at Triton Poker Montenegro.
Instead, it was Aleks Ponakovs celebrating under the lights after the Latvian high roller closed out the victory for $3,027,000, while Jaffe collected $2,103,000 as runner-up after a dramatic heads-up clash.
The special anniversary event attracted 76 entries and generated an $11,400,000 prize pool, with a stacked final table featuring some of the biggest names in the high-stakes world.
Ponakovs Wins Huge After Jaffe Hero Call
There were no easy spots at this final table. Every remaining player had extensive experience battling for massive sums, and Ponakovs had to navigate through a murderers’ row before finally lifting the trophy.
Igor Yaroshevskyy was the first to fall in ninth place for $319,000, followed by Mikalai Vaskaboinikau in eighth for $422,000 and Kiat Lee in seventh for $541,000.
The eliminations kept coming as Triton regular Jason Koon exited in sixth place for $684,000 before Thai crusher Punnat Punsri bowed out in fifth for $878,000.
Austrian star Matthias Eibinger finished fourth for $1,088,000, leaving Ponakovs, Jaffe, and businessman Jean-Noel Thorel to battle for the title. Thorel eventually departed in third place for $1,390,000, setting up a deep-stacked heads-up duel between Ponakovs and Jaffe.
$150K 10th Anniversary Special Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aleks Ponakovs | $3,027,000 |
| 2 | Jonathan Jaffe | $2,103,000 |
| 3 | Jean-Noel Thorel | $1,390,000 |
| 4 | Matthias Eibinger | $1,088,000 |
| 5 | Punnat Punsri | $878,000 |
| 6 | Jason Koon | $684,000 |
| 7 | Kiat Lee | $541,000 |
| 8 | Mikalai Vaskaboinikau | $422,000 |
| 9 | Igor Yaroshevskyy | $319,000 |
With both players sitting on more than 50 big blinds, the match looked set for a lengthy battle. Instead, one massive pot changed everything.
Ponakovs opened the button with queen-eight and Jaffe defended ace-deuce. The flop gave Ponakovs top pair and Jaffe bottom pair, and the Latvian continued betting through the turn before improving to two pair on the river.
After Jaffe checked for a final time, Ponakovs moved all in for 3,100,000 effective. Jaffe went deep into the tank before eventually making the call, only to see the bad news. The pot gave Ponakovs a commanding chip lead, and the tournament ended one hand later after the Latvian won a preflop race.
The victory pushes Ponakovs beyond $41 million in recorded live tournament earnings according to The Hendon Mob, extending his lead atop Latvia’s all-time money list. Jaffe, meanwhile, crossed the $22 million mark despite the painful finish.