2011 Aussie Millions

The Million Dollar Cash game set is dark now, and where moments ago there were piles of chips worth more than a million, the felt is empty. But that doesn't mean the action has stopped. Several of the players have moved their stacks to the Mahogany Room at the Crown Casino to continue playing.

The televised $500/$1,000 no limit hold'em cash game leapt to a roaring start. Fueled by aggressive play and risk-seeking attitudes, Tom Dwan, Phil Ivey, Patrik Antonius, John Juanda, and Eli Elezra couldn't get their chips in the middle fast enough for the first few hours. Three wealthy businessmen who left their usual seats in Macau's biggest games to come to Melbourne kept things interesting. Juanda was paid in full for a flopped wheel and then won a few other pots to finish up nearly $250k. Dwan found himself scooping a $250k pot with a missed flush draw and jack high.

Antonius lost a $300k flip and had to reload, but he was back in the black after flopping a boat 20 minutes later. He won a $435k pot with and a few more after that to make him one of the night's biggest winners. Then, with the production crew on break, Paul Phua stacked Ivey and decided to call it quits. His friends joined him, and the game broke about five hours after it started.

A new lineup took their seats to keep the action going. Some of the game's most feared online players battled for two hours, though the atmosphere lacked some of the excitement of the earlier session. When the crew turned the lights off, Sam Trickett and David Benyamine were the second session's big winners, while Andrew Feldman and Dan Cates didn't fare so well.

Another lineup of pros will mix it up on the Million Dollar Cash Game Tuesday from 4:00 pm to midnight local time.

As the production crew was trying to shut things down, David Benyamine and Andrew Feldman tangled in big pot. On an board, Benyamine got maximum value when he was all in for 88,700 against Feldman on the river and tabled for a flopped wheel.

"Oh man," said Feldman. "That's the second time I've flopped a set and you've flopped a straight." Benyamine was all smiles racking up as the lights went out on the set.

Tags: Andrew FeldmanDavid Benyamine

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The atmosphere is much different now than it was a few hours ago. The full stands have been replaced by a few stalwart viewers. There's much more checking, less straddling, and $3k is the standard raise.

Tom Dwan is so bored with the lack of money flying around that he's been talking about who owes whom what in prop bets for the last 10 minutes. Patrik Antonius is the big winner at the moment. He's up $275k in betting the suits of flops.

We've had our first river in several orbits. Tom Dwan, Dan "jungleman12" Cates, and Sam Trickett went three-handed to a coordinated flop. Dwan checked to Cates, who bet 21,000. On the button, Trickett tanked. After a minute, he asked Cates to move his arms so he could see his stack. Then he raised to 46,000. Dwan folded, and Cates called.

On to the turn: . Cates checked, and Trickett bet 27,500. Cates paid to see the river. It was the , and Cates checked again. This time, Trickett bet 70,000. After a beat, Cates folded.

"What can I offer you?" Dwan asked Trickett, trying to get him to show. He didn't have to offer anything to see one card. Trickett flashed the .

Tags: Dan CatesSam TrickettTom Dwan

Cards are back in the air with a (mostly) new line up.

Seat 1: Patrik Antonius
Seat 2: Eli Elezra
Seat 3: Sam Trickett
Seat 4: David Benyamine
Seat 5: Justin Smith
Seat 6: Andrew Feldman
Seat 7: Tom Dwan
Seat 8: Dan Cates

Blinds are still $500/$1,000 with a $1,000 button ante.

We don't know if Paul Phua, Wang Qiang, and Richard Yong will be back to play more Million Dollar Cash Game tomorrow. We do know that Tom Dwan was doing his very best to get them to come back. He even tried (unsuccessfully) to convince Yong to leave his chips here overnight. Whether or not they'll be back is still a mystery, but we will have more cash game action for you in just a bit with a few new characters tossed into the mix. Stay tuned.

Although the line up is changing, we are told play will resume shortly with a new cast of characters. Justin "Boosted J" Smith and David Benyamine are here and taking their seats, and Patrik Antonius may have decided to stick around. We'll keep you posted.

In a whirlwind, it's all over. Details are a little hazy at the moment. Phil Ivey was heads up with Paul Phua on a flop. There was some back-and-forth betting, and Ivey moved all in. Phua called with . Ivey didn't have to turn over his hand since this pot isn't being filmed for television. The turn and river clearly didn't help him, as his entire stack was quickly slid to Phua.

With that, Phua called for racks and decided to call it a night. Wang Qiang and Richard Yong followed suit. With production gone, they made a quick exit. Ivey and Juanda are gone as well, and it looks like Patrik Antonius is packing up.