2011 Aussie Millions Event #9 Day 1a: Erick Lindgren Leads the Field; Sam Trickett Wins $100,000 Challenge
It's Main Event time at the 2011 Aussie Millions. Day 1a kicked off Sunday at the Crown Poker Room in Melbourne, Australia, with a rock band, some confetti, and the "shuffle up and deal" given by Joe Hachem. That wasn't the only event going on, there was the final table of the $100,000 Challenge that also needed to play down to a winner too.
Erick Lindgren is the Day 1a overnight chip leader, finishing out the day with 186,000. He's in good company, with some of his Team Full Tilt buddies also in the top ten. Patrik Antonius, bagging 176,500, finished the day third in chips, while Phil Ivey clocked in in seventh with 134,200. Full Tilt Poker Red Pro Erik Cajelais comes finished the day with 108,700, putting him in ninth on the chip leaderboard.
Also among the 79 players of the 238 who started the day, Chris Moorman (116,900), Jarred Graham (86,600), Billy "The Croc" Agryros (64,500), Howard Lederder (62,500), James Akenhead (56,000), Robert Romanello (35,000) and Barny Boatman (22,800), will also be returning on Wednesday for Day 2.
However, as always, some players will now be able to take in the sights of lovely Melbourne more freely, as their day was cut short. Among those not making it to the second day of play were Maria Ho, JP Kelly, Terrence Chan, Eli Elezra, Mike Matusow, Tony Dunst, Erica Schoenberg, Jonathan Karamalikis, and Justin Smith.
A fresh new set of player will plunk down the AUD$10,600 to buy into the Main Event in hopes of walking away as the 2011 Aussie Millions Champion, and the PokerNews Live Reporting Team will be there to bring you all the action from the felt inside the Crown Poker Room. If you were wondering what you missed out on from the Day 1a opening ceremonies, check it out below.
Event #8: $100,000 Challenge
On Saturday, 38 players sat down to take part in the $100,000 Challenge at the Aussie Millions. By the end of the night, there were eight left, and Sam Trickett was leading the way, with a significant chip lead. The ride at the final table wasn't easy for Trickett. It seemed to go his way at the beginning, but then he started dropping chips and shortly found himself kicking and scratching as one of the shorter stacks still left when play got down to the final few players. He didn't give up though and battled his way back to the chip lead before Erik Seidel went out in third place and set the stage for a heads-up battle between Tony Bloom and Trickett, two Brits.
At the start of heads-up play, Trickett held the chip lead, but it didn't last for too long. Bloom took over the lead, but Trickett got it right back after making two runner-runner straights in back-to-back hands. Shortly thereafter, Bloom committed the rest of his stack with Q♦9♦. Trickett made the call and tabled A♥K♦. Bloom found no help when the board ran out 8♥3♣2♣8♣4♣, and was eliminated in second place, taking home just short of AUD$1 million. Trickett pocketed AUD$1,525,000, the title, and bragging rights of conquering the largest buy-in event in the Southern Hemisphere.
Here's Lynn Gilmartin catching up with Trickett just after his win.
Event #8 Results
| Place | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sam Trickett | AUD$1,525,000 |
| 2 | Tony Bloom | AUD$975,000 |
| 3 | Erik Seidel | AUD$625,000 |
| 4 | David Steicke | AUD$325,000 |
| 5 | James Obst | AUD$200,000 |
| 6 | David Benyamine | AUD$150,000 |
Keep it locked to PokerNews as the Live Reporting Team will be bringing you all the action that comes out of the Crown Poker Room, and as always, follow us on Twitter for up-to-the-minute news.
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