German One-Two in the 888poker XL Spring $120K Tune Up; Champion Bags $16.5K

Matthew Pitt
Senior Editor
4 min read
888poker XL Spring Series

The 888poker XL Spring Series continues producing some impressive prizes, and Germany's "ZockSteffen" got their hands on one of them, namely $16,514. "ZockSteffen" won Event #20, the $109 buy-in, $120,000 guaranteed PKO Tune Up tournament, outlasting 1,022 opponents and capturing the title and the largest slice of the prize pool.

A field comprising 871 unique players and 152 re-entries left an overlay on the $120,000 guaranteed prize pool, not that any of the players cared because it meant free value to them. A min-cash weighed in at a few cents less than $124, plus any progressive bounties the players picked up along the way. That min-cash increased to $1,046 by the time only eight players remained in contention for the title.

$120,000 XL Spring #20 – The PKO Tune Up Event Final Table Results

RankPlayerCountryBountiesPrizeTotal Prize
1ZockSteffenGermany$5,691$10,823$16,514
2qderersteGermany$3,278$10,816$14,094
3jonaa1994Argentina$2,313$6,885$9,198
4Squadup902Canada$378$5,163$5,541
5POTITOOOOOOOMalta$2,264$3,442$5,707
6daniporBrazil$118$2,409$2,528
7MrBankShot90Kazahkstan$481$1,549$2,030
8kaineknow6 $187$1,046$1,234

"kaineknow6" was the first finalists to be relieved of their stack, and their eighth-place finish came with a $1,234 payout. Seventh place and $2,030 went to "MrBankShot90," before Brazilian "danipor" bowed out in sixth for $2,528.

Malta's "POTITOOOOOOO" highlighted the importance of being aggressive in PKO tournaments and actively seeking bounties because the $5,707 they banked after falling in fifth was a larger payment than the $5,541 "Squadup902" collected after busting one place deeper.

The event progressed to heads-up following the elimination of "jonaa1994" in third, a finish good for $9,198. Both heads-up players hailed from Germany, and both secured at least $10,816 for their efforts. The German duo had bulldozed their way to this portion of the tournament, with both players having four figures worth of bounty payments.

"qdererste" couldn't quite find that final scalp, busting in second for $14,094 in total. That elimination left "ZockSteffen" as the last player standing, and they took home $16,514, the largest prize awarded during the 2024 888poker XL Spring Series so far.

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888poker XL Spring Series Results So Far

"ZockSteffen" and "qdererste" were not the only 888poker players to pad their bankrolls with more than $10,000 this weekend. "sasodilts" joined the five-figure club by taking down the $40,000 PKO Rumble High Roller, turning $525 into $10,603 with bounties included.

EventBuy-inEntrantsPrize PoolChampionPrize
#01 - $12,000 Opening Event Mystery Bounty$111,603$16,030Zindane$1,546*
#02 - $40,000 Opening Event Mystery Bounty$55766$40,000guizones27$3,799*
#03 - $120,000 Opening Event Mystery Bounty$1091,100$120,000joicemar154$10,718*
#04 - $40,000 Opening Event High Roller$52573$40,000DarshanS$11,200
#05 - $10,000 PKO Mini$11977$10,000xxtomasxx$1,394*
#06 - $20,000 PKO$55431$21,550MoonMeander$3,493*
#07 - $10,000 PKO 6-Max$11971$10,000skon89$1,515*
#08 - $15,000 PKO 6-Max High Roller$32070$21,000hello_br0tti$6,628*
#09 - $5,000 DeepStack Mini$8.80582$5,000Jonnyszz$865
#10 - $10,000 DeepStack$109120$12,000HecticMulk$2,956
#11 - $10,000 Super KO$33411$12,330ingeruRO14$1,202*
#12 - $15,000 Super KO High Roller$32062$18,600WHATaDREAM$4,854*
#13 - $10,000 Mystery Bounty 6-Max Mini$111,017$10,170Veraldo365$2,030
#14 - $12,000 Mystery Bounty 6-Max$109136$13,600T.R.Albrecht$4,095*
#15 - $10,000 DeepStack PKO Mini$111,062$10,620Hangoover9$1,739*
#16 - $2,000 PLO Mystery Bounty$11224$2,240KannKommeaa$424*
#17 - $12,000 DeepStack PKO$109161$16,100andydalmas$4,181*
#18 – $12,000 Mystery Bounty Mini$111,415$14,150HavryluKK$2,408*
#19 - $40,000 Mystery Bounty$55788$40,000Fonnesberg$6,053*
#20 - $120,000 PKO Tune Up Event$1091,023ZockSteffen$16,514* 
#21 - $40,000 PKO Rumble High Roller$52566$40,000sasodilts$10,603*

Will You Become the $1 Million Guaranteed Main Event's Champion?

Only ten more XL Spring Series Main Event flights remain, so time is running out if you want to mount a charge for the title. Each flight costs $888 to enter, unless you win your way in via one of the many satellites. You need to turn your 10,000 starting stack into at least 142,061 chips if you want to head into Day 2 in the top ten.

"Regis_R69" of Brazil is the player to catch right now, having finished their flight with an impressive 237,447 chips, or 119 big blinds at the restart on May 27. Only "Sheglov" of Ukraine has got close to the leading, finishing their Day 1 escapades with 231,283 chips, 116 big blinds.

Slightly lower down the chip counts, in eighth place currently, is British star Tom "sheeeeeeeet" Hall, who has accumulated 144,250 chips (72 big blinds). Hall has a knack of getting the job done in big buy-in 888poker accounts, so look out for him in the PokerNews live updates when our coverage begins on May 27.

$1,000,000 XL Spring #41 – Mystery Bounty Main Event Top 10 Chip Counts

RankPlayerCountryChipsBig Blinds
1Regis_R69Brazil237,447119
2SheglovUkraine231,283116
3Luckbox19Germany181,65991
4ModernusLithuania168,35884
5idkhtp 161,37181
6CPU0r 159,37280
7patience888Montenegro144,66472
8Tom "sheeeeeeeeet" HallUnited Kingdom144,25072
9CptnJecUkraine142,69771
10icho90 142,06071

Keep Tabs on 888poker MTTs with the PokerNews Online Tournament Calendar

The PokerNews Online Tournament Calendar is a free-to-use tool built into the PokerNews website that enables you to find upcoming and in-play multi-tables tournaments on 888poker, PartyPoker, and PokerStars. By using the intuitive filters, you can narrow down your search and find the perfect 888poker tournament for you, your bankroll, and your needs.

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Matthew Pitt
Senior Editor

Matthew Pitt hails from Leeds, West Yorkshire, in the United Kingdom, and has worked in the poker industry since 2008, and worked for PokerNews since 2010. In September 2010, he became the editor of PokerNews. Matthew stepped away from live reporting duties in 2015, and now concentrates on his role of Senior Editor for the PokerNews.

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