It was groundhog day at the GrandWest Casino outside of Cape Town as the money stages were reached in the record-breaking 2024 SunBet Poker Tour GrandWest Main Event. In the largest live poker tournament as part of the cooperation between leading casino and entertainment operator Sun International and the Monster Jam Poker Tour, a decent slice of the ZAR 6,350,400 ($351,395) prize pool was distributed already. However, the biggest share will be up for grabs during the grand finale on Sunday, December 1, 2024.
Out of a record-breaking field of 504 entries, the largest in the history of South Africa, only 12 players remain and the sole Irish participant of the entire tournament has stormed into a commanding lead. Colin Horgan made the trip to the southern tip of the African continent after finishing second in The Hendon Mob Championship during the Irish Poker Open 2024 in March.
He was not as fortunate in the same event here in Cape Town and needed more than one bullet in the ZAR 15,000 Main Event as well, but that has certainly paid off so far. After finishing atop Day 1b, he bulldozed his way to the top spot again with a massive stack of 4,830,000. Nic Ioannoy is some ways behind with 3,160,000 and third in chips is Diane Walker with 2,505,000. She finished atop by some margin in the turbo heat 1d and is joined on the final day by fellow compatriot Ronit Chamani (1,470,000).
The 12 Day 2 Survivors
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colin Horgan | Ireland | 4,830,000 | 81 |
| 2 | Nic Ioannoy | South Africa | 3,160,000 | 53 |
| 3 | Diane Walker | South Africa | 2,505,000 | 42 |
| 4 | Divan Le Roux | South Africa | 1,745,000 | 29 |
| 5 | Ronit Chamani | South Africa | 1,470,000 | 25 |
| 6 | Hennie Appel | South Africa | 1,250,000 | 21 |
| 7 | Edgar Antezana | South Africa | 1,060,000 | 18 |
| 8 | Wessel Conradie | South Africa | 905,000 | 15 |
| 8 | Giovanni Zanette | South Africa | 905,000 | 15 |
| 10 | Saurabh Gulati | Australia | 850,000 | 14 |
| 11 | Gareth Fourie | South Africa | 795,000 | 13 |
| 12 | Rohan Conradie | South Africa | 740,000 | 12 |
Also still in contention are Edgar Antezana (1,060,000) and Giovanni Zanette (905,000), the latter of which finished in 33rd place in the 2024 WSOP Main Event in Las Vegas for $300,000.
With 81 returning players and the top 63 spots paid, the money bubble was reached during the first two and a half levels prior to the first break. Among those to bust without anything to show for were the likes of Alan Jung, Simon Solomon and Jamie Vilela. Start-of-the-day chip leader Clive Berman also faded away prior to the money stages, which was then reached with the elimination of Sheldon Grove against Cliton Taliwanth.
From there on, the chips were flying, so to speak, as the all-in showdowns kept coming with an incredible pace. Stephen Courtney and Rajeev Poonhath were among the first to head to the payout desk and Brandon Bruintjies jammed at the wrong time to send Karrim atop the leaderboard.
BC Van Rooyen and Max Deveson were knocked out by the pocket kings of Jean Souprayenmestry and 2024 SPT Time Square Main Event champion Sugen Singh followed soon after alongside Gavin Sardini. Dylan Wilkerson flipped for his tournament life with ace-king against the pocket jacks of Harold Brooks and flopped a king only to see one of the remaining jacks appear on the river.
Jedd Kossew was haunted by the nightmares of Day 1 when his pocket aces were cracked by pocket jacks once more and he bowed out on the final four tables. He was joined on the rail by Time Square runner-up SM and Rudolf Fourie before Russel Wheatley's Day 1 Cinderella comeback story came to a crashing end. He moved all-in on an ace-high turn with ace-ten for top pair only and Colin Horgan tank-called with a set of deuces to rake in the biggest pot of the tournament until then.
The 2024 SPT Main Event winners Harold Brooks and Imran Bhojani were knocked out in the same hand on the final three tables, following ZAR 50,000 High Roller champion Joey Weissman to the payout desk.
On the final two tables, defending champion Ahmed Karrim was eliminated in a remarkable three-way showdown that also sent Darren Kramer to the rail as well. Both Karrim and Hennie Appel held ace-king against the pocket tens of Kramer. A king on the flop was bad news for Kramer, who retook the lead on the turn with a two-outer only for Appel to river a flush and win it all.
The frantic action never really slowed down and there were plenty of movements on the leaderboard, only Horgan remained near the top for most of the entire day. Ioannoy, for example, went from big stack to eight big blinds and then correctly predicted to crack pocket aces with eight-five off suit to start his comeback.
When the dust had finally settled, only 12 players remained and bagged up chips for the night. They will return at noon local time on December 1, 2024, to play down to a winner. The recommencing blinds will be 30,000-60,000 with a big blind ante of 60,000.
As has been the case for the previous days, the conclusion of the record-breaking event will be live-streamed with cards-up coverage and commentary on a 30-minute delay. All PokerNews updates for the final day for both tables will be published accordingly to not spoil any of the action.
Remaining Payouts for the Final Day
| Rank | Winner | Country | Prize (in ZAR) | Prize (in USD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1,243,325 | $68,798 | ||
| 2 | 871,530 | $48,225 | ||
| 3 | 560,425 | $31,011 | ||
| 4 | 388,265 | $21,484 | ||
| 5 | 298,025 | $16,491 | ||
| 6 | 248,430 | $13,747 | ||
| 7 | 206,835 | $11,445 | ||
| 8 | 165,555 | $9,161 | ||
| 9 | 124,230 | $6,874 | ||
| 10-12 | 103,005 | $5,700 |
