Franco Spitale Sails to Victory in $1,500 Millionaire Maker No-Limit Hold'em

Argentina’s Franco Spitale has emerged victorious in Event #54: $1,500 Millionaire Maker No-Limit Hold'em at the 2024 World Series of Poker at Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas for $1,250,125 and his first gold bracelet. He defeated Justin Carey in a heads-up battle that spanned more than two levels. Moments after achieving millionaire status, PokerNews asked Spitale how he felt about joining such an exclusive club:

“It's still, it's hard for me to believe it. You know, it's too much. Really? I dreamed about this all my life. I promised my little girl, I have a daughter called Emma that the next trophy would be for her, so this trophy is for her.”

Spitale topped a record-breaking field of 10,939 entrants to secure the lion’s share of the $14,603,565 prize pool. Before this score, Spitale had earned over $680,000 in live tournament winnings, with his largest cash of $102,944 occurring just a year ago. This seven-figure score marked Spitale’s first cash at this year’s WSOP. When asked about his plans for other events this summer:

"The main event, of course, I am qualified, so maybe that, maybe not. Let's see tomorrow. I want to know when I wake up.” 

Final Table Results

Place	Player	Country	Prize
1	Franco Spitale	Argentina	$1,250,125
2	Justin Carey	United States	$1,001,169
3	Stephen Dauphinais	United States	$651,039
4	Paul Saso	United States	$500,109
5	Harvey Jackson	United States	$376,469
6	Charles Kersey	United States	$289,630
7	Jason Hickey	United States	$224,270
8	Alex Kim	United States	$174,800
9	Owen Savir	United States	$137,150
10	Adam Croffut	United States	$108,320

Final Table

The final table of ten was reached yesterday, with Spitale as the commanding chip leader. Adam Croffut was the first to fall when his ace-jack suited failed to improve against Alex Kim’s cowboys. Croffut earned $108,320 for his tenth-place finish.

Owen Savir was the next to be eliminated just an orbit later. As the table short stack, he put in the last of his chips with ace-ten, but ran into Carey’s pocket nines. Carey hit a set of nines on the flop, ending Savir’s run. Savir collected $137,150 for his efforts.

Carey caused the next final table casualty, eliminating Kim in eighth place after his pocket sixes held up against Kim's ace-queen. Although Kim was understandably disappointed at his exit, a career-best score of $174,800 softened the blow.

Jason Hickey started the final table last in chips with just one big blind. He dug in, battled hard, and maneuvered his way up the pay ladder until his ace-king failed to win against Stephen Dauphinais' jack-ten, ending his deep run in seventh place for $224,270. 

Day 5 Action

When the day started, just six players remained, all of whom were guaranteed at least $289,630. The top two spots on the podium locked up a seven-figure score, hence why the tournament was named the Millionaire-Maker.

Charles Kersey started the day with just nine big blinds, knowing he needed the cards to go his way to make a surge up the leaderboard. After just one orbit of play, Kersey went all-in from the button with ace-jack, only to find himself in a flip against Dauphinais' pocket tens. The board provided no help for Kersey, and he took home $289,630 for his sixth-place finish.

Dauphinais had looked to be the most aggressive at the table, regularly raising and three-betting in the first few orbits. His aggression paid off when he three-bet over a Spitale open with queen-seven of hearts and then felt compelled to call a shove from Harvey Jackson. Dauphinais continued his sun run in this event by flopping a flush against Jackson's Big-Slick. Unfortunately for Jackson, no miracle runner-runner boat appeared, leading to his exit in fifth place with $376,470 for his accomplishment.

The remaining four players had locked up at least half a million dollars. They were only three more eliminations away from more than doubling that sum and winning the prestigious bracelet. 

Paul Saso entered the final day second from the bottom with just eleven big blinds. Today, he boosted his earnings by almost a quarter of a million dollars. Unfortunately, the cards didn’t fall favorably for Saso when he shoved his last two big blinds into the middle with ace-eight against Carey's ten-eight. A ten in the window spelled the end for Saso, leaving him shy of a podium finish in fourth place, taking home a cool $500,110. 

When three-handed play began, less than one big blind separated the remaining players. Dauphinais was the first to gain a noticeable chip lead over his opponents after his aggressive style earned him many small pots. However, a few untimely bluffs saw him go from first to last on the leaderboard, losing a significant portion of his chips when his two pair fell to Spitale's turned straight. Dauphinais' end came at the hands of the eventual champion Spitale, as his king-jack suited was unable to improve against Spitale's ace-queen, taking home $651,040 for his third place finish

Carey started heads-up play with a slight chip lead, but Spitale quickly gained momentum and regained the pole position. Spitale continued to chip away at Carey's stack, steadily extending his lead. Spitale's sharp focus was evident despite the rowdy crowd, especially when he correctly value bet deuces over two streets, persuading Carey to call him down with just king-high.

In the final hand of the tournament, Carey limped-jammed from the button with pocket deuces, only for Spitale to call with ace-ten. Carey seemed poised to reclaim the chip lead after flopping a set on the ten-high board. However, an ace on the turn gave Spitale hope as he improved to two pair. As fate would have it, Spitale hit a boat on the river with the ace of hearts, cementing Spitale's name in the history books as the biggest-ever Millionaire Maker champion. Showing true professionalism, Carey took the beat on the chin and congratulated his opponent, walking away with $1,001,170 for his runner-up finish.