Crown Australian Poker Championship
Encyclopedia
The Australian Poker Championship, commonly known as Aussie Millions, is a series of poker tournament
s held at the Crown Casino
, in Melbourne
, Australia
. The Main Event of the series is the Southern Hemisphere
's richest poker tournament with a prize pool in excess of 7 million.
, along with Phil Ivey
, John Juanda
and Daniel Negreanu
. The 2007 championship commenced on Sunday 14 January 2007 with the final table held on Friday 19 January 2007. The buy-in was $10,500 ($10,000+$500). A record 747 players entered, which generated a prize pool of $7,470,000. The top 80 players were "in the money" and received between $15,000 and $1,500,000 each.
The 2008 championship concluded on Sunday 20 January 2008 with the winner being the 21 year old Russian Alexander Kostritsyn. The buy-in was $10,500 ($10,000+$500). A record 780 players entered, which generated a prize pool of $7,800,000. The top 80 players were "in the money" and received between $15,000 and $1,650,000 each. The 2009 event will feature a total of 15 tournaments. The Main Event will have a guaranteed $2 million first prize. It will also feature ten players taking part in the first Million Dollar Poker Cash Game, the largest poker game of its kind anywhere in the world. Ten players will be required to stake a minimum of $1 million, though it is expected that some players will bring more to the table. The Aussie Millions is now regarded as the largest poker tournament in the Southern Hemisphere and the sixth-largest internationally (by prizepool). It is expected that 800 players will take to the felt for the Main Event, with Fox Sports Net broadcasting the tournament to more than 100 million homes worldwide.
The $100,000 Challenge was first played in 2006, with 10 entrants. Eighteen entered the Challenge in 2007, 25 in 2008, and 24 in 2010. A record field of 38 played in the 2011 edition.
, Erik Seidel
, Tom Dwan
, Chris Ferguson
, John Juanda
, David Benyamine
and Annette Obrestad
, plus Sam Trickett
, who had just won that year's $100K event. Seidel, who had finished second in the $100K event, won the $2.5 million first prize, defeating Trickett in heads-up play.
Poker tournament
A poker tournament is a tournament where players compete by playing poker. It can feature as few as two players playing on a single table , and as many as tens of thousands of players playing on thousands of tables...
s held at the Crown Casino
Crown Casino
Crown Casino and Entertainment Complex is a large casino and entertainment precinct located on the south bank of the Yarra River, in Melbourne, Australia. Crown Casino is a unit of Crown Limited....
, in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The Main Event of the series is the Southern Hemisphere
Southern Hemisphere
The Southern Hemisphere is the part of Earth that lies south of the equator. The word hemisphere literally means 'half ball' or "half sphere"...
's richest poker tournament with a prize pool in excess of 7 million.
History
Poker at Crown was introduced in June 1997, with the first major championship held shortly after in July 1998. The Main Event was a $1,000 buy in Limit Holdem tournament that attracted 74 entries with a $74,000 prize pool. The Crown Australian Poker Championship, or the ‘Aussie Millions’ as it became known, moved to January in 2001, attracting 40 entrants with a $5,000 buy in for a prize pool of $200,000. January 2003 saw the event go international, attracting a field of 122 entrants and a $1,200,000 prize pool. In January 2005, the Aussie Millions continued to grow with 263 participants paying $10,000 each to enter the No Limit Hold'em Main Event, generating the biggest prize pool ever in the Southern Hemisphere of $2,630,000. Over half the field was from overseas including players from New Zealand, England, Ireland, Norway, Denmark, the USA, Sweden, the Netherlands, Canada, Italy and Lebanon. In 2006, 418 players competed for a share of the $4,180,000 prize pool, including some of the biggest names in the Poker world such as WSOP Champion Joe HachemJoe Hachem
Joseph Hachem is a Lebanese-Australian professional poker player known for winning the main event of the 2005 World Series of Poker. He was the first Australian to win the main event, which earned him $7.5 million, then a record for all-time biggest tournament prize.The next year, Hachem won his...
, along with Phil Ivey
Phil Ivey
Phillip Dennis "Phil" Ivey Jr. is an American professional poker player who has won eight World Series of Poker bracelets, one World Poker Tour title and appeared at nine World Poker Tour final tables...
, John Juanda
John Juanda
Johnson "John" Juanda is a Chinese Indonesian professional poker player based in Marina del Rey, California. Juanda lives in Los Angeles.-Personal life:...
and Daniel Negreanu
Daniel Negreanu
Daniel Negreanu is a Canadian professional poker player. He has won four World Series of Poker bracelets and two World Poker Tour Championship titles. He is currently ranked second in the all-time career earnings list and is the star of poker game show Million Dollar Challenge. He plays a big...
. The 2007 championship commenced on Sunday 14 January 2007 with the final table held on Friday 19 January 2007. The buy-in was $10,500 ($10,000+$500). A record 747 players entered, which generated a prize pool of $7,470,000. The top 80 players were "in the money" and received between $15,000 and $1,500,000 each.
The 2008 championship concluded on Sunday 20 January 2008 with the winner being the 21 year old Russian Alexander Kostritsyn. The buy-in was $10,500 ($10,000+$500). A record 780 players entered, which generated a prize pool of $7,800,000. The top 80 players were "in the money" and received between $15,000 and $1,650,000 each. The 2009 event will feature a total of 15 tournaments. The Main Event will have a guaranteed $2 million first prize. It will also feature ten players taking part in the first Million Dollar Poker Cash Game, the largest poker game of its kind anywhere in the world. Ten players will be required to stake a minimum of $1 million, though it is expected that some players will bring more to the table. The Aussie Millions is now regarded as the largest poker tournament in the Southern Hemisphere and the sixth-largest internationally (by prizepool). It is expected that 800 players will take to the felt for the Main Event, with Fox Sports Net broadcasting the tournament to more than 100 million homes worldwide.
Main Event structure
The structure of the Main Event is slightly different than that of most other major tournaments. While most major Hold 'em tournaments, including the World Series of Poker Main Event, play at nine-handed tables throughout, the Aussie Millions Main Event begins with eight-handed tables. Play continues eight-handed until the field is reduced to 36 players, at which point all tables are six-handed. The 2009 Aussie Millions Main Event structure will see Day 1 divided into three flights, with blind levels of 90 minutes' duration. From Day 2 until the completion of the tournament, the blind levels are 120 minutes long.High roller events
The Aussie Millions is also known for its high roller tournaments, which have featured some of the highest buy-ins in history.$100,000 Challenge
The high roller trend began in 2006 when the Aussie Millions launched its $100,000 No Limit Holdem Challenge (actual buy in is $100,500, including the $500 entry fee), at that time billed as the highest buy-in of any poker tournament in history. It has a particularly unusual structure:- Players start with 100,000 chips, a comparatively larger amount compared to both the Aussie Millions and WSOP Main Events.
- Betting is pot limit preflop and no limit afterwards.
- Players are allowed only 30 seconds to act on their hands. At the start of the tournament, each player is given three extensions of 30 seconds each for use during the tournament.
The $100,000 Challenge was first played in 2006, with 10 entrants. Eighteen entered the Challenge in 2007, 25 in 2008, and 24 in 2010. A record field of 38 played in the 2011 edition.
$250,000 Super High Roller
With a number of other poker events (though not the World Series of Poker) adding tournaments with buy-ins comparable to that of the $100,000 Challenge, the Aussie Millions added a tournament with a $250,000 buy-in in 2011, which the organisers now claim as the world's highest. It was originally scheduled to be a heads-up no-limit event, but the organisers changed the format twice, settling on what they thought would be a single-table no-limit hold 'em tournament. However, 20 players entered the inaugural $250K tournament, including major stars Phil IveyPhil Ivey
Phillip Dennis "Phil" Ivey Jr. is an American professional poker player who has won eight World Series of Poker bracelets, one World Poker Tour title and appeared at nine World Poker Tour final tables...
, Erik Seidel
Erik Seidel
Erik Seidel is an American professional poker player from Las Vegas, Nevada who has won eight World Series of Poker bracelets and a World Poker Tour title.In 2010, he was inducted as a member of the Poker Hall of Fame.-Early life:...
, Tom Dwan
Tom Dwan
Thomas Dwan Jr. is an American professional poker player who regularly plays online in the highest-stakes No-Limit Texas hold 'em and Pot-Limit Omaha games, primarily on Full Tilt Poker, where he plays under the screen name "durrrr"...
, Chris Ferguson
Chris Ferguson
Christopher Philip Ferguson is an American professional poker player. He has won five World Series of Poker events, including the 2000 WSOP Main Event, and the 2008 NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship. On September 20, 2011, the U.S...
, John Juanda
John Juanda
Johnson "John" Juanda is a Chinese Indonesian professional poker player based in Marina del Rey, California. Juanda lives in Los Angeles.-Personal life:...
, David Benyamine
David Benyamine
David Benyamine is a French professional poker player with a World Poker Tour title. Benyamine was a professional tennis player in his early career but had to retire because of shoulder pain. He was also a successful top ten billiards player in France. He learned poker at the age of 12 and plays...
and Annette Obrestad
Annette Obrestad
Annette Obrestad is a Norwegian poker player. Obrestad is the youngest person to ever win a World Series of Poker Europe bracelet...
, plus Sam Trickett
Sam Trickett
Sam Trickett is a professional poker player. He started playing poker in 2005 after suffering a knee injury that ended his career as a semi-professional soccer player. Sam soon became a regular in poker events in Sheffield. He started playing also online in $10 Sit ‘n’ Go’s...
, who had just won that year's $100K event. Seidel, who had finished second in the $100K event, won the $2.5 million first prize, defeating Trickett in heads-up play.
1998 Australian Poker Championships (Limit Hold'em)
- Buy-in: $1,000
- Date: 26 July 1998
- Number of buy-ins: 74
- Total Prize Pool: $74,000
- Number of Payouts: 9
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st |  Alex Horowitz |
$25,900 |
| 2nd | Ken Eastwood |
$14,800 |
| 3rd | David Gorr |
$7,400 |
| 4th | Leo Boxell |
$4,810 |
| 5th | Mike Ivin |
$3,700 |
| 6th |  Jason Gray |
$2,960 |
| 7th | Michael Marcos |
$2,220 |
| 8th |  Vince Oliver |
$1,850 |
| 9th |  Emilia Garvenovak |
$1,480 |
1999 Australian Poker Championships (Pot-Limit Hold'em)
- Buy-in: $1,000
- Date: August 1999
- Number of buy-ins: 109
- Total Prize Pool: $109,000
- Number of Payouts: 18
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Milo Nadalin |
$38,150 |
| 2nd | Adam Haman |
$21,800 |
| 3rd | Joe Meissner |
$10,900 |
| 4th | Sam Khouiss |
$7,085 |
| 5th | Larry Jones |
$5,450 |
| 6th | Billy Argyros Billy Argyros Billy Argyros, commonly referred to as Billy the Croc or The Croc, is a Greek Australian professional poker player.His interest in the game of poker first developed when he lost all his money at a poker game that a friend had hosted. He studied poker strategy and his game improved dramatically... |
$4,360 |
| 7th | Brian Mulvihill |
$3,270 |
| 8th | Vic Thornton |
$2,725 |
| 9th | John Maver |
$2,180 |
2000 Australian Poker Championships
- Buy-in: $1,500
- Date: Sunday, 27 August 2000
- Number of buy-ins: 109
- Total Prize Pool: $173,500
- Number of Payouts: 18
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Leo Boxell |
$65,225 |
| 2nd | Gerry Fitt |
$32,700 |
| 3rd | Gary Benson |
$16,350 |
| 4th | Jason Gray |
$10,628 |
| 5th | Martin Comer |
$8,175 |
| 6th | Charles Cuschieri |
$6,540 |
| 7th | Joe Humunicki |
$4,905 |
| 8th | Wendy Boxell |
$4,088 |
| 9th | Chris Newton |
$3,270 |
2001 Australian Poker Championships
- Buy-in: $1,500
- Date: Friday, 24 August 2001
- Number of buy-ins: 101
- Total Prize Pool: $151,500
- Number of Payouts: 18
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Sam Korman |
$53,025 |
| 2nd | Eric Sclavos |
$30,300 |
| 3rd | James Potter |
$15,150 |
| 4th | Toby Atroshenko |
$9,848 |
| 5th | John Maitland |
$7,575 |
| 6th |  Jamil Dia |
$6,060 |
| 7th | Gerry Fitt |
$4,545 |
| 8th | Lee Nelson |
$3,787 |
| 9th | Mick Anderson |
$3,030 |
2002 Australian Poker Championships
- Buy-in: $5,000
- 2-Day Event: Friday, 11 January 2002 to Saturday, 12 January 2002
- Number of buy-ins: 66
- Total Prize Pool: $330,000
- Number of Payouts: 10
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | John Maver |
$150,000 |
| 2nd | John Homann |
$63,000 |
| 3rd | David Szetho |
$35,000 |
| 4th | Lee Nelson |
$24,500 |
| 5th | Chris Newton |
$17,500 |
| 6th | Toby Atroshenko |
$10,500 |
| 7th |  Frank Callaghan |
$9,625 |
| 8th | Mike Guttman |
$7,875 |
| 9th | Constantin Harach |
$7,000 |
2003 Crown Australian Poker Championships
- Buy-in: $10,000
- Date: Sunday, 12 January 2003
- Number of buy-ins: 122
- Total Prize Pool: $1,220,000
- Number of Payouts: 18
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Peter Costa Peter Costa Peter Costa to Greek Cypriot parents is a British professional poker player based in Las Vegas, Nevada.He is most well known as the winner of the sixth series of the popular Late Night Poker television series during his time living in the United Kingdom, where he defeated Austria's Jin Cai Lin in... |
$394,870 |
| 2nd | Leo Boxell |
$225,640 |
| 3rd | Harry Demetriou Harry Demetriou Charidimos Demetriou is a British poker player.-World Series of Poker:Demetriou first became known in poker circles for his 3rd place finish at the $2,000 no limit Texas hold 'em tournament at the 2002 World Series of Poker won by Layne Flack... |
$124,102 |
| 4th | Sam Khouiss |
$101,538 |
| 5th | Joe Cabret |
$78,974 |
| 6th | Ram Vaswani Ram Vaswani Ram Vaswani is an English professional snooker player, turned professional poker player and the youngest member of The Hendon Mob... |
$67,692 |
| 7th | Martin Comer |
$56,410 |
| 8th |  Erich Kollmann |
$45,128 |
| 9th | Joe Beevers Joe Beevers Joseph "Joe" Charles Beevers is an English professional poker player and a member of The Hendon Mob.... |
$33,846 |
2004 Crown Australian Poker Championships
- Buy-in: $10,000
- Date: Thursday, 15 January 2003
- Number of buy-ins: 133
- Total Prize Pool: $1,330,000
- Number of Payouts: 18
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Tony Bloom Tony Bloom Anthony Grant "Tony" Bloom is a football club chairman and successful poker player.-Poker and betting:Bloom made a name for himself as a successful sports bettor and property investor... |
$426,500 |
| 2nd | Jesse Jones |
$243,700 |
| 3rd | Kenna James Kenna James Kenna James is an American professional poker player, television commentator and consultant who currently resides in Costa Mesa, California.... |
$134,000 |
| 4th | David Hatzis |
$109,700 |
| 5th | Mark Banin |
$85,300 |
| 6th | Brian Hull |
$73,100 |
| 7th | Mike Ivin |
$60,900 |
| 8th | Han Luu |
$48,700 |
| 9th | Tino Lechich |
$36,600 |
2005 Crown Australian Poker Championships
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 3-Day Event: Tuesday, 18 January 2005 to Thursday, 20 January 2005
- Number of buy-ins: 263
- Total Prize Pool: $2,630,000
- Number of Payouts: 40
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Jamil Dia |
$1,000,000 |
| 2nd | Mike Simkin |
$465,000 |
| 3rd | George Mamacas |
$250,000 |
| 4th | Martin Comer |
$170,000 |
| 5th | Stephen McLean |
$110,000 |
| 6th | Warwick Dunnett |
$80,000 |
| 7th | Jonathan Paul |
$70,000 |
| 8th | Gary Benson |
$60,000 |
| 9th |  Marcel LüskeMarcel Lüske Marcel Lüske is a Dutch professional poker player. He finished 10th in the 2004 WSOP main event and as of 2009, his total live tournament winnings exceed $3,700,000 USD... |
$50,000 |
2006 Crown Australian Poker Championships
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 6-Day Event: Saturday, 14 January 2006 to Thursday, 19 January 2006
- Number of buy-ins: 418
- Total Prize Pool: $4,180,000
- Number of Payouts: 48
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Lee Nelson |
$1,295,800 |
| 2nd | Robert Neary |
$689,700 |
| 3rd |  Nenad MedicNenad Medic Nenad Medić is a Serbian-Canadian professional poker player with a World Series of Poker bracelet and World Poker Tour Championship title. He resides in Niagara Falls, Ontario... |
$376,200 |
| 4th | Shannon Shorr Shannon Shorr Shannon Shorr is a professional poker player from Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Shorr grew up in Birmingham, where he was a baseball player at Shades Valley High School.... |
$271,700 |
| 5th | Jeff Sealey |
$209,000 |
| 6th | Russell Davies |
$167,200 |
| 7th | Wes Bugiera |
$125,400 |
2007 Crown Australian Poker Championships
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 6-Day Event: Sunday, 14 January 2007 to Friday, 19 January 2007
- Number of buy-ins: 747
- Total Prize Pool: $7,470,000
- Number of Payouts: 80
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st |  Gus HansenGus Hansen Gustav "Gus" Hansen is a professional Danish poker player who lives in Monaco. In his poker career, Hansen has won three World Poker Tour open titles, the 2007 Aussie Millions main event and was the season one winner of the Poker Superstars Invitational Tournament... |
$1,500,000 |
| 2nd | Jimmy Fricke Jimmy Fricke Jimmy Fricke is a professional poker player from Mahomet, Illinois.In 2005 Fricke dropped out of college to play full time Internet poker. Less than two years later, at age 19, he started on the live poker scene and immediately cashed in two major events within just eight days... |
$1,000,000 |
| 3rd | Andy Black |
$700,000 |
| 4th | Julius Colman |
$500,000 |
| 5th |  Hans Vogl |
$400,000 |
| 6th | Marc Karam Marc Karam Marc Karam is a Canadian professional poker player. In addition to playing in major international poker tournaments he makes his living playing online poker at various stakes against a wide range of opponents.... |
$300,000 |
| 7th | Kristy Gazes Kristy Gazes Kristy Gazes is a professional poker player originally from California.Gazes has been playing poker since 1986. She made a living for years as a high stakes cash game player in Los Angeles, California.... |
$220,000 |
2008 Crown Australian Poker Championships
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 6-Day Event: Sunday, 14 January 2008 to Friday, 19 January 2008
- Number of buy-ins: 780
- Total Prize Pool: A$7,758,500
- Number of Payouts: 80
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st |  Alexander Kostritsyn |
$1,650,000 |
| 2nd | Erik Seidel Erik Seidel Erik Seidel is an American professional poker player from Las Vegas, Nevada who has won eight World Series of Poker bracelets and a World Poker Tour title.In 2010, he was inducted as a member of the Poker Hall of Fame.-Early life:... |
$1,000,000 |
| 3rd | Michael Chrisanthopoulos |
$700,000 |
| 4th | Peter Ling |
$500,000 |
| 5th | Nino Marotta |
$400,000 |
| 6th | Antonio Casale |
$300,000 |
| 7th | Peter Mobbs |
$225,000 |
2009 Crown Australian Poker Championship
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 7-Day Event: Saturday, 17 January 2009 to Friday, 23 January 2009
- Number of buy-ins: 681
- Total Prize Pool: $6,810,000
- Number of Payouts: 64
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Stewart Scott |
$2,000,000 |
| 2nd | Peter Rho |
$1,000,000 |
| 3rd | Elliot Smith |
$700,000 |
| 4th | Rajkumar Ramakrishnan |
$400,000 |
| 5th | Sam Capra |
$300,000 |
| 6th | Zach Gruneberg |
$210,000 |
| 7th | Richard Ashby Richard Ashby Richard 'Chufty' Ashby is a professional poker player from London. He was given the name 'Chufty' by his friends at University, due to Richard's frequency of using the term "chuffed".... |
$150,000 |
2010 Crown Australian Poker Championship
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 7-Day Event: Sunday, 24 January 2010 to Saturday, 30 January 2010
- Number of buy-ins: 746
- Total Prize Pool: $7,460,000
- Number of Payouts: 72
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Tyron Krost |
$2,000,000 |
| 2nd | Frederik Jensen |
$1,100,000 |
| 3rd | Sorel Mizzi Sorel Mizzi Sorel Mizzi is a professional poker player. Mizzi plays online poker under the names of "Imper1um" and "Zangbezan24"... |
$715,000 |
| 4th | Kosta Varoxis |
$450,000 |
| 5th | Peter Jetten Peter Jetten Peter Jetten is a Canadian professional poker player. Jetten is known for playing online poker under the screen name "Apathy". He has over $2,000,000 in live poker tournament winnings, and in early 2011 signed a sponsorship deal with Full Tilt Poker.-Personal life:Jetten was born in Toronto,... |
$350,000 |
| 6th | Steven Friedlander |
$250,000 |
| 7th |  Annette ObrestadAnnette Obrestad Annette Obrestad is a Norwegian poker player. Obrestad is the youngest person to ever win a World Series of Poker Europe bracelet... |
$175,000 |
2011 Crown Australian Poker Championship
- Buy-in: $10,000
- 7-Day Event: Sunday, 23 January 2011 to Saturday, 29 January 2011
- Number of buy-ins: 721
- Total Prize Pool: $7,210,000
- Number of Payouts: 72
| Place | Name | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | David Gorr |
$2,000,000 |
| 2nd | James Keys | $1,035,000 |
| 3rd | Jeff Rossiter |
$700,000 |
| 4th | Michael Ryan |
$450,000 |
| 5th | Randy Dorfman |
$325,000 |
| 6th | Samad Razavi | $225,000 |
| 7th | Chris Moorman Chris Moorman Chris Moorman. is a British professional poker player. He is the all-time leader in career online poker earnings.He is among the leaders in the 2011 World Series of Poker Player of the Year point standings... |
$175,000 |