Stephen Chidwick Rules Australian Poker Open, Michael Addamo Wins Main Event
The inaugural Australian Poker Open has finally come to an end, and after more than two weeks of top-notch poker action, British poker pro Stephen Chidwick has emerged on top, capturing the $50,000 championship prize after battling it out with some of the best players in the high stakes arena
The tournament series featured a total of seven events, with buy-ins ranging from $10,000 to $100,000. Chidwick managed to cash in three events, earning A$949,000 in combined winnings.
Chidwick recorded his first cash in Event#3: A$25,000 No Limit Hold’em Event where he finished runner-up for A$269,500. He followed it up with a victory in another A$25,000 NLH event (Event #5) in which he won A$399,500 in top prize. During this time, he managed to overtake early frontrunners Andras Nemeth and Mike Watson who alternately held the lead during the early stages of the series.
The results of Event #6 saw Nemeth regaining the top spot once more, after he finished third in the event for A$280,000. But Chidwick’s min-cash performance in the A$100,000 buy-in Main Event, the last event of the series, gave him adequate points to surpass Nemeth and ultimately be crowned the first-ever Australian Poker Open Champion.
Final Standings
The final standings saw Chidwick at the top with 650 points, followed by Nemeth at No. 2 with 630 points and Australia’s Michael Addamo at No.3 with 560 points. Canadian poker pro Mike Watson (450 pts), fellow Canadian Luc Greenwood (360 pts), and Colombia’s Farid Jattin (360 pts) round out the Top 5.
Championship-style events like the Australia Poker Open involve a points race wherein the player earning the highest number of points over multiple events is crowned the champion. Chidwick said it is a more achievable accolade rather than judging who the best player is based on a single tournament. The British poker pro said he’d like to see more Championship-style events taking place in the future.
Chidwick’s lifetime earnings have now climbed to more than US$34 million, allowing him to overtake David Peters in Hendon Mob’s all-time money list. From No. 8, Chidwick has moved up to No. 6, just behind Dan Smith. He is England’s No. 1 poker player in terms of cashes earned, more than $12 million ahead of Sam Trickett. Chidwick also continues to hold on to his rank as the all-time winningest poker player from Europe.
Good Start To 2020
Last year, Chidwick also won the inaugural US Poker Open Championship after scoring five cashes, including back-to-back first-place finishes in two events. He earned the most points and secured the USPO trophy even before the conclusion of the last event of the series. It was in 2019 that he also managed to capture his first ever World Series of Poker (WSOP) gold bracelet, something that’s missing from his colorful poker resume for a very long time.
With 2020 just starting, Chidwick already appears to be right on track to replicate his incredible 2019 success.
Michael Addamo Captures A$100,000 Main Event
Apart from Chidwick, Michael Addamo was also a big winner in the Australian Poker Open after he took down the A$100,000 Main Event for a cool A$1,288,000. The Australian poker pro topped a 28-entry field to make sure the biggest payout of the festival stayed in his home country. Addamo now has over $7 million in career prize money and is ranked in 3rd place on the Australian All Time Money list.
Two-time WSOP bracelet winner Kahle Burns became the bubble man, falling short of making it to the final table.
Only four players were able to take home some cash, including Chidwick who finished fourth for $280,000, American poker pro Alex Foxen who placed third for $448,000, and Dallas native Aaron van Blarcum who finished runner-up for $784,000.
Event #1: A$10,000 No Limit Hold’em was won by Watson for A$177,000, while Nemeth captured the second event, A$10,000 Pot Limit Omaha, for A$146,200. Jattin took down Event #4: A$25,000 PLO for A$290,000, and Canada’s Luc Greenwood captured Event #6: A$50,000 No Limit Hold’em for A$700,000.
