The latest Australian Open Event saw Canadian player Luc Greenwood take the title of winner as he banked a whopping A$700,000 by beating Belarussian Mikita Badziakouski heads-up.
There was a lot on the line in the sixth event of seven in the series, with only the Main Event to come and that extra A$50,000 on the line for the eventual series champion. As a result, the action at the final table got off to a flying start, taking on Chino Rheem in a big pot that went the Canadian’s way after his bluff got through.
Everyone wanted a piece of the action, and Aussie Michael Addamo was unfortunate to be the first person to be eliminated. He took on Greenwood soon after that previous bluff, but this time it was Addamo who didn’t have the hand, running a play with the nut flush draw, but unable to hit against Luc Greenwood’s top pair, which held to reduce the field to four.
Next to depart would be Chino Rheem, who never recovered from that early bluff from Greenwood. Rheem moved all-in with ace-deuce over Greenwood’s opening bet, but Greenwood had no hesitation in making the call with ace-jack and he held to send the overnight chip leader to the rail, with three still in the hunt.
A crucial moment in the entire series was next to develop, with the exit of Hungarian Championship leader Andras Nemeth in 3rd place. His move with king-jack of diamonds saw Greenwood his vanquisher, with the Canadian eventual winner seeing his eight-five of the same suit picking up a gutshot straight draw on the flop and doubling his gutter ball chances on the turn. That came into play when his straight was made on the river and Nemeth was knocked out, taking 150 points, but not the 300 that the win would have brought. He could yet be overtaken in the Championship standings, but it will take a special Main Event performance from someone to achieve it.
Heads-up in Event #6 was not a formality, but it was an imbalanced fight. Mikita Badziakouski had fewer chips by far heading into the battle and when he made a desperate move with jack-three, Greenwood had the simplest of tasks to call with a suited king-queen and that held to end the event in the Canadian’s favour.
“This feels great!” Luc Greenwood exclaimed when he chatted with Poker Central after the tournament was concluded. “I really had to fight for it and I’m glad that I won. I think I played quite well overall. I really love the game and I just try to play my best every single day, even if it’s just for small stakes online. I always try to focus on how well I played versus how much money I won or lost.”
That’s good advice for any player, and Luc Greenwood has put on a late show in Australia to show he has exactly what it takes to win the big NLHE events in poker.
Australian Poker Open Event #6 final table results:
Place | Player | Country | Prize | Points |
1st | Luc Greenwood | Canada | $700,000 | 300 |
2nd | Mikita Badziakouski | Belarus | $455,000 | 210 |
3rd | Andras Nemeth | Hungary | $280,000 | 150 |
4th | Chino Rheem | United States | $175,000 | 120 |
5th | Michael Addamo | Australia | $140,000 | 90 |
With just the Australian Poker Open Main Event to come, Hungarian player Andras Nemeth has the lead, but having failed to close out Event #6, the door is very slightly ajar from others in the top five to dream of a big result in the Main Event being enough to kick that door open and grab the Championship.
Australian Poker Open Championship leaderboard standings:
Position | Name | Country | Prize | Points |
1st | Andras Nemeth | Hungary | $534,100 | 630 |
2nd | Stephen Chidwick | United Kingdom | $669,000 | 510 |
3rd | Mike Watson | Canada | $241,500 | 450 |
4th | Luc Greenwood | Canada | $717,700 | 360 |
5th | Farid Jattin | Colombia | $360,500 | 360 |
6th | Joni Jouhkimainen | Finland | $231,500 | 330 |
7th | Timothy Adams | Canada | $416,500 | 300 |
8th | Erik Seidel | United States | $284,300 | 270 |
9th | David ‘Chino’ Rheem | United States | $257,250 | 240 |
10th | Michael Addamo | Australia | $397,500 | 210 |