If you need proof that online poker is alive and well outside the US, look no further than Event 45 of FTOPS XX, the Main Event. The showdown started at 16:05 ET and continued until the early morning, finishing up at 7:04 ET. The guaranteed prize pool was $2,500,000, but 4,666 entrants at $640 each caused the prize pool to swell to an impressive $2,799,600. This meant a first place prize of over half a million!
540 places were paid and a number of Full Tilt pros made the money. Felipe Mojave, Mike McDonald, and Fabian Quoss all earned $1,119.84 for cashing between 361st and 540th. Peter Jetten, Rui Cao, and BrunoStefanelli received $1,539.78, while both Luigi Kwaysser and Martin Kabrhel took home $1,959.72 for their efforts. Once we get into the top 100, the payouts start becoming more significant. F Montenegro placed 93rd for $2,519.64, and James Dempsey and Yongsuk Chang finished 88th and 87th respectively for $3,359.52.
Just a couple pros got close to the final table. Pass Lefrancois finished 31st and received $5,879.16. And then BrunoStefanelli actually made his second cash of the tournament, busting in 21st place for $7,838.88. Overall it was a very good showing for the Red Pros!
At the final table, a 4-way deal was made between paranoik333, WHOPPWHOPP, Towelfish, and ArielBahia. Fourth place was scheduled to receive $184,773.60 and first was originally $501,128.40, but the deal meant that the lowest amount someone would walk away with was $279,393.51. The four players then proceeded to play for the jersey.
paranoik333 did not receive the lowest dollar amount in the deal, but he officially busted in fourth place. He received $288,774.00 for his efforts, which is by far his biggest score so far. He had already been doing quite well prior to this cash, though. He also took 4th place in FTOPS Event 20 just a week ago for $12,971, and back in December 2010 he placed 2nd in the Sunday Brawl for $68,670.
WHOPPWHOPP busted in third place and received $279,393.51, the lowest amount of the 4-way deal. WHOPPWHOPP hasn’t had his Full Tilt account for that long, and this is by far his largest score yet. He does have several impressive 5-figure scores to go along with it, though, including a $21.6k cash in a $55 rebuy and a $24k cash in a $109 rebuy.
Despite busting 2nd place, Towelfish took home $366,792.88, the largest prize of the tournament. He is a large buy-in player on Full Tilt, and considering he was used to regular 5-figure cashes, 2011 had been a pretty lacklustre year for him prior to yesterday. This huge cash is unsurprisingly the best he has had yet. Previously his biggest score was for $70,740 in the Sunday Brawl back in March 2010.
The winner of the coveted FTOPS golden jersey was ArielBahia, who also won a handsome $346,696.49 for his efforts. It seems fitting that the highest ranked player on PocketFives would win first place. He goes by Ariel Celestino, is from Brazil, and is ranked 199th. He already had a 6-figure score to his name, having placed 4th in an FTOPS event back in 2010 for $111k.
Congratulations to everyone that cashed the Main Event of FTOPS XX! The big events are over, but don’t forget about MiniFTOPS XX which starts on May 8th. Please see below for the final table payouts, and good luck at the tables!
1 – ArielBahia – $346,696.49
2 – Towelfish – $366,792.88
3 – WHOPPWHOPP – $279,393.51
4 – paranoik333 – $288,774.00
5 – CupcakeThePig – $137,180.40
6 – antesvante – $95,186.40
7 – Nora80 – $64,390.80
8 – youreamaniac – $44,793.60
9 – shevliak87 – $30,795.60