Recently in PokerStars Sunday Million Category

Daniel “Allanon85” Drescher outlasted 7,244 opponents to take down first place in the October 5th edition of the PokerStars Sunday Million. Coming into the final table as a short stack, Drescher quickly doubled through former Sunday Million champ Soren Kongsgaard, fresh off an appearance at the PokerStars EPT London Main Event. That double-up and a final table of tough, aggressive play propelled Drescher to first place and $177,450.00 for first place! The champ took a few minutes to chat with us after his biggest win to date.

A converted cash game player, Drescher has been playing on PokerStars for about two years now. He started off primarily with no limit hold’em cash games, but switched over to pure tournament play last month. I’d have to say that was a decision that paid off well! A big fan of the $109 tourneys on PokerStars, Drescher also enjoys the $55 rebuy tourneys, and of course now adds the Sunday Million to his list of favorite games.
Drescher considers himself a semi-professional player, since he returned to school this month. Certainly a $177K bankroll boost will cover a lot of tuition and books! An online player working to make his transition to live play, Drescher hopes to win a satellite to upcoming EPT events on PokerStars and make his first live cash there.

Coming into the final table short, Drescher cites his early double-up through Kongsgaard as a key to the win. On the very next hand, he took out sjco22 with Ad-Jc to sjco22’s Kh-Tc. Drescher’s Ace-high held up on a board of Qh-3s-2c-4c-3d, and he was off to the races. He had one monster win when he spiked a Jack with A-J to double through cdbr3799’s A-Q, and from there it was all academic as he took the lion’s share in a three-way deal and then went on to claim the extra $30,000 left for the winner. All in all, a commanding performance from Daniel “Allanon85” Drescher in his first Sunday Million victory!

When low-stakes sit n’ go player Tuffy Cat used 450 FPP to win a satellite seat into the Sunday Million, she almost didn’t register. But finally, during late registration, she bit the bullet and signed up. Many hours later, she clawed her way to victory over a field of 7,133 players and purred as she curled up around a $184,500 prize in September 28th Sunday Million. We caught up with the cat who ate a bunch of canaries a few days after her biggest online cash ever.

Coming from a family that loves games, poker became a natural outgrowth of that. Tuffy grew up playing cards with her late father, her brothers and more recently her nephews. Once she got the live poker bug, she built a library of books, CDs and DVDs to learn the game. Since her retirement in June from the IT world, Tuffy has taken the time to focus on her game, with obvious great results.

Tuffy Cat plays only on PokerStars, and had been a fixture in the low-stakes sit n’ go tournaments for the past four years. “There is nothing like practice and thousands of hands at low stakes games online really helps [to learn the game]. I have found that once people start playing for money, even .02/.05 tables, they play really hard.” She has played the Sunday Million several times before, but never cashed for significant money. This satellite entry was her biggest cash by far, with her biggest tourney win before coming in a $1 tourney with over 1,700 players. The field this Sunday was a lot deeper, and a lot more expensive, but Tuffy Cat applied the same basic strategy that won her the seat and took down the top prize with no deal at the final table.
This cool cat is no stranger to live tables, either, making her WSOP debut this year in the Ladies’ Event.

“Even though I didn’t cash, the experience of playing with some real pros was amazing and inspired me to work on my game. I finished around 170 out of 1190 players. I even got to play at the same table with Kathy Liebert for several hours. Not only at the same table but right next to her (on her left). In fact Kathy was the person who knocked me out of the tournament. I was low stack and Kathy had raised the pot. I had AK and went all in against her pocket pair of 9’s. Her 9’s held up and I was out, but what a great time and experience!!!! Part of my [Sunday Million] winnings will go to playing the main event next year.”

Congratulations to Tuffy Cat on her great run, turning 450 FPPs into $184,500!

On a lazy Sunday afternoon, with a football game on in the background and the windows open to catch the fall breeze, poker players all over the world gathered at their computers on PokerStars to play the Sunday Million. Well, the setting may not have been so dramatic for all of the 7,245 players, but the sitting in front of the computer rings true. The Sunday Million is becoming a weekly tradition for online poker players, and the $1.5 million guarantee doesn’t hurt the turnout either.

With the 7,245 players, the competitors were able to enjoy a bit of an overlay. The last 1,080 players to survive the tough field would receive a portion of the sizable prize pool, with the last person standing set to receive $184,500 of it. Not a bad take for one day’s work and a $215 buy-in.

The field thinned quickly, as nearly two-thirds of it was gone by the two-and-a-half hour mark. And less than four hours after play began, the bubble burst, courtesy of jjtes in 1081st place. That made way for goodfellas65 to be the first to cash in the October 5th Sunday Million tournament and take home the $300 prize.

The final 18 players were seated at two tables after eight and a half hours, and play then slowed tremendously. It took approximately an hour to discover the name of the final table bubble player. After having been playing a short stack for a bit, jamie2000 moved all-in preflop with Q-8, but aty79 called with A-8. The board showed a pair of fives, and the ace kicker was good to eliminate jamie2000 in 10th place for $7,500.

With that, at the nine hour and thirty minute mark, blinds at 200,000/400,000 and a 40,000 ante in level 35, the final table was set as follows:

Seat 1: Allanon85 (4,027,610 in chips)
Seat 2: forza-guti (20,452,649 in chips)
Seat 3: aty79 (5,746,206 in chips)
Seat 4: tnapoleao (5,747,738 in chips)
Seat 5: cdbr3799 (7,555,840 in chips)
Seat 6: Tyler9897 (2,881,305 in chips)
Seat 7: insanocut (11,732,370 in chips)
Seat 8: sjco22 (3,823,426 in chips)
Seat 9: Kongsgaard (10,482,856 in chips)

Allanon85 began final table play with only two shorter stacks behind him on the leaderboard and decided to make a move only a few hands into play. After an initial raise from Kongsgaard to 1,150,000, Allanon85 reraised all-in preflop from the small blind with As-9h. Kongsgaard called with Ts-9s, and the board came 7h-7c-Qh-Ad-5c. The two pair allowed Allanon85 to double up. And on the very next hand, Allanon85 got involved again, this time with sjco22, who made the initial raise to 2,000,000. Allanon85 came over the top all-in, and sjco22 called all-in for his last 693,426. The at-risk player showed Kh-Tc, and Allanon85 flipped over Ad-Jc. The board came Qh-3s-2c-4c-3d, and the ace kicker played to eliminate sjco22 in 9th place for a $10,500 payday.

Tyler9897 was the new short stack at the table and moved his last 2.7 million all-in preflop. Kongsgaard called from the big blind with pocket queens, and Tyler9897 showed Ah-Jc. The board was a tease when it came Ac-Qh-9c-3h-4d, and the ace was quickly trumped by the queen that gave Kongsgaard trips. Tyler9897 was out in 8th place with an extra $17,250.

The next in danger was tnapoleao, who got involved in a monstrous hand with two other players. It was tnapoleao who made the first raise, then insanocut pushed all-in. aty79 also moved all-in, with insanocut having both competitors covered. aty79 showed pocket aces, insanocut showed A-K, and tnapoleao had pocket kings. In the end, no player received any help on the board, and aty79 collected the 14,903,214 pot. insanocut was short-stacked after the hand, but tnapoleao got the worst of it, as he was out in 7th place with $26,250 to show for it.

As the players took their first final table break, aty79, despite being the chip leader, was hitting the chat box about a chop.

“i am willing to give a little”
“we can just see the number then talk”

But too many players were opposed, and play resumed after the 5-minute break.

One who may have considered that chop option a little more was insanocut. As the short-stack, he pushed shortly thereafter for his last 4,178,388 with Kc-6s, but Kongsgaard was there to get in from the small blind with As-Ks. The five cards came 2c-8c-4d-Ts-Qs, and that was all they wrote for insanocut, who left the tournament in 6th place with $39,000.

The action at the table was getting fast and furious. Allanon85 doubled through forza-guti when his A-9 found two more nines on the flop to beat the pocket sixes of forza-guti. With that, forza-guti was practically forced to move on the next hand, which he did with Ac-Jh. Allanon85 called from the big blind with pocket threes, and it was off to the races. The flop made forza-guti’s hand look good when it came 8d-Qc-Jd, and the 9h on the turn was harmless, but the 3d on the river gave Allanon85 the set and the win. forza-guti, who at one time had a tremendous lead over the other players, was out in 5th place with a $54,000 consolation prize.

One player who had been absent from many of the big hands thus far was about to ride a roller coaster for most of level 38. cdbr3799 pushed all-in for just under 10 million in chips with pocket sixes, but aty79 called with pocket kings. A six came on the river to allow cdbr3799 to double up. The next pot was a monster one that found Allanon85 moving all-in for a bit more than 18 million, and cdbr3799 called with his newfound bigger stack. But cdbr3799’s A-Q couldn’t beat Allanon85’s A-J when a jack fell on the turn. The 36,821,592 pot went to Allanon85, and cdbr3799 was in trouble again. But cdbr3799 proceeded to double through Kongsgaard to stay alive when his sixes held up against the T-6 of his opponent.

Kongsgaard was then the short stack and moved all-in preflop for just over 10.5 million with pocket deuces, but Allanon85 called with pocket jacks. The board just twisted the knife when it brought a jack on the flop on a Js-6c-4d-As-Ts board. Kongsgaard finished the tournament in 4th place with $69,000 for the effort.

With three players remaining, aty79 proposed chop talks again, and this time the other two players agreed. The administrator calculated the chip chop numbers as follows:

Allanon85 (50,484,537 in chips) = $161,660.48
aty79 (13,410,365 in chips) = $104,629.20
cdbr3799 (8,555,098 in chips) = $97,160.32

With $30,000 extra left out to award the winner, players discussed, and the two shorter stacks wanted Allanon85 to give up some of his funds to the others. With some frustration, Allanon85 was willing to look at some different numbers, and when cdbr3799 came up with some new numbers, Allanon85 responded with an odd comment:

“need to talk one moment to my backers mom”

Finally, after more negotiations and that $30,000 extra for the victor, the following numbers were agreed upon:

Allanon85 = $147,450.00
aty79 = $109,000.00
cdbr3799 = $107,000.00

Play resumed. Allanon85 apparently wanted the title and may not have been happy giving up so much money in the chop, so he got aggressive by pushing the smaller stacks around. Finally, cdbr3799 pushed all-in with Qc-5h, and Allanon85 called with Ks-7s. The board ran out 4s-7d-2h-8d-3d, and Allanon85’s pair of sevens was good. cdbr3799 was out in third place for the agreed-upon amount of $107,000.

Though aty79 was able to double through Allanon85 on the second hand of heads-up play, Allanon85 still held the lead and wasn’t letting up on the pressure. The final hand began with aty79 raising to 3 million preflop and Allanon85 simply calling to see the flop come 2d-Kh-6c. aty79 bet another 3 million, which was called by Allanon85. After the 5s on the turn, aty79 bet 9 million, and Allanon85 pushed all-in. aty79 called all-in for his last 9,100,730 with Kc-8c for the pair of kings, but Allanon85 showed Kd-Jd for the kings with the higher kicker. The 2c came on the river, and it was over for aty79, who took the chop amount of $109,000 for the second place finish.

Allanon85 won the Sunday Million, with a total of $177,450 in prize money and the title of Sunday Million champion.

Sunday Million Results for 10/05/08:

1st place: Allanon85 ($177,450.00)
2nd place: aty79 ($109,000.00)
3rd place: cdbr3799 ($107,000)
4th place: Kongsgaard ($69,000)
5th place: forza-guti ($54,000)
6th place: insanocut ($39,000)
7th place: tnapoleao ($26,250)
8th place: Tyler9897 ($17,250)
9th place: sjco22 ($10,500)

Following the conclusion of the World Championship of Online Poker last week, Sunday saw the return of PokerStars’ $215 Sunday Million tourney. A total of 7,133 runners came out this week to try their luck, meaning they enjoyed a bit of an overlay in order for Stars to honor the $1,500,000 prize pool guarantee. The top 1,080 finishers got paid, with the winner scheduled to score a cool $184,500.

It took about three hours and 45 minutes of play before the cash bubble burst. By Level 24 (nearly six hours of play), the field had been reduced to 100. At the six-hour break, 88 players remained, with minspin holding a commanding chip advantage. minspin’s stack of 4,169,369 was more than twice that of his nearest competitor, drackar, who had just a little more than 2 million. But from such giddy heights minspin went into a precipitous tailspin, and would ultimately be eliminated in 61st.

At the seven-hour break, just 32 players were left gathered around four tables. hechtemichl7 had pulled ahead of the pack with more than 7.51 million chips, with natebelt11 in 2nd (5.74 million) and Boretony in 3rd (4.57 million). None of those three would still be around, however, when during Level 33, sometime after the eight-hour break, AceBonG, holding Ad-7d, spiked an ace on the river to beat irons21’s pocket fours and eliminate him in 10th place.

Here’s what the final table looked like shortly after it had been assembled:

Chip counts at start of final table:
Seat 1: agiletto -- 1,722,272
Seat 2: WatchOutSir -- 4,655,177
Seat 3: SantiagoRain -- 6,499,207
Seat 4: Tuffy Cat -- 8,991,714
Seat 5: Assassinato -- 17,485,447
Seat 6: londanuk -- 10,335,993
Seat 7: AceBonG -- 9,542,218
Seat 8: amichaiKK -- 1,850,436
Seat 9: hustln_ps -- 10,247,536

Before players had gotten comfortable in their virtual final table seats, agiletto picked up a nice more-than-double up with As-Qh versus WatchOutSir’s pocket jacks. A queen on the flop and no subsequent jack meant a large transfer of chips from WatchOutSir’s stack over to agiletto’s. Just a few minutes later, we would see our first elimination of the final table. Down to just 1.2 million, amichaiKK open-pushed all in from UTG+1 and SantiagoRain called from the cutoff seat. amichaiKK showed 2h-2c and was hoping to outlast SantiagoRain's Ad-9d. The flop was fine -- Kh-3h-6s. The Qd on the turn was, too. But the Ah fell on the river, eliminating amichaiKK in 9th place.

"Nice catch," typed agiletto. "For all of us," noting the sizable pay jumps with each successive elimination (see payouts below). “ez game” SantiagoRain responded.

The table would enjoy another nice catch, so to speak, just six hands later when WatchOutSir became the next to fall. AceBonG had raised to 723,889 from middle position, then WatchOutSir reraised all in for 2,772,905 behind. It folded to Tuffy Cat who then repopped it all in for 9.2 million from the big blind, and AceBonG stepped aside. Tuffy Cat showed pocket tens, and WatchOutSir pocket eights. The board came As-3c-5d-7d-Qh, and WatchOutSir was out in 8th. One orbit later, agiletto would shove his last 1.7 million with Ac-4c only to find himself up against AceBonG's Ad-9s. There was some hope for agiletto as the flop brought one club -- 3c-7h-Ts -- and the turn another -- Qc. But the river was the 2h, and we were down to six.

AceBonG’s good fortune continued when he took a huge, 17 million-plus chip pot off of Assassinato when his pocket kings held up versus Assassinato’s Ah-Qd. That hand gave AceBonG the slight chip lead over Tuffy Cat, and he soon began using those chips to pressure the shorter stacks. Play had reached Level 36 (blinds 250,000/500,000, antes 50,000) when londanuk would catch a brief rush, knocking out two players in successive hands.

First to go was hustlin_ps who had shoved all in for 8.5 million with Ah-Qh and was called by londanuk who held 6d-6h. The community cards came 4s-2s-Ks-Kc-8h, and hustlin_ps hustled to the rail in 6th. On the very next hand, the table folded around to Assassinato who pushed all in from the small blind for 6,217,574 with Qh-Ts and londanuk called from the big blind with As-9s. The flop was a killer for Assassinato -- Ts-Ad-Ac. The Jd on the turn gave him a slight ray of hope, but the 9h gave londanuk a boat, sending Assassinato out in 5th.

Soon afterwards, Tuffy Cat would take a 19-million chip pot off of londanuk to assume a sizable chip lead. With four players left, Tuffy Cat's 34.6 million represented nearly half the total chips, with AceBonG (14.8 million), londanuk (12.6 million), and SantiagoRain (9.2 million) all trailing. SantiagoRain suggested making a deal on a couple of occasions, but none of the others responded and play continued.

AceBonG would then take the lead away from Tuffy Cat after getting it all in preflop with Big Slick, getting called by Tuffy Cat who held Ad-9s. Two kings on the flop assured AceBonG of securing the 27 million-chip pot and the lead. Soon after that, in the very last hand of Level 36, Tuffy Cat would knock out SantiagoRain in fourth place when his pocket eights outran SantiagoRain’s As-Jc. Here’s how that hand played out:

During the break following that hand, AceBonG -- chip leader with 30,788,778 -- suggested a chop, but Tuffy Cat, just behind AceBonG with 29,721,428 said “not yet.” londanuk was now the short stack with 10,819,794.

Those stack sizes remained fairly steady for the first five minutes of Level 37, then came an interesting showdown between londanuk and Tuffy Cat. AceBonG had folded his button, Tuffy Cat completed from the small blind, and londanuk checked his option from the big blind. Both players checked the 6h-8h-5c flop. The turn was the Jh. Tuffy Cat checked, londanuk bet 1.2 million, and Tuffy Cat called. The river was the 6s, pairing the board. This time Tuffy Cat bet out 3 million, and after hesitating londanuk raised all in for 6,829,794. Tuffy Cat called, showing the surprising Ah-Ad. londanuk held Js-9s for the lesser two pair, and was out in third place.

Heads up play began with Tuffy Cat having the advantage with 41.8 million to AceBonG's 29.5 million. Neither player made any mention of a possible deal, meaning there was a $60K difference riding on who would come out ahead in their battle.

By the time Level 38 began (blinds 400,000/800,000, antes 80,000), the tide had turned with AceBonG enjoying an almost 2-to-1 chip advantage over Tuffy Cat, 47.1 million to 24.1 million. Then came a huge hand in which the pair essentially traded stacks.

On a flop of Qd-6d-Ad, AceBong checked, Tuffy Cat be 2.4 million, AceBong check-raised to 7.2 million, then Tuffy Cat pushed all in. AceBong called, showing Jd-Tc for the flush draw and gutshot draw to Broadway. Tuffy Cat turned over Qc-Ts for middle pair and little else. Another queen came on the turn, and the 4h on the river meant Tuffy Cat claimed the 48 million-chip pot and retook the lead.

Fifty-five hands later, Tuffy Cat still maintained roughly the same advantage when the following hand took place. Tuffy Cat raised to 7 million from the small blind/button, and AceBonG deliberated a bit before shoving all in for 19,907,556. Tuffy Cat took a few seconds, then made the call, turning over As-5c. AceBonG showed As-4s, setting up the sort of match-up that often ends in a split pot. However, the flop brought a five -- Jh-5d-Qh -- and AceBong was in dire circumstances. The turn was the Qs, and the river another five, giving Tuffy Cat the pot and that first place prize money.

Congratulations to Tuffy Cat, AceBonG, and everyone else who cashed in Sunday's event!

Sunday Million results for 9/28/08:

1. Tuffy Cat -- $184,500.00
2. AceBonG -- $124,950.00
3. londanuk -- $84,000.00
4. SantiagoRain -- $69,000.00
5. Assassinato -- $54,000.00
6. hustin_ps -- $39,000.00
7. agiletto -- $26,500.00
8. WatchOutSir -- $17,250.00
9. amichaiKK -- $10,500.00

7212 players tonight were not at their cabin for the Labor Day weekend and anted up the $215 for the increased guarantee on this week’s Sunday Million. The Sunday Warm-up which included a one-time rebuy this week also pumped up its guarantee to a full million dollars and saw noted online pro and winner of the World Series of Poker Europe Main Event Annette_15 take down sixth place.

Well known internet pro, and winner of several high stakes PokerStars tourneys Tmay420 bounced out with three tables remaining in 22nd place. pbdrunks winner of the Tuesday $1,050 in February good for $71,060 and several other smaller tourneys had his has aces cracked in 13th place. But, the following nine moved on to final table in search of the $184,500 first place prize with blinds starting out at 125,000/250,000 ante 25,000.

Table '103639427 162' 9-max Seat #3 is the button
Seat 1: krs528 (5438648 in chips)
Seat 2: Bury2k4 (3787382 in chips)
Seat 3: TheRodGuy (14440256 in chips)
Seat 4: FlopeDeNuts (7680933 in chips) out of hand (moved from another table into small blind)
Seat 5: diegoaiz (14567593 in chips) out of hand (moved from another table into small blind)
Seat 6: IamUnlucky (10497102 in chips) out of hand (moved from another table into small blind)
Seat 7: CodeRedRulez (6431828 in chips)
Seat 8: UnbrokeN (5711064 in chips)
Seat 9: c j mcon (3565194 in chips)

IamUnlucky was anything but as he laid claim to the first knockout of the evening. With blinds at 200,000/400,000 ante 40,000 and folded around to IamUnlucky in the small blind, he pushed with his 8.3 million chip stack to steal small stack CodeRedRulez’s blind. Having under ten big blinds with 3.4 million chips, CodeRedRulez made the easy call with Ah-Ks and IamUnlucky turned over the steal attempt with Qh-2s. Two live cards is better then one as IamUnlucky took the lead with a pair of two on the 2d-4s-Th flop. The turn Ts opened up some counterfeiting outs but the river Qd gave IamUnlucky the win and sent CodeRedRulez looking for an Aqua Teen Hunger Force marathon to quell the pain of the beat while collecting $10,500 in ninth place.

Another short stack, c j mcon with just 2.2 million in chip and blinds still at 200,000/400,000 ante 40,000 open shoved with a pocket pair of sixes (6d-6c) in mid position hoping to snag the 920,000 sitting in the pot pre-flop. But, the chip leader, TheRodGuy was waiting on the button and made the call with pocket eights (8c-8s) leaving more then 11 million behind. The pre-flop lead was never questioned, and the results of a 4s-4d-Kh-Jd-Ac board gave TheRodGuy a higher two pair and trimmed our final table to seven. Eighth place money of $17,250 should help c j mcon cover the buy-in of his next 80 or so attempts at a higher finish in a future Sunday Million.

Tonight has not been one for talk of chopping; the Battle of the Planets, Turbo Takedown, and now the Sunday Million with seven players left not one whisper of dividing up the prize pool. Maybe talks will begin soon as the blinds are taking huge chunks out of the player’s stacks sitting currently at 250,000/500,000 ante 50,000. Going into the break here’s how the chip stacks sized up with blinds moving up to 300,000/600,000 ante 60,000 when they returned to the table.

Seat 1: krs528 (3393816 in chips)
Seat 2: Bury2k4 (15614974 in chips)
Seat 3: TheRodGuy (14094580 in chips)
Seat 4: FlopeDeNuts (12375933 in chips)
Seat 5: diegoaiz (3878093 in chips)
Seat 6: IamUnlucky (15700476 in chips)
Seat 8: UnbrokeN (7062128 in chips)

Big hand right after the break between two of the top chip stacks as Bury2K4 lead out one off the button for 1.45 million and FlopeDeNuts came over the top in the small blind for 10.6 million. FlopeDeNuts had come over the top of Bury2K4 like that a couple of times at the final table, and may have factored into Bury2K4 calling with AdTh while FlopeDeNuts was well ahead with As-Qd. No one connected with the 7h-Kc-4h-3s-9h board as the largest pot of the tourney 22,974,234 chips was send to FlopeDeNuts, leaving Bury2K4 with under two big blinds. Four hands, and one successful all-in later, Bury2K4 lost the rest of his stack to the resurgent krs528, and was out in seventh place taking home $26,250.

UnbrokeN had his stack cut in half since the break with 3.7 million in chips facing a 2.4 million chip UTG + 1 raise from diegoaiz. Red pocket nines (9h-9d) was enough for UnbrokeN to commit himself all-in, diegoaiz made the call with a suited big slick (Ah-Kh) while leaving just 450,000 in chips behind. The flop of 9c-Qh-8h had UnbrokeN leaping out to the lead with a set of nines as diegoaiz picked up the nut flush draw. The Jh on the turn as the flush draw filled leaving UnbrokeN searching for the board to pair and the Ac on the river snapped UnbrokeN in sixth place earning $39,000 for his ability to bend his cards the right way this long.

Coolers are forever part of poker and with the blinds increasing to 400,000/800,000 ante 80,000 krs528 was staring down a two million chip raise with pocket queens (Qs-Qd) from the giant chip leader in FlopeDeNuts one off the button. A push with 8.6 million in chips left against the aggressive chip leader, but FlopeDeNuts was holding the goods this time as he turned over rockets (As-Ah). No reversals as the best hand held up on the Kc-Td-7h-9h-3h board and krs528 won $54,000 for fifth place.

FlopDeNuts was coming in for his 2,652nd straight button push, and IamUnlucky had enough of the abuse on his blinds were still at 400,000/800,000 ante 80,000 but IamUnlucky was under ten big blinds and needed some chips for a deeper run and made the call with Ad-4d. FlopeDeNuts showed 6h-7c for the steal attempt but his two live cards became top pair on the 2s-7d-5h putting him in the lead. A 4c on the turn breathed some more life into IamUnlucky’s tournament life, but the 2c took it right back out. IamUnlucky’s luck held long enough to claim fourth place and $69,000.

After that win, the chip count looked like this:

diegoaiz: 9,700,221
FlopeDeNuts: 55,475,199
TheRodGuy: 5,144,580

After several all-ins going the wrong way for FlopeDeNuts and the blinds going up to 600,000/1,200,000 ante 120,000 the following stacks prompted some chip chop talks…

diegoaiz: 22,551,326
FlopeDeNuts: 21,152,476
TheRodGuy: 28,416,198

The chip chop figures were was quickly accepted by the players, giving three players a six-figure payday tonight:

$127,912.72 – TheRodGuy
$118,849.49 - diegoaiz
$116,687.79 - FlopeDeNuts

Nearly twenty hands after the chop and playing on for the $30,000 that will go to our champion tonight none of the three have given much ground. Until FlopeDeNuts found pocket nines (9d-9s) in the small blind and push into diegoaiz’s big blind with 19 million in chips and blinds at 600,000/1,200,000 ante 120,000. Much like the AA vs. QQ hand, diegoaiz made the easy call leaving 11 million behind with pocket tens (Tc-Th). The better hand held up on a Qd-Ad-6s-6h-Js board and FlopeDeNuts wild ride from commanding chip leader to a chopped third place netted him $116,687.79

Heads-up play started with a bang as the TheRodGuy immediately pulled even with diegoaiz on the first hand of heads-up play after starting with a more then 3:1 chip lead. Eight hands later we reached the break and another blinds increase to 700,000/1,400,000 ante 140,000 with TheRodGuy holding a slight lead of 41 million chip to diegoaiz’s 30 million.

Hand #100 of heads-up play has the pair still duking it out with blinds currently at a staggering 1,000,000/2,000,000 ante 200,000 yet the two players are not giving an inch as they approach nearly twelve hours of play and the chip lead consistently blowing around like a windsock during a hurricane.

Certainly the longest heads-up play personally viewed, hand #127 ended exactly 30 seconds before the twelfth hour of play we have crossed the marathon’s finish line, and its diegoaiz’s Th-9d flopped top pair holding off the middle pair for TheRodGuy’s Jd-4h on a flop of 2c-4d-Td. The turn 3c and river of 7s gave diegoaiz the last push he needed to break the tape and win the $30,000 left aside from the 3-way chop. Congratulations to all our final table participants and especially to diegoaiz and TheRodGuy for the hard-fought heads up match.

08-31-08 Sunday Million Results
(based upon a 3-way chop)

1. diegoaiz (Buenos Aires) $ 148,849.49
2. TheRodGuy (Frederiksberg) $127,912.72
3. FlopeDeNuts (Holiday) $116,687.79
4. IamUnlucky (Lakeville) $69,000.00
5. krs528 (West Chester) $54,000.00
6. UnbrokeN (Shelby Twp.) $39,000.00
7. Bury2k4 (Edinburgh) $26,250.00
8. c j mcon (Alexandria) $17,250.00
9. CodeRedRulez (Tallinn) $10,500.00

It’s one of those things you’ve just come to expect in life. Birds gonna fly, fish gonna swim, dogs gonna bark, and PokerStars gonna beat the guarantee in the Sunday Million. With a symmetrical 7,557 players in the field, the prize pool for the biggest weekly tournament in poker was an incredible $1,511,400.00. The top 1,080 players got a piece of the pie, but nobody’s slice was bigger than NFrost_10, who took down $170,900.91 for first place after a deal that left $30,000 to play for when the field thinned from thousands down to just two. With just a couple of weeks before the WCOOP, PokerStars unveiled the new live blogging feature for this week's Sunday Million.

If one person in a poker tournament is ecstatic, 7,556 are less so. One of the less happy was final table bubble boy Roolender, who put on a display of ruthless aggression on the final table bubble that was impressive to watch. His chip stack went up and down like a roller coaster, but he finally found himself all in with Kc-Qc to Duffs#1fan’s Ad-10d. Duffs#1fan hit an ace on the 4d-5h-Ah flop, and Roolender was drawing thin. No help on the turn or river, and Roolender finished in 10th place for $7,557.00. That hand gave Duffs#1fan the chip lead going into the final table, but es_dame and NFrost_10 were close behind.

Afiopeneyes2 started the final table on the shortest of short stacks, and wasted no time moving all in preflop with Kd-Qc. NFrost_10 made the call with Ad-3d, and sent afiopeneyes2 to the rail when the board ran out 4s-6d-5s-6h-5d. Afiopeneyes2 picked up $10,579.80 for 9th place. That hand put NFrost_10 solidly in third place on the leader board, within striking distance of the chip leaders.

Shortly after kidkanada99 was crippled, SonnyInMtl moved all in preflop with Ah-Kh. Hidden1s called with Ac-Js, and several bigger stacks went into the tank weighing the option of busting two players. Finally the big stacks got out of the way, and it was heads-up to the 9c-7h-5c flop. No help on the Ad turn or the 6d river for hidden1s, and SonnyInMtl dragged the pot as hidden1s picked up $17,381.10 for 8th place.

The micro-stacked kidkanada99 was all in after calling the big blind on the very next hand, and found two opponents as es_dame completed the small blind and Duffs#1fan checked the big blind. The two chip leaders checked it down to the river as the board ran out 10d-3c-4s-10h-2s. Es_dame showed Kd-Jc, and both opponents mucked as kidkanada99 was eliminated in 7th place for $26,449.50.

Lecharentais held on for a few minutes after kidkanada99 busted, but eventually headed to the rail in 6th place ($39,296.40). After moving in several times preflop and picking up the blinds and antes, lecharentais found a caller in karelli, who picked up Kc-10c in late position and made the call. Lecharentais tabled 8h-6h, and karelli’s king kicker was good on the board of Qs-3s-7d-5c-5d.

Es_dame reclaimed the chip lead with the next bustout, sending SonnyInMtl to the rail in 5th place. On a board of 10s-10h-6c, SonnyInMtl moved all in with Kh-Qc. Es_dame quickly called with Ks-6s for two pair, and SonnyInMtl was left looking for a king or a queen. None came as the final board read 10s-10h-6c-5s-7h, and SonnyInMtl picked up $54,410,40 for 5th place.

With chip lead in hand, es_dame next took out Duffs#1fan, who went to the rail in 4th place. On a flop of Js-3h-8s, Duffs#1fan led out. Es_dame raised with pocket threes for bottom set, and quickly called when Duffs#1fan moved all in over the top. Duffs#1fan tabled As-9s for the nut flush draw, but no spade came on the turn or river, and es_dame busted Duffs#1fan in 4th place for $69,524.40.

The final break saw es_dame in the chip lead, with karelli on a short stack -
es_dame - 39,207,518
NFrost_10 - 25,311,860
karelli - 11,050,622

It only took a few minutes after players returned from break for everything to sort out, as NFrost_10 quickly took karelli out in 3rd place. NFrost_10 raised preflop, and karelli moved all in with Ac-7s. NFrost_10 called with As-Jh. Nothing out of the ordinary happened as the board ran out 9s-5c-Jd-7h-10d, and karelli picked up $84,638.40 for 3rd place.

The players paused briefly once heads-up play began to discuss a deal, and quickly agreed on an even chop of the remaining money. Karelli’s elimination had moved NFrost_10 almost dead even with es_dame in chips, so each player took home $140,900.91, with $30,000 left to play for.

Heads-up play only took a few hands, as NFrost_10 wasted no time taking a small chip lead and exploiting it. With the tournament nearing clock nearing 3AM, all the chips went in the middle on a flop of Js-9s-7s. Es_dame showed Jc-4s for top pair with a flush redraw, while NFrost_10 tabled 9d-8s for middle pair with a better redraw. The 2s on the turn sealed the deal for NFrost_10, and the 6h on the river was irrelevant as NFrost_10 picked up a total of $170,900.91 for his Sunday Million Victory.

Congratulations to NFrost_10 and all the players who cashed in this week's Sunday Million!
The Final Table finishers and payouts looked like this after a deal between the final two players –

1) NFrost_10 - $170,900.91
2) es_dame - $140,900.91
3) karelli - $84,638.40
4) Duffs#1fan - $69,524.40
5) SonnyInMtl - $54,410.40
6) lecharentais - $39,296.40
7) kidkanada99 - $26,449.50
8) hidden1s - $17,381.10
9) afiopeneyes2 - $10,579.80

For a little fun today, we're going to live blog the PokerStars Sunday Million. Over the next eleven hours or so, Carol Kline, Johnny Kampis, Jen Newell, and John Hartness will be on hand to bring you the latest information on the Sunday Million. Have a story for us? E-mail to blog@pokerstars.com. Here's the Sunday Warm-Up Live Blog.

2:43am - NFrost_10 takes down the Sunday Million!

After making a deal which left $30,000 on the table, NFrost_10 wasted no time in claiming the chip lead from es_dame. After jockeying for position for a few hands, all the chips went in the middle on a flop of Js-9s-7s. Es_dame showed Jc-4s for top pair with a flush redraw, while NFrost_10 tabled 9d-8s for middle pair with a better redraw. The 2s on the turn sealed the deal for NFrost_10, and the 6h on the river was irrelevant as NFrost_10 picked up a total of $170,900.91 for his Sunday Million Victory. Congratulations to NFrost_10 and all the players who cashed in this week's Sunday Million!

Check back here soon for the recap of all the final table action.

2:40 am - Let's Make a Deal!

With chip stacks nearly equal, the two remaining players agreed to an even chop of first and second-place money. With $30k left in the middle for the eventual winner, es_dame and NFrost_10 each claimed $140,900.91 for their tournament. $30,000 is not peanuts, so the players played on.

2:35am - karelli out in 3rd, discussions of a deal break out

NFrost_10 raised preflop, karelli reraised all-in with Ac-7s, and NFrost_10 called with As-Jh.
The board came out 9s-5c-Jd-7h-10d, and it was over for karelli in 3rd place for $84,638.40. Once play got down to heads-up, the tournament was paused while the players discussed a deal.

2:30am - Players on break - es_dame in chip lead with 3 to go

With only three players remaining, es_dame has a significant chip lead, with nearly 40 million in chips. The stacks for the remaining three players are -

es_dame - 39,207,518
NFrost_10 - 25,311,860
karelli - 11,050,622

2:26am - es_dame back in the lead, Duffs#1fan headed home in 4th place

After busting SonnyInMtl in 5th place, es_dame took back over the chip lead and set his sights firmly on first place. His next victim was Duffs#1fan, who got the last of his chips in the middle with the nut flush draw on a board of Js-3h-8s. Duffs#1fan led out at the flop, es_dame rasied, Duffs#1fan moved all in over the top with As-9s, and es_dame called with pocket threes for bottom set. No spade on the turn or river for Duffs#1fan, and he finished in 4th place for a $69,524.40 payday.

2:21am - SonnyInMtl heads home in 5th, es_dame reclaims the chip lead

SonnyInMtl shoved the last of his chips in the middle with Kh-Qc on a flop of 10s-10h-6c. Es_dame made the call with Ks-6s, a nightmare hand for SonnyInMtl. Looking for a king or a queen, SonnyInMtl found only the 5s-7h on the turn and river, and was eliminated in 5th place, good for $54,410.40.

2:17am - lecharentais busted in 6th place

On a short stack for much of the final table, lecharentais moved all-in preflop time with 8h-6h. Karelli called with Kc-10c, and the board came Qs-3s-7d-5c-5d. Karelli's king kicker was good, and lecharentais was out in 6th place, taking home $39,296.40.

2:14am - The chip lead, they are a'changing.

Duffs#1fan took the chip lead into the final table, but a big elimination by es_dame vaulted him into the chip lead for a few hands. Then NFrost_10 took over the chip lead by moving in over the top of Duffs#1fan's preflop raises. The top three spots on the leader board stayed close as the players all made their moves at the $185,902.20 first place money.

2:08am - And then there were six - kidkanada99 busted in 7th

On the short stack, kidkanada99 went to the rail in 7th when he tangled with es_dame and Duffs#1fan. Kidkanada99 was all in after calling the big blind, and es_dame completed the small blind with Kd-Jc. Duffs#1fan checked the big blind, and the two chip leaders checked down the board of 10d-3c-4s-10h-2s. Es_dame's K-J was good, and kidkanada99 was frozen out in 7th place for $26,449.50.

2:04am - hidden1s out in 8th

SonnyInMtl pushed all-in preflop, and hidden1s called. Several players went into their time bank before folding, but it was heads-up to the flop. SonnyInMtl had Ah-Kh, and hidden1s showed Ac-Js. The board came 9c-7h-5c-Ad-6d, and hidden1s was out in 8th for $17,381.10.

1:57am - afiopeneyes2 busted in 9th place

The short stack to start the final table, afiopeneyes2 wasted no time getting the last if his chips in the middle with Kd-Qc. NFrost_10 made the call with Ad-3d, and the board ran out 4s-6d-5s-6h-5d. NFrost_10's kicker played, and afiopeneyes2 was the first casualty of the final table, finishing in 9h place for $10,579.80. NFrost_10 moved solidly into third place with that hand, closing the gap between himself and the chip leaders.

1:54am - Roolender's tournament ends and the final table is set

On the final table bubble, es_dame held a slight lead over NFrost_10, but the bubble wasn't to last long. After just a couple of hands of hand-for-hand play, Roolender all-in with K-Q of clubs versus A-10 of diamonds of Duffs#1fan. The board came 4d-5h-Ah-3c-9c, and it was over for Roolender in 10th place for $7557.00. Duffs#1fan took over the chip lead as the final table began, holding a slim lead over es_dame and NFrost_10.

1:50am - The Final Table draws ever nearer

As the remaining players sniff the final table and the big paydays that await there, the play tightens up with lots of all-in moves preflop, but very few calls. In one hand that bucked the trend, SonnyInMtl doubled through lacharentis with pocket nines against lecharentis' 7-6. Then all heck broke loose and we went from 12 players down to 10 in the blink of an eye. Or two hands, but some people blink slowly.

First off, VegaNevada moved the last of his chips in the middle with Ac-Qh, running into Duffs#1fan holding pocket Jacks. The Jacks held up, and VegaNevada was done in 12th place, good for a $7,557.00 payday. Then FatHeadMF went all-in with Ks-Jc and met with Ad-Js. The virtual dealer gave them Ac-4s-Qc-6h-9d, and it was all over for FatHeadMF in 11th place.

1:42am - afiopeneyes doubles up

afiopeneyes2 finally pushed 1,871,300 into the middle with As-10c and was called by SonnyInMtl who had pocket queens. The board showed Ks-3s-Ah-Ac-3d, and afiopeneyes2 doubled up. Roolender, who had lost a significant number of chips since moving into second place, doubled through VegaNevada when Roolender's pocket sixes held up against VegaNevada's A-Q. No help on the board for VegaNevada, and Roolender moved back into second place behind es_dame.

1:35am - Roolender making a move up the leader board

afiopeneyes2 doubled through es_dame with A-10 versus pocket fives when a 10 came on the flop. The board of 3c-10h-3d-8h-6c didn't help, and es_dame lost some chips. in a pot of nearly 5 million. While that was happening, Roolender became the second player to cross the 10 million chip mark, moving into second place.

1:29am - fast action after the break

Just after the break, Outfielder71 moved all-in with Ah-Js against the pocket eights of karelli. The board gave nothing to the shorter stack when it came 10d-2s-Kh-Kc-7d. Outfielder71 was forced to accept 15th place and $5,289.90 for it.

Maggie32198 fell just seconds later when Roolender's pocket Queens held up against maggie32198's Ad-Qd on a board of Kh-4d-6d-7s-9s. Maggie32198 had to settle for close but no cigar on the final table, finishing in 15th. At almost the same moment, uchi14 headed to the rail in 14th for $5,289.90

1:25am - Slower play but accelerated attempts to catch chip leader

After taking out several players in the last hour, kidkanada99 has moved into second place in the chip counts, within striking distance of es_dame's big stack.

At the same time, a short-stacked waltby made a stand from early position with pocket fives, and FatHeadMF made the call from the big blind with Ac-9h. The flop of As-Jc-Kd left waltby drawing thin, but the Qh on the turn added a few additional outs to a chop. The 7c on the river wasn't one of them, and waltby was eliminated in 16th place for $3,778,50.

With the next money jump of just over $1,500 kicking in, play slowed a bit and players went on a 5-minute break.

1:15am - Commanding chip lead held by es_dame with over 10 million in chips

With two tables remaining, it was clearly es_dame in the lead, but NFrost_10 and VegaNevada were both making a serious attempt to catch up.

Speaking of chip leaders, the chip leader coming into this level is the first casualty of these final two tables. Moving all-in on a steal attempt with Ks-3s preflop. Kidkanada99 limped in with pocket sixes and called ahhhhhsht's raise. The board ran out Qh-4d-3c-7d-4s, and kidkanada99 moved one step closer to the final table, while ahhhhhsht took 18th place and a $3,778.50 cash.

es_dame was not to be outdone in the elimination game, taking out laafii just seconds later. laafii moved all-in from the big blind with pocket threes after es_dame raised from the button. es_dame quickly called with Ad-Js and hit an ace on the flop to send laafii home in 17th place with $3,778.50.

12:55am - Final 23 players trying to catch es_dame

One player who will no longer be in that hunt is panchita69, who moved all-in over the top of northerngent's preflop raise with Ac-Jd, only to find SonnyInMtl holding pocket aces in the small blind. Nothing unexpected happened, and panchita69 was done in 23rd for a $3,022.80 prize.

The next to fall in a flurry of bustouts was puffinmypurp when he moved all-in over the top of afiopeneyes2 with Qh-9h. afiopeneyes2 tabled pocket sevens, and the board ran out 8s-2h-Ks-6d-3c. puffinmypurp was done in 22nd place.

Nuscas left the party next when he and kidkanada99 tangled for a final time. Nuscas open-shoved preflop with pocket sixes, and kidkanada99 made the call with Ac-Qh. The ace on the flop made things tough on Nuscas, and the running broadway cards made a straight for kidkanada99 and left Nuscas out in 21st.

northerngent was next to get in on the action, moving all-in with Ah-Kh and finding himself in a classic race against VegaNevada who held pocket jacks. The flop of 5d-7s-9h was no help to either player, but the Jh on the turn not only gave VegaNevada a set but gave northerngent a flush draw. The 7h on the river was a heart northerngent did not want to see, as it gave him the flush but filled up VegaNevada. northerngent went to the rail in 20th place.

And all the while, chip leader es_dame stays out front, claiming more chips for his growing virtual stacks when his As-Kh held up against pokrjoker78's Ah-Jd on a board of 5d-Qd-Qs-8h-3h. pokerjoker78's elimination in 19th sent the remaining players to the final two tables, while pokrjoker78 picked up $3,022.80, just before the next pay jump.

12:40am - Down to 3 tables, final table inches closer

The chip leader of only a few minutes ago, ahhhhhsht took a hit in a pot with karelli when pocket deuces lost a coinflip to karelli's Kc-Js.

Aceupmyslv7 went to the rail in 27th place when VegaNevada had not only an Ace but a six up his sleeve. All the money went in on the 2h-3s-6s flop and Aceupmyslv7's 5c-7d couldn't catch the four for the straight as VegaNevada had top pair, top kicker and improved to two pair on the river. Aceupmyslv7 picked up $3,022.80 for his finish.

Next to fall was highfloor33, who was the micro-stack as the hand began and whose 10s-6s was no good against NFrost_10's Ac-3s. After picking up a pair of sixes on the turn, it was NFrost_10 who made top pair and kept it to win the hand. highfloor33 finished in 26th place.

On table 430, es_dame continued the run and broke the 10 million chip mark, a 6 million chip lead over the nearest competitor.

Raynee headed to the rail in 25th place when his QhQs was cracked by NFrost_10's pocket eights on a board of 8c-3s-10h-2d-7s. The two-outer sent Raynee to the rail in 25th place.

Shortly thereafter, waltby won a coin flip in decisive fashion when he called IveGotToejam's all in preflop with pocket tens to IveGotToejam's Ah-Jh. A ten on the flop and another on the river made for a decisive exit for IveGotToejam, who got $3,022.80 for 24th place. (He can now attend to that toejam problem.)

12:25am - ahhhhhsht returns from break with chip lead

Coming back from break, there has been no shortage of action. A new table for ashhhhhsht, but the chip lead remains his to defend.

TeamSwindler was the first player to go after the break when his As-Qd went all in preflop against Duffs#1fan, who had pocket 9's. The board came 2c-3s-10s-7s-Jd, and TeamSwindler was eliminated in 35th place.

As play is fast and furious at the last four tables, es_dame moved up the chip ladder when a set of Aces flopped to bust Jesper_H. es_dame now sits in second place behind ahhhhhsht.

12:11am--Roolender ruling Table 2

Roolender eliminated another player at Table 2 after flopping trips with As-6s against the Ah-7h of Bjolle. After collecting 1.38 million from the pot, Roolender climbed to second on the leaderboard.

12:05am--His game is not in the crapper

Ahhhhhsht has flushed away several opponents at his table and is now our chipleader with 4.88 million. Forty-five players remain.

11:55pm--Roolender eliminates one player and cripples another

Action at Table 2 seems to have been fast and furious of late. The following three players were all-in pre-flop in this hand (chip counts are after blinds and antes): Sumpas (738,289 in chips), Roolender (1,039,722 in chips) and HitUR2outer (1,400,597 in chips). Roolender's Ah-Qd was behind HitUR2outer's Ad-Kh pre-flop, but both Roolender and Sumpas flopped a queen. Roolener's ace kicker was better than Sumpas' 9 kicker, and Roolender took down the 2.3 million chip pot. Sumpas was eliminated on the hand, and HitUR2outer dropped to 361K.

11:51pm--Who will we make jokes about now?

G Depardieu’s run has sadly ended. Grinded down to 367K, G Depardieu pushed all in with A-7, but ran into A-J. He finished in 59th place.

11:48pm--900K three-way pot won with nut no pair

SnowwwMan, who was sitting toward the top of the leaderboard with 2.4 million in chips, raised to 158K. Otto Doctor re-raised to 343K all-in, drifto88 called the all-in for less and SnowwwMan called as well. It was Ad-Qh for Otto Doctor, As-Jh for SnowwwMan and Ac-8c for drifto88. The board ran out 7h-9s-5c-7c-Kd, and Otto Doctor's nut no pair was best.

11:34pm--Manine in top three

Manine moved up the charts by winning a more than 2 million pot against former top ten chipholder CONI2AD. Manine’s jacks held up against the A-K of his opponent and Manine now has 2.35 million in chips.

11:32pm--HitUR2outer hits two big pots in a row; misses third

In the first hand, HitUR2outer's Ks-Qs was up against the Ad-Qc of crazy_teeth after HitUR2outer open shoved pre-flop. The flop was Kd-4s-As, giving HitUR2outer second pair and the nut flush draw. The 3h on the turn was no help, but the 3s on the river gave HitUR2outer the winning hand and the million chip pot.

Then, HitUR2outer raised to 100,771 pre-flop. GARFIELD25 raised to 921,034 all-in and HitUR2outer called. GARFIELD25 needed significant help, as his Ad-Jc was against HitUR2outer's As-Qh. Neither player improved, and HitUR2outer skyrocketed to 2.6 million in chips.

A few hands later, HitUR2outer got it all-in pre-flop against Roolender. HitUR2outer's 7h-7c was behind the Td-Tc of Roolender. The board ran out 6c-4s-4h-4d-5s, and HitUR2outer dropped back down to 834K.

11:24pm--Roolender finds another snowman

After getting it all-in pre-flop against WufflerL, Roolender found himself behind with Ac-8s against Kd-Kh. The flop was 7h-6d-8d, putting WufflerL in good position to double up, but the river 8c sent WufflerL to the rail. Roolender moved into the top ten on the leaderboard with 1.4 million in chips.

11:21pm--Pokrjokr78 takes chip lead

Pokrjokr78 is now up to 2.1 million after his pocket jacks held up against Skintz’s pocket tens.

11:20pm--Another pay jump

With only 88 players remaining, each is guaranteed at least $2,115.96 for his or her efforts.

11:10pm--Top ten chip leaders after the sixth hour; 98 players remain

Level 25
Blinds 20,000/40,000, antes 4,000
Average chip count: 771,122
Players remaining: 98
First Prize: $185,902.20

1. G Depardieu 2,079,393
2. Sumpas 1,929,720
3. puffinmypurp 1,867,042
4. CONI2AD 1,768,249
5. Songuku 1,740,844
6. oscartotti 1,734,434
7. mesc4u 1,645,016
8. uchi14 1,560,710
9. pokrjokr78 1,534,466
10. juliotexas1 1,497,480

11:04pm--Kevin “BeLOWaBOVe” Saul eliminated

Saul couldn’t win a coin flip and is gone from the Sunday Million. Rasmus73 raised to 75,000 and Saul pushed the rest of his 237,500 into the pot. Rasmus73 called and it was his Ad-Ks versus Saul’s Jh-Jd. The board came 7d-4h-Kh-Ac-8s and Saul finished in 123rd place.

10:58pm--And the Academy Award goes to…

We have a new chipleader and his screename is G Depardieu. In a key hand several players limped. After a flop of 2h-Jc-Qd, G Depardieu bet 55K and bukithepro raised to 461K after others got out of the way. G Depardieu called and showed Tc-9s for the open-ended straight draw while bukithepro showed 2s-2d for a set of deuces. Luck was on G Depardieu’s side when he hit the Ks on the turn. The river did not pair the board and G Depardieu was up to 2 million in chips.

10:45pm--Don’t count out Cyrano

After being on life support recently, G Depardieu is back in the top 10 in chips with 1.16 million.

10:41pm—SonnyInMtl rides tens to chip lead

In a pivotal hand, SonnyInMtl raised to 40K and former chipleader Frytki re-raised to 111K. SonnyInMtl called. The flop came 6h-6s-8s and SonnyInMtl led out for 140K. Frytki raised to 460K and SonnyInMtl pushed all in for 193K more. After Frytki called his hand was revealed to be Kh-As while SonnyInMtl was ahead with Td-Th. The turn was the 7h and the river wasTs making a full house for SonnyInMtl, who was up to 1.8 million after the hand. Frytki dropped to 494K.

10:40pm--Bigpulp pummeling the table

Bigpulp has crept into second place on the leaderboard after winning two big pots in short succession. In the first hand, Bigpulp rivered Broadway against the flopped top pair top kicker of GRINDER-HFX for an 852K pot. Three hands later, Bigpulp took down a 387K pot when he re-raised patricklaw after a flop of Ah-2c-8d.

10:23pm--Songuku and asher tangle in two pots

After calling Songuku's pre-flop raise to 45K, asher check-called another 45K after the flop brought 6h-Tc-8c. After the Th on the turn, asher check-raised Songuku's 75K bet to 150K. Songuku made the call. Both players checked after the Qc fell on the river. Asher showed 2c-2h, and Songuku mucked. After starting the level with 1.1 million in chips, Songuku dropped to 725K.

Two hands later, Songuku took down a 464K pot against asher. Both asher and mass.mike called the 45K pre-flop raise from Songuku. The flop was 6c-6d-2h. Songuku bet 60K, asher called and mass.mike folded. Both players checked the turn (8d). Songuku fired another 90K on the river (4s) and asher called again. Songuku showed Qh-Qs and asher mucked. Songuku got back to 990K after the hand.

10:19pm--Kevin "BeLOWaBOVe" Saul moving up the leaderboard

Saul is making nice progress as the tournament winds down below 215 players. In one hand, bapvegas raised to 30K and Saul called on the button. After a flop of Ts-8h-2h bapvegas checked and Saul bet 32,461. Bapvegas check-raised to 90K and Saul pushed. Bapvegas folded and Saul is up to 743K.

10:11pm--Top ten chip leaders after the fifth hour; 245 players remain

1. Frytki 1,488,020
2. Songuku 1,129,381
3. poquer1 1,055,001
4. tassen1 847,095
5. uchi14 846,877
6. chekdstak 778,874
7. superbeuk 736,157
8. Duffs#1fan 724,624
9. kipa58 698,780
10. waltby 674,288

10:08pm--Frytki takes big chip lead

Two chipleaders just tangled and Frytki came out the beneficiary of the exchange. In the hand Frytki raised to 28K and Don Laeso re-raised to 48K. Frytki called. After a flop of 9d-Jc-3s, Frytki bet 60K and Don Laeso raised the minimum. Frytki then re-raised to 288K and Don Laeso called. The turn was the 5h and Frytki led for 215K, which caused Don Laeso to tank and fold. After the hand Frytki was up to 1.43 million in chips and Don Laeso dropped to 485K.

10:02pm--Duffs#1fan is not oscartotti

After flirting with the million chip mark, oscartotti suffered a minor set-back when his 9c-9d was bested by the Jc-8d of Duffs#1fan. Oscartotti raised pre-flop to 36K, Duffs#1fan re-raised to 90K and oscartotti called. Duffs#1fan pushed all-in on a flop of 3c-5c-8c. Oscartotti's pair of 9s was best, but Duffs#1fan had a better flush draw. The 2c came on the turn, giving Duffs#1fan the J-high flush and the 725K pot. Oscartotti dropped to 633K in chips after the hand.

9:51pm--First to reach a million

Frykti and poquer1 are the first players to hit the million chip mark. Frykti currently has 1,066,421, and poquer1 has 1,048,401.

9:46pm--Noted online pro on the rise

Kevin "BeLOWaBOVe" Saul is moving up on the field. He just won a nice pot to get to 484K in chips, putting him in the top 30.

9:45pm--Over the four figure mark

We’re now under 325 players, meaning all remaining participants will receive at least $1,057.98.

9:35pm--G Depardieu takes a big loss

G Depardieu lost about a third of his stack to superbeuk when the latter showed Ac-Kh after a board of Qd-Kd-9h-7d-4h and the former mucked. G Depardieu is now down to 600K and superbuek is up to 790K.

9:30pm--Poquer1 makes a stab at Nuscas

At the start of the hand, Nuscas had a top-five chip-stack of 630,227. Poquer1 raised to 16,000 and called Nuscas' re-raise to 56,000. After the 2s-9d-2h flop, Nuscas bet 144,000 which was enough to put poquer1 all-in. Poquer1 made the call and showed As-9s for top pair top kicker. Nuscas showed Ah-Kh. The turn was the Qh, giving Nuscas a flush draw, but the river bricked out. Nuscas dropped to 483,540 in chips after the hand.

9:19pm--G Depardieu doesn’t need green card to capture chip lead

Our favorite Frenchman just won two big pots to take over the leaderboard. First, he slowplayed a full house to perfection. In that hand, G Depardieu called a raise to double his big blind from compris after powerscr also called. After a flop of 2c-2h-Kc all three players checked. G Depardieu led out for 6K after the 9d hit the turn and both opponents called. The river brought the Ah and G Depardieu led out for 6K again. Compris folded and powerscr raised to 30K. G Depardieu re-raised to 54K, enough to put powerscr all-in. The hands shown were 2d-Ks for G Depardieu and Qs-As for powerscr.

On the second hand, G Depardieu called a re-raise all-in from compris, who held Kc-6c. G Depardieu tabled Ad-9s and the board did not help compris. G Depardieu is now up to 936K.

9:09pm--Kipa58 takes a 100K hit

Just back from the break, kipa58 lost a race with 8-8 when BrandonPL hit an ace on the flop. BrandonPL started the hand with 99,819 in chips and re-raised all-in after kipa58 raised to 18,000 pre-flop. Kipa58 has now dropped out of the top ten on the leaderboard.

9:00pm--Top ten chip leaders after four hours; 579 remain

1. greenrizla 578,641
2. kipa58 571,554
3. G Depardieu 528,117
4. drifto88 500,591
5. _PAVO BARIC_ 491,056
6. toetagU 483,112
7. callmejimmy 473,532
8. Nuscas 433,588
9. Frytki 431,646
10. eatyourstac 423,748

8:59pm--Greenrizla joins the 500K club

Greenrizla raised pre-flop to 13,500 from the hijack position, Cryp2Nite re-raised all in to 35,886 from the small blind and greenrizla made the call. Cryp2Nite’s 5d-5h could not stay ahead of Greenrizla's Kd-Jh when the flop came 2c-9h-Js. Greenrizla scooped an 81K pot and moved into the chip lead with 578,641.

8:53pm--My hero, the poker player

Could we have a famous actor in our midst? G Depardieu is now second in chips with 538K.

8:45pm--Three players over 500K; 134198 not one of them

The top three in chips now are kipa58 at 541K, drifto88 at 531K and callmejimmy at 508K. 134198 had a rough stretch, including calling an all in with A-8 versus A-A and is down to 290K.

8:32pm--134198 has 546,918

134198 won another big pot when he called a 69K all-in bet from Ut Prosim. Ut Prosim held 8c-Tc and 134198 had Ac-5s. The board ran off Jh-6s-2s-9h-6c and our chipleader now has almost 550K.

8:21pm--The bubble has burst

The bubble recently burst. All remaining players are guaranteed $302.28.

8:20pm--Superbeuk moves into the top three

Superbeuk has joined 134198 and pimplar as the only three players with over 300k in chips. Superbeuk called a 15,000 pre-flop raise from jopieono, and the two players saw a flop of 7c-Kd-Ts. Superbeuk check-raised jopieono to 78,000, which would have put jopieono all in after his initial bet of 15,000. Jopieono folded and superbeuk scooped a 67k pot.

8:18pm--134198 at it again

Perhaps seeking early parole, 134198 has taken a big chip lead after sniffing out a big bluff. On this hand, 134198 raised to 7K and JERRY called. After a flop of Th-Qh-Kh, JERRY check called 12K. Both players checked the turn of Ks, and after the river came Qs JERRY bet all in for 74K. 134198 called and JERRY showed 7d-9h for a stone-cold bluff. 134198 held 6d-Qd for queens full and took down the 190K pot. He now has 484K in chips for a 160K chiplead over pimplar.

8:12pm--134198 wins a big one

Perhaps playing from prison, 134198 wins a big pot with cowboys versus A-10 and A-8 and is now up to 386K.

8:09pm--Eliminations should start slowing down

We are down to 1,150 players, 70 from the money bubble.

8:06pm--134198 moves on up

He hasn't won many big pots recently, but 134198 has chipped up considerably by aggressive play and has increased his stack from 227,589 at the break to 340,123 now, giving him a nearly 40K chip lead at the moment.

7:57pm-- Hols_think sniffs out bluff

Murdoc.73 limped in middle position and called Hols_think’s raise to 7,500. On a flop of 6h-Ad-5s, Hols_think led out for 7,500 after Murdoc.73’s check and called Murdoc.73’s check-raise to 17,500. Both players checked the turn and the river. Hols_think flopped top pair with As-Jc, which bested Murdoc.73’s Qd-Jd. Hols_think finished the hand with 240,979 in chips, which solidifies this player’s position in the top ten.

7:52pm--Top ten chip counts at end of hour number three; 1,338 remain

1. callmejimmy 282,511
2. 134198 227,589
3. Denis1180 225,380
4. afiopeneyes2 224,833
5. HooBangin 218,954
6. kipa58 210,879
7. Hols_think 210,497
8. annekechillo 199,274
9. Mr_BigQueso 195,998
10. Bayesian 194,989

7:46pm-- Larry Bird can’t beat King Kong

At least not in poker. Pe-T raised in middle position to 4,999, Isabelle Mercier re-raised all in to 28,050 and Pe-T made the call. It was Ks-Kc for Pe-T against Mercier’s 3h-3d. The board of Tc-Kd-Ac-7s-Jc was of no help for Mercier, and she was eliminated in 1,363th place.

7:44pm--Pimplar down, kipa58 up

Two of the chipleaders just tangled in a big pot. Kipa58 raised it to 6K, BrandonPL called and pimplar re-raised it to 18K. Kipa58 then made it 40K, BrandonPL folded and pimplar called. After a flop of Ts-3s-7d, pimplar checked and kipa58 bet 76K. Pimplar tanked and folded. Pimplay was down to 123K while kips58 moved up to 201K.

7:33pm--1,580 players left

500 more until the money

7:22pm--Annekechillo flops boat and brings opponent along for the ride

SirGutShot raised to 3,125 on the button and annekechillo called from the small blind. Both players checked the 8h-9d-9h flop. After the 7d hit on the turn, annekechillo bet 2,400 and SirGutShot called. The river was the 5d. SirGutShot led out for 6,650 after annekechillo checked, but annekechillo responded by raising to 14,400. SirGutShot called the additional 7,750 and mucked after annekechillo showed 9c-8c for a flopped full house. Annekechillo currently sits atop the leaderboard with 170,640 in chips.

7:19pm--Lee Nelson eliminated

Nelson pushed all in at the wrong time. He posted his big blind of 1,200 and only originator54 called. Nelson put the rest of his 12K in chips in the middle and originator54 called instantly with 8s-8d. Nelson showed Ks-8h. A flop and turn of Qh-7h-Ad-2h made it interesting by giving Nelson a flush draw, but the 5d hit the river and Nelson was eliminated in 1,933rd place.

7:15pm--Now under 2,000 players

7:02pm--William Thorson eliminated

The Team PokerStars Pro was put out in 2,498th place after his A-K ran into K-K all-in preflop and he could not improve.

6:55pm--Steve Paul-Ambrose eliminated

Steve Paul-Ambrose was eliminated in 2,521st place after his A-2 failed to improve against the A-Q of his opponent. Ambrose is still in the hunt in the Sunday Warm-Up with 298,261 in chips. Live blogging coverage of the Sunday Warm-Up can be found here.

6:47pm--Top ten chip counts at end of hour number two; 2,781 remain

1. PiKappRaider 123,296
2. CARP_DIEMM 110,182
3. vikkyG85 109,338
4. Nino773 108,155
5. annekechillo 103,355
6. G-millman 100,378
7. king muscles 100,347
8. IRENE666 99,815
9. strahhh25 97,572
10. soad_live 95,829

6:41pm-- William Thorson doubles up twice

Team PokerStars Pro William Thorson has doubled up twice in the last three hands. Sitting on a short stack of 2,136, Thorson pushed all in after a raise to 1,600 from JABRONI-17. Thorson’s Ac-Ad was ahead of the 8c-9c of JABRONI-17, but a flop of 8h-Kh-3s gave JABRONI-17 a bit of help; however, the turn and the river bricked out and Thorson was back to 5k in chips. Two hands later, Thorson called an all-in raise from wheels0271. It was the As-Jc of wheels0271 against Thorson’s Kd-Tc. Thorson hit a ten on the flop and the turn and the river were no help for wheels0271. Thorson had 10,694 in chips after the hand.

6:38pm--Two more Team PokerStars Pros out

Humberto Brenes and Andre Akkari have been eliminated, one right after the other. Akkari finished in 3317th place while Brenes was one spot better in 3316th place.

6:35pm--Less than 3,000 players remain

6:24pm--casa2674 surges toward the top of the leaderboard

Casa2674 has won four of the last six pots at Table 885. The first was a split 62,020 pot where casa2674 flopped the second nut flush draw on a board with two clubs, turned a Broadway draw and rivered Broadway. BrahCheeChoo rivered the same straight. In the next hand, casa2674 raised to 2,400 pre-flop and was called by mr erics21. Casa2674 bet all in on a flop of 9d-8h-7s and mr erics21 folded.

Two hands later, casa2674 defended the big blind after a button raise to 2,400 from ROONEY_DIVES. Again, casa2674 bet all in on a flop of Kh-Qs-2s. ROONEY_DIVES made the call and showed Kc-Js. Casa2674 showed Qd-2c for two pair and eliminated ROONEY_DIVES. Immediately after that elimination, casa2674 was back in action again, holding Kc-Kh against the Qs-Qc of mr erics21. The board did not help mr erics21 and he was eliminated. After this flurry of activity, casa2674 was at 78,574 in chips.

6:20pm--The 100K barrier has been broken

As the field has dwindled to nearly 3,500 players, pokerdream08 became our first player to crack 100K in chips. Pokerdream08 now has 104,409 in chips.

6:16pm--Under 4,000 players

The final table is only minutes away...

5:59pm--No mercy for GS4fun

After doubling through GS4fun a few hands earlier, Isabelle Mercier tangled with GS4fun again. Mercier called GS4fun’s pre-flop raise to 1,200, and the players saw a board of 8d-4h-Qd. GS4fun bet another 1,200, Mercier raised to 4,000 and GS4fun re-raised all in to 17,325. Mercier made the call with Ah-Qc. GS4fun’s Kh-Ks was ahead on the flop, but the Ac on the turn gave Mercier two pair. GS4fun could not hit a king on the river to survive. Mercier now sits at 39,375.

5:58pm--Lee Nelson takes a hit

Team PokerStars Pro Lee Nelson just lost about 40 percent of his chips. After sneekwater raised to 1,800, Nelson re-raised to 4,200. Sneekwater called and the two saw a flop of Ad-9s-6s. Nelson pushed and sneekwater called all in for 6,500 with Ah-Qh while Nelson showed Jc-Jh. The turn and river were bricks and Nelson was down to 17K.

5:54pm--Third of field gone

We're now under 5,000 players. Just a few more hours until the final table...

5:45pm--Mercier outraces GS4fun to double up

After a raise to 1,200 from GS4fun, Team PokerStars Pro Isabelle Mercier re-raised to 4,000. GS4fun re-raised all in to 20,250, which had Mercier covered. Mercier made the call with As-Kd and was racing against GS4fun’s Qc-Qd. On a board of 8d-Ad-7c-Js-7d, Mercier survived elimination and chipped up to 18,800.

5:41pm--Top ten chip counts at end of hour number one; 5,688 remain

1. Lystig 57,350
2. deboneman 56,587
3. quote123 56,500
4. bfrusina 52,975
5. packpower04 52,105
6. strahhh25 50,300
7. ADDENDA 46,600
8. VARICO 46,165
9. pokerdream08 46,000
10. krazy28 44,712

5:34pm--Queens hold for Akkari again

Pocket queens have netted Andre Akkari another large pot. Pre-flop, porzerjr raised to 1,200 and Akkari re-raised to 3,300. Porzerjr made the call. On a flop of 7c-8c-5c, porzerjr bet all in for 3,775 and Akkari called. Porzerjr showed Ks-Qs to Akkari's Qc-Qh. The turn and the river were no help for porzerjr, and Akkari chipped up to 21,275.

5:28pm--Victor Ramdin eliminated

Victor Ramdin was felled by an inferior flush. He raised to 900 preflop and was called by rtrtrtr. After a flop of 6d-4c-5c, Ramdin bet another 900. Rtrtrtr raised to 3,000 and Ramdin re-raised all in to 7,000. Ramdin held 3c-6c for a pair, straight draw and a straight flush draw and rtrtrtr held Ac-8c for a better flush draw. The Kc hit the turn, leaving Ramdin with two outs to the straight flush but the Kh hit the river and Ramdin was eliinated in 6,000th place.

5:24pm--Team PokerStars represented

Of the 7,557 players participating today in the Sunday Million, seven of them are Team PokerStars pros. They include Andre Akkari, Humberto Brenes, Isabelle Mercier, Lee Nelson, Steve Paul-Ambrose, Victor Ramdin and William Thorson.

5:21pm--Ramdin's rollercoaster ride

Short-stacked Victor Ramdin doubled up to 9,350 when he got it all in preflop with Ad-Jc versus Ts-Th and the board ran out Kd-2c-Qh-5c-Ah, but lost most of those chips on the next hand. In the second hand, he held 7d-8d and called two bets on the flop and turn with a board of 5d-4h-7c-Js. When the Tc hit the river, both Ramdin and his opponent, S4ILBO4T, checked. S4ILBO4T showed 7s-Ks and won with his kicker. Ramdin is down to 5,300.

5:08pm--Andre Akkari doubles up

Team PokerStars Pro Andre Akkari started the hand as a short stack with 3,925. Akkari raised to 600, niclas237 re-raised to 1,500 and Akkari pushed all in. Niclas237 made the call and tabled A-K. Akkari showed Q-Q. Niclas237 did not improve on a board of J-T-9-5-J. Akkari currently has 8,050.

5:04pm--Steve Paul-Ambrose doing double duty

When Steve "stevejpa" Paul-Ambrose started his afternoon, he was playing six single-table tournaments and the Sunday Warm-Up. He's playing in the Sunday Million right now, but likely more focused on the tournament he started earlier. At this hour, Paul-Ambrose is in the Top 20 in chips of the Warm-Up. To follow his exploits, check out the Sunday Warm-Up Live Blog

4:57pm--Pokrjoker78 is chip leader

Player Pokrjoker78 leads the Sunday Million in the early going with 39,225 chips. He just won a big pot when he made a call of an all-in holding only pocket twos on a rainbow board of T-9-9-5-4. His opponent Jim Bee was bluffing with A-K and Pokrjoker78 took down a nearly 20K chip pot.

4:49pm--More than $185,000 for first

Registration is now closed and there are 7,557 players in today's Sunday Million, which creates a total prize pool of $1,511,400. Of those players, 1,080 will get paid and first place will receive $185,902.20.

4:42pm--Victor Ramdin takes a big hit

After chipping up to 15K early, Team PokerStars Pro Victor Ramdin took a big hit when his pocket aces were cracked by the flopped set of nines of KM-6. He is down to 5K after the hand.

4:30pm--PokerStars Sunday Million off and running

The PokerStars Sunday Million has just begun with 7,200 players and counting. Registration is still open.

4:25pm--PokerStars Sunday Million about to begin

The PokerStars Sunday Million will begin in just a few minutes. With thousands in the field, the final table money is once again going to be huge. Late registration will be open, so get your seat while you still can.

People playing the Sunday Million tonight may be looking for some buy-ins to the World Championship of Online Poker that starts here at PokerStars on September 5th. With 7651 players creating a $1,530,200.00 prize pool, almost all of our final tablists tonight could afford to take their shot at the $10,500 H.O.R.S.E. or perhaps the $25,000 high-roller heads-up tourney. Bacco70 ran his pocket sixes into M.nosbocaJ’s pocket queens to bust out on the bubble and the final table was set.

Seat 1: Gunslinger3 (9100597 in chips)
Seat 2: OCTAGONS (6690528 in chips)
Seat 3: RBC* (8574216 in chips)
Seat 4: Octavian_C (2774774 in chips)
Seat 5: exomil (7786435 in chips)
Seat 6: M.nosbocaJ (12196632 in chips)
Seat 7: bastinho06 (9941299 in chips)
Seat 8: Neab (7644299 in chips)
Seat 9: x-13 (11801220 in chips)

No overwhelming chip leader tonight and with the final table blinds starting at $200,000/$400,000 ante $40,000 the fast and furious preflop game may be the key for the winner this evening. X-13 made the first big move of the final table after calling a 1,000,000 chip opening raise from exomil in the big blind and check-raising all-in after exomil’s 1.6 million continuation bet off a flop of 6h 8c 9h. Flashing pocket sevens, X-13 showed the pair and open-ended straight draw to take down a five million chip pot and move into the chip lead with nearly 15 million chips.

About twenty hands later x-13 would give up his chip lead while attempting to knock out bastinho06. A pre-flop all-in race with x-13 holding the pocket pair of nines against bastinho06’s Ace-King. The bookend Kings on the board with no nines in the middle, gave bastinho06 trip Kings and the 15 million chip pot. After a break, we were still at nine players moving into $300,000/$600,000 ante $60,000 blinds and the player’s stacks growing ever tighter to the increasing blinds, talks of nine handed deals floated about but nothing grew out of them.

Octavian_C did not overcome his starting short stack, but he did not leave quietly either. Chipping up to nearly 4.3 million after starting with just 2.7 million and facing a sizable raise from OCTAGONS he shoved his pocket jacks only to see an insta-call by the pocket Kings of OCTAGONS. A board of 4c Tc 6d 4h 6h gave both players two pair but shipped the near 10 million chip pot to OCTAGONS while crippling Octavian_C. RBC* would deliver the final blow to Octavian_C’s tourney run and our ninth place finisher received $10,711.40

Just seven hands later an all-in pre-flop blind versus blind battle broke out between exomil and M.nosbocaJ. Exomil shoved his 3.5 million from the small blind with A2o while M.nosbocaJ held nearly 13 million covered the bet easily and called with A7. Hoping for a split in the chat box, exomil got a worthless pair of Aces instead as M.nosbocaJ’s seven kicker played sending exomil home with $17,597.30 in eighth place.

Card death at the final table is never pretty, and even worse with hundreds of thousands on the line. Neab held out for as long as he could with a short stack and no cards he made a necessary move with blinds at $300,000/$600,000 ante $60,000 and holding only three big blinds and A8o in his hand facing a button raise from bastinho06. Unfortunately for Neab, bastinho06 did not have stealing on his mind as he turned over pocket tens. Fours and Jacks showed on the board, but still did not change the pre-flop advantage as Neab took $26,778.50 back to Peterborough.

Just six hands later the biggest pot of the tourney had three players shoving all their chips into the middle pre-flop.

x-13 (all-in): TsTc
RBC* (all-in): KcKh
Bastinho06: JcJd

By the turn the board read Ad 6s 8s 9s giving X-13 straight, flush, and straight flush outs to go with the two that he started the hand with. A tepid 6h shipped the main and side pots to RBC* who took over the chip lead at 23 million chips and sparked deal talks while knocking x-13 out in sixth place.

The size of the blinds compared to their stacks had the final five quickly agreed to the chip count chop:

RBC*: $121,197
Gunslinger3: $110,921
M.nosbocaJ $89,013
bastinho06: $88,441
OCTAGONS: $83,907

The chip chop turned out to be a blessing for RBC* as just two hands after the chop he ran pocket Kings into Gunslinger3’s pockets Aces for a massive 41 million chip pot. With just 3.5 million in chips left, RBC* would storm back with while surviving all-ins against OCTAGONS and bastinho06 to claim second place as the final five are playing for the $30,000 set aside from the chop.

Flopped straights look pretty, but Texas Hold Em’ requires five cards to be set out on the community board. Bastinho06 called the push of OCATGONS from the big blind holding QdTd versus OCTAGONS As8s. A perfect flop of Kh As Jd had OCTAGONS drawing dead, kinda, sort of, since he could not win with anything the turn, OCTAGONS needed running cards for help. He got help with the board pairing twice as the Jh and Ad gave OCTAGONS a full house and crippled bastinho06. Fifth place and a chopped win of $88,441 for bastinho06 as the steamroller of Gunslinger3 got the last of bastinho06’s chips on the next hand.

RBC* with 16 million in chips was the only player that could hurt the Gunslinger3’s chip lead of nearly 44 million chip, so his attempt to resteal all-in with Jd8d after an opening raise from Gunslinger3 had some weight behind it. But, Gunslinger3 held pocket nines and wasn’t letting them go. After a board of 3h Qs 2s 7h Td Gunslinger3 shot down another opponent sending RBC* home with the chopped $121,197 in fourth place.

The domino effect of the remaining players falling to Gunslinger3 was swift, as OCTAGONS called the small blind raise of Gunslinger3 for all of his chips holding just four big blinds and Js9c. Once again, Gunslinger3 had some more then air in his holster as his pocket fives won the race sending the lover of geometry (or maybe mixed-martial arts) home in third place with the chopped $83,907.

The chip counts for the tilted heads-up battle for the remaining $30,000:

Gunslinger3 67,026,854
M.nosbocaJ 9,483,146

After Gunslinger3 won the first three hands in a row pre-flop, M.nosbocaJ would push back a little bit by reclaiming the lost chips over the next three hands. There would be no miracle run for M.nosbocaJ however, as his pocket fives went up against the JcTd of Gunslinger3 on the seventh hand of heads up play. The flop of Kd 2d Jh gave Gunslinger3 a huge lead in the pre-flop race that he would not relinquish as the 7h 9c played out the remainder of the board.

With his pair of jacks, Gunslinger3 got his chopped $110,921, the $30,000 for first place, and the title of this week’s PokerStars Sunday Million Champion!

Congratulations to all the cashers and final tablists tonight, here is the final table payout including the five-way chop:

1. Gunslinger3 $140,921.00
2. M.nosbocaJ $89,013
3. OCTAGONS $83,907
4. RBC* $121,197
5. bastinho06 $88,441
6. x-13 $39,020.10
7. Neab $26,778.50
8. exomil $17,597.30
9. Octavian_C $10,711.40

Another Sunday, another massive field in the Sunday Million, and another $1.5 Million guarantee shattered. This week 8,236 players built a prize pool of $1,647,200.00, with the top 1260 players taking home a piece of the pie. After nine hours of play, the final nine competitors gathered ‘round the final table, all vying for the title and the $199,475.92 first prize.

Ohhaaahhh took out BUCK 7 DEUCE to set the final table when ohhaaahhh’s As-Qh outflopped BUCK 7 Deuce’s pocket nines on a board of Jd-2c-Ac-6h-10d to set up the final table. That pot put ohhaaahhh in the chip lead going into the final table, but j.thaddeus took the top spot a few hands later after flopping a set on a board of Jh-4h-9s. All the money went in the middle, and ohhaaahhh’s Ac-Kc couldn’t catch up. J.thaddeus then had more than double the chip stack of the nearest competitor.

Lissem became the first casualty of the final table, about 20 hands in. The short-stacked lissem had played the waiting game, sitting back and posting and folding while awaiting a premium hand. Finally, one came along – Ah-Ks. After a preflop raise from puntnko, lissem called all-in to find a classic race waiting – AK v. pocket Queens. This time, the coin landed tails for lissem as the board ran out 4d-8s-4h-7s-2c, pushing the pot to puntnko. Lissem picked up $11,530.40 for finishing in 9th place.

Ohhaaahhh moved back up the leader board after a monster hand with WSODice that left WSODice headed to the rail in 8th place. WSODice raised preflop with pocket Queens, and quickly called when ohhaaahhh re-raised enough to force an all in. Ohhaaahhh tabled a massive cooler hand for WSODice – pocket Kings. The board ran out 9d-10h-9h-9s-10s, and ohhaaahhh’s boat was bigger as WSODice busted in 8th place for $18,942.80.

Okidokiclub claimed the next scalp when he defended his button against a steal attempt from Foggsy. Foggsy pushed all in from the cutoff with 8d-6c, and had the bad luck to run his steal into okidokiclub’s Ah-7h. The Ace-high flop gave okidokiclub a solid lead, but the 8s on the turn gave Foggsy some outs. The final board read 3h-Qd-Ac-8s-Ks, though, and Foggsy picked up $28,826.00 for 7th place.

Another cooler sent YrrsiNN to the rail in sixth place when As-Qh ran into Ac-Ks and fireworks ensued. Ziggy47 raised preflop with Ac-Ks, and YrrsiNN went all in over the top with As-Qh. Ziggy47 quickly called, and the board ran out 10c-8d-7c-10s-4d. The tough defeat left YrrsiNN with $41,180.00 in salve for 6th place.
Just a few hands later, Ziggy47 continued the streak, sending okidokiclub to the rail in 5th place ($57,652). Ziggy47 raised preflop with Qh-10h, and okidokiclub moved all in over the top with As-5h. Ziggy47 called, and the flop came down Jc-6d-Kc. Okidokiclub was still in the lead with Ace high, but Ziggy47 had an open-ended straight draw for extra outs. The turn was a meaningless 2h, but the 9d on the river made Ziggy47’s straight and ended okidokiclub’s tournament.

The them of dominated hands in monster pots continued when former chip leader ohhaaahhh ran his Kh-Jc into puntnko’s Kc-Qd to bust in 4th place. After a preflop raise from puntnko and a call by ohhaaahhh, the flop came down 9d-8s-Ks. Ohhaaahhh moved all in with K-J for top pair, only to find himself drawing thin against puntnko’s K-Q. The 2s on the turn helped neither player, and ohhaaahhh was left looking for only a Jack on the river. The 7d was no help, as ohhaaahhh picked up $74,124 for 4th place.

J.thaddeus picked his spot the best he could with the short stack three-handed, but when he moved all in with pocket nines over the top of Ziggy47’s preflop raise, he found himself staring right down the barrel of the gun into Ziggy47’s bullets. Ziggy47’s pocket Aces held up on a board of 10c-8s-Kh-7c-8d, and j.thaddeus was heading to the rail with $91,419.60 for 3rd place.

The chip stacks were pretty close when heads-up play commenced, with ziggy47 holding a slight edge over puntnko.
Ziggy47 – 43,409,883
Puntnko – 38,950,117

With blinds at 400,000/800,000 with an ante of 80,000, the two remaining players agreed to a chip count chop that was almost exactly even. Ziggy47 locked up $152,438 to puntnko’s $151,283, with $30,000 left for the winner. With a deal in place, the remaining competitors squared off for the title and the $30,000 left in the middle!

After some initial feinting and jabbing in the early going of the heads-up match, the end came like a looping roundhouse, out of nowhere and fast. Ziggy47 raised from the button like on many hands before, and this time puntnko re-raised with Ad-9h. Ziggy47 moved all in over the top, and puntnko called, only to watch ziggy47 table the dominant Ac-Js. Nothing unexpected happened, and like so many of the final table hands, a strong hand ran into a stronger one, and after the board ran out 8c-Ah-2d-7c-5h, the tournament was over and ziggy47 was the winner, pocketing a total of $182,438 for a long night’s work.

Congrats to ziggy47, puntnko and all the 1,260 players that cashed in this week’s Sunday Million!

It was a big weekend for the PokerStars Sunday Million. This week marked the first weekend of the Million's fulltime $1.5 million guarantee. More than 8,400 players meant a $1.6 million pool and a first prize of more than $204,000. With no deal at the end, that meat Denmark's Fred_Brink got the whole thing. See a full Sunday Million final table report HERE

For full results on all the Sunday tournaments, see below.

Congratulations to all of this week's winners.

PokerStars Sunday Million Final Table Results

1. Fred_Brink (Denmark) $204,198.82.
2. betofetus (United States) $137,425.30
3. RProps (United States) $93,584.10
4. Andy McLEOD (Australia) $75,879.00
5. nofingclue11. (United States) $59,017.00
6. Godfatti (Nethlerlands) $42,155.00
7. HappyOldMonk (Denmark) $29,508.50
8. djmib2 (Germany) $19,391.30
9. tpooch (United States) $11,803.40

PokerStars Sunday Warm-Up Final Table Results

1. Gullars85 (Norway) $100,074.00
2. H.O.V.E. 585 (Canada) $69,282.00
3. FFranz89 (Germany) $46,188.00
4. tomgus456 (Finland) $38,490.00
5. stormi22. (Germany) $30,792.00
6. mullett (United States) $23,094.00
7. MYTHOLOGIC (Switzerland) $15,396.00
8. Kameleont (Sweden) $9,622.50
9. cheddarmon (United States) $6,620.28

PokerStars Sunday Hundred Grand Final Table Results
Based on finishing order and three-way deal

1. whtdove333. (United States) $19,562.52
2. Taskenspillr (Norway) $16,678.84
3. TerribleTA (Canada) $18,758.64
4. fcadriano007. (Germany) $10,000.00
5. FLAMIN'_C (Canada) $7,500.00
6. Garrincha7. (Nethlerlands) $5,000.00
7. 23Sphinx23. (Austria) $3,750.00
8. slapshot3000 (United States) $2,500.00
9. raptorsfan69. (Canada) $1,875.00

PokerStars $215. Weekly PL Omaha Final Table Results

1. Nebolsin (Germany) $6,348.00
2. jgmrt3 (United States) $4,416.00
3. Burkstar (United States) $3,353.40
4. nsinger (United States) $2,484.00
5. DieLange17 (Nethlerlands) $1,656.00
6. ToadChampi (France) $1,380.00
7. LuckboxStami (Finland) $1,104.00
8. grindnitout (United States) $828.00
9. Don_Pépé (Germany) $690.00

PokerStars $215. PL Omaha Hi/Lo Final Table Results

1. georges747 (Nethlerlands) $6,348.00
2. LaurenMarie (United States) $4,416.00
3. ADEdownunder (Australia) $3,353.40
4. SKOAL (United States) $2,484.00
5. piojos (United States) $1,656.00
6. zenman (United States) $1,380.00
7. mustuwin (United States) $1,104.00
8. emptyseat88 (United States) $828.00
9. Baton3338. (United States) $690.00

PokerStars $215. FL Omaha Hi/Lo Final Table Results

1. Trickey7 (United States) $7,097.50
2. Slippery Sam (Canada) $5,177.00
3. TX_Player (United States) $3,924.50
4. JP OSU (United States) $3,006.00
5. thedonator (United States) $2,004.00
6. RBC* (United States) $1,670.00
7. thorladen (United States) $1,336.00
8. gaffel (Norway) $1,002.00
9. Go on TILT (United States) $668.00

PokerStars $215. Weekly FL Hold'em Final Table Results

1. bdubs3737 (United States) $6,780.00
2. mlinderbt (United States) $4,520.00
3. darrenpb (United States) $2,689.40
4. wes.mac44. (Canada) $1,808.00
5. Kung (Sweden) $1,469.00
6. AJKHoosier1. (United States) $1,130.00
7. Gilick20 (Germany) $791.00
8. porkchop (United States) $587.60
9. Jamalshabazz (United States) $384.20

PokerStars $215. Weekly Stud Hi/Lo Final Table Results

1. g-man678 (United States) $3,840.00
2. yuvee04 (United States) $2,560.00
3. Ca$hmanBrian (United States) $1,792.00
4. SenatorPhil (United States) $1,280.00
5. JP OSU (United States) $1,024.00
6. ozenc (Nethlerlands) $896.00
7. Clamydia (United States) $768.00
8. STUDstood (United States) $640.00

PokerStars $215. Weekly HORSE Final Table Results
Based on finishing order and three-way deal

1. The Omaholic (United States) $9,417.34
2. a_zuzolo (United States) $9,417.33
3. phinster (United States) $9,417.33
4. Big_Dady_Coo (Sweden) $4,060.00
5. hellhound (United States) $3,164.00
6. goldhawk (Canada) $2,520.00
7. Ivanzarif (Brazil) $1,904.00
8. LaurenMarie (United States) $1,316.00

PokerStars Sunday Second Chance Final Table Results

1. mattg1983 (United States) $53,329.76.
2. Rubadubducky (United States) $39,680.80
3. fishbones11 (Canada) $30,108.00
4. Legacy10 (United States) $21,616.00
5. Papa Bull XL (United States) $15,440.00
6. Arvid2k7. (Germany) $12,352.00
7. s00tedj0kers (United States) $9,264.00
8. Ayodeji13. (United States) $6,793.60
9. nanonoko (United States) $4,323.20

PokerStars Sunday $5,200 Freezeout Results
Based on finishing order and two-way deal

1. rivermanl (United Kingdom) $37,500.00
2. Franzini (Italy) $12,500.00

PokerStars $215+R NLHE Final Table Results

1. vidal14 (Spain) $50,037.00
2. LUHMAN (United States) $37,848.50
3. thorladen (United States) $28,226.00
4. ftb_1988 (United States) $21,554.40
5. SNo0oWMAN (United States) $14,754.50
6. FishOnTilt (United States) $11,547.00
7. yoshdog22 (United States) $8,981.00
8. cbsplash (United States) $6,415.00
9. TiltHappens (United States) $4,490.50

PokerStars $530 NL Hold'em Final Table Results
Based on finishing order and three-way deal

1. SHIPP ITT (United States) $76,710.53
2. ender555. (United States) 61,743.93
3. AK87 (United States) $69,868.64.
4. SAM66 (Switzerland) $37,612.50
5. tkap243 (United States) $26,328.75.
6. Radford999 (United Kingdom) $21,313.75
7. rkruok (Australia) $16,298.75.
8. Pokerccini (Germany) $11,283.75.
9. TheTaker (United States) $7,021.00