Monte-Carlo once again increased its profile as a world centre for poker, with the no-limit invitational hold’em event held at the weekend. The €1 million buy-in tournament was won by Elton Tsang of China, who took away €11,111,111 ($12,188,889) at the Casino of Monte-Carlo on Sunday. Each of the 28 players contributed €111,111 as part of their stake to charity.
For the first time ever, the Big One was part of a stand alone poker festival, the 2016 One Drop Extravaganza and also went to an invitation-only format that sought to create a field free of the game’s top pros.
“I was feeling good, feeling comfortable, getting cards, my bluffs were working, and I was getting a good read on the table,” Tsang told WSOP reporters afterwards. “It was just going my way. It was going good.”
Pokernewsdaily.com commented that with only 28 entries, the top six players would take something away in what could only be called a very flat payout structure. The sixth place finisher would take down €1.5 million and fifth place would only get €250,000 more. Angling for an attention-grabbing winning number, however, it was decided that the first place prize would receive €11,111,111, in keeping with the “Big One” motif.
SOURCES: pokernewsdaily.com, cardplayer.com