Player of the Year

We are just weeks into the new year and a rule change made for the Card Player 2011 Player of the Year (POY) race has already made its mark. The new rule states: “Any tournament with a prize pool of more than $1 million will receive points.” This erases the 60-player minimum requirement that has disqualified high-roller tournaments in the past. The prevalence of high-stakes tournaments at both the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) and Aussie Millions in January was part of the reason for that change, and those tournaments did not disappoint.

First up was the $100,000 super high-roller event in the Bahamas, which attracted 38 players. Eugene Katchalov beat out a loaded field in this tournament to win the top prize of $1.5 million, along with 432 POY points. The top five players in the event were awarded POY points, thanks to the rule change.

2011 PCA $100,000 Super High-Roller Results

Katchalov made another score later in the tournament when he finished second in the $10,000 turbo six-handed no-limit hold’em high-roller event, which attracted 68 players. He added $131,920 to his PCA cash haul, and 350 points to his POY total. Katchalov now sits in 25th place in the POY standings with 782 points.

Will Molson made his third try the charm in the $25,000 high-roller event at the PCA; he finally won the tournament after consecutive runner-up finishes in previous years. He defeated Team PokerStars pro Leo Fernandez heads up in the final match to claim the $1,072,850 first-place prize and 1,080 POY points, which puts him in ninth place in the POY standings. The tournament attracted 151 players, so it would have qualified for POY scoring under the old rule, as well, but it was another impressive showing for high-stakes tournament poker in the new year.

The success of high-roller tournaments continued down under at the Crown Casino in Melbourne, Australia. The Aussie Millions $100,000 Challenge experienced 58 percent year-over-year growth with its field of 38 players. Young English professional Sam Trickett captured the title, along with 432 POY points and first-place prize money of $1,525,000 AUD. The top six players received a piece of the prize pool.

2011 Aussie Millions $100,000 Challenge Results