European, Latin America, and Asia Pacific Tournament Action Action

Three major tournament series came to a conclusion in early August with two awarding thousands of points in the Card Player Player of the Year race to final table contestants and champions.

Ronny Kaiser became the first PokerStars European Poker Tour champion from Switzerland when he won the first event of EPT season eight, in Tallinn, Estonia. The 21-year-old Kaiser won €275,000 after defeating a field of 282 players in the €4,250 buy-in event. He also took home 1,344 Player of the Year points, which puts him in a tie for 149th place in the increasingly competitive standings.

“It’s great to win,” said Kaiser after the victory. “I’ve been chip leader for three days so I was really thinking this time I’m going to win it. I have had deep runs four or five times but always finished around 20th. Now my goal is to become the first ever Swiss World Series bracelet winner.”

Kaiser found himself up against the likes of Sami Kelopuro, Jani Sointula, and Stuart Fox, but it was Polish player Grzegorz Cichocki who he had to beat heads up. Cichocki scooped €180,000 for his runner-up finish and also added 1,120 POY points.

It was the Finnish professional Kelopuro who got the most out of his final table appearance in terms of the POY race. He cashed in seventh place, which was good for 336 points and puts him in a tie for 35th place overall with Tristan Wade (2,136 points a piece). Kelopuro’s other points came from a runner-up finish in the $10,000 pot-limit Omaha championship at the World Series of Poker which gained him $503,173 and 1,800 points.

Here is a look at the prize money and POY points awarded in Estonia:

LAPT Punta del Este

The PokerStars Latin American Poker Tour has made a habit of attracting large tournament fields during season four. The kick-off event in Sao Paolo, Brazil boasted a field of 536 players, while the Vina del Mar event in Chile attracted 621 players. The LAPT Punta del Este main event in Uruguay continued that trend and attracted a record-breaking 422 players from 30 different countries, spanning five continents.

When the final pot was pushed, Uruguay’s own Alex Gustavo Komaromi had won the trophy and $244,720 in prize money. He also took home 1,440 points thanks to the large turnout. The top prize was enough to take him to a tie for 116th place on the leader board. “I feel great. I haven’t played many tournaments, so to play my first big event and have this performance, it’s great. I’m really, really happy,” said Komaromi.

Runner-up Claudio Enzo Daniel Piedrabuena from Argentina earned $141,220 for his efforts. The 52-year-old was the oldest player at the Punta del Este main event final table, and the six-figure cash was the largest of his career. He also took home 1,200 points.

Here is a look at the prize money and POY points awarded in Uruguay:

APPT Melbourne

Leo Boxell won the inaugural PokerStars Asia Pacific Poker Tour Melbourne main event title earning AUD$330,000 in prize money. “Thank you Crown, thank you PokerStars, and thank you for all the people who hung around to support me. I really appreciate it,” said the 69-year-old Boxell in a brief post-tournament address to the crowd.

“Commiserations to the runner-up, but he has played tremendously for four days…Very aggressive young fellow from New Zealand. I congratulate him for making second, and I’m sure there’s going to be more wins for him in the future. Thank you very much,” Boxell added.

Phillip Willcocks from Auckland, New Zealand finished in second place. The 28-year-old was nothing short of dominant during the four-day main event, finishing both day two and three at the top of the tournament leader board. Boxell and Willcocks battled for the better part of two hours before the final hand went down. Willcocks earned AUD$207,600 for his runner-up finish.

A staple in the Australian poker scene for more than a decade, Boxell skyrocketed to the top of the ANZPT Player of the Year leader board due to his efforts in Melbourne. Boxell has also moved close to the $1 million mark in career tournament earnings with this victory.

The APPT Melbourne main event attracted a total of 260 runners from 18 countries, generating a prize pool worth AUD$1,222,000.

Team PokerStars Pro Chris Moneymaker made the trek down under and while he did advance to day two, he was eliminated out of the money. Team PokerStars was also represented by Joe Hachem (Australia), Bryan Huang (Asia), and Keiran Harris (Team Online). Harris was the only one of the bunch to finish in the money (24th place – AUD$9,800). Hachem was eliminated on day one and Huang on day two.

Other notable players who finished in the money include Van Marcus (5th – $73,300), Julius Colman (9th – $27,500), and Kyle Cheong (18th – $12,200).