Aria High Rollers: Matas Cimbolas, Sergio Aido, Bill Klein and Jake Schindler Win In May

The ARIA Poker Room has hosted a monthly slate of high-stakes tournaments throughout 2021, with millions in prize money awarded along the way. The latest iteration of this recurring high roller festival featured four events held from May 5-8, with $2,555,000 in total prize money awarded throughout the series.

The first event on the schedule was a $10,000 buy-in no-limit hold’em tournament that drew 51 total entries to create a $510,000 prize pool that was paid out among the top eight finishers. Lithuanian poker pro Matas Cimbolas emerged victorious in the end, earning $163,200 and 300 Card Player Player of the Year points for the win. This was the 10th six-figure score of Cimbolas’ career, but he was not yet done racking up earnings and POY points at this series.

France’s Johan Guilbert finished in second, taking home $107,100 and 250 points, while POY-race contender Ali Imsirovic finished third for $71,400 and 200 points. Like Cimbolas, both of those players went on to make additional deep runs during this series.

Here is a look at the payouts and POY points awarded at the final table:

Next on the agenda was another $10,000 buy-in no-limit hold’em high roller tournament. With 47 total entries, the prize pool grew to $470,000, with the top seven finishers cashing.

Spanish poker pro Sergio Aido came out on top in the end, earning $159,800 and 300 POY points for the win. This was his fifth POY-qualified final table and first title of 2021. With $442,440 in year-to-date earnings and 1,221 total points, Aido now sits in 18th place in the 2021 POY race standings, which are sponsored by Global Poker.

Cimbolas finished as the runner-up in this event, just a day removed from his victory in the prior tournament, adding $103,400 and 250 to his yearly haul. Cimbolas had one previous POY-qualified score under his belt in 2021, having finished second in a $5,000 buy-in no-limit hold’em event at the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown for $197,945 and 760 points. With 1,310 total points and $464,545 in cashes this year, he has climbed into 14th place in the overall rankings. Sean Winter finished third for $70,500 and 200 points.

Jack Hardcastle made his second final table in as many days, following up a fourth-place finish in the first event of the series with a sixth-place showing in this tournament. The two cashes added $79,200 and 250 POY points to his totals, which were enough to move him into 17th place in the POY race.

Here is a look at the payouts and POY points awarded at the final table:

The stakes were raised for the third no-limit hold’em event of the series, with the buy-in growing to $26,000. A total of 36 entries were made by the time registration closed, building a prize pool of $900,000 to be split among the top six finishers. In the end, the lion’s share of that money was awarded to Bill Klein, who earned $324,000 and 336 POY points as the champion. This score increased Klein’s career tournament earnings to $3,748,332.

According to a tweet from high-roller regular Jason Koon, Klein had already had quite an eventful day prior to entering this event.

A day in the life of 73-year-old cancer survivor and businessman Bill Klein. Yesterday he got up and play 18 holes at Shadowcreek and scored a hole in one. Afterward, he went to Aria and won a 25k tournament that lasted until 4 a.m.. Absolute Legend.

— Jason Koon (@JasonKoon) May 8, 2021

World Poker Tour main event winner and high-stakes tournament regular Seth Davies finished second for $216,000 and 280 points. Ali Imsirovic secured $144,000 and 224 points for his second third-place finish of the series. This was Imsirovic’s ninth final-table showing of 2021. With four titles won, $1,596,010 in year-to-date earnings, and 2,078 POY points accumulated, Imsirovic has claimed the third-place spot on the POY leaderboard.

Sean Winter also made moves inside the top twenty of the POY standings as a result of this event, having earned $90,000 and 168 points for his fourth-place finish. Winter has now made six final tables in 2021, accumulating $789,090 in earnings and 1,271 points. He now sits in 16th place in the rankings.

Here is a look at the payouts and POY points awarded at the final table:

The final event of the series was another $26,000 buy-in no-limit hold’em high roller. A field of 27 entries built a prize pool of $675,000, with just the top four players making the money. 2018 Card Player Player of the Year award winner Jake Schindler captured the title in the end, securing $310,500 and 252 points for the win.

This was Schindler’s third cash of the series, having placed eighth in the kickoff event and sixth in the other $26,000 buy-in event. All told, Schindler accumulated $384,900 in earnings and 414 POY points during this series, moving him into 75th place in the POY rankings.

Six-time WSOP bracelet winner and two-time WPT champion Daniel Negreanu finished third in this event for $108,000 and 168 points. This was Negreanu’s first live tournament cash made since the most recent live WSOP Europe festival which took place in October of 2019. Negreanu increased his career tournament earnings to $41,227,271 with this latest score, keeping him in third place on poker’s all-time money list behind only Bryn Kenney ($56,649,561 in earnings) and Justin Bonomo ($55,242,590 in earnings).

Negreanu was just a few days removed from his most recent clash with Phil Hellmuth for their ongoing High Stakes Duel heads-up showdown. He took to Twitter after finishing third to comment on his return to the live tournament felt.

Just getting used to long, late nights in live tourneys, finished 3rd for $108k but truly punted the last hand I had a clear fold preflop then flopped top pair in a pot I had no business in.

Oops

It’s all good. My bad, but happy with the finish anyway

— Daniel Negreanu (@RealKidPoker) May 9, 2021

Here is a look at the payouts and POY points awarded at the final table:

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