The inaugural PokerStars Championship Bahamas saw two big winners crowned this weekend when Christian Harder won the main event for $429,664 and Luc Greenwood took home $779,268 after taking down the $25,750 High Roller event.
Both events attracted some of the best international players in the business, creating competitive and exciting poker for the railbirds.
In the main event the six-handed final table formed after several days of very entertaining action across a multitude of tables.
Poker pro Cliff Josephy was a strong contender for much of the final table action, and it was hardly surprising that he finished in the heads up with Harder. The two negotiated a chop which gave 3 to 1 chip leader Harder $419,664 and Josephy $403,448, with just $10,000 left on the table for the winner, along with the trophy and title.
The two experienced players wasted no time in finalising the competition and it was soon over, with Harder’s chip advantage proving too strong for Josephy to overcome.
This was Harder’s tenth year in the Bahamas to play poker in the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure which the Championship Bahamas has replaced, and he marked it with the honours and a $429,664 pay day.
Josephy scored a well-earned $403,448, and other final table cashes included:
Michael Vela $259,980
Aleksei Opalikhin $191,420
Michael Gentili $140,940
Rasmus Glæsel $103,780
The $25,750 High Roller event at the Championship attracted a roster of top international pros among the 159 entrants, which over two days distilled to a final table of eight quality players including high profile pros like Brynn Kenney, Byron Kaverman, Daniel Negreanu, Nacho Barbero and Stephen Chidwick.
Down to four players a pause was called as an attempt was made to put together a chop, but that failed and play continued until Kaverman and Michael Rocco were eliminated, leaving Nick Petrangelo vs. Luc Greenwood as the heads up duo, with Greenwood holding a small advantage.
The action was again paused as the two discussed and agreed on a chop that gave Petrangelo $740,032 and left $30,000 on the table for the winner. That turned out to be Greenwood after a brief finale of just a few hands that gave him by far his biggest ever live tournament win at $779,268
Other final table cashes included:
Michael Rocco $409,020
Byron Kaverman $335,020
Daniel Negreanu $268,780
Nacho Barbero $208,400
Stephen Chidwick $154,260
Mark Radoja $113,360
Bryn Kenney $90,380