The first major piece of poker silverware is on offer at Crown Casino, Melbourne as the Aussie Millions Main Event plays down to a winner.
Resuming with just seven players remaining, the goal for each will be taking home the A$1,850,000 in first prize money, the ANTON Jewellery Main Event bracelet and getting to lift the coveted Aussie Millions Main Event trophy.
Nino Ullmann sits with the chip lead, holding over 100 big blinds with just two minutes left at the 25,000/50,000 blind level. Behind him comes Oliver Weis and Vincent Wan, with a certain Erik Seidel sitting fourth in chips.
2020 Aussie Millions Main Event Final Table Seat Draw
Seat
Player
Country
Chip Count
Big Blinds (25k/50k)
Big Blinds (30k/60k)
1
Nino Ullmann
Germany
5,500,000
110
92
2
Gareth Pepper
New Zealand
2,465,000
49
41
3
Vincent Wan
Australia
4,150,000
83
69
4
Erik Seidel
United States
4,050,000
81
68
5
Ngoc Tai Hoang
Vietnam
1,875,000
38
31
6
Nicolas Malo
Canada
1,975,000
40
33
7
Oliver Weis
Germany
4,475,000
90
75
The remaining seven players are all guaranteed A$240,080 and here are the remaining payouts:
2020 Aussie Millions Main Event Payouts
Place
Payout (in AUD)
Payout (in USD)
1
A$1,850,000
$1,273,381
2
A$1,125,000
$774,353
3
A$661,000
$454,976
4
A$480,160
$330,501
5
A$378,660
$260,637
6
A$307,820
$211,877
7
A$240,080
$165,250
The final table will be streamed live in Twitch and PokerGo, and the live updates will be on delay in time with the stream, so as to not spoil coverage. Stay tuned to PokerNews for full coverage of the action here in Australia.
Nino Ullmann raised to 140,000 with the and Vincent Wan three-bet to 425,000 on the button with the . Ngoc Tai Hoang in the big blind four-bet jammed for 1,205,000 with the and Ullmann folded, Wan quickly called.
On the flop, Hoang had the freeroll and indeed got there thanks to the turn and river in order to score an unlikely double up.
Nino Ullmann opened pre-flop and Gareth Pepper called in the hijack. Nicolas Malo flat-called in the big blind.
Malo and Ullmann checked a flop of over to Gareth Pepper who bet 400,000.
Malo check-raised all in for 790,000 and Ullmann re-raised to 1,325,000. Pepper took his time before tank-folding .
Nino Ullmann:
Nicolas Malo:
Ullmann had flopped the nut straight, with Malo holding nothing but a straight draw of his own.
The turn and river couldn't save him and Malo became the first elimination at the final table.
"I'm not sure about the play," Malo told the live stream. "Maybe I should fold preflop, but I'm just really happy in general.
"On Day 2 I went all in for 30,000 with against so I just ran super good and won a lot of all-ins to get here. The organisation is super good as well; it's just a great tournament with a super good field."
Gareth Pepper started the action with a raise to 220,000 in the hijack and Oliver Weis, who had 2,190,000 behind, gave it some consideration and moved all-in. Within two seconds, Pepper tossed in calling chips to create the following showdown.
Oliver Weis:
Gareth Pepper:
The German rail was shouting their support for Weis but he would find no help on a board of . Weis becomes the second casualty on the final table and takes home A$307,820 for his efforts.
Vincent Wan was in the cutoff, and raised to 325,000 and Erik Seidel three-bet all in for 2,875,000. Wan rechecked his cards before calling.
Vincent Wan:
Erik Seidel:
Seidel was in bad shape but spiked a ten on the flop. However, the flop gave Wan a pair as well, meaning Seidel would need to spike one of the remaining two tens in the deck.
The turn was the and the river the and Wan jumped to his feet, pumping the air in celebration as he sent Seidel to the rail in fifth place.
"He's supposed to call in that spot," said Seidel. "Sometimes you just have to go with a hand. Nino [Ullmann] is the strongest player remaining. I like their game a lot. The other guys obviously have some game and have come a long way, and made some excellent plays along the way."
Ngoc Tai Hoang limped in with the and Nino Ullmann checked his option with the . The flop gave Ullmann two pair and Hoang bet 300,000, which Ullmann called.
The fell on the turn and Hoang checked, which prompted a bet of 800,000 by Ullmann. Hoang moved all-in and Ullmann called for 3,650,000 after short consideration.
A repeat five came with the river, which counterfeited the two pair of Ullmann and sent the German and Vienna resident to the rail in 4th place for A$480,160.
In his interview after the elimination, Ullmann outlined what grind it had been to make it to the final table.
"The field wasn't really tough, it's just a long grind. It's been 10+ hour days three in a row. exhausting, you have to stay focused not punt if off."
Another trip to Melbourne for the Aussie Millions in the next year, however, seems likely.
"The flight back is quite long. I haven't seen much of Melbourne so might combine it with Australia travel next year. We'll see.
Right after being left short, Ngoc Tai Hoang jammed for 2,200,000 and Vincent Wan called in the big blind.
Ngoc Tai Hoang:
Vincent Wan:
The flop gave Wan a pair while Hoang had the nut flush draw. Nothing changed on the turn and the river only improved Wan's hand to jacks and tens. At nearly 4 a.m. local time, the tournament eventually finished after more than 15 hours of play and Crown cash game regular Wan has been crowned as the champion.
Hoang and Wan both receive the same amount, A$1,318,000 for their efforts, but Wan will be the one to see his picture displayed in the poker room. A recap of today's action is to follow.
Vincent Wan has won the 2020 Aussie Millions Main Event, defeating heads-up opponent Ngoc Tai Hoang to win A$1,318,000 after a marathon 414-hand day that spanned a total of 15 hours.
Known as "Wonky", Wan is well-known here at Crown Casino in Melbourne for winning two six-figure Royal Flush Jackpots, but now has his first seven-figure score in what was by far the biggest cash of his career.
Runner-up Hoang came into the day as the short stack, missed the first 15 minutes of play and had to deal with being branded "the worst player" by Wan during three-handed deal negotiations, but now has the honour of winning the single largest score by a Vietnamese player in poker history as he also took home A$1,318,000.
Following the deal that saw eventual third-place finisher Gareth Pepper guaranteed A$1,000,000, both Hoang and Wan embarked on a lacklustre heads-up battle that spanned over four and a half hours.
Wan eventually got it in bad three times in quick succession to double twice and then close out the match just before 4 a.m. local time.
2020 Aussie Millions Main Event Final Table Results
Place
Name
Country
Payout (in AUD)
Payout (in USD)
1
Vincent Wan
Australia
A$1,318,000*
$907,196*
2
Ngoc Tai Hoang
Vietnam
A$1,318,000*
$907,196*
3
Gareth Pepper
New Zealand
A$1,000,000*
$688,312*
4
Nino Ullmann
Germany
A$480,160
$330,501
5
Erik Seidel
United States
A$378,660
$260,637
6
Oliver Weis
Germany
A$307,820
$211,877
7
Nicolas Malo
Canada
A$240,080
$165,250
*denotes three-handed deal
Winner's Reaction
"It's destiny boys! Destiny!"
Those were the words that Wan told his rail after the second of three late doubles that saw him run out winner. Just minutes later, Wan struggled to describe the emotions he was feeling.
"I'm lost for words," Wan told Aussie Millions Tournament Director Joel Williams. "I'm just tripping out at the moment. I was just wanting to min-cash at one point so I'm struggling; I'm just delirious at the moment.
"I can't believe my luck. Thank you to all the other players. Basically it's ten years of my life just grinding and working and trying to get here. I can't believe I did it.
"I've had a love-hate relationship with this place, but everyone during the tournament was amazing. It was stressful, but I've had a great time."
Considering the length of the final table - 414 hands in total - it's hard to remember the start of the day, but the seven-handed final table started with six players after eventual runner-up Ngoc Tai Hoang missed the start of play and arrived 15 minutes late. By the time he arrived, eventual winner Vincent Wan, who started the day third in chips, had moved into the lead after winning an early pot against overnight chip leader Nino Ullmann.
Wan's chip lead didn't last long, with Ullmann quickly moving back in front, just before the first all-in confrontation of the final table. With both Ullmann and Hoang holding ace-king, the hand looked to be heading for a chip. That was until the Vietnamese went runner-runner to make a flush to double up.
By the first break, it was still Ullmann in front, and when play resumed he was responsible for the first elimination of the play, eliminating Nicolas Malo in seventh place. Malo flopped a pair and an open-ended straight draw, but Ullmann had flopped the nut straight to send his opponent to the rail.
A short while later, Oliver Weis, who began the day second in chips and failed to get anything going at the final table, would bow next, getting it in dominated against Gareth Pepper to bow out in sixth place.
Pepper was really starting to get something going, and scooped a big pot against Ullmann to move into the lead. Wan also took advantage of the German's stumble, also taking chips off Ullmann after he tried to bluff the river with just queen high and was picked off.
This sent Ullmann to the bottom of the counts, but he would double through Hoang shortly thereafter, and by dinner break was nestled in a group of four behind Pepper.
Pepper Leads at Dinner Break
Seat
Player
Country
Chip Count
Big Blinds
1
Nino Ullmann
Germany
4,045,000
25
2
Gareth Pepper
New Zealand
10,130,000
63
3
Vincent Wan
Australia
4,010,000
25
4
Erik Seidel
United States
3,685,000
23
5
Ngoc Tai Hoang
Vietnam
2,840,000
18
Another of those players grouped behind the chip leader was Erik Seidel. The American was down to 18 big blinds, before three-bet shoving with ace-ten only to run into the ace-jack of Wan.
It was another outstanding result for Seidel who still sits second in the Crown Melbourne all-time money list. It also means that Seidel has now final-tabled a $10,000+ No-Limit Hold'em Main Event in each of the past five decades.
Decade
Year
Event
Field
Position
Payout (USD)
1980s
1988
WSOP Main Event
167
2nd
$280,000
1990s
1999
WSOP Main Event
393
4th
$279,500
2000s
2008
Aussie Millions Main Event
780
2nd
$879,028
2010s
2015
WSOPE Main Event
313
7th
$113,428
2020s
2020
Aussie Millions Main Event
820
5th
$260,637
Four-handed it was Wan who took control, with just under half the chips in play before Hoang eliminated Ullmann in fourth place. Ullmann got it in good with two pair against the queens of Hoang, but the board paired to hand Hoang the best hand. The players then looked at the numbers and quickly agreed on the following amendments to the initial ICM deal that was offered.
Three-Handed Deal Agreed
Name
Country
Chip Counts
ICM Deal
Deal Agreed
Ngoc Tai Hoang
Vietnam
10,515,000
$1,341,392
$1,318,000
Vincent Wan
Australia
9,880,000
$1,314,128
$1,318,000
Gareth Pepper
New Zealand
4,215,000
$973,003
$1,000,000
The trio played on for the title, ANTON Jewellery bracelet and Aussie Millions trophy, in what was a tumultuous short-handed affair. Pepper and Hoang would trade doubles, each already assured of a seven-figure payout, with Pepper doubling through Hoang again for good measure.
However, it wasn't enough to stop Pepper exiting in third place shoving blind from the small blind only to get picked off by Wan who woke up with an ace.
It took three and a half hours before the first all-in and call between the final two players, with both players opting for a passive and low-risk strategy to heads-up play which saw almost nothing but small pots, and very little pivotal moments.
Final Stages
With fatigue setting in for both players and early-morning railbirds alike, there were three quick hands that saw Wan move from a 7:1 underdog to take down the tournament.
Ace-nine against ace-queen? Flop a nine. Ace-ten against ace-queen? River a ten. Finally, and for the third all-in in a row, Wan got it in bad once more and flopped a nine and faded a flush draw to secure victory and eliminate a visibly shaken Hoang in second place.
That concludes the PokerNews live coverage from the 2020 Aussie Millions. We hope you have enjoyed following the updates from this year's Main Event and all the High Roller Challenge events. If you've missed any of the action, why not click on one of the links below to check out the live updates from these events or previous Aussie Millions tournaments.