The PokerStars Championship, presented by Monte-Carlo Casino in the chic enclave on the French Riviera, hosted a €50,000 ($54.5K) Single-Day High Roller, which attracted 52 unique players, which included a dozen re-entries. In the end, it was 22-year-old Adrian Mateos of Spain, winner of the 2013 World Series of Poker Europe Main Event and EPT11 Grand Final, who defeated his competitors for the title and the €908,000 ($989,438) first-place cash.
Putting Iberia on the Map
Currently ranked ninth on the Global Poker Index, Mateos brought his lifetime earnings up over $8 million with this win. That moved him into second place on Spain’s all-time money list, right behind 2001 WSOP Main Event winner Carlos Mortensen.
The victory was also the third-largest of his career, after taking home $1,351,661 and $1,214,161 for his WSOPE and EPT11 wins respectively.
Other highlights on his tournament résumé include being runner-up to Dietrich Fast in March’s Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown $50,000 Super High Roller for $413,567, winning a second bracelet by capturing last summer’s WSOP Event #33: $1,500 Summer Solstice for $409,171, and 11th in the 2016 WSOP $111,111 One Drop High Roller for $310,550.
It’s been a hot year for Mateos, who back in January won the 888poker Super XL Series Event #13: $215 Mega Deep for $34,524. Another accolade for the young phenom came in 2015, when his EPT11 Grand Final win earned him a European Poker Award for “Tournament Performance of the Year.”
Tough Final Table
As usual, the high roller final table was chock full of familiar names. For once, German wunderkind Fedor Holz didn’t win, instead having to “settle” for fourth place for €319,800 ($348,482). Likewise, Poker Hall of Famer Erik Seidel came up just short, finishing third for €423,800 ($461,810).
When heads-up play began, Mateos held a five-to-one chip lead over Canadian Daniel Dvoress. In what would be the final hand of the tournament, which took place in Level 22 (60,000/120,000/20,000), Mateos moved all in holding the J♦8♥ and Dvoress called off his 11-big-blind stack with the K♠2♣.
Dvoress was out in front, but not after the 8♠3♣3♦ flop gave Mateos two pair. Neither the 5♦ turn nor 3♥ river was the cowboy Dvoress was looking for, and he went home with second place and a €652,000 ($710,477) consolation prize.
Dvoress, who had finished third in the €100K Super High Roller for €832,800 ($907,710), is still seeking his first major win, but the score did allow him to crack the top ten on Canada’s all-time money list, with nearly $5 million in earnings.
The only remaining High Roller on the Down PokerStars Championship Monte Carlo is the €25,750 ($28,094) High Roller, which will run from May 3-5. That tournament, which is a part of PokerStars Makes Millionaires, will feature a €1,000,000 ($1,089,950) guaranteed first-place prize.
Final Table Results
1 Adrian Mateos (Spain) €908,000 ($989,438)
2 Daniel Dvoress (Canada) €652,000 ($710,477)
3 Erik Seidel (USA) €423,800 ($461,810)
4 Fedor Holz (Germany) €319,800 ($348,482)
5 Nick Petrangelo (USA) €248,400 ($270,679)
6 Steve O’Dwyer (Ireland) €192,400 ($209,656)
7 Ramin Hajiyev (Azerbaijan) €152,140 ($165,785)
8 Mike Watson (Canada) €118,000 ($128,583)
9 Sergio Aido (Spain) €90,100 ($98,181)
