After a somewhat shorter Day 2 compared to Thursday’s marathon day, the €1,150 Seniors High Roller Championship has come to an end. From the get-go, it was a spectacular tournament that attracted many skillful old school players, who all put their full poker register on full display. They all entered the tournament with one goal in mind: being crowned the champion, claiming the coveted trophy, and capturing the €35,740 first-place payout.
Off to the Races
Day 1 of the tournament was played on Thursday, 18, and lasted roughly nine hours. When the dust had settled, 19 players bagged their stacks and would seek to get a good night’s rest before returning today to continue their strive for Irish (and global) poker glory.
The competitors took their seats at 12:00, and Christoforos Chrysochoidis was the player to beat. The Greek topped the chip counts after Day 1 and had earned himself great presumptions for a deep run.
The first hand was dealt, and the numbers suggested it would be an action-packed start, considering 11 players started the day with 20 Big Blinds or less. The prophecy proved to be true, and three players busted within the first 10 minutes.
There’s no secret that poker’s been evolving throughout the years, and considering the community now understands poker mathematics on a higher level, one could argue it’s less “gut play” nowadays compared to back in the days. The players in the senior event, though, have been around for some time and they know what’s up. Don’t get it twisted: they’ve been able to adapt to the new concepts, but they’ve also proved their ability to use their intuition at the tables.
This was one element that shone throughout the tournament. Simon Sharr, for example, smelt something was off when he did a great call, while table-mate Martin Sheridan-Pope was kind enough to pay for a cappuccino that had gone unnoticed.
The Final Countdown
Play continued, and with the blinds increasing every 30 minutes, play was still very shallow, and there were a lot of pre-flop encounters. Players such as Chiori Gannon seemed to know exactly when to put her chips in the middle, as she survived many times, despite entering Day 2 with the smallest stack.
When Henry Wilken busted Antonio Payne in brutal fashion, he reduced the number of players down to nine, and the final table was set. With his newly won chips, Wilken entered the final stage of the tournament as the chip leader.
It didn’t take long before Patrick White and Glenn Miller would be the first two to hit the rail. Soon thereafter, Mazalahedwa Bako took some chips from big-stacked Chrysochoidis, before Mr. Bako would bust out in 7th place.
At this point Wilken was still the chip leader, but, he lost a huge pot with against the of Simeon Sharr. Shortly thereafter, he was sent to the rail in 6th place. Chrysochoidis was the next to fall, and just like that, only four players remained.
Gannon had done a great job still being alive in the tournament despite, as previously mentioned, entering the day with the least amount of chips. After a rollercoaster hand against McLean, she was left with crumbs, and eventually, she couldn’t hang on any longer.
When McLean came up short against Sharr, the latter held the chip lead going into Heads Up-play against Albert Aiello.
There were few – if any – hands that weren’t all-ins preflop during the Heads Up. Eventually, Sharr’s hit trips to eliminate Albert Aiello. Sharr could finally breathe; he had conquered the 150-entry large field and emerged victorious.
According to his Hendon Mob, Sharr’s total live earnings prior to the win added up to $17,604. You could see how much the win meant for him, and he was a very worthy winner.
The Seniors High Roller Championship was a very entertaining tournament to follow from the sidelines, and this reporter has a gut feeling the tournament will grow bigger and better during the years to come. I, for one, am thrilled to be a part of the ride.
