AHTOCb Wins PokerStars Sunday Million 20th Anniversary
The Belarusian topped a 55,444-entry field, with satellite qualifiers and a deep run from Niklas Astedt shaping the finish.
PokerStars’ Sunday Million 20th Anniversary ended with Belarusian player AHTOCb taking the title after a 55,444-entry field was whittled down to one. The event generated a $5,544,400 prize pool, and the champion’s payday was reported as $255,336 by PokerNews and $255,337 by Spadepoker.
As reported on Sept. 7, Niklas “Lena900” Astedt had already reached the final day sitting sixth in chips. His run finished in eighth place, good for $25,538 total, with Spadepoker splitting that into $10,835 from the regular prize pool and $14,703 in bounties.
The final phase took 1,763 players down to 49, and those survivors locked in $924 from the regular prize pool before any bounty money. Finland’s RageReaperf came back with the chip lead, while AHTOCb sat second. Eight of the final 49 had qualified through satellites, Power Path, or the Ticket Machine, and one player had made it in for just $1.50.
The satellite angle produced some of the event’s best value stories. Paul “jim5432” Romain qualified through a $1.50 Power Path Step 2 tournament and finished 14th for $2,039 including bounties. “Aleshek” turned an $11 qualifier into fifth place and $55,198, with PokerNews reporting a 501,700% ROI, while “makassip” also came in via an $11 route and finished sixth for $31,578.
The final table formed when Armenia’s “Karat221” busted in 10th place. Ukraine’s “grid 92” was the first finalist out for $12,999, and RageReaperf then finished seventh for $32,712. PokerNews also noted that all nine finalists were guaranteed a five-figure haul once bounties were included.
The last stretch tightened around the biggest names left. “234241234214432” finished fourth for $93,793, and Hungary’s Marton “komarcus” Kokai, described as a SCOOP champion, collected the first six-figure payout of the tournament at $144,167 or $144,168, depending on the source, before heads-up began.
The title match was AHTOCb against Charlie “JIZOINT” Combes. Both had already secured at least $176,300 from the regular prize pool before the final two bounties were played for, but the knockout money swung the finish, with AHTOCb taking $79,027 in bounties against Combes’ $9,953.
Combes finished second with $186,255, which PokerNews described as the largest online score of his career. AHTOCb’s win completed the anniversary run.
