Juan Dominguez Wins Second GGMillion$ Title for $263k – August 4, 2023

An exciting final table saw the Spanish poker professional Juan Dominguez deliver his second GGMillion$ title, beating Jans Arends heads-up and denying the Dutchman that same achievement. Both men sat down at the final table with the same number of big blinds, but the Spanish player came out on top after a rollercoaster final table.

First-Timers Run Into Early Bad Luck 

The drama got underway with ‘Picasso98’ from Montenegro, leading significantly with 136 big blinds as they went for their third GGMillion$ victory. Behind them, Tony Lin (63BB) was going for his first, but other chasers were looking to add to their GGMillion$ haul. Dutchman Jans Arends and Juan Dominguez were both seeking a second victory, starting with 40 big blinds, and ‘SmilleThHero’ followed with only one fewer big blind, chasing title #3.

Matthew Stumpf (35BB) was also going for a third win, while ‘yyyyy96’ was going for a second title, in with 28 big blinds. Also starting with 28 big blinds was ‘M@rllorye,’ while ‘shanghai666’ had ten big blinds, the latter two players each holding the dream of winning their maiden title.

Although holding on for some time, ‘shanghai666’ was the first player to bust, the Chinese player calling from the big blind with a suited eight-five of hearts, but put to the test by ‘Picasso98’ with king-jack of clubs.

The China-based player drew thin after the K-8-3 flop with two clubs, and the nine of hearts didn’t help on the turn. The queen of spades fell on the river and was not the two-outer ‘shanghai666’ needed. They bowed out in ninth place for $36,381.

Panamanian player ‘M@rllorye’ was out in eighth place, winning $46,585 when they shoved under-the-gun for five big blinds with pocket jacks. ‘SmilleThHero’ was in the next seat with pocket aces and their call didn’t induce any more action, leaving them to mop up the pot after a king-high board with no jacks in sight, condemning the Panama-based player to the rail.

Picasso Paints a Picture 

Seven remained and ‘Picasso98’ was in control. After an hour of action and only two bust-outs, the Montenegrin chip leader sat with 4.8 million chips, more than double anyone else’s stack. Shoving from the small blind with ten-nine, ‘Picasso98’ was behind when ‘yyyyy96’ called from the big blind with a king-ten. Catching a nine on the flop and turn meant that the rich only got richer, and ‘yyyyy96’ busted for a score of $59,651.

Out next was the unfortunate Matthew Stumpf, who fell short of a third GGMillion$ victory when his pocket kings were crushed by ‘Picasso98’s pocket aces. The money going into the middle on a board showed 6-T-Q-Q. No king came to the rescue on the river and Stumpf departed with a sixth-place result worth $76,382.

Austrian player ‘SmilleThHero’ fell four places short of a third GGMillion$ title when they cashed out in fifth place for $97,806. Three-bet shoving pre-flop with king-jack offsuit, Jans Arends called with ace-queen in the big blind and through a board of 8-8-2-Q-5, the Dutchman defeated his European opponent, catapulting himself back into contention.

Dominguez Dominates Final Stages 

With four players remaining, the stacks were leveling out after that most recent bust-out. Arends sat on 2.16 million chips, a fraction more than Spaniard Juan Domingue’s 2.11 million. With 2.55 million, Tony Lin was closest to the chip leader, but ‘Picasso98’ still held a formidable lead with 5.65 million chips.

Dominguez was the player to chip up during the next period, while Tony Lin’s stack went in the opposite direction. When Lin four-bet shoved pre-flop with ace-jack, he must have hoped he was ahead, but he didn’t even have two live cards, Dominguez having three-bet with ace-king. The board of 8-7-6-T-4 sent Lin home with a score of $125,238, and another potential first-time winner crashed out.

Dominguez had timed his run perfectly and, in a pivotal hand, timed his cards perfectly too. On a board of 5-4-2-A-T, Dominguez shoved with queen-three for a turned straight, and ‘Picasso98’ saw his hopes crumble as he made the call with ace-seven, busting in third place for $160,365.

Heads-up, Dominguez had an 11:1 chip lead over Jans Arends, and the Dutch player could not climb the mountain. All-in with queen-nine, Arends started ahead of Dominguez’s jack-three, but the board of 3-2-A-2-5 condemned Arends to a runner-up finish worth $205,344, while it was the Spanish pro Dominguez who earned his second GGMillion$ title and the top prize of $262,938.

You can watch all the final table action as it played out in the company of Jeff Gross and special guest Nikita Luther right here:

GGPoker GG MILLION$ Tue 25th July 2023 Final Table Results:
Place	Player	Country	Prize
1st	Army034	Russia	$943,582
2nd	youngmoney23	Lebanon	$728,706
3rd	focus_nik	Belarus	$563,017
4th	No-Ola	Hong Kong	$435,253
5th	LemonHouse	Mexico	$336,734
6th	Karma is a Cat	Canada	$260,765
7th	Mike Watson	Canada	$202,185
8th	Dmitry Grinenko	Kazakhstan	$157,014
9th	Linus Hjulstrom	Norway	$122,182

Andrii Novak Wins Second GGMILLION$ Title for $250,000 – August 9, 2023

This week’s GGMILLION$ lit up the online streets, as Andrii Novak claimed his second title in thrilling circumstances. There was a late rollercoaster pot that will be right up there whenever the next ‘best hands of’ compilation from GGPoker is put together, as a close fight four-handed eventually saw the Ukrainian reign supreme in the weekly $10,300-entry high roller tournament series.

Six Former Champions Chasing Second Victory as Delgado Falls First

There were nine finalists who made it through to the second and final day of this week’s $10,300-entry GGMILLION$ final table. After ending Day 1 with six of those nine having been previous winners but not one of them having claimed a second victory, the final could not have been better poised as regular presenter Jeff Gross and special guest co-commentator Adam Hendrix described the action.

Top of the leaderboard heading into the final showdown was the brilliantly named Brazilian ‘GTO DONK’, who began with 94 big blinds. Second in chips was Artur Martirosian, who joined the leader in chasing his second win, albeit with only 75 big blinds. Behind the two leaders, Cypriot player ‘MagicDonald’ (53BB) was going for their first win, while Chinese player ‘Lucky Ming’ (38BB) going for title number two.

Chris Klodnicki (37BB) was hoping to take the title for Canada for the first time, with Andrii Novak (36BB) attempting a run at a second victory. Vicente Delgado (31BB) was firing for a maiden victory, while the short stacks, Nikita Kuznetsov (22BB) and Leon Sturm (16BB), were also chasing a second win.

Perhaps surprisingly, it was the Spanish player Vicente Delgado who busted first, slipping from seventh place to bust first of the nine for $34,877. On just the second hand, he moved all-in pre-flop with ace-ten offsuit but ran into pocket jacks held by ‘GTO DONK’. The jacks held with ease through the Q-J-4-3-3 board to reduce the field to eight and give the chip leader an even bigger advantage than he started with.

Sturm Blown Out of Contention Early 

Half an hour into play, the second play busted, and it was the German player Leon Sturm who crashed out. The young phenom shoved pre-flop with queen-nine of spades when short-stacked and was called by ‘GOT DONK’ with pocket sixes. The flop looked beautiful for Sturm, as it came Q-9-2. A six on the turn was a dagger to his chances, and the river deuce only completed the Brazilian’s full house, sending Sturm to the rail for $44,660.

Chris Klodnicki busted for $57,186 when he ran a pre-flop four-bet with ace-ten into ‘MagicDonald’ who held pocket aces. The flop of T-2-2 looked great to Klodnicki, who put the rest of his chips into the middle, but two pair was no good, and he couldn’t catch another ten on the turn or river, exiting in seventh place.

It was some time before another player busted, but when Nikita Kuznetsov lost a flip with pocket eights against Andrii Novak’s ace-king of hearts, it started a chain reaction of quick all-ins. Novak caught an ace on the “dagger turn” as Gross described it and the Ukrainian was just 1.5BB behind ‘Lucky Ming’ at the top of the leaderboard as Kuznetsov left with $73,226. Soon, the field was down to just four, as Artur Martirosian got it in bad with ace-nine crushed by ‘MagicDonald’ holding ace-ten. The board actually gave both players a flush, but it was ‘MagicDonald’s ten that was higher than the Russian’s nine in the flushing suit of clubs.

Close Fight Ends with Novak Heroics 

With four players chasing glory, it was tough to pick a winner, or for Gross and Hendrix to predict who’d be buying the other dinner, as per the show’s traditional weekly wager of a meal out for whoever picked the eventual champion. Novak was the chip leader with 3.46 million, but the chips were fairly evenly distributed, with ‘Lucky Ming’ (3.07m), ‘MagicDonald’ (3.02m), and ‘GTO DONK’ (2.5m), all with a great chance to end the event with all the chips.

It was the Brazilian overnight leader ‘GTO DONK’ who got it in good pre-flop with pocket tens against ‘MagicDonald’s king-three suited. A king on the flop spelled doom for the South American player and, by winning the pot, the Cyprus-based ‘MagicDonald’ took the chip lead.

One hand later, Novak was at risk, all in for fewer chips than ‘Lucky Ming’ and needing to win a crucial flip. Novak had pocket sevens and needed to hold against the Chinese player’s ace-ten with the ten of clubs. The flop was 9-8-7 in clubs, as Novak bagged the bottom set to move ahead but ‘Lucky Ming’ had the straight flush draw. The flush came with the five of clubs on the turn, but the river brought the nine of hearts, pairing the board and giving Novak a superior full house.

‘Lucky Ming’ lasted only a short time longer, all-in with tens to be crushed by Novak’s pocket queens, as the Chinese player busted in third place for $153,738. That meant Novak had the chip lead going into the final battle, with Novak (6.8m) going for his second title in an attempt to deny ‘MagicDonald’ (5.2m) their first.

A series of small pots went Novak’s way, quickly establishing him a near 4:1 chip advantage. ‘MagicDonald’ shoved for 2 million chips with ace-four and Novak called with a total stack of 10 million holding ace-seven, a board of A-8-Q-3-7 condemning the Cypriot to second place for $196,859 and giving Andrii Novak a second GGMILLION$ title, taking $252,073 back to Ukraine!

You can watch a full replay of the final table action in the company of Jeff Gross and Adam Hendrix and find out who won the side bet right here!

GGPoker GG MILLION$ 8th August 2023 Final Table Results:
Place	Player	Country	Prize
1st	Andrii Novak	Ukraine	$252,073
2nd	MagicDonald	Cyprus	$196,859
3rd	Lucky Ming	China	$153,738
4th	GTO DONK	Brazil	$120,063
5th	Artur Martirosian	Russia	$83,764
6th	Nikita Kuznetsov	Russia	$73,226
7th	Chris Klodnicki	Canada	$57,186
8th	Leon Sturm	Germany	$44,660
9th	Vicente Delgado	Spain	$34,877

Peters Taken by the Red Pill as Debut GG MILLION$ Win Earns $1 million – August 23, 2023

This week’s GG MILLION$ saw the return of everyone’s favorite $10,300-entry high roller tournament after a fortnight’s brief hiatus. There was an astronomical $998,294 up for grabs as top prize with a prizepool of over $6.5 million battled for between some of poker’s biggest online superstars. The final table was a fast one, with just two and half hours needed to find a winner, as David Peters just missed out on a debut victory.

Delgado and Ding Chase Second Victory

Heading into the last day showdown, two players with previous wins in their resume were shooting for title number two. Spanish pro Vicente Delgado led the field with 68 big blinds, and just behind him was Biao Ding from China with 66 big blinds. Spanish player Juan Dominguez started in third place on the leaderboard as he fought for his third title, with 62 big blinds.

Behind the leaders, David Peters (52BB) ‘redpillgame’ (48BB) and ‘fluid_solid’ (45BB) were all going for their first-ever GG MILLION$ title, but a trio of former winners with eight victories between them started as the three shortest stacks. Sven Andersson (32BB) was firing for a record-equalling fifth title, Russia’s Konstantin Maslak (24BB) was going for a second win, while fellow Russian Arsenii Malinov (11BB) was going for title #4.

The first bust-out took some time to come, as players fought for close to an hour without anyone losing their stack. When they did, it was a Russian, but not the man who began in ninth place but eighth. Maslak made a move with ace-ten in the hijack, shoving for nine big blinds, but David Peters woke up with ace-king on the button and his call was the only one, the board of 9-6-4-K-6 meaning Maslak was drawing dead by the turn, cashing for $128,760.

Record Attempt Falls Short

Heading into the action an hour earlier with 32 big blinds, the signs looked good for Swedish player Sven Andersson to win his fifth title. That didn’t happen, however, as he slid down the pecking order and cashed in eighth instead, banking $165,634. Putting in half his stack pre-flop and under-the-gun with king-ten of diamonds, he called off the rest of his stack when second-in-chips Biao Ding three-bet with pocket eights. Andersson called off the rest and couldn’t win the flip, an eight on the flop and no diamonds meaning the Swede was drawing dead very quickly.

That pot gave Ding the outright lead, but an awful period of the game saw the Chinese player lose a lot of his chips as Russian Arsenii Malinov went from shortie to a big leader, piling up 15 million chips when no-one had above 9.3 million. The shallow blinds and aggressive pre-flop betting meant dramatic pre-flop moves were commonplace. One such example saw Canadian player ‘fluid_solid’ raise with pocket nines and David Peters call on the button with king-queen.

Vicente Delgado called his stack off from the small blind with nine-ten of hearts in a move that saw raised eyebrows from presenter Jeff Gross and co-commentator Robbi Jade Lew. The flop of A-T-2 saw both players check, but a king on the turn vaulted Peters into the lead in the hand. Both players checked to the seven river and beyond, with Peters taking a big pot to put himself among the leaders. Delgado was ousted in seventh place for $213,452.

Ding Flips Out, Peters Chips Up

A crucial part of winning any poker tournament, be it online or live, is winning your flips and Chinese player Biao Ding did exactly that to take out the previously mentioned ‘fluid_solid’. If the Canadian player was hoping their scientific name might see their dreams transformed into victory, they were to be disappointed. Their hopes evaporated as a shove with pocket eights ran into Ding’s ace-king which hit an ace on the turn to convert hope into despair, the all-in player going home with $275,465 in sixth place.

Ding needed that pot to survive almost as much, having just a shade over the player he had taken out. Still short, he watched as Juan Dominguez managed no such fortune, going out with pocket sevens to redpillgame with ace-queen. A cruel board of A-9-5-T-3 offered Dominguez the hope of a flush draw from the flop to save himself, but no more hearts came and he busted in fifth for $355,886.

With four players left, redpillgame had timed their run to the lead to perfection, sitting on 28.7 million chips. David Peters (14.4 million) and Arsenii Malinov (13.5m) were close by, but Ding (8.25m) needed help if he was to threaten the title in the latter stages of the tournament. Sadly for him, it wasn’t to be. All-in with king-ten of spades, he still needed to improve against the ace-eight of diamonds held by redpillgame. Possibly a player name borne from the iconic film The Matrix, there was to be no Hollywood ending for the Chinese player, a seven-high board sending him home with $460,178.

Peters Bluffed Off Huge Late Pot

Arsenii Malinov was the next to leave, cashing for $595,430 in third place, just missing out on the heads-up for the title. Down to around 16 big blinds, he shoved with ace-six and was called by redpillgame with king-queen. The flop of J-7-5 kept the at-risk player ahead, as did another jack on the turn, but a devastating king on the river catapulted the Canadian player into a 3:1 heads-up lead, with Malinov unlucky at the last to lose out.

The final duel took just 20 minutes of action to conclude, as David Peters failed to get any traction. A flush draw from the flop looked set to cost him money, but a miraculous of-suit jack on the river gave him a bigger pair and provided a lifeline to his chip stack. Potentially, Peters could have been a 4:1 dog if he’d lost the hand. Instead, he was almost level after a value bet was paid off. Peters, on 30 million to redpillgame’s 33 million, was suddenly back in the game.

The crucial hand came when neither player had a hand, as a massive pot of 18.1 million was in the middle on a board showing K-T-2-K. A big bet of 8.4 million was laid out by redpillgame with just ace-four of hearts with no hearts on board. Peters, holding ace-jack of clubs with only one club on the board, couldn’t make the call or bet with the bigger hand and dropped back to having just half of his opponent’s stack.

A short time later, it was all over. A board of Q-8-7-K had seen redpillgame trap the American, as Peters shoved with queen-six. The Austrian player called with pocket king for top set on the turn and Peters, drawing dead, was defeated before the ineffectual river of a six. Peters claimed the runner-up prize of $770,829, but it was the Austrian ‘redpillgame’ who emerged victorious, winning just under a million dollars after a terrific bluff heads up helped him to the win.

You can watch all the action in the company of Jeff Gross and Robbi Jade Lew right here on the GGPoker YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvtC1x4D7cY

GGPoker GG MILLION$ Tuesday August 22nd Final Table Results:

Place	Player	Country	Prize
1st	‘redpillgame’	Austria	$998,294
2nd	David Peters	United States	$770,829
3rd	Arsenii Malinov	Russia	$595,430
4th	Biao Ding	China	$460,178
5th	Juan Dominguez	Spain	$355,886
6th	‘fluid_solid’	Canada	$275,465
7th	Vicente Delgado	Spain	$213,452
8th	Sven Andersson	Sweden	$165,634
9th	Konstantin Maslak	Russia	$128,760

GGMILLION$ Won by German Pro Leon Sturm for $293,000 – August 30, 2023

An exciting final table saw German crusher, Leon Sturm, win his second GGMILLION$ title and $293,000 as he overcame the overwhelming chip leader at the start of the final, Bulgarian player Alex Kulev. With a thrilling ending to the fast-paced final table, Charlie Carrel joined regular host Jeff Gross in breaking the action for GGPoker.

Kulev the Player to Beat, Slowsby Leaves Quickly 

Heading into the final table, it was the Dublin-based high roller crusher Alex Kulev who was the chip leader, with 145 big blinds and two previous wins already under his belt. Kulev’s lead was one of the biggest ever seen in a GGMILLION$ final, with second-in-chips Duco Haven on just 55 big blinds on a quest for a fourth GGMILLION$ victory.

Behind the top two, Chinese player Ding Biao (41BB), German player Leon Sturm (39BB), Bryn Kenney (31BB) and ‘Tedwina Slowsby’ (27BB) from Russia were all after a second win in this popular high stakes weekly tournament. Vietnamese player ‘boss n8[vn]’ started with 24 big blinds as they attempted to win their first GG MILLION$ title, with Austrian Johannes Straver (21BB) going for a third win. The short stack belonged to a Belarussian player, ‘Ilya Anatski’ (19BB), who was also going for a maiden title.

‘Tedwina Slowsby’ from Russia was the first player to leave. All-in with pocket nines, he was called by Bryn Kenney as either the all-time money list leader or an imposter using his name turned over ace-queen offsuit. The flop of K-8-6 kept the Russian player in the lead, but an ace on the turn changed all that. Another eight on the river was no help for the at-risk player and ‘Tedwina Slowsby’ cashed for $40,590 in ninth place.

The Rich Get Richer 

With eight players left, Kulev was put in a golden position to make yet more chips. On the river of a board showing T-9-4-3-A, the Vietnamese player ‘boss n8[vn]’ shoved with just ten-eight of spades on a board showing three hearts. Holding three-four of diamonds, it wasn’t the easiest call, but Kulev made it, piling up just under 50% of the chips with a stack of 6.4 million (161BB), His nearest challenge,r Kenney, held 1.9m (49BB). The Vietnamese player left with a score of $51,975.

After an hour of play, only those two first players had busted, but two well played hands and a superb call by Duco Haven against Kenney changed the feel of the board. Haven brought in over a million chips on the second hand with just third pair and the board showing “three to a flush and four to a straight” in the words of co-commentator Charlie Carrel on the board. The hands left Bryn with just 12BB

Half an hour later, Johannes Straver was busted as his short stack shove with king-queen came at the wrong time. Leon Sturm called with ace-jack and the German survived with ease on a board void of paint. The hand sent Straver to the virtual rail in seventh place for $66,553. Out in sixth was Kenney, whose shove with pocket tens ran out of luck when it was called by Anatski with ace-three of clubs. The a flop came A-J-9 giving Ilya Anatski the lead but ‘Fake Bryn’ the flush draw. The card needed didn’t come in on turn or river and Kenney was out, cashing for $85,220.

Sturm Blows Away Kulev 

Down to five, an intense battle emerged, but the tension was broken when Ding Biao pushed it all in with ace-jack acting behind the preflop raise of Kulev, who called the all in with a suited king-ten. The flop of Q-3-2 kept Biao ahead, but the king on the turn changed everything, putting the dominant Bulgarian back into the lead with just one card to come. Biao couldn’t hit a ten for Broadway or an ace and crashed out in fifth place after a six fell on the river, cashing for $109,122.

Four remained, with Kulev (6.2m) ahead of Haven (3.5m), Anatski (2.3m) and Sturm (1.9m). Anatski would go next but in an extremely unfortunate manner. All-in with pocket kings pre-flop, the Belarussian lost to Kulev’s call with the queen-eight of hearts. The flop of 9-8-5 was followed by a jack, but as Carrel correctly declared, “It doesn’t look good for the kings”, and a ten on the river gave Kulev the straight. Too many outs? Not a bit of it, and Kulev piled up more chips than his two remaining opponents combined.

Duco Haven was ousted in third place when a shove from Sturm in the small blind with queen-six of spades was called by the Dutchman in the big blind with ace-four offsuit. A board of Q-J-3-6-Q gave Sturm the full house and Haven $178,920.

Straight into the heads-up battle, Sturm had pocket nines and Kulev ten-seven. On the flop of 8-7-3, Sturm bet and Kulev called. Another bet on a cold turn saw Sturm take a marginal lead as the two stacks – and two men were almost level. Sturm went into a big lead when he strongarmed with an open straight draw and the final hand was right around the corner.

Soon, all the chips were in the middle. On a board of 8-4-2-6-9 with the club flush coming in on the river, Sturm bet with king-jack of clubs and Kulev shoved with just ace-high. Sturm made the call and the German had done it, winning his second GGMILLION$ title and the top prize of $293,361. For the overnight chip leader Kulev, it was a case of so close and yet so far away at the end.

You can watch all the action in the company of Jeff and Charlie right here

GGPoker GG MILLION$ Tuesday 29th August 2023 Results:
Place	Player	Country	Prize
1st	Leon Sturm	Germany	$293,361
2nd	Alex Kulev	Bulgaria	$229,103
3rd	Duco Haven	Netherlands	$178,920
4th	Ilya Anatski	Belarus	$139,729
5th	Ding Biao	China	$109,122
6th	Bryn Kenney	Canada	$85,220
7th	Johannes Straver	Austria	$66,553
8th	‘bossn8[vn]’	Vietnam	$51,975
9th	‘Tedwina Slowsby’	Russia	$40,590

« July 2023  |  September 2023 »

About the Author: Paul Seaton has written about poker for over 10 years, interviewing some of the best players ever to play the game such as Daniel Negreanu, Johnny Chan and Phil Hellmuth. Over the years, Paul has reported live from tournaments such as the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas and the European Poker Tour. He has also written for other poker brands where he was Head of Media, as well as BLUFF magazine, where he was Editor.

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Edited by Shawn A.