Over 700 players formed a prize pool of $364,500 in Event 19 of FTOPSXVIII. The entry fee to this tournament was a bit steep, $535, but the event managed to surpass its guarantee none the less. The shootout nature of the tournament limited entries to 729 players. In a shootout, runners play until there is one person left at the table, much like a Sit and Go. The table winners are consolidated at new tables the next round until nine players are left.
The triple shootout was hosted by German WSOP Bracelet Winner Jens Voertmann. He outlasted the likes of Jennifer Harman and Steve Zolotow, both members of Team Full Tilt, to win a HORSE event at the 2008 WSOP. 26 Full Tilt Red Pros entered Event 19 and 4 managed to cash. In fact, one even made the final table.
David Pham was arguably the biggest name to make the money. Known as The Dragon, the Vietnamese-American boasts 2 WSOP Bracelets and has revealed proficiency in all poker variants. Pham has made 7 WPT Final Table but has yet to capture a title. He finished in FTOPS XVIII Event #19 in 49th position.
Full Tilt Pro and MTT wizard ‘F Montenegro’ made a deep run, exiting in 21st. He has amassed over $3 million in winnings across multiple sites. Jonathan ‘JonoKaramalikis’ Karamalikis, another Full Tilt Pro finished in 51st place. The Australian built up his bankroll through freerolls before going on a heater during the Aussie Millions in 2009 and 2010. To date, he has accumulated over $300,000 in tournament earnings.
Jared ‘TheWacoKidd’ Hamby was the real star of Event 19. Hamby, a Full Tilt Red Pro, has been one of the top ranked online pros since 2007 and his fame rose another notch when he finished this in this 3x shootout. The $36,450 prize money pushed him further passed the $1,000,000 mark in career earnings. Could this be the start to another Hamby heater that we witnessed in 2007?
Besting Hamby was ‘extassyman’ who is having a November to be thankful for. On November 16, he took down the $33,000 on Full Tilt Poker, earning nearly $22,000. During headsup play, he struck a deal with runner-up ‘RichieRichZH’ that netted him almost $70,000. RichieRichZH has nothing to be ashamed of, he took home over $51,000 for his performance. It’s also worth noting that online poker legend JohnnyBax, who won nearly $80,000 with a victory in FTP’s $1k Monday Event earlier this month, added another final table to his impressive resume. Bax, whose real name is Cliff Josephy finished in 8th place.