Mikalai Vaskaboinikau Wins Triton Montenegro Main Event For $4.7 Million

Mikalai Vaskaboinikau’s dream got here true when he topped a subject of 171 entries within the 2024 Triton Poker Super High Roller Series Montenegro $125,000 buy-in no-limit maintain’em most important occasion.

“It’s a really amazing feeling,” Vaskaboinikau instructed Triton reporters after popping out on high. “I had a good feeling about this a few months ago. I put this thought in my mind in a dream.”

The 37-year-old businessman from Belarus earned $4,737,000 because the champion of the celebrated occasion, greater than doubling his profession match earnings within the course of. Prior to this victory, his high payday had been a $492,041 rating earned because the fourth-place finisher in a €100,000 buy-in on the 2022 European Poker Tour Monte Carlo cease. He now has greater than $8.3 million in complete cashes below his belt.

Vaskaboinikau additionally earned 1,560 Card Player Player of the Year factors for this win. This was his third POY-qualified rating of the yr. With 1,985 factors, he has moved inside the highest 50 within the 2024 POY race standings introduced by Global Poker.

Plenty of massive names have been among the many 27 that cashed on this occasion to earn a slice of the $21,375,000 prize pool. Those who ran deep included five-time Triton champion Mikita Badziakouski (twenty sixth), Dan Smith (twenty fifth), Patrik Antonius (twenty third), 2019 World Series of Poker most important occasion champion Hossein Ensan (twenty second), Mashashi Oya (14th), Chris Brewer (thirteenth), and Triton co-founder Paul Phua (twelfth).

The third and ultimate day of the match started with four-time Triton winner Wai Kin Yong main the remaining 9 contenders, whereas Vaskaboinikau sat in sixth chip place. Elizabeth Chen (ninth – $478,000) was the primary to fall, together with her pocket eights dropping a race in opposition to the Okay-Q of ten time bracelet winner and five-time Triton champion Phil Ivey.

Three-time Triton winner Bryn Kenney, who’s the tour’s all-time cash chief with over $38.6 million in complete earnings throughout 14 profession cashes, added to that complete by ending eighth on this occasion for $580,000. Kenney ran pocket nines into the pocket tens of Igor Yaroshevskyy and was unable to return from behind. He now has practically $66.3 million in lifetime scores, placing him again on high of poker’s all-time cash listing. Justin Bonomo now sits in second place with $65,930,010.

Pocket tens have been additionally concerned within the subsequent knockout. Vaskaboinikau’s two tens bumped into the pocket queens of Yong, who had slid out of the lead throughout the early motion. Yong remained forward by way of the flop and switch, however a ten on the river despatched him to the rail in seventh place ($800,000). He now has practically $12.6 million in profession earnings after this newest deep run.

Samuel Ju additionally misplaced an important all-in confrontation with pocket queens, however his hand was behind from the beginning. He was up in opposition to pocket kings for Vaskaboinikau, which improved to kings stuffed with aces on by the flip to go away Ju drawing lifeless. Ju, who just lately completed second within the $40,000 thriller bounty occasion, earned a career-high payday of $1,098,000 for his sixth-place displaying.

Yaroshevskyy’s run resulted in fifth place ($1,430,000) when his Q-9 was unable to carry up in opposition to the J-9 of Aleksejs Ponakovs, who had shoved from the small blind when folded to. Ponakovs flopped a jack and held from there to slim the sphere to 4. This was the second seven-figure rating of the sequence for Yaroshevskyy. The Ukrainian took down the $50,000 bounty occasion earlier this sequence for his first Triton title.

Ivey appeared poised to run away with the chip lead, however quickly discovered himself on the incorrect finish of a flush-over-flush state of affairs. He limped in for 300,000 complete from the small blind with Q10 and Vaskaboinikau checked his possibility with A8. The flop got here down 1042 and Ivey wager 400,000 along with his high pair. Vaskaboinikau referred to as and the 7 hit the flip, giving each gamers flush attracts. Ivey wager 1,200,000 and Vaskaboinikau referred to as once more. The J accomplished the attracts of each gamers. Ivey checked and Vaskaboinikau, who had made the nuts on the top, wager 3,500,000. Ivey check-raised all-in along with his queen-high flush and Vaskaboinikau referred to as for five,900,000 complete to double into the lead.

The slide continued for Ivey, who finally acquired all-in for his final seven or so massive blinds with A-8 from the button. He bumped into A-Okay fitted to Vaskaboinikau. A king-high flop left Ivey in even worse form, to the purpose {that a} clean on the flip meant that he had no outs heading into the river. Ivey earned $1,795,000 because the fourth-place finisher, growing his profession haul to over $44.7 million.

Three-handed play continued for greater than two hours, however one other knockout hand finally arrived. Ponakovs moved all-in from the small blind for practically 13 massive blinds with Okay-J and Vaskaboinikau referred to as from the massive blind, having the ten,150,000 shove coated by 14,400,000. Ponakovs flopped a jack to take the lead, however the flip introduced an ace to place Vaskaboinikau again in entrance. A six on the river noticed Ponakovs despatched house in third place. The two-time bracelet winner from Latvian secured $2,200,000 for his podium end. He now has greater than $20.1 million in profession scores to his title.

Heads-up play started with Vaskaboinikau holding 35,450,000 to the 7,250,000 of Dejan Kaladjurdjevic. It didn’t take lengthy for him to transform the massive lead into the title. On the second hand of the match Kaladjurdjevic moved all-in for simply over 5 massive blinds with J2 from the button. Vaskaboinikau made the decision with 66 and the board ran out Okay10872 to deliver the match to an in depth. Kaladjurdjevic earned $3,196,000 because the runner-up, which was far-and-away his largest reside rating but.

Here is a take a look at the payouts and POY factors awarded on the ultimate desk:

Photo credit score: Triton Poker / Joe Giron.