Aussie Millions in Full Swing Down Under
January 17, 2017 2:30 pmThe 2017 Aussie Millions got underway at the Crown Casino in Melbourne on January 11th, with its 26 event schedule due to run until January 30th. The popular tour has always proved a favourite amongst some of the world’s most talented pros, and has also attracted celebrities from the world of showbiz and sports.
Cricketing legend Shane Warne, for instance, has been a regular fixture of the Aussie Millions, and this year he has been joined by some of tennis’ brightest stars after the Crown Casino hosted an IMG Tennis Party on the 15th to celebrate the start of the Australian Open. Amongst the players subsequently attending the gala evening was
Gael Monfils, Stan Wawrinka, Kei Nishikori, Garbine Muguruza, Agnieszka Radwanksa, Rafa Nadal, Nick Kyrgios, Marcos Baghdatis, Heather Watson, and David Ferrer, to name but a few.
As far as the Aussie Millions is concerned, the tour has already completed three events, with Aussie Rob Raymond beating a field of 1,565 players at Event #1: $1,025 NLHE to claim its AUD$320,830 first place prize.
Taking down Event #2: $2,500 H.O.R.S.E. was Taiwan’s James Chen after overcoming 49 players to collect a first place prize worth $39,700; while Austrian Thomas Muhlocker captured Event #3: $1,025 shootout, having bested 153 runners to take home AUD$40,125.
Interestingly, the Aussie Millions started its schedule while another major event, the PokerStars Championship Bahamas, was taking place on the other side of the world. That tour came to a close on January 14th, and now the Aussie Millions is expecting an uptick in tournament numbers as international pros start making their way to the action over the next few days.
Last year, the Aussie Millions $10k Main Event attracted 732 players to create a prize pool worth AUS$ 7.32 million, with the tournament eventually won by Canadian pro Ari Engel, who defeated US pro Tony Dunst heads-up to collect a first place prize of AUS$1.6 million.