Christian Harder Triumphs at 2017 PSC Bahamas Main Event

The inaugural PokerStars Championship Bahamas took place at the Atlantis Resort & Casino, with the renamed tour wrapping up on Saturday night with the conclusion of its $5,000 PSC Main Event.
Last Sunday, the tournament drew a total of 738 players to create a prize pool worth $3,376,712, and seven days of action later it was 29-year-old pro Christian Harder who eventually managed to triumph over the field, including Cliff Josephy heads-up, to claim its $429,664 first place prize.
Christian Harder cashed in at his first live tournament back in 2007, and following his latest victory in the Bahamas now boosts his career earnings to $4,201,235, to go with the $3,248,456 he has won online playing under the screen name Charder. It also represents the 6th title of his professional career, although his first major tournament title. Elaborating further, Harder explained:
“It’s pretty amazing, I’ve come full circle. It’s totally where it all started. I’d never played a big buy in until the 2008 PCA. It’s amazing. I’ve been playing for nine years really, never won a major tournament. To finally win one, here, it’s awesome.”
The $5,000 PSC Main Event paid out 143 money places, and amongst the notable pros seeing a return on their buy-ins was Mike McDonald in 52nd ($11,560), Gaelle Baumann in 32nd ($14,760), Byron Kaverman in 28th ($19,000), Adrian Mateos in 18th ($24,640), and Jason Mercier in 14th ($32,200).
After the final table was reached, Cliff Josephy (10-10) took care of Rasmus Glaesel (A-K) in 6th, before doing likewise to Michael Gentili in 5th, and Michael Vela in 3rd to go heads-up against Christian Harder for the title.
At this stage, Harder held a 4-to-3 chip advantage over Josephy, and the duo then agreed to split the money $419,664 and $403,448 respectively, whilst leaving $10,000 and the title for the ultimate champion. Eight hands later, and the deciding hand was played with Josephy raising and then moving all-in preflop holding A-8, only to be called by Harder with A-J. The 9-5-4-K-9 board which ensued brought an end to the proceedings, and so Cliff Josephy finished the runner-up, while Christian Harder was crowned the 2017 PSC Bahamas Main Event winner.
Final Table Results:
1: Christian Harder $429,664*
2: Cliff Josephy $403,448*
3: Michael Vela $259,980
4: Aleksei Opalikhin $191,420
5: Michael Gentili $140,940
6: Rasmus Glaesel $103,780