Mike McDonald Wins EPT Malta High Roller For $561,623

admin, October 27, 2015 3:37 pm

Mike McDonald Wins EPT Malta High Roller For $561,623Canada’s Mike McDonald has won the €25,750 EPT Malta High Roller, after triumphing over a field of 63 players on his way to capturing the title, and collecting the event’s €498,575 ($561,623) first place prize. Interestingly, the 26 year-old pro had previously tweeted that some players had felt that the cards used during the EPT Malta may have been unacceptable, but following his win Mike McDonald jokingly wrote:
“Thanks for all the support! Despite the unacceptable chipset this victory made the tournament a satisfactory experience.”
Mike McDonald now boasts 2 EPT titles, his first won at the 2008 EPT Dortmund for €933,600 ($1,370,161), aged just 18, making him the youngest player ever to win an EPT Main Event. Following his latest success, McDonald has now earned $12,478,018 from live tournaments, as as well as a further $2,923,579 playing online under the screen name Timex.
The seat of his latest victory, the €25,750 EPT Malta High Roller, attracted 63 players and 11 rebuys to create a prize pool worth €1,813,000. Three days later, and the final table was reached with McDonald subsequently eliminating Sylvain Loosli (8th), Benjamin Pollak (7th), and Nick Petrangelo in 3rd to force heads-up against Juha Helppi for the title.
Despite Helppi being ahead in chips at the start of heads-up, McDonald soon managed to reverse the situation, with the deciding hand eventually played after Helppi shoved preflop holding K-8, only to be called by his opponent with K-J. The better hand then held up, meaning Mike McDonald collected his first major tournament title since winning the now defunct Epic Poker League’s Main Event in 2011. Meanwhile, Juha Helppi collected €354,440 for his runner-up finish, with the 38 year-old now boasting $6,171,253 in lifetime earnings.
Final Table Results:
1 Mike McDonald €498,575
2 Juha Helppi €354,440
3 Nick Petrangelo €232,065
4 Jason Wheeler €178,580
5 Byron Kaverman €141,415
6 Sam Greenwood €110,590
7 Benjamin Pollak €87,025
8 Sylvain Loosli €67,990

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