Dominik Nitsche Wins 2017 WSOPE High Roller for One Drop

Germany is noted for producing some of the most accomplished poker players on the planet, with one of the disciplines which has earned them a fearsome reputation being in the high stakes arena. One of those players is Dominik Nitsche, who at the 2017 WSOP Europe in the Czech Republic last night boosted the country’s WSOP bracelets tally to 32, placing it at number 4 in the world behind the United States (1076), Canada (55), and England (44).
In the process, the €3,487,463 ($4,064,026) he earned from his impressive performance at the €111,111 High Roller for One Drop No Limit Hold’em event, the biggest of his professional career, places him at number four on Germany’s ‘All Time Money List’ with $11,357,338 in winnings. In the meantime, the four WSOP bracelets he has now captured also places him at number one on the country’s WSOP bracelet leaderboard, alongside George Danzer.
For the 27-year-old poker pro, however, the biggest satisfaction he derives from his incredible poker career comes not from chasing bracelets, but from knowing that he has played each hand to the best of his abilities. Elaborating further, Nitsche explained after winning the One Drop event:
“It’s not about the bracelets for me, mostly. It’s about playing really well. I’m more proud of how I played rather than that I won. The bracelets are nice, but the bracelets show me that my hard work pays off. I’m not the kind of guy to go trophy chasing. I’m more the kind of guy to play in a high roller because I love competing against the best.”
Event #10: the €111,111 No Limit Hold’em – High Roller for One Drop attracted a field of 132 players resulting in a prize pool of €12,980,000 ($15,125,913). Amongst the notable players then seeing a return on their huge buy-ins was Jack Salter in 19th (€157,652), Bryn Kenney in 17th (€157,652), Eugene Katchalov in 13th (€205,263), and Nick Petrangelo in 12th (€243,169).
The final table also read like a whose who of top pros, with players such as Charlie Carrel, Christoph Vogelsang, Steffen Sontheimer, and Thomas Mühlöcker making the cut. In the end, though, it came down to two German players to decide the ultimate champion.
At the start of heads-up, Andreas Eiler held a 152m to 111m chip advantage over Nitsche, but within 56 hands the latter had managed to wrestle the lead when the deciding hand was played with Eiler (Kc-9c) pushing his remaining chips all-in preflop, and Nitsche making the call holding Qd-10h. The 10s-8s-3h-5d-10d board which ensued then sealed the deal, with Eiler collecting €2,155,418 ($2,502,958) for his runner-up finish, while Dominik Nitsche was awarded the WSOPE bracelet.
Final Table Results:
1: Dominik Nitsche $4,049,782
2: Andreas Eiler $2,502,958
3: Mikita Badziakouski $1,766,608
4: Thomas Muehloecker $1,282,561
5: Steffen Sontheimer $943,907
6: Christoph Vogelsang $709,832
7: Ahadpur Khangah $545,713
8: Martin Kabrhel $429,112
9: Charlie Carrel $345,303