Thomas Muehloecker Wins First Super MILLION$ of 2023 for $289,000

The first poker tournament of the year is always special for poker fans, and the GGPoker Super MILLION$ is a special series. Last year, 2022 ended with several chip leaders being unable to hold onto their leads and seal victory. This was highlighted in the final Super MILLION$ event before Christmas, which saw the Spanish High Roller Sergi Reixach enter the final with a hue chips advantage, only for him to be unable to convert it into glory as RetourAuLobby won his second title. Once again that was the case, as ‘A Papdakis’ was unable to see it out.

Petrone Fails to Treble Up

The nine players who gathered at the final table had five wins between them before a card was dealt. Adrian Mateos started with plenty of chips and was looking to add to his Season 1 win after reaching his sixth final table. The Spaniard was joined in the ranks of former winner by Uruguayan Ramiro Petrone, who had much more recent success to base his optimism on, with two victories in Super MILLION$ Season 2 events.

Another previous winner was the Austrian Thomas Muehloecker, whose victory earlier in Season 2 left him looking for another in the same season to match Petrone’s achievement. ‘A Papadakis’ also had a win to look back on, but again failed as the curse of the chip leader continued into the new year.

First to go was the Russian player ‘mamassherlock’ who lost with ace-queen. All-in and at risk against the aforementioned Petrone, they were up against it as the Uruguayan held pocket kings. They held with ease through the queen-high board and the Russian left with a score of $39,989.

Despite winning that hand, Petrone was next to be busted, cashing for $51,205 in eighth place. All-in with ‘The Snowmen’, a.k.a. pocket eights, it was not the season for Christmas characters to survive, with Thomas Muehloecker’s pocket aces easily holding across the K-7-2-J-5 board.

Chip Leader Curse Strikes Again

With seven players left, the Hong Kong based player ‘chaoren170’ was next to depart. Cashing for $65,567, they were all-in and against the odds from before the flop, pocket fours no good against the pocket jacks of Russian player ‘spaise411’, as he busted just before the last half dozen players in the tournament.

In sixth place, the Finnish online player ‘TimothyAdams’, who was very much not the Canadian end boss Timothy Adams, nonetheless performed admirably and cashed for $83,957 just inside the final six places. The Finnish player picked the wrong time to push all-in with king-jack from the small blind, as Mateos held pocket aces in the big blind, and held through the board of 8-5-3-7-6 as Mateos was winning after the turn.

Out in fifth place was the Lithuanian player Denis Peganov. He was desperately unlucky, shoving with ace-ten of clubs, called by Mateos with king-nine offsuit. The flop of T-8-3 left Peganov comfortably ahead, but a nine on the turn gave Mateos the chance of runner-runner to bust two players in a row and that transpired as a king landed on the river to reduce the field to four.

Mateos Can’t Make the Fold

With four players remaining, Mateos won a big pot from Muehloecker to look almost unassailable in terms of a lead, holding as many chips himself as the other three players combined. No Limit Hold’em is a merciless mistress, however, and as the overnight chip leader was about to learn, she can be oh so cruel too. All-in with pocket aces on the turn of a board showing J-J-8-7, Muehloecker was the trapper who hit gold with pocket eights and skittled the Israel-based former leader for $137,659.

Out in third place was the Russian player ‘spaise411’ as three former winners duelled for the latest title. The Russian was busted in a harsh fashion too, all-in with ace-ten losing to Mateos’ ace-six as a six came on the flop. That gave ‘spaise411’ $176,269 in third place, but more importantly to the Spanish pro, a lead of over 7 million to 5.7 million ahead of the final duel.

It took a long time for Muehloecker to grab the lead, but when he did so, he more than made it count. Slow-playing king-ten to victory on a board of T-6-3-4-2, a shove on the river put Mateos to the test with king-six of clubs. Eventually, the Spanish player made the call, and it was ‘GG’ as he won the runner-up prize of $225,709, with Muehloecker claiming $289,015 and the title of double Super MILLION$ champion, with both the Austrian’s wins coming this season.