Gabriel Tavares Triumphs in the PokerStars New Year Series Main Event

The trio of PokerStars New Year Series Main Events have crowned their champions, with each padding their bankrolls with large scores. The largest, reserved for the $5,200 No-Limit Hold’em Main Event, was claimed by Brazilian star Gabrial “gtavares10” Tavares, who walked away with $122,130.

One hundred and six entrants created a guarantee-busting $530,000 prize pool, which the top 13 finishers shared. A min-cash weighed in at $11,236, but that sum increased to $16,062 by the time the nine-handed final table was set.

Austria’s “Sxmon” collected the $116,062 ninth-place prize before “Bimbostix” ($19,205), Belarus’ “AcidValue” ($25,014), and the legendary Ole “wizowizo” Schemion ($32,580) crashed out.

Fifth place and $42,436 went to Denmark’s “starswins :)” with “Qee…:)AA” banking $55,272 after busting in fourth. Amazingly, they also finished third in the $1,050 No-Limit Hold’em PKO Main Event for an additional $39,534.

Heads-up was reached when perennial crusher Samuel “€urop€an” Vousden fell by the wayside in third, a finish good for $71,991. Heads-up pitted Vousden’s fellow Finn “1Kromos” against Tavares. No deal was struck despite a pay jump of more than $28,000, which meant Tavares reeled in a cool $122,130 when he brushed aside his final foe, resigning them to a $93,767 consolation prize.

$5,200 NLHE Main Event Final Table Results

Patrick Lauber Claims the $1,050 PKO Main Event Title

The $1,050 No-Limit Hold’em PKO Main Event attracted 659 entrants, who built a $659,000 prize pool, far richer than the advertised $500,000 guarantee. A whole host of stars saw a return on their investments, including deep-runners Peter “Belabacsi” Traply, who finished in 12th, and “AcidValue,” who followed up their seventh-place finish in the $5,200 Main Event with an 11th-place finish here.

The final table hosted the likes of Lucas “Rochinha2011” Rocha and Viktor “papan9_p$” Ustimov, but they couldn’t quite finish the job. Eventually, as the clock approached 1:00 a.m. GMT on January 20, Patrick “JaegsPL” Lauber defeated Finland’s “Stonedream” after a heads-up battle to become this tournament’s champion. The victory came with a total haul of $113,307, while the runner-up took home $56,372.

$1,050 NLHE PKO Main Event Final Table Results

$109 Mystery Bounty Main Event Title Heads to Greece

The $109 edition of the PokerStars New Year Series Main Event used a mystery bounty format, which skewed the standings when looking at prize money won.

“StueyMcCluv” of the United Kingdom had Lady Luck shining down on them when they opened not one but two mystery bounty envelopes, each containing $25,000. Brazilian “wdias21” was this event’s biggest winner despite falling in 840th place. This is because they pulled the $100,000 jackpot bounty before running out of steam.

Eighth-place finisher “Tanque Kosoves” was another recipient of a sizeable mystery bounty payment, namely $25,000. Their total prize weighed in at $31,246, the third-largest payout at the final table.

However, being able to call yourself a champion is often as important as the prize money that comes with it. Greek grinder “nickiou7kos” will forever be known as this event’s champion; the $58,236 they raked in will surely be a welcome bonus, too.

$109 NLHE Mystery Bounty Main Event Final Table Results

Only a handful of New Year Series events remain on the schedule, with all concluding on January 20. Their start times range from 4:30 p.m. GMT to 8:05 p.m. GMT, and buy-ins range from $2.20 to $1,050, with the latter being the buy-in for the $60,000 guaranteed Super Tuesday.

Matthew Pitt hails from Leeds, West Yorkshire, in the United Kingdom, and has worked in the poker industry since 2008, and worked for PokerNews since 2010. In September 2010, he became the editor of PokerNews. Matthew stepped away from live reporting duties in 2015, and now concentrates on his role of Senior Editor for the PokerNews.