German poker pro Christoph Vogelsang battled his way to the 2017 Super High Roller Bowl title on Thursday, converting his $300,000 investment into the tournament into a $6-million first-place prize.
The player toiled his way to victory in a five-hour heads-up match against American poker pro Jake Schindler. Over the course of the two-handed battle, Vogelsang overturned Schindler’s 3-to-1 chip advantage, then lost ground for a short while to be crowned victor eventually.
The final day of the third annual edition of the Super High Roller Bowl was played on Thursday at Aria Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. Play kicked off with three remaining players and with Schindler holding the chip lead with a massive chip stack of 10,670,000. Vogelsang was second in chips at the time with 5,245,000. The two players had a more than secure start to the day, unlike their other remaining opponent, Stefan Schillhabel from Germany.
The German player had fewer than 15 big blinds left in chips at the time cards were thrown in the air. He doubled his stack shortly after, only to be eliminated by his fellow countryman in third place for a payout of $2.4 million.
Two-handed battle began with Schindler still being the chip leader and holding two times more chips than his final opponent. The player quickly improved his edge to 3-to-1. It seemed at one point that Schindler may get the title as he robbed Vogelsang of the greater part of his chips. However, the German pro overturned the game’s course and started building a solid chip advantage.
The moment of victory came when Schindler tried to river-bluff Vogelsang with [Jh][8h] on a blank board that heralded his exit. The hand unfolded with Schindler limping pre-flop and Vogelsang checking. The [3h][10c][2d] came on the flop to see Vogelsang check and Schindler bet 100,000, which his opponent called.
The [7h] fell on the turn and Vogelsang checked. Schindler bet 400,000 and Vogelsang raised to 1.5 million. Schindler called and the two players saw the [2c] appear on the river. Vogelsnag placed 2.3 million into the growing pot and Schindler moved all in for 6.2 million after a moment of thought. Vogelsang called quickly, turning [10s][7c] for a winning two pair. Schindler being caught in his bluff had to settle for the consolation prize of $3.6 million.
The Super High Roller Bowl attracted 56 participants from different parts of the world, with different playing styles and levels of skill, but with a common liking for the game of poker. The event’s third edition unofficially marked the beginning of a summer full of poker excitement in Las Vegas. With the tournament’s completion, poker players and fans are now focusing their attention on the World Series of Poker, which kicked off mere days ago with dozens of gold bracelets up for grabs.
