The largest-ever live tournament to have taken place in Russia now has a champion and his name is Aleksandr Gofman. The partypoker MILLIONS Russia $5,300 Main Event trophy will remain in the country after the aforementioned local player captured it last night. Gofman survived an action-packed final table to win the prestigious event and to scoop a nice payout of $1 million for his performance.
The Russian player is no stranger to live poker action as his tournament earnings of over $2.2 million could suggest. Gofman won his largest live cash last night, but he has previously participated and finished in the money in a number of prestigious tournaments all around Europe and even the United States.
Gofman entered the eight-handed final table of the partypoker MILLIONS Russia Main Event as one of the short stacks. His systematic approach to the game locked him the chip lead during three-handed play and the greater portion of heads-up play, and eventually secured him with the title. But here is how exactly the Russian poker player won the event to make sure that the partypoker MILLIONS Main Event trophy will not leave his homeland.
Final Table Action
The official eight-handed final table was set on Wednesday night at the host venue, Sochi Casino and Resort, and was played on Thursday to conclude an event that attracted a field of 999 entries. The final eight survivors were led by Spain’s David Laka, who was coming fresh from a $10,300 High Roller triumph from several days before and within the partypoker MILLIONS Russia festival.
Laka maintained his lead for quite some, thanks to his aggressive play. However, he had a strong competitor for the title of the most aggressive final tablist, with that competitor being Anatolyi Zyrin. Zyrin ended up in fourth place, good for $300,000, while Laka entered three-handed play as the chip leader.
However, he lost his advantage to Gofman at some point. A three-way deal was discussed among the remaining players, but one was not reached. The heads-up duel was set with the elimination of Russian player Aleksandr Merzhvinskiz in third place, good for $400,000.
The two-handed deal began with Gofman holding a two-to-one chip lead over his opponent. It was not long after the match began that Laka fought back the lead, but he maintained his advantage for no more than a few minutes. The player eventually bluffed over 100 million in chips to his final opponent, which predetermined his eventual fall in second place.
A deal was under consideration again, but the two players could not agree on its terms. The two finalists decided to play for the first-place of $1 million and the trophy instead. The final hand occurred with Gofman raising to 12.5 pre-flop and Laka calling. Laka checked the [3c][4s][6s] flop to see Gofman bet 15 million. The Spaniard three-bet to 45 million and his opponent called. The [Qd] appeared on the turn.
Laka bet 45 million and Gofman moved all in. Laka gave it some consideration before calling and tabling [Ah][6h] against Gofman’s [6d][3d]. The river card was the [3s], bringing Gofman the necessary card to complete a full house and thus securing him with the title. Laka busted in second place for $600,000.
