The buy-ins went up again at Triton Series Madrid today — and so did the number of entries. Playing Event #6, the latest long-deck hold’em tournament — costs €50,000 for one entry, but by the time registration had closed, there had been 101 of them, including 45 re-entries.
We were into three figures in the entry column for the first time since the tour arrived in Spain, the first time since London in 2019, in fact. And that’s the way these things go on the Triton Series. It’s never that the buy-in is too expensive; it’s usually that it’s not high enough.
That flurry of activity at the registration desk means a prize pool for this one of more than €5 million, and a first prize that will make someone a millionaire. There’s €1.34 million up top, and even a min-cash is €101,000.
As we edge closer to the Main Events, we’re getting back to the enormous pay-checks that people particularly love about the Triton Series.
With all that money up for grabs, the very best in the world will have designs on it. And that’s how we account for the likes of Linus Loeliger appearing back on the Triton Series for the first time since before the enforced break.
Loeliger doesn’t just show up to make up the numbers: he built a strong chip lead at about the mid point of Day 1 and never gave it up today. The Swiss phenom will return tomorrow to a stack of 2,216,000 (185 big blinds), heading the field of 29 that made it through the day.
Loeliger’s closest challengers include two other players who skipped the opening of this festival, and only joined the action in this tournament. They’re Norway’s Tom-Aksel Bedell (1.184 million) and Henrik Hecklen, of Denmark (1.158 million).
And, look, there’s Adrian Mateos too — the home-town hero, who has come to the Triton party. Mateos bagged 1,075,000, which puts him sixth overall. Mikita Badziakouski and Mike Watson are also back near the top.
It’s a super tough field, and a thrilling one to watch on the live stream, when we’ll play down to a champion. That’s also when another big hold’em event gets going — a €75K buy-in 8-handed tournament — which will make things even more exciting. Join us tomorrow.
Here are the chip stacks overnight, and the payout schedule is below that.
Linus Loeliger, Switzerland – 2,210,000
Mikita Badziakouski, Belarus – 1,212,000
Tom-Aksel Bedell, Norway – 1,184,000
Henrik Hecklen, Denmark – 1,158,000
Mike Watson, Canada – 1,093,000
Adrian Mateos, Spain – 1,075,000
Wiktor Malinowski, Poland – 1,006,000
Danny Tang, Hong Kong – 975,000
Fedor Holz, Germany – 974,000
Bruno Volkmann, Brazil – 918,000
Stephen Chidwick, UK – 687,000
Phil Ivey, USA – 682,000
Jeremy Ausmus, USA – 675,000
Tony G, Lithuania – 638,000
Laszlo Bujtas, Hungary – 570,000
Yaman Nakdali, Spain – 564,000
Luuk Gieles, Netherlands – 521,000
Patrik Antonius, Finland – 476,000
Daniel Dvoress, Canada – 472,000
Brian Rast, USA – 452,000
Kevin Paque, Netherlands – 450,000
Bjorn Li, Hong Kong – 440,000
Phachara Wongwichit, Thailand – 380,000
Teun Mulder, Netherlands – 292,000
Sergio Aido, Spain – 262,000
Erik Seidel, USA – 260,000
Isaac Haxton, USA – 236,000
Aleksejs Ponakovs, Latvia – 235,000
Steve O’Dwyer, Ireland – 44,000
Triton Madrid – Event 6
€50,000 7-Handed NLHE
Dates: May 17-18, 2022
Entries: 101 (inc. 45 re-entries)
Prize pool: €5,050,000
1 – €1,340,000
2 – €932,000
3 – €616,000
4 – €482,300
5 – €389,000
6 – €303,000
7 – €240,000
8 – €187,000
9 – €141,500
10-11 – €108,600
12-13 – €101,000
Photography by Joe Giron/PokerPhotoArchive