Winners of the Aussie Millions
The Crown Australian Poker Championship, also known as the Aussie Millions, is one of the top Australian poker tournament. Since it's inception in 1998, the event has grown from a small tournament offering $25,000 to the winner into a event which draws in the biggest names from around the globe. These days, the Aussie Millions Main Event offers the biggest annual prize for a poker tournament in the Southern Hemisphere.
In this article, I want to list the former winners of the Crown Australian Poker Championship. I'll also give a brief history of the main event, pointing to some of the famous players who've participated in the Aussia Millions.
Aussie Millions Information
Like most other major events in the poker world these days, the Main Event of the Aussie Millions is a Texas hold'em competition. In 1998, the tournament took place in late July. From 1999 until 2001, the Aussie Millions was an August event. From 2002 onward, the Crown Australian Championship takes place from mid to late January every year. The most recent winner collected $1.6 million in prize money, while the final table paid out $4.26 million.
Crown Australian Final Tables
One feature different from the World Series of Poker Main Event is the fact only 7 players make the final table at the Aussie Millions. This creates a different game dynamic, while making it harder to make it onto the final table. Just some of the notable players who played at the final table include Patrik Antonius, Chris Moorman, Sorel Mizzi, Richard Ashby, Erik Seidel, Lee Nelson, Ram Vaswani, Marcel Luske, Kenna James, and Australian Celebrity Poker Challenge commentator Billy Argyros.
List of Former Champions
Along with their nationality and the year they won, the champions of the Crown Australian Poker Champions are Alex Horowitz (Australia, 1998), Milo Nadalin (Australia, 1999), Lee Boxell (AU, 2000), Sam Korman (AU, 2001), John Maver (AU, 2002), Peter Costa (England, 2003), Tony Bloom (England, 2004), Jamil Dia (Australia, 2005), Lee Nelson (AU, 2006), Gus Hansen (Denmark, 2007), Alexander Kostritsyn (Russia, 2008), Stewart Scott (Australia, 2009), Tyron Krost (AU, 2010), David Gorr (AU, 2011), Oliver Speidel (AU, 2012), and Mervin Chan (USA, 2013). The three-way record holders for most money won for 1st prize are Stewart Scott, Tyron Krost, and David Gorr, all three Aussies.
The prize pool was less in 2012 and 2013, though the top prize was well over a million dollars. The totals are enough to draw a wide international pool of competitors. International players like Phil Ivey, Daniel Negreanu, and John Juanda have played the tournament in the past. Big name locals like Joe Hachem continue to join the field. You can expect, if top players visit the continent for an event, the Aussie Millions is their likely destination. The Aussie Millions now offers a $250,000 Super High Roller event which draws top gamblers. Phil Ivey won the 2012 $250,000 Super High Roller event.
Aussia Millions Former Winners
Alex Horowitz - 1998
Milo Nadalin - 1999
Lee Boxell - 2000
Sam Korman - 2001
John Maver - 2002
Peter Costa - 2003
Tony Bloom - 2004
Jamil Dia - 2005
Lee Nelson - 2006
Gus Hansen - 2007
Alexander Kostritsyn - 2008
Stewart Scott - 2009
Tyron Krost - 2010
David Gorr - 2011
Oliver Speidel - 2012
Mervin Chan - 2013 Winner