Brazilian superstar Dalton “daltonhb” Hobold wrote his name into PokerStars’ history books, where he will forever be known as the first-ever champion of the Sunday Million Phased. PokerStars spiced up online poker’s most famous weekly tournament by running several phases (Day 1s) throughout the week before concluding the tournament on February 23.
Players seemed to enjoy the phased format, with 12,858 players creating a $1,285,800 prize pool, making it one of the richest Sunday Millions in recent weeks and the perfect way to kick off the Sunday Million Season. Hobold was the last of those players standing. He turned his $109 buy-in into a much more substantial $93,042.
Dozens of household names were among the 1,369 players who progressed to the final phase of the Sunday Million. Each of those players were already in the money when the first cards were dealt; some also had progressive bounties to show for their efforts.
The likes of Patrick “thebigdog09” Brooks, Shawn “Buck21” Buchanan, and Charlie “JIZOINT” Combes put together deep runs, but ultimately fell short of the nine-handed final table.
$109 Phased Sunday Million Final Table Results
| Rank | Player | Country | Bounties | Prize | Total Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dalton “daltonhb” Hobold | Brazil | $30,494 | $62,548 | $93,042 |
| 2 | 8Sicchers8 | Brazil | $17,461 | $62,539 | $80,000 |
| 3 | FEXX1 | Brazil | $10,628 | $45,729 | $56,357 |
| 4 | banz11 | Ukraine | $6,024 | $32,625 | $38,649 |
| 5 | 0indexed | Austria | $2,702 | $23,990 | $26,692 |
| 6 | dekciww | Romania | $8,124 | $16,078 | $24,202 |
| 7 | Prosperous4 | Ukraine | $1,869 | $10,645 | $12,514 |
| 8 | amendoa14 | Brazil | $731 | $6,486 | $7,217 |
| 9 | Pelckito | Brazil | $3,968 | $4,494 | $8,462 |
With bounties included, seven of the nine finalists saw five-figure prizes land in their PokerStars accounts. Brazilian duo “Pelckito” and “amendoa14” were the first two casualties; they walked away with $8,642 and $7,217 scores, respectively.
Ukraine’s “Prosperous4” added $12,514 to their lifetime winnings with a seventh-place finish, before “dekciww” of Romania busted in sixth for $24,202.
Learn more about the Sunday Million Season
Fifth place and $26,692 went to Austria’s “0indexed.” Another Ukrainian, “banz11,” bowed out in fourth for $38,649, which left a trio of Brazilian grinders fighting it out for the title. “FEXX1” came unstuck in third, a finish good for $56,357, leaving Hobold heads-up against “8Sicchers8”.
Both players locked in over $62,500 from the main prize pool, leaving the now huge final bounties to fight for. “8Sicchers8” fell at the final hurdle, meaning they claimed a total prize weighing in at $80,000. That final bust out meant Hobold became the inaugural PokerStars Sunday Million Phased champion, an accolade that also earned him an impressive $93,042.
British Player “d5t6y7” is the Irish Open Online Main Event Champion
The online edition of the Irish Open has been running at PokerStars for the past week. Its $215 buy-in, $200,000 guaranteed Main Event ran on February 23. 1,633 players built a $326,600 pot and a near-$50,000 top prize.
The field was stack once only two tables remained, with such luminaries as Roman “RomeOpro” Romanovsky, Matt “MattStaples” Staples, Pedro “pm_marke” Marques, and Jeiko “JEIK0” Palma present and correct. The latter busted in tenth place and set the final table.
While on his way to Sunday Million Phased glory, Dalton “daltonhb” Hobold reached the Irish Open Online Main Event final table. A double victory would have been amazing, but Holbold could “only” muster a seventh-place finish worth $6,498. Still, it was a highly profitable day at the virtual felt for the Brazilian.
The top five finishers won at least $12,789; Sweden’s “davideriksso” won that sum. Canadian “ToDouxLeLoup” and “gonazr15” were sent to the showers with $17,942 and $25,170 in tow, leaving “d5t6y7” and “Vassalo” to clash in a one-on-one battle.
The United Kingdom’s “d5t6y7” won the $49,536 top prize, leaving the runner-up with the $35,310 consolation prize.
$215 Irish Open Online Main Event Final Table Results
| Rank | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | d5t6y7 | United Kingdom | $49,536 |
| 2 | Vassalo | Hungary | $35,310 |
| 3 | gonazr15 | Argentina | $25,170 |
| 4 | ToDouxLeLoup | Canada | $17,942 |
| 5 | davideriksso | Sweden | $12,789 |
| 6 | Shar1uz | Argentina | $9,117 |
| 7 | Dalton “daltonhb” Holbold | Brazil | $6,498 |
| 8 | BrightStripe | Austria | $4,632 |
| 9 | skite555 | Belarus | $3,302 |
Other Notable PokerStars Results
Although Hobold was the biggest single winner at PokerStars this weekend, his fellow Brazilian Rodrigo “seijistar” Seiji padded his bankroll with n $80,853 prize. Seiji triumphed in the $5,200 Titans Event, leaving 45 opponents in his wake.
We must give a special mention to “HardiZ1” for their remarkable double win. First, they took down the $320 Juggernaut, part of the Sunday Million Season, for $20,402, then banked $8,795 more after winning the $320 Irish Open Online High Roller.
| Event | Entrants | Prize Pool | Champion | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $5,200 Titans Event | 46 | $230,000 | Rodrigo “seijistar” Seiji | $80,853 |
| $1,050 Sunday High Roller | 131 | $131,000 | .com??LOL | $36,865* |
| $215 Season Kick-Off | 1,118 | $223,600 | heroinelf2 | $33,093* |
| $530 Bounty Builder High Roller | 226 | $113,000 | procena | $22,718* |
| $320 Juggernaut | 373 | $111,900 | HardiZ1 | $20,402 |
| $1,050 Sunday Warm-Up High Roller | 49 | $50,000 | Leonard “Grozzorg” Maue | $19,107 |
| $109 Sunday Fenomeno | 1,046 | $104,600 | RRagazzo | $17,068 |
| $109 Sunday Warm-Up | 1,029 | $102,900 | IlJaYJaYlI | $16,791 |
| $109 Sunday Cooldown | 1,004 | $100,400 | WestCliff21 | $14,818* |
| $1,050 Sunday Supersonic High Roller | 27 | $30,000 | Roman “RomeOpro” Romanovsky | $13,907 |
| $320 Irish Open Online High Roller | 120 | $40,000 | HardiZ1 | $8,795 |
*includes bounty payments
Senior Editor