The EPT Monte Carlo, which is playing out at the Monte Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort, wraps up this weekend, and some big stories have come out of the stop.
Just days after the red-hot Sam Greenwood won the Super High Roller, Justin Bonomo kept pace by winning a High Roller of his own.
The €25K Single Day High Roller, which featured an action clock and the big blind ante, attracted 34 unique players who re-entered 16 times. That created a €1,200,500 ($1,452,528) prize pool that was paid out to the top seven players.
Among those to compete but fall short of a cash were John Juanda, Mustapha Kanit, and Sylvain Loosli.
Back-to-Back-to-Back for Bonomo
Bonomo was actually at the final table when Greenwood won the Super High Roller, ultimately finishing in fifth place for €401,000 ($488,953). A few days later, he finished fourth for €228,700 ($276,776) in the €50K High Roller, which was won by Steve O’Dwyer.
Fittingly, Bonomo would have to defeat O’Dwyer in heads-up play to win his title and a €378,000 ($457,356) first-place prize. Bonomo began with a 2/1 chip lead, which he built upon after just a few hands. In the final hand, Bonomo three-bet jammed with pocket nines and O’Dwyer called off with ace-jack, which he failed to hit.
In just a one-week period, Bonomo has won $1,223,085 at the EPT Monte Carlo. It’s already been a career year for Bonomo, who now has more than $8.5 million in 2018 earnings. That puts him atop the yearly list well ahead of Stephen Chidwick, who is his next closest competition with $5,513.250.
It wasn’t the first time Bonomo has found success in Monte Carlo. Back in 2012, he won the €100K Super High Roller Bowl for $2,165,217, and in 2016 took down a €2,200 NLH side event for $126,568.
Bonomo’s victory was his fourth win of the year. His first came in January when he won the 2018 Lucky Hearts Poker Open $25K High Roller for $556,873, and in February he won the US Poker Open Event #1: $10,000 NLH for $190,400. In March, he won the Super High Roller Bowl China for a career-high $4,823,077.
Final Table Results
1 Justin Bonomo (USA) €378,000 ($457,356)
2 Steve O’Dwyer (Ireland) €273,200 ($330,555)
3 Erik Seidel (USA) €174,100 ($210,650)
4 Timothy Adams (Canada) €132,100 ($159,833)
5 Bryn Kenney (USA) €102,000 ($123,413)
6 Igor Kurganov (Russia) €78,100 ($94,496)
7 Nicola Grieco (Italy) €63,000 ($76,226)
Another Million for O’Dwyer
As far as O’Dwyer’s win in the €50K High Roller is concerned, he prevailed over a 41-entry field to win €676,300 ($818,468). Among those to play were Patrik Antonius, Stephen Chidwick, and bubble boy Sam Greenwood.
O’Dwyer actually eliminated Bonomo, who ran king-eight into king-queen. A queen on the board put an end to Bonomo’s run, and Poker Masters champ Steffen Sontheimer followed him out the door in third place. O’Dwyer then defeated Nick Petrangelo in heads-up play to win the title.
Luckily, I ran really hot all in. Made some good reads… and probably some bad plays. That’s poker,” O’Dwyer said. “That was one of the most absurd final tables I’ve ever played.”
He added: “You just have to be on your toes. Dynamics change so fast. If you have the chips, you get to be the bully, and if you don’t you have to figure who else is the bully and adjust.”
O’Dwyer has had a lot of success in Monte Carlo. Back in 2013, he won the EPT9 Grand Final for $1,604,972 after defeating what is largely considered the toughest final table in history with the likes of Daniel Negreanu, Johnny Lodden, Jake Cody, Noah Schwartz, Andrew Pantling, Jason Mercier, and Grant Levy.
Like Bonomo, O’Dwyer has won over $1 million in three days at the EPT Monte Carlo.
Final Table Results
1 Steve O’Dwyer (Ireland) €676,300 ($818,468)
2 Nick Petrangelo (USA) €467,410 ($565,666)
3 Steffen Sontheimer (Germany) €298,300 ($361,007)
4 Justin Bonomo (USA) €228,700 ($276,776)
5 Daniel Dvoress (Canada) €179,000 ($216,628)
6 Rainer Kempe (Germany) €139,200 ($168,462)
