Partypoker may not have broken its own record, but the 2019 Millions Online will be hailed as a success after breaching its $20 million guarantee.
After attracting 1,408 entries during the first two opening flights, Days 1C and 1D took place on Dec. 9. Needing 592 buy-ins to avoid an overlay, Partypoker’s flagship MTT eventually welcomed 377 (Day 1C) and 324 entrants (Day 1D).
When the preliminary rounds finished, the 383 players that started Day 2 were fighting for a share of $21,090,000. Although this year’s prizepool fell just short of last year’s, record-breaking $21,835,000, it still ranks as the second-richest online MTT in history.
Partypoker Pros Flying High
Heading into Day 2 on Dec. 9, a number of Partypoker pros were still in the mix. When MCvisitor burst the bubble, ambassadors Patrick Leonard, Ludovic Geilich, and Patrick Tardif squeezed into the money.
As more than 300 players dropped to less than 100, all eyes were on Day 1A chip leader, jiggidyjigjohn. One of the largest stacks at the start of play, jiggidyjigjohn was in line for a $1 million bonus if they won the tournament.
Unfortunately for them, but fortunately for Partypoker’s bank account, jiggidyjigjohn crashed out in 42nd place for $52,725.
With the eliminations coming quickly, just 27 players were left standing after 16 levels of play. Still in the hunt heading into Day 3 were Isaac Haxton and John Duthie.
The Partypoker representatives ended Day 2 with nine and 23 big blinds, respectively. Out in front, and with a commanding lead, was Rank 1 Global.
The online grinder made it through the session with more than 181 million chips (60.5 big blinds), and will return on Dec. 10 as the player to beat to claim the $2.6 million top prize.
Millions Online Makes Its Mark Again
Partypoker’s 2019 Millions Online will likely go down in history. After solidifying its reputation in 2018, the organizers have parlayed that success into another big-money MTT. That feat is particularly impressive, considering that this year’s entry fee was doubled. To put Millions Online on an equal footing with Live Millions events, Partypoker upped the buy-in from $5,300 to $10,300.
That proved to be a shrewd move as the ambitious guarantee was beaten once again, meaning it’s another positive outcome for players and Partypoker.
