Phil Ivey Wins Super High Roller Bowl Europe Event #1: $25,000 Short Deck

For any event that is graced by Phil Ivey, poker fans are bound to witness a gallant display of strategy and wit. This is what happened at the Super High Roller Bowl Europe festival; Ivey started off the event with a win. The first event, a $25,000 Short Deck, earned the poker genius an easy $408,000.

The Europe event was a star-studded affair that attracted close to 50 participants. The final table was a stiff competition that took place between some of the greatest poker players in NJ poker. One big name that was ousted by Ivey is Stephen Chidwick who put up a strong performance to clinch the second position on the final table. 

Looking back on the events that Ivey has been taking part in the recent past, it appears that his strength lies in the Short Deck events. He has actually won three such events of the same nature. His last event to win was the partypoker MILLIONS Sochi championship which he bagged in March 2020. The earlier event that had his name at the top of the player’s list is Triton SHRS Montenegro that was hosted in May 2018 in Montenegro. 

 

Recapping the final table of the SHRB Europe

At the time of settling to the final table, Ivey ranked in third position as per the number of chips in his possession. The first two players that were ahead of him at the start of the final table action were chip leader Stephen Chidwick and Chris Brewer. 

The first player to be eliminated from the final table was Erik Seidel who was the short stack of the first round on the table. He took the blow from Ihor Shkliaruk who is a nine time winner of the WSOP bracelet – achieved the win when queens had a run in with pocket aces. 

By the time the final table was settling into the sixth hand, Chidwick had maintained a comfortable lead. He would use his achievement and pace so far to shove out Santi for the sixth position. The stage was now set for the last five players of the final table. 

Each of the remaining players by this time was hell-bent to walk away with the championship title; no wonder they would play for a whole 90 minutes without anyone losing their ground. The pivot eventually tipped and Ivey found himself at the top of the chart. 

The raise by Mikita Badziakouski was followed by a shove of an ace queen from Brewer. Ivey pushed back with a shove of his own pocket aces and this gave leeway to Badziakouski to fold up; in his hands he had a few seven antes. The next move which was a double came from Ivey and it left a deficit on the camp of Brewer. By this time, there was no doubt about who would be leaving the table. 

The leave by Brewer was on the flipside a move of redemption for Badziakouski who at the time was short by less than ten antes. He still evaded eviction when the axe fell on Shkliaruk on account of a move by Ivey. You would expect such a high profile event to be graced by renowned teams such as the partypoker Team Pro and they were indeed there. The team tried to double their moves for 3 rounds in an effort to bounce back into the race to the front. Nothing much came out of this move because all efforts were crushed at the lead by Ivey whose chip possession averaged 4:1. 

With Ivey at an undisputed lead, his position was clear as the game entered the heads-up zone. His first round in asking met Chidwick with an elimination blow and this is what earned him first position and a payout of $408,000. 

 

What to expect at the Super High Roller Bowl Europe

The first event of the Super High Roller Bowl Europe of this season is now over and the focus is now on the second event. The organizers would definitely want to showcase the poker talent that exists around the world so as much information as possible will be published on poker news channels on the internet. Event #2 is already underway and this is for players and fans of the $25,000 No-Limit Hold’em. Live updates can be sourced from supporting online platforms.

In addition to the ongoing event, it is also worth noting that there are another seven poker events taking place in the Merit Casino of Cyprus; one of these is the $250,000 buy-in Super High Roller Bowl Europe tournament. The fun in poker is having players from different parts of the world battle it out in different events; never the same faces at the top.

 

Final Thoughts

Poker is gradually gaining traction and the casino world beyond NJ is taking the action quite seriously. For a sport that was for a long time associated with shady deals, poker is now the new organized sport in the gambling world. This is not a game of guesses but rather an opportunity to draw in the energy of the masses on one thing that is loved by many people. 

Every poker player who manages to rise to the top of the game succeeds because of hard work. Some people believe that poker is a game of luck but the champions will tell you that they have put in sweat, blood and tears to achieve the greatest accolades. All poker fans have the potential to be champions but very few are willing to learn from their mistakes in order to rise through the ashes. For the likes of Ivey and others at the top, the secret will always be strategy. If a player appears to make a move you know nothing about, learn it and apply it as many times as possible to perfect it. 

Top Casinos
4.3 rating
New Jersey Borgata Online Casino: Get up to $600 deposit match bonus
4.5 rating
SugarHouse $250 welcome bonus
4.3 rating
Party Casino: Get $100% welcome bonus up to $500.
4.5 rating
Bet MGM Get $25 FREE Bonus +$500 deposit match
4.0 rating
Virgin Casino: Up to $100 Real Cash Back