Day Two of the Full Tilt Poker Million Dollar Challenge played out in London, with Tom “durrrr” Dwan taking on Power Poker front man Ilari “Ziigmund” Sahamies. In the end, Dwan owned a $68,000 edge.
The 12-hour battle began with Dwan showing up to the match drowsy, fresh off a high-stakes online duel with Swedish poker player Isildur1. A press release distributed by Million Dollar Challenge organizers Matchroom Sport explained, “Overnight, he resumed his online battle with Isildur1 on Full Tilt and, after showing up without any sleep, the strain began to show towards the end of the encounter, as he admitted to feeling delusional… At one stage, it looked like he would not be able to finish, but he dug deep to not only keep the pace, but also come out on top.”
In Day One of the challenge, Dwan dropped $22,500 to Marcello “luckexpress” Marigliano over 500 hands, mostly No Limit Hold’em. Against Sahamies, the action was entirely Pot Limit Omaha, a game that Dwan has been able to master as part of the online version of the Durrrr Challenge against Patrik Antonius. In a pot that occurred late in the day in London, with the board reading 3h-Kd-Kh-8h-5d, Sahamies bet out $60,000, Dwan raised to $194,000, and Sahamies made the call. With a massive pot up for grabs, Dwan showed Kc-Jc-8c-7h for a boat, kings full of eights, while Sahamies flipped up Ac-Ks-7c-3d for a smaller full house.
In another hand, Dwan held Qc-9h-7h-5d against Sahamies’ Ad-As-9d-8c. The flop came 9d-Jc-3h and Dwan led out for $20,000. Sahamies called with his pocket rockets and the turn came the 10d, adding a straight draw for the challenger. Dwan once again led out, this time for $46,000, and Sahamies called behind to see the 7c hit the river. Dwan fired a third bullet to the tune of $129,000 and Sahamies made the call with a straight, scooping the enormous pot to put a dent in Dwan’s earnings for the day.
Dwan, the newest member of Team Full Tilt, told Matchroom Sport after play had concluded for the day, “It was a tough game, but a great one at the same time. There were some huge pots and in the end it could’ve gone either way really, but after losing out against Marcello, I’m delighted to have won today and I’m looking forward to taking on Sammy tomorrow.” On his state of mind following an overnight session against Isildur1, Dwan added, “I was a pretty tired after playing 12 hours the night before on Full Tilt, but I think the fact I was playing Ziigmund and that the challenge is an important one helped me through.”
Dwan nearly went broke early on, which would have ended the second day of the challenge, as he shoved all-in with Qs-Td-8s-5h after the flop fell 5s-9h-3s. Sahamies made the call with As-Ah-6d-Js, counterfeiting Dwan’s flush draw, but the 5d came on the turn to double Dwan up and keep the match going. Million Dollar Challenge rules state that the heads-up matches last for 500 hands or until a player has gone bust. Those who turned out to watch the melee unfold on Wednesday included Roland de Wolfe, Tony G, Ian Frazer, John Duthie, and Sammy “Any Two” George.
Dwan and George will conclude the Million Dollar Challenge today. Only a few hands have played out so far, but the action is already fast and furious. With the board reading 7-9-9-10-Q, Dwan had 7-2 for nines-up, while George held 8-5 for what ESPN announcer Norman Chad would dub “nuclear squadoosh,” a busted straight draw. Nevertheless, George led out for $66,000 and Dwan released his hand.
Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest from the Full Tilt Poker Million Dollar Challenge.
