From November 10-17, 888poker hosted its annual “God of the Arena” Progressive Knockout (PKO) Series. The series was comprised of 24 tournaments with more than $1 million in guaranteed prize pools in tournaments ranging in buy-ins from $8.80 up to $320.
By the end of the series, 22,300 entrants partook in the two dozen tournaments, which awarded a combined $1,170,087 in prize money!
The series didn’t have any repeat winners, but there were champions spanning the globe. Among the countries to claim titles were Ukraine, Malta, Germany, Russia, Kazakhstan, Canada, Costa Rica, Thailand, Latvia, Argentina, and Brazil.
Brazilians Perform in Spades
No country captured more titles during the PKO Series than Brazil, who won 25 per cent of the events. They got off to a hot start when “GoldoJuninho” topped a 794-entry field to win Event #1: $150,000 9-Max for $26,618.54.
In the middle of the series, Brazilian players took down four consecutive tournaments:
- “MARIMBONDO1” won $16.50 buy-in Event #11: $20,000 Mini 8-Max (1,577 entries) for $3,242.52
- “YetiCara” won $33 buy-in Event #12: $10,000 Late 8-Max (514 entries) for $2,644.88
- “pvss10” won $109 buy-in Event #13: $30,000 9-Max (384 entries) for $7,906.56
- “Ednaldo5” won $16.50 buy-in Event #14: $20,000 Mini 9-Max (1,405 entries) for $3,243.35
The Brazilian contingent then closed things out with a final victory when “batistafaell” bested a 1,032-entry field to win Event #17: $15,000 Mini Freezeout for $2,349.21.
Russia’s “pokanuktus” Wins PKO Series Main Event for $42K+
888poker’s popular God of the Arena PKO Series wrapped up Sunday with the last tournaments on its 24-event schedule.
The $320 buy-in PKO Series Main Event surpassed its $300K GTD by drawing 847 players who rebought 203 times. That created a $315,000 prize pool that was split equally between the regular and bounty prize pools.
The top 108 players got paid and some of those to make deep runs were “alexos888” (35th for $661.50 + $1,340.64 in bounties), “EyeofSkadi” (20th for $756 + $2,191.41 in bounties), “2MuchBluffBG” (12th for $1,701 + $2,966.01 in bounties), “Madeon1994” (8th for $3,480.75 + $3,283.01 in bounties), “TrollKonst8” (4th for $11,497.50 + $4,659.20 in bounties), and “Dedwa789” (3rd for $15,356.25 + $1,450.78 in bounties).
It took 13 hours and 10 minutes for the tournament to conclude and did so with Russia’s “pokanuktus” beating out “BreakYaNeck9” to win the match for a $28,507.50 top prize and $14,284.93 progressive bounty.
Argentina’s “W.Klix” Wins PKO Series Warm Up
In other PKO Series action, the $109 buy-in Event #22: $100,000 Warm Up drew 950 players who rebought 311 times. That created a $126,100 prize pool that was split equally between the regular and bounty prize pools.
The top 126 got paid including “FToFTW” (56th for $176.54 + $165.63 in bounties), “IlovePickles” (29th for $252.20 + $37.50 in bounties), “888topPair” (14th for $504.40 + $1,028.14 in bounties), “GramNaKartke” (9th for $756.60 + $412.50 in bounties), and “ruslanftw” (3rd for $6,115.95 + $1,490.10 in bounties).
After 10 hours and 21 minutes, it was Argentina’s “W.Klix” besting “windiswild” in heads-up play to win the title, an $11,349.23 top prize, and the $5,957.13 progressive knockout bounty.
“ole_schemion” Victorious in Event #4: $30,000 8-Max
When it came to notable winners, “ole_schemion” was a big name that stood out. He navigated a 697-entry field (503 unique + 154 rebuys) to win Event #4: $30,000 8-Max for a $3,310.99 top prize plus the $3,085.34 progressive knockout.
Others to cash the tournament were “AUTISPOSTI” (2nd for $2,439.50 + $837.28 in bounties), “CoinShipper” (7th for $435.63 + $202.73 in bounties), “frost3g” (16th for $200.38 + $96.29 in bounties), and “Dekin81” (24th for $151.59 + $67.58 in bounties).
Here’s a look at all those who captured titles during the 2019 PKO Series:
Event #1: $150,000 9-Max … “GoldoJuninho” (Brazil) for $26,618.54
Event #2: $30,000 Mini 9-Max … “NakedNaked” (Ukraine) for $5,890.06
Event #3: $20,000 Late 9-Max … “Fukuruku” (Ukraine) for $5,876.16
Event #4: $30,000 8-Max … “ole_schemion” (Malta) for $6,396.33
Event #5: $10,000 Mini 8-Max … “Marco.Z2308” (Germany) for $1,813.11
Event #6: $10,000 Late 8-Max … “CunningGrccn” (Russia) for $2,554.57
Event #7: $50,000 9-Max … “Monoquilho” (N/A) for $11,149.34
Event #8: $20,000 Mini 9-Max … “Igor2218” (Russia) for $3,105
Event #9: $15,000 Late 9-Max … “Cstl01” (Kazakhstan) for $4,153.08
Event #10: $30,000 8-Max … “sasasa137” (Canada) for $7,321.10
Event #11: $20,000 Mini 8-Max … “MARIMBONDO1” (Brazil) for $3,242.52
Event #12: $10,000 Late 8-Max … “YetiCara” (Brazil) for $2,644.88
Event #13: $30,000 9-Max … “pvss10” (Brazil) for $7,906.56
Event #14: $20,000 Mini 9-Max … “Ednaldo5” (Brazil) for $3,243.35
Event #15: $10,000 Late 9-Max … “mr_perdun” (Russia) for $2,544.39
Event #16: $20,000 Freezout … “DayMan.” (Costa Rica) for $3,656.22
Event #17: $15,000 Mini Freezout … “batistafaell” (Brazil) for $2,349.21
Event #18: $10,000 Late Freezout … “Winter__96” (Ukraine) for $2,562.74
Event #19: $30,000 6-Max … “penfolds6” (Thailand) for $8,539.69
Event #20: $20,000 Mini 6-Max … “i2out” (Latvia) for $3,093.79
Event #21: $10,000 Late 6-Max … “franktheish” (N/A) for $3,680.97
Event #22: $100,000 Warm Up … “W.Klix” (Argentina) for $17,306.36
Event #23: $300,000 Main Event … “pokanuktus” (Russia) for $42,792.43
Event #24: $50,000 Mini Main Event … “Atoms4Peace” (Ukraine) for $9,511.98
