Max Neugebauer Wins WSOP Europe Main Event for $1.63 million in Rozvadov

The World Series of Poker Europe Main Event has been won at King’s Casino in Rozvadov and it is Max Neugebauer who has won his first-ever WSOP bracelet. With a total of 817 entries, the top prize of €1.5 million equated to around $1.63 million in dollars. The Austrian Neugebauer, who stood tall among his fellow players at over two meters tall, rose highest and took that career-high score and the bracelet after beating the overnight chip leader Eric Tsai heads-up.

An Early Elimination

Heading into the final day, no-one had more than 100 big blinds, but one man was close. After the elimination of Yulian Bogdanov from Bulgaria in 9^th for $125,400, it was the Taiwanese player Eric Tsai who led with 23,650,000 chips to his name. Holding 95 big blinds and a massive lead over his closest challenger, Lithuanian player Kasparas Klezys with 13,950,000 (56BB).

Behind the top two, players such as Austria’s Max Neugebauer (41BB), German professional Nils Pudel (40BB), American Michael Rocco (32BB), Italian Michele Tocci (26BB) and Ukraine’s Ruslan Volkov (24BB) jockeyed for position with only Sweden’s Alf Martinsson looking cut adrift on seven big blinds.

It took just twenty minutes for one of the eight to bust and it was the Swedish player Martinsson, who departed. He moved all-in for precisely ten big blinds with and ran into Italian Michele Tocci’s . The flop of kept the Swedish player behind and while the turn added counterfeit outs for him to counterfeit Tocci’s tens if another queen came, instead a on the river gave the Italian a full house and sent Martinsson to the rail for $160,500.

A period of play without anyone busting then proceeded to whittle down the average number of big blinds. No-one had more than 62 bigs, with Tsai still leading, while no-one on less than 20 bigs. Next to leave was the Ukrainian player Ruslan Volkov in seventh place for $209,900. He was that short stacked player, and was very unlucky to lose his seat. All-in with , he was ahead of Klezys’ after the flop of , but the turn changed everything and the river sent the Ukrainian home.

From Hero to Zero

Over the course of an hour of play, the chips were shuffled around the table with alarming regularity. Or at least, alarmingly for former chip leader Eric Tsai who went from chip leader with seven remaining to the shortie with six left, holding just 14 big blinds. Another player who was short was Max Neugebauer, but the 6’ 8” former basketball player scored a three-pointer when his doubled through Tocci’s as the jack-high runout helped the eventual winner survive when his tournament life was on the line.

There was no such luck for German player Nils Pudel. He moved all-in for 13 big blinds with but ran into the brick wall of Michael Rocco’s . The board of saw Pudel drawing dead after the turn and he was sent to the rail for a score of $277,400 – the largest of his poker career to date and almost half his earnings at the live felt.

Despite crushing Pudel in that hand, Rocco’s tournament ended next. Running short, the last remaining American player in the final five busted when his shove couldn’t topple Tocci’s call with . A seven came on the flop but no further help arrived for Rocco’s who shook hands with his conqueror and made his way to the cash desk to collect $370,900 in fifth place.

Slam Dunk for Neugebauer as Tsai Pays Off the Champ

“I felt like there was some void that needed to be filled. Poker was that for me.” ~ Max Neugebauer

Twice in the early exchanges of four-handed poker, Eric Tsai paid off Max Neugebauer, so much so that by the time the dust settled, Tsai had dropped from 30 million to half that amount and Neugebauer had doubled his stack up to 41 million chips. The Austrian now had more than double anyone else’s stack and 70 big blinds. Between them, his three opponents had just 65 big blinds, and the shift in momentum was telling.

Kasparas Klezys was the next player to go, as the Lithuanian busted in fourth place for $504,700. All-in with just , he also lost his stack to Neugebauer, as the Austrian’s prevailed, a flop of followed by a turn of the . Klezys needed a two-outer miracle to survive but the wasn’t it and the Lithuanian headed to the rail as Neugebauer further strengthened his stranglehold on proceedings.

Neugebauer had largely had the best of it when calling off his opponents’ all-ins but not when he eliminated Michele Tocci. The Italian was all-in for just four big blinds with the best of it, holding , but Neugebauer’s managed to find a miracle on the river as the board came to give the overwhelming chip leader a three-outer to send play heads-up.

With a vast chip lead of 64.1 million to Tsai’s 17.4 million, Neugebauer was close to glory and by far the biggest achievement of his poker career to date. Tsai had recovered a little to 24 million by the time he shoved with on a board of . Neugebauer had work to do, only holding and knowing that if he called and was wrong, he would suddenly be behind in the chips.

But feint heart never won a poker tournament, and the Austrian made the call, delighted to see that his middle pair was good for the title and $1.63 million top prize. Tsai, for so long the chip leader in the event, had to be happy with $969,100.

“When I stopped playing basketball, I started playing poker,” said Neugebauer after the event. “The competition part and the part of improving and working on your game was really important to me and I felt like there was some void that needed to be filled. Poker was that for me. The bracelet itself means a lot. And then it’s actually the WSOP Main Event means even a bit more. What means most to me, honestly, is my friends being here and cheering me on.”