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28 players (of 579) remain
Chip counts
Prize pool and payouts

11:45am: Welcome to Day 3 - the business end of Eureka6 Bucharest

When the money gets big, the bust-outs get brutal. It's Day 3 here in beautiful Bucharest, and just 28 of the 579 players who entered this event remain.

Today we'll be playing down to final table, and everyone has their heart set on the €107,350 first-place prize. Right now they're all guaranteed a €2,860 payday, but after just one elimination that'll increase to €3,310.

The player out in front at the beginning of play today is Bulgaria's Yasen Dichev, who stormed ahead of the pack yesterday afternoon and held the chip lead for the last few levels. He comes into today with 2.047 million.

Close behind him are Israel's Moshe Eliyahu with 1.636 million, and Romania's Razvan Costinel Belea (915,000), Jozsef Liszkovics (912,00), and Antoanell 'Toni' Judet (906,000).

Play starts at 1pm with the blinds at 8,000/16,000 and a 2,000 ante. See you shortly as we tackle the business end.

PokerStars Blog Reporting Team at Eureka6 Bucharest: Jack Stanton. Photos by Tomas Stacha. Follow the PokerStars Blog on Twitter: @PokerStarsBlog

It looked like a Brazilian was going to win the PSKO. xXOLIVATOXx was on pace to go wire-to-wire in Event #41-M, but ran out of gas three-handed. It came down to Canada's cmu92 vs. Peru's Diego 'Die Ventura' Ventura, otherwise known as the guy who is #1 all-time on Peru's money list and most known for his runner-up finish at the 2015 PCA Main Event. Back then, Ventura won his PCA seat through an online satellite in which he parlayed a few bucks into $907K. In SCOOP Event #41-M, Ventura parlayed $109 into his first SCOOP bracelet win, plus nearly $53K in prize money and bounties.

Although cmu92 held the heads-up edge, Ventura bogged down for a nearly hour-long bout. Ventura trailed for the majority of it, until he waited for the perfect time to launch a successful coup. Ventura seized the lead in a 52M pot and never looked back. Ventura sealed the deal and marched swiftly into the winner's circle, as Canada's cmu92 bid adieu in second place. Brazil would have to settle on bronze today, because the gold medal was awarded to Peru.

The medium version of SCOOP Event #41-M $109 NL Progressive Super-Knockout attracted 5,824 runners. They created a total prize pool worth $582,400. Half of it, $291,200, went toward the regular pool and the other half went toward the knockout-bounty pool. Only the top 765 places paid out with $45,554.81 set aside to the champion.

Only 152 players survived advanced to Day 2 of this two-day Super-KO bonanza. Tyler 'frosty012' Frost (291st) and Jason Mercier (302nd) both cashed, yet both busted late on Day 1 and failed to make the cut. The UK's manuverd0n ended Day 1 as the chip leader and bagged up 1.6M.

Early on Day 2 a small mob of Brazilians were making an obvious run at the final table and another SCOOP bracelet. With 56 to go, a gaggle of Brazilians were bearing down on the final table and Brazilians were 1-2-3 in chips with xXOLIVATOXx topping 2.4M, plus Pablos701 and robin01poker sitting on stacks worth 2.2M each. Random side samba note: at the time, Brazil's NesKau09 was 10th with 1.5M and Brian Rast, American exile playing under the Brazilian flag, was 20/56 with 1.1M.

With 41 to go, xXOLIVATOXx slipped to second with 3M, but four Brazilians occupied the top 7 (and Rast lurked in 19th). Brian Rast actually fizzled out in 35th place. He cashed for $626 and earned an additional $1,060 in bounties for a total score of $1,686. With 27 remaining on the final three tables, Brazil had 4 still in the hunt an 3 players in the top 5 with xXOLIVATOXx back in first with 5M and robin01poker closing in on 4M. But that's their high-water mark; a tsunami of disaster ensued. Huge tidal waves occurred with 23 to go...xXOLIVATOXx still held a firm lead but the other three the Brazilians were washed out to the back of the pack. And then the Braziliam massacre occurred. Pablos701 became the first to get liquidated in 23rd place, then robin01poker followed in 20th, before NesKau09 capped it off in 19th place. The whole time, the lone Brazilian remaining xXOLIVATOXx continued to outpace everyone and was even closing in on 9M.

With action hand-for-hand with 10 to go... short-stacked serggorelyi7 attempted to double up with [Ad][4c] but ran into PokerProffs9's [Ac][Jc]. Neither player improved on a board of [Kh][3h][2s][8d][Kc], and PokerProffs9 won the pot with a better Ace-Jack kicker. PokerProffs9 also banked a PSKO bounty worth $1,603.11. Russia's serggorelyi7 bubbled off the final table in tenth place. The final nine was set and a Brazilian was in the chip lead.

SCOOP-41-M - Final Table Chip Counts:
Seat 1: xXOLIVATOXx (20,520,376)
Seat 2: cmu92 (6,660,620)
Seat 3: Die Ventura (6,232,644)
Seat 4: PokerProffs9 (3,542,290)
Seat 5: OrFrAiRe (3,184,998)
Seat 6: bica999 (1,895,731)
Seat 7: manuverd0n (8,585,410)
Seat 8: IsoHoo123 (3,218,819)
Seat 9: 1337wannabe (4,399,112)

The final table commenced during the last minutes of Level 49 with blinds at 60K/120K and a 15K ante. xXOLIVATOXx was the biggie with 20.5M and bica999 was the short stack with 1.9M. xXOLIVATOXx was trying to win another one for the rabid Brazilians on the rail.

Diego "Die Ventura' Ventura from Peru was the runner up at the 2015 PCA Main Event and won $907K. Ventura final tabled the Sunday Million a couple of times. He's won over $2 million online and $1 million in live events.

This is the second SCOOP final for bica999, who final tabled Event #22-L.

I WANNA BE ADORNED: IsoHoo123 eliminated in 9th place

Nearly a half hour played out before we saw the first bustout. IsoHoo123 wanted to rumble and shoved with [Ac][4c] for 1,906,424, however, the big-stack xXOLIVATOXx woke up with pocket nines in the big blind. The board ran out [Qs][9c][2c][3s][Jd]. xXOLIVATOXx flopped a set of nines, which held up because IsoHoo123 never improved. Finland's IsoHoo123 became the first player to exit the final table. Ninth place paid out $2,329.60.

Big-stacked xXOLIVATOXx added another bounty to the collection and banked xXOLIVATOXx for busting IsoHoo123. Meanwhile, xXOLIVATOXx bounty increased to $4,912.14...which was the richest in the tournament.

SHE BANGS THE DRUMS: bica999 eliminated in 8th place

Super-shorty made a stand and bica999 open-shoved for 1,166,729. Two players accepted the challenge: 1337wannabe and xXOLIVATOXx. The flop was [Th][8c][6s]. 1337wannabe bet 960,000 and xXOLIVATOXx called. The [7d] fell on the turn. 1337wannabe checked-called a xXOLIVATOXx bet of 2,080,000. Both players checked the river when the [2h] fell. At showdown, 1337wannabe tabled [Js][Jc] to win the pot with pocket Jacks. Both opponents mucked their losing hands. Romania's bica999 was knocked out in eighth place, which paid out $3,640.00.

1337wannabe earned a bounty worth $957.45, meanwhile 1337wannabe's own bounty was raised to $2,636.33.

With seven to go, xXOLIVATOXx led with 23M and PokerProffs9 was the shorty with 2.5M.

MADE OF STONE: PokerProffs9 eliminated in 7th place

A couple of the shorties decided to throw down. cmu92 open-shoved for 2,261,008 and PokerProffs9 called all-in for 2,167,521, who was barely covered by cmu92. Coin flip. cmu92 raced with [2c][2s] against PokerProffs9's [Ah][Js]. The board ran out [Kd][8c][5c][6h][3h] and decues held up for cmu92. Sweden's PokerProffs9 was dunzo in seventh place, which paid out $6,552.00.

cmu92 banked a bounty worth $839.05, meanwhile, cmu92's own bounty ballooned to $3,669.60

With six to go, xXOLIVATOXx was still way ahead with 24M and manuverd0n was the new shortstack with 2.4M.

SUGAR SPUN SISTER: manuverd0n eliminated in 6th place

manuverd0n got crushed in a 13.4M pot after losing with [6d][6s] against Die Ventura's [Jd][Jh] on a crazy board of [Tc][9c][8d][9h][7s]. manuverd0 was left with 349,564 in chips and was all-in on the next hand, losing with [Ah][8d] against Die Ventura's [Kc][Qd]. Die Ventura finished off the Brit after flopping a pair of Kings on a board of [Kh][Jh][8s][2c][6c]. manuverd0n's pair of eights were no good and busted in sixth place, which paid out $9,464.00.

Die Ventura banked a bounty worth $2002.48 but his own bounty jumped to $4,102.24

With five to go, xXOLIVATOXx slipped to 21M, but was still in first. Die Ventura surged to second with 16.6M, followed by 1337wannabe (9M), cmu92 (6.1M), and OrFrAiRe (5.2M). For the first time in hours, xXOLIVATOXx had legit competition for the chip lead.

WATERFALL: 1337wannabe eliminated in 5th place

Shorty 1337wannabe clashed with xXOLIVATOXx a couple of times and even doubled up but this time, the big stack would prevail. 1337wannabe bombed it all-in for 3,446,838 with [As][2d], but xXOLIVATOXx snap-called with [Ah][Jd]. The board ran out [9h][5s][4c][Kd][4h]. 1337wannabe whiffed on a Wheel draw. Neither player improved. xXOLIVATOXx won the pot with a better kicker Ace-Jack. For a fifth-place finish, 1337wannabe earned $12,376.00.

xXOLIVATOXx won yet another bounty and banked $1,318.17, whereas the price on xXOLIVATOXx's head just went up to $6,230.30.

With four left in the hunt for the bracelet, xXOLIVATOXx led with 30M, Die Ventura was second with 17.3M, OrFrAiRe was third with 4.9M, and xXOLIVATOXx was last with 3M.

BYE BYE BADMAN: OrFrAiRe eliminated in 4th place

This bustout waited until the flop before everything went crazy. xXOLIVATOXx opened to 480,000 and OrFrAiRe called from the big blind. The flop was [Kd][7s][5d]... OrFrAiRe checked, xXOLIVATOXx fired out 480,000, OrFrAiRe check-raised all-in for 4,061,000 and isxXOLIVATOXx called.

OrFrAiRe: [Qs][7d]
xXOLIVATOXx: [9c][7h]

The turn was the [9d] and xXOLIVATOXx turned two pair. The river was the [Js], which did not help OrFrAiRe stave off an elimination. OrFrAiRe went busto in fourth place, which paid out $16,452.80.

Guess who won another bounty? xXOLIVATOXx added $918.44 to his already growing list of knockout trophies. Also, xXOLIVATOXx's own bounty jumped to $7,148.74.

With three to go, xXOLIVATOXx sat atop a stack worth 34.5M and Die Ventura was second with 16.1M. cmu92 was the shorty by default with 7.6M.

SHOOT YOU DOWN: xXOLIVATOXx eliminated in 3rd place

xXOLIVATOXx seemed destined to win this event. Alas, xXOLIVATOXx ran out of gas when it got three-handed. xXOLIVATOXx lost a 10M pot in a coinflip with [Ah][Qc] against Die Ventura's [Jh][Jc]. Atthat point, xXOLIVATOXx coughed up the lead and would never hold it again. The other two stacks chipped away at the rest of what was left of xXOLIVATOXx, but cmu92 slowly gained power. xXOLIVATOXx and cmu92 threw down in a 31M pot and cmu92 prevailed with [Qh][Qc] against xXOLIVATOXx's [7h][7d]. xXOLIVATOXx was cripped, and busted not much longer.

On the final hand... xXOLIVATOXx got it all-in for 2,289,900 with [As][6d] and cmu92 called from the big blind with [3c][2h]. Alas, a trey on the turn sealed the deal for xXOLIVATOXx when the board ran out [Qs][9s][8h][3h][9d]. cmu92 won the pot with two pair and xXOLIVATOXx busted out in third place, which paid out $24,024.00.

cmu92 banked a juicy bounty worth $3,574.37 for picking off xXOLIVATOXx. cmuu92's own bounty was bumped up to $7,243.97.

HEADS-UP: cmu92 (Canada) vs. Die Ventura (Peru)
Seat 2: cmu92 (36,955,398)
Seat 3: Die Ventura (21,284,602)

With two to go, cmu92 had seized the lead. Could Diego Ventura pull off the win? Or would Canada bring home the bacon...and the bracelet?

Die Ventura trailed for the majority of heads up until he waited for the proper spot to strike. Die Ventura trailed 32M to 26M when he won a 52M pot with a flush over flush scenario to seize the lead in tremendous fashion. There was 17.5M in the pot. The board read [Ac][Kc][Jh][Qc][5d]. Die Ventura led out for 7,020,000 cmu92 bombed it all-in for 23,363,596 and Die Ventura called all-in for 10,306,404. cmu92 lost with [9c][4c] against Die Ventura's [Jc][6c]. Die Ventura led 52.2M to 6M. It would be all over in 25 hands.

THIS IS THE ONE: cmu92 eliminated in 2nd place; Die Ventura wins the SCOOP bracelet!

Going into the final hand, cmu92 held almost exactly 8M versus 50.2M. They didn't bother waiting and just rumbled preflop. Die Ventura limped for 300,000, cmu92 shoved for 7,932,884 with [Ah][2c] and Die Ventura called with [Ac][9d]. The board ran out [Kh][8c][4s][Kd][Kc]. Neither player improved but Die Ventura won the pot with a better kicker. Die Ventura also earned a bounty worth $3,621.99 for picking off cmu92.

For a runner-up finish, cmu92 pulled off a payday worth $33,924.80.

Congrats to Peru's Diego 'Die Ventura' Ventura for winning Event #44-M. First place paid out $45,554.81 plus an additional $7,724.22 in bounties. Ventura also won a cool Movado champion's watch to commemorate his victory.

SCOOP-41-M ($109 NL Hold'em, Progressive Super-Knockout) results
Entrants: 5,824
Total prize pool: $582,400 (Regular pool: $291,200; Bounty pool: $291,200)
Places paid: 765

1. Diego 'Die Ventura' Ventura (Peru) $45,554.81 + $7,724.22 bounties
2. cmu92 (Canada) $33,924.80 + $7,243.97 bounties
3. xXOLIVATOXx (Brazil) $24,024.00 + $7,148,74 bounties
4. OrFrAiRe (Poland) $16,452.80+ $1,836,88 bounties
5. 1337wannabe (Russia) $12,376.00 + $2,636.33 bounties
6. manuverd0n (U.K.) $9,464.00 + $4,004.95 bounties
7. PokerProffs9 (Sweden) $6,552.00 + $1,678.10 bounties
8. bica999 (Romania) $3,640.00 + $1,914.90 bounties
9. IsoHoo123 (Finland) $2,329.60 + $1,308.47 bounties

Visit the SCOOP homepage for a complete schedule of remaining events. Plus. find out who is in contention for Player of the Series.

Pauly McGuire is the author of "Lost Vegas" and a freelance contributor to PokerStars Blog.

Pot Limit Omaha Hi/Lo is not exactly a spectator sport. A game where chopped pots are the norm makes it difficult viewing and when a heads-up battle lasts over two-and-a-half hours, it's not the sort of thing that will be bringing droves of new fans to the sport.

But that didn't worry bernard-bb.

The player from Finland was able to ensure a gruelling tournament and a spirited heads-up battle with Canadian Antonio7. When it looked like the duel would never end, bernard-bb flopped the nuts against the second nuts, and improved to a better low, and that was enough to scoop the SCOOP title and over $70,000 in prize money.

It was Event #42-H of the 2016 Spring Championship of Online Poker -- a $2,100 Pot Limit Omaha Hi/Lo 6-Max Event which attracted a field of 136 players. That created a prize pool of $272,000 which more than doubled the promised guarantee.

Adrienne Rowsome, Jason Somerville, Jason Mercier, George Danzer and Eugene Katchalov were amongst the starters representing Team PokerStars but sadly they were out well before the money stage.

The top 18 players would finish in the money, but at the end of the first day of play, the tournament was delicately poised with just 21 players remaining and Canada's Antonio7 leading the way:

When play resumed it would be DonkPredator, Yakiddinme and Fabrizio "SixthSenSe19" Gonzalez who missed out on the money as the remaining 18 players assured themselves at least $3,536 in prize money.

James "Andy McLEOD" Obst made another deep SCOOP run before falling in 17th place, while Team PokerStars Online's Naoya Kihara made it to 15th place.

When PlayWMyNuts lost out with two pair against the Broadway straight of bernard-bb, PlayWMyNuts was out in seventh place and our final table formed as follows:

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Final Table Line Up
Seat 1: WATnlos (74,261 in chips)
Seat 2: bratpack1979 (186,136 in chips)
Seat 3: onmybicycle (113,054 in chips)
Seat 4: bernard-bb (350,266 in chips)
Seat 5: raiden_kan (136,400 in chips)
Seat 6: Antonio7 (499,883 in chips)

The short-stacked WATnlos would be first to go. After a raise preflop and a bet on the flop, things got a little wild on the turn in a battle of the blinds between Antonio7 and WATnlos. The board read [4s][8s][8c][2s] when a raising war erupted that saw WATnlos all in with [ad][3s][jh][6h] for a low against Antonio7's [8h][5d][Ac][Js] for trip eights. There was a good chance of a split pot, until the [3h] appeared on the river to improve Antonio7 to a wheel to scoop both the high and the low. That meant former WCOOP winner WATnlos would have to depart in sixth place for $12,240.

Next to fall would be onmybicycle. After getting quartered in a hand against bernard-bb, onmybicycle got short before committing all in on a flop of [2c][5h][3s].  onmybicycle held [6d][Ad][Th][Qc] but was in a world of hurt when Antonio7 made the call with [4d][4s][As][6s] for the old nut-nut. The turn was the [ah] and river the [9d] which changed nothing, leaving onmybicycle to get on his bike and depart in fifth place for $17,680.

Four-handed play was relatively tight until the peace was broken by an enormous pot between bratpack1979 and Antonio7. After three-betting preflop, bratpack1979 raised all in on a flop of [5h][ac][th] holding [Ad][8s][2d][7s]. Antonio7 made the call with [Ah][6d][9s][3h]. The turn was the [qh] to give Antonio7 a flush and the river [7c] gave him a seven-low to scoop both sides of the pot. That left bratpack1979 to exit in fourth place for $23,120 in prize money.

Antonio7 was into the chip lead with Macau grinder raiden_kan on the short stack with three players remaining.

Antonio7 clipped bernard-bb with a full house, and then extended the lead even further with the elimination of raiden_kan.

After raising on the flop, raiden_kan was all in on the turn on a board of [8d][As][7d][8h]. Antonio7 made the call and showed [2d][8s][5d][Tc] for trips and a flush draw with a low, while raiden_kan tabled [7s][2c][Js][4s] for a better low. A brick would give raiden_kan half the pot, but the [4d] appeared which improved Antonio7 to a flush and a seven-low to scoop the pot. raiden_kan was out in third place for a $35,360 score.

Heads-up Chip Counts
Seat 4: bernard-bb (439,297 in chips)
Seat 6: Antonio7 (920,703 in chips)

Antonio7 would start with more than a two-to-one chip advantage, but while this tournament had flowed at a steady pace until this point, the heads-up battle would be a gruelling affair.

There was a trend of Antonio7 chipping ahead before bernard-bb would strike back with a big double up.

Antonio7 extended the advantage in the early stages before bernard-bb struck a nice double up with a wheel straight against two pair.  Again Antonio7 would climb back into a healthy lead but couldn't land the knockout blow with an open-ended straight draw as a flopped set for bernard-bb turned into quads for another double.

A key hand saw bernard-bb flop a set of jacks and extract full value from the two pair of Antonio7 before the final hand of the two-and-a-half hour heads-up battle was finally dealt.

Antonio7 raised from the button and bernard-bb called to see a monotone flop of [7d][td][ad]. bernard-bb check-called a bet and the turn brought the [8s]. Again the action was check, bet, call as the river [kc] completed the board. bernard-bb checked for a third time and Antonio7 didn't slow down, firing out another bet. This time bernard-bb responded with a check-raise all in and Antonio7 would make the call with [Js][6d][Qd][2c] for the second-nut flush and an 8-7-6 low. However bernard-bb tabled [3d][5s][Kd][4s] for the nut flush and a 8-7-4 low to win both sides of the pot and scoop the title!

It was a mighty heads-up battle but Antonio7 was a little unlucky in a cooler of a final hand to be eliminated in second place for $47,600. In the end it would be Finland's bernard-bb who captures the SCOOP title and $70,720 in prize money! Congratulations!

2016 SCOOP-42-H: 2,100 PL Omaha Hi/Lo [6-Max] - $100K Guaranteed
Entrants: 136
Prize Pool: $272,000
Places Paid: 18

1.  bernard-bb (Finland) $70,720.00
2.  Antonio7 (Canada) $47,600.00
3.  raiden_kan (Macao) $35,360.00
4.  bratpack1979 (Australia) $23,120.00
5.  onmybicycle (Netherlands) $17,680.00
6.  WATnlos (Germany) $12,240.00

The Spring Championship of Online Poker is the biggest and richest tournament festival of the year, with millions in prize money to be won, a packed schedule, and separate buy-in levels designed to suit all bankrolls.

A total prize pool of $40 million is guaranteed with the series running right through until May 22nd. Head to the SCOOP home page for more details.

Heath "TassieDevil" Chick is a freelance contributor to PokerStars Blog.

The two-day $27 buy-in "L" version of Event #42 -- pot-limit Omaha hi/lo, six-handed -- proved another popular choice for SCOOP players, attracting yet another huge field of 2,081 players. That meant a $51,088.55 prize pool, more than doubling the event's $25K guarantee, with the top 264 finishers getting a share of the money. In the end it came down to a four-way final table deal, followed by d5t6y7 outlasting the others to win the title and a $5,019.28 prize.

In fact, two other players would take away more, thanks to the deal -- Germany's BeAcTIve ($5,550.41) and Brazil's Nangino89 ($6,350.99) -- but d5t6y7 gets bragging rights as the last player standing in this one. 

After one day of play that big field had been whittled down to 38 players with plspaythxbye leading the way with nearly 1.6 million while everyone else was under the 1 million-chip mark. However, plspaythxbye lost a big pot early on Day 2 to surrender the lead, then tumbled down the counts to go out early on Day 2 in 31st place, cashing for $178.80.

After nearly two hours of play on Friday they were down to 18, with gangst3rn1 the new chip leader as the only player with a stack north of 3 million. A half-hour after that just 12 were left, with gangst3rn1 still on top and d5t6y7 not too far behind.

bogdaniel111 (12th), Grebinat (11th), and personal (10th) were the next players eliminated, earning $470.01 apiece. Then Stiffer1987 (ninth), mark0x0 (eighth), and kuba813 (seventh) successively fell, picking up $715.23 each.

With Nangino89 the new chip leader and BeAcTive not far behind, the final table was underway.

Seat 1: d5t6y7 (United Kingdom) -- 4,816,699
Seat 2: GRZECHO77 (Poland) -- 2,439,527 
Seat 3: Nangino89 (Brazil) -- 5,579,415 
Seat 4: Sur_OK1111 (Belarus) -- 1,027,050 
Seat 5: BeAcTlve (Germany) -- 5,319,555
Seat 6: gangst3rn1 (Germany) -- 1,627,754

On the very first hand of the final table, the blinds were 80K/160K when Sur_OK1111 opened for 560,000 from the button, d5t6y7 reraised pot from the small blind, and Sur_OK1111 called all-in with the 467,050 left behind.

Sur_OK1111 showed [As][Qc][5d][2d] while d5t6y7 had [Ad][2s][3d][9c]. The community cards came [6c][Js][9h][Jh][6s], giving d5t6y7 two pair, Sur_OK1111 just the pair of jacks on the board, and neither player a low hand, thus sending Sur_OK1111 out in sixth.

Almost 20 minutes later they'd moved through the day's four-hour mark and the blinds had jumped to 100K/200K when BeAcTlve raised to 448,000 from the cutoff and got one caller in GRZECHO77 in the big blind. The flop came [6d][3d][Qs], and after GRZECHO77 checked, BeAcTlve bet 996,000, prompting an all-in check-raise to 1,151,527 from GRZECHO77 that BeAcTlve called.

BeAcTlve showed [As][Td][6s][5s] for a pair of sixes while GRZECHO77 had [Qc][4h][3h][2s] for two pair, queens and treys. The turn was the [4s] and river the [9s], giving BeAcTIve a spade flush plus a 6-low and leaving GRZECHO77 with just those two pair, knocking the latter out in fifth.
 
One hand later the remaining four players paused the tournament to discuss a possible deal, at which point Nangino89 was leading still with about 8.36 million, with BeAcTIve next with almost 6.09 million, gangst3rn1 third with about 3.31 million, and d5t6y7 fourth with just under 3.05 million.

An "ICM"-based chop leaving $500 for which to play was proposed, and all four readily agreed. "very good i want the watch guys," typed gangst3rn1, adding "glgl." "nah, I'm gonna get the watch and the title," replied BeAcTIve, "sorry bro." All were clearly elated to have gotten this far, and excited to continue the battle as well.

Play continued and the blinds increased again to 120K/240K, then a hand arose that saw BeAcTIve open for 840,000 from UTG, d5t6y7 reraise the pot from the small blind, and BeAcTIve call all-in with the 1,197,150 left. BeAcTIve had [Ad][9s][5c][3s] while d5t6y7 showed [Ac][Ks][7s][2h]. The board then came [7h][Qs][Qc][Qd][Kc], meaning no lows, trip queens for both, and a better kicker for d5t6y7 to send BeAcTIve railward in fourth.
 
A short while later the blinds were 140K/280K when Nangino89 opened for 980,000 from under the gun, d5t6y7 reraised to 3.08 million from the big blind, and Nangino89 called with the 1,771,170 remaining.

Nangino89 showed [Kc][Jh][4h][3d] while d5t6y7 turned over [Ac][9c][3s][2c], then the board came [6d][8s][Td][6h][6c], once more yielding no low hands, three of kind to both players, and giving the pot to d5t6y7 thanks to that ace-kicker. Nangino89 was out in third.

Heads-up play began with d5t6y7 enjoying a better than 2-to-1 chip lead with 14,511,158 to gangst3rn1's 6,298,842. The pair played one all-in hand that ended with a chopped pot, with d5t6y7 getting the high and gangst3rn1 the low, and the final hand of the tournament directly followed.

With blinds still 140K/280K, d5t6y7 opened with a pot-sized raise from the button, gangst3rn1 repotted in response, d5t6y7 raised back again, gangst3rn1 put it all-in -- 6,298,892 total -- and d5t6y7 called.

gangst3rn1: [Ac][Tc][Td][4h]
d5t6y7: [Ad][5d][3d][2c]

The community cards came [Ah][3s][Jd], then [9h], then [Kh], adding up to just a pair of aces for gangst3rn1 and two pair, aces and treys, for d5t6y7, with no low for either. It was over -- d5t6y7 had won!  

Congratulations to d5t6y7 for topping a big field of more than 2,000 players to turn $27 into more than $5K and a SCOOP title. And kudos as well to the other three making it to the final table deal, including Nangino89 who didn't win another SCOOP for Brazil but did take away the largest share of the prize pool in Event #42-L.

SCOOP-42-L ($27 PL Omaha Hi/Lo) results
Entrants: 2,081
Prize pool: $51,088.55
Places paid: 264

1. d5t6y7 (United Kingdom) $5,019.28*
2. gangst3rn1 (Germany) $4,537.93*
3. Nangino89 (Brazil) $6,350.99*
4. BeAcTlve (Germany) $5,550.41*
5. GRZECHO77 (Poland) $1,915.82
6. Sur_OK1111 (Belarus) $1,077.96
*denotes four-way deal.

Earlier on this SCOOP series I covered an event that was a No Limit Holdem, Turbo, Progressive Knockout, Zoom tournament. I didn't think there was anything else that PokerStars could add to a tournament to make it more exciting. I was wrong.

Today's offering was Event #45-H on the 2016 SCOOP schedule and it was all of the above, and just to make it a little more crazy, this event was 3-Max. Yep, it was turbo zooming knockout three-handed madness! One for the degenerates!

In the end it was gortsos, hailing from the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, who overcame two failed deal negotiations as the short stack to turn things around and grab the full top prize of over $120,000!

A field of 409 entrants came together for the $2,100 buy-in event to form a prize pool of $818,000. Naoya Kihara, Liv Boeree, George Danzer, Randy Lew, Jason Mercier, Andre Akkari, Jason Somerville, Bertrand Grospeller, Johnny Lodden and George Lind represented Team PokerStars but none of the red spades would make it to the money for the top 44 players.

There were plenty of notables making a deep run in this one with Jason "jakoon1985" Koon (43rd - $4,799.89), Elio "smokrokflock" Fox (33rd - $4,799.89), Stephen "woody1234321" Woodhead (28th - $6,237.28), Adrian "Knightsgee" Attenborough (27th - $6,237.28), Philipp "philbort" Gruissem (15th - $10,593.16) and Mike "SirWatts" Watson (12th - $13,844.87) just some of those to finish in the money.

After around three-and-a-half hours of play, it would be Alex "bigfox86" Foxen who bubbled the official final table. bigfox86 moved all in preflop with [jc][qh] and €urop€an made the call with [ah][9h]. The board ran out [9d][4c][6s][9c][4d] to give €urop€an trip nines to collect the bounty and see our final table of three set as follows:

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Final Table Line Up
Seat 1: dynoalot (605,244 in chips)
Seat 2: €urop€an (2,811,365 in chips)
Seat 3: gortsos (673,391 in chips)

It was a big chip lead for €urop€an as the final table kicked off with the blinds at 14k/28k/3.5k. However it didn't take long for the three players to agree to take a look at the numbers for a potential deal. As it was announced that the clock would be paused following the hand in progress, dynoalot three-bet jammed [qh][js] and looked like missing out on the deal discussion when €urop€an called with a dominant [as][qd], but a life-saving jack appeared on the flop for a well-timed double up.

With that, the clock was paused and the numbers were presented for both ICM and chip count. As the big stack, and a former SCOOP Heads-Up champion, €urop€an tried to extract a little more value, asking for almost $5,000 more than ICM provided. However his opponents wouldn't budge and play would continue with no deal struck.

As so often happens when you're the one asking for more at the deal negotiations, things started to go backwards for our chip leader. The two shorties chipped away to close the gap before dynoalot won a nice pot at showdown with ace-three for fourth pair on board as €urop€an mucked.

Two hands later dynoalot opened with a raise from the button and €urop€an three-bet jammed from the small blind. dynoalot made the call with [ah][7h] but was dominated by €urop€an's [ac][9s]. However the poker Gods delivered a board of [Kh][8c][7s][5c][4d] to pair up dynoalot's kicker for the knockout blow. €urop€an is probably regretting the hardball negotiation tactics which shaved over $50,000 from his final winnings, but he still takes home $41,173.99 plus bounties for third place.

Heads-up Chip Counts
Seat 1: dynoalot (3,025,017 in chips)
Seat 3: gortsos (1,064,983 in chips)

Once again the clock was paused and the two players would look at a potential deal. However it was almost an instant replay of the earlier negotiations, this time with dynoalot playing the role of the big stack bully. After numbers were presented dynoalot wanted close to another $5,000 on his figure. gortsos was willing to give up about $1,700, but again neither player would budge, so play resumed once more without a deal.

Following the break, it was a case of the short stack fighting back again with gortsos landing a crucial double up with ace-nine holding against dynoalot's ace-four.

gortsos was winning more than a fair share of pots, and briefly edged into the chip lead for the first time, but dynoalot was quick to steady the ship and snatch back control.

dynoalot had a chance to win it all with a coinflip holding [ah][ts] with all the chips in preflop against gortsos' [2d][2h]. The board bricked out [9h][Ks][7d][Kd][6d] to give gortsos a huge double up and leave dynoalot in trouble.

With dynoalot slipping down to under ten big blinds, gortsos put on maximum pressure and moved all in preflop with [qd][8s]. dynoalot made a good call with [kh][6s] for the best hand but the board of [5h][3d][3c][8h][6h] would give gortsos a pair of eights to grab the bounty and the title!

dynoalot would have to be content with $71,315.39 plus bounties for second place while gortsos survived this crazy format and two failed deal negotiations to scoop the title and a massive prize of $123,522.15 plus another $10,302.34 in bounties! Congratulations!

2016 SCOOP-45-H: 2,100 NL Holdem [3-Max, Turbo, Progressive KO, Zoom] - $500K Guaranteed
Entrants: 409
Prize Pool: $818,000
Places Paid: 44

1.  gortsos (F.Y.R.O.M) $123,522.15 (+$10,302.34 in bounties)
2.  dynoalot (Canada) $71,315.39 (+$8,667.18 in bounties)
3.  €urop€an (Finland) $41,173.99 (+$14,334.37 in bounties)

The Spring Championship of Online Poker is the biggest and richest tournament festival of the year, with millions in prize money to be won, a packed schedule, and separate buy-in levels designed to suit all bankrolls.

A total prize pool of $40 million is guaranteed with the series running right through until May 22nd. Head to the SCOOP home page for more details.

Heath "TassieDevil" Chick is a freelance contributor to PokerStars Blog.

On Thursday, SCOOP-40-H: $2,100 8-Game, a tournament that boasted a $100,000 guarantee, attracted 125 players to the virtual felt, which crushed that GTD by creating an even $250,000 prize pool. In the end, "kuhns89" won the title, just as he did the year before.

That's right, in the 2015 SCOOP, kuhns89 topped a field of 158 entrants to win SCOOP-35-H: $2,100 8-Game, and against all odds - which included being down in chips to Sergey "Gipsy74" Rybachenko during heads-up play -- he defended his title for his fourth career SCOOP win.

Calvin Anderson Bubbles the Final Table

The tournament attracted some of the game's best including Team PokerStars Pros George Danzer, Eugene Katchalov, Jason Mercier, Jason Somerville, and Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, among others. Unfortunately, with just 18 places getting paid, none of the Team Pros walked away with a payday.

Instead, it was the likes of "Naza114" (18th - $3,250), Ravenswood (10th - $5,375), Ronny "1-ronnyr3" Kaiser (9th - $8,125), and the all-time SCOOP title holder Calvin "cal42688" Anderson (7th - $8,125), who actually bubbled the final table.

When the two-day tournament went on break, just six players remained with Chris "Apotheosis92" Kruk and his stack of 313,369 leading the way.

Here's a look at how things stacked up at the start of the final table:

Chris "Apotheosis92" Kruk - 313,369
Sergey "Gipsy74" Rybachenko - 312,268
kuhns89 - 181,481
7Be/\eC7 - 170,304
Alex "dynoalot" Difelice - 144,974
RunGodlike - 127,604
 

7Be/\eC7 Exits First; Difelice Follows Him Out the Door in Fifth

The final table kicked off with the elimination of Belarus' "7Be/\eC7," who took home $11,250 for his sixth-place finish, and then Alex "dynoalot" Difelice followed him out the door in fifth. It happened in a round of Omaha Hi/Lo with the blinds at 5,000/10,000 when "RunGodLike" (241,346) raised to 20,000 under the gun and "Kuhns89" (175,287) called from the small blind. Difelice did the same from the big and three players took a flop of [jd][3d][9s].

Kuhns89 checked, Difelice bet 10,000, and both his opponents called to see the [4d] turn. This time Kuhns89 led out for 20,000, Difelice called off his remaining 116, and RunGodLike called, which brought about the [qs] river. Kuhn89 bet again, and this time RunGodLike folded.

With no qualifying low, Difelice tabled the [5d][7d][10h][2h] for a flush, but it was no good as Kuhn89 held a better flush with the [kd][8d][as][5h]. Difelice took home $16,250 for his fifth-place finish.

Rybachenko Boats Up in Stud to Send RunGodLike Out in Fifth

In a round of $12,000/$24,000 Limit Stud, Rybachenko (519,051) brought it in for 3,600 showing the [6s] and RunGodLike (60,346), who just a few days ago won SCOOP-33-H ($2,100 Stud Hi/Lo) results for $54,390, completed to 12,000 with the [qs]. Rybachenko then bet double after pairing on fourth street, which prompted RunGodLike to move all in for 45,946. Rybachenko called and the rest of their boards were run out.

Rybachenko: ([8c][8d]) [6s][6c][4d][8s] ([js])
RunGodLike: ([Th][9h]) [qs][ks][Ts][kc] ([jh])

Rybachenko filled up on sixth street, and RunGodLike failed to catch on seventh to fall in fourth place for $21,250.

Kruk's Run Comes to an End in Third Place

The start-of-the-day chip leader, Chris "Apotheosis92" Kruk, had grown short, and in a round of 12,000/24,000/2,400 Limit Stud Hi/Lo, he got it in against Rybachenko. It happened when the latter brought it in for 3,600 with the [6c] showing and Kruk, who had the [ac] up, completed to 12,000, leaving himself just 400 behind. Rybachenko raised and Kruk called off.

Kruk: ([qs][ad]) [ac][7h][3h][2c] ([Tc])
Rybachenko: (5d][jh]) [6c][4d][8s][6s] ([7d])

Kruk got it in good with aces, but he failed to improve upon them. Meanwhile, Rybachenko was behind through sixth street, but then he caught a seven on seventh to make a straight. With no low, Kruk, who earlier in the series finished runner-up in Event #8-H ($1,050 NLHE Heads-Up), was sent to the rail in this place for $32,500.

kuhn89 Battles Back From Chip Deficit to Claim 4th SCOOP Title

Heads-up play began with Rybachenko holding 934,997 in chips to kuhns89's 315,003, but the latter held steadfast, battle into the chip lead, and then went for the knockout blow in a round of 4,000/8,000 pot-limit Omaha.

It happened when kuhns89 (975,903) called from the button and Rybachenko (274,097) checked his option to see a [jc][3c][4h] flop. Rybachenko checked, kuhns89 bet 12,000, and Rybachenko check-raised to 52,000. kuhns89 made it 172,000 to go and then called when Rybachenko moved all in for 266,097.

Rybachenko: [ks][jh][qh][js]
kuhns89: [5c2c5djd]

Rybachenko flopped top set, but kuhns89 was drawing to both straight and flush draws. The [6c] turn gave kuhns89 the flush, which left Rybachenko looking for the board to pair on the river. It didn't though as the [Td] bricked.

Ryabachenko took home $43,750 for his runner-up finish while kuhns89 captured his fourth SCOOP title and a $65,000 first-place prize.

SCOOP-40-H: $2,100 8-Game, $100K Guaranteed
Entrants: 125
Prize Pool: $250,000
Place Paid: 18

1st - kuhns89 (Austria) $65,000
2nd - Sergey "Gipsy74" Rybachenko (Russia) $43,750
3rd - Chris "Apotheosis92" Kruk (Canada) $32,500
4th - RunGodLike (UK) $21,250
5th - Alex "dynoalot" Difelice (Canada) $16,250
6th - 7Be/\eC7 (Belarus) $11,250

This year's SCOOP is winding down, but until it does can find recaps for each event right here on the PokerStars Blog.

Jason Somerville has kicked off his shoes and let them rest under a chair toward the back of the room. He shuffling around, reserving--maybe restraining--his energy. In front of him sit dozens of people, all waiting for only one thing: what Somerville will say next.

From a few feet away, someone suggests it's time for Somerville to get started. The young man, one legions of people know as jcarver, responds first by clicking his iPhone and holding the screen up for all to see. It reads 4:57pm.

The implication is clear: Somerville is supposed to start just because everybody in the room is ready? What if somebody is running down the hall trying to make it to the Q&A before the first question?

"I'm an on-time kind of guy," Somerville says aloud, and resumes kicking his stockinged-feet around the carpet of the Resorts Hotel ballroom.

Promptly at 5pm--and not a second later--Somerville grabs the microphone and opens up what amounts to a live version of a Reddit Ask Me Anything.

"This is your chance to ask things you were too embarrassed to ask in Twitch chat," Somerville tells his assembled fans. "I can't imagine what that would be."

The on-time kind of guy is ready to once again live his life aloud in front of a crowd.

The Machine

For the the uninitiated, Jason Somerville's resume begins like a lot of modern poker players. He took empty pockets and turned them into a small fortune. Before he was 20 years years old, he turned $100 into $100,000 in the span of one year. Since then, he's won millions of dollars and a legion of fans, and he's done it in a way that nearly no one else in the poker realm has managed to do.

For more on Somerville's back story, read this in-depth profile from 2014

Unlike live poker pros who are only concerned with grinding all day everyday between the solitude of their headphones, and unlike the online pros who sit before a bank of monitors covered in finely-tuned Heads-Up Displays of their opponents' statistical proclivities, Somerville is a pro of a different sort. Sure he plays poker almost all day and almost every day, but he does it live on the internet's Twitch platform for all his fans to watch. It's part of a small empire Somerville has built for himself, one he calls Run It Up, and one that has afforded him celebrity status both in the poker world and online gaming communities. Just last week, he had 30,000 people watching him simultaneously while he played a PokerStars Spring Championship of Online Poker event. If he'd been playing in Madison Square Garden, he could've filled up the arena with his fans and left 12,000 outside waiting to get in.

This is not something that only happens occasionally. That kind of one-day event adds up to millions of views per month from people who subscribe to his channel for $4.99, paying to be a part of the Run It Up warrior nation, people who watch Somerville during his hours-long streams that he has, in the past, done for up to 70 consecutive days.

How does he do it? What makes him so special?

Well, there are a lot of things, but there is one that he specifically confessed that Saturday afternoon in Atlantic City.

"I'm beyond the point in my life where I want to be a cog in someone else's machine," he said.

Rainmaker

This afternoon, sitting off in the wings, is a man with a wide smile on his face. Each joke Somerville cracks makes the man's smile wider. If you watched close enough, you'd see there is more than amusement on his face. Each smile is lit up with pride. Scott, Jason's father, is for the first time getting to watch his son perform live.

"I don't know how he talks and stays creative and energetic from beginning to end," Scott admits. "He has endless energy."

For more about the event, see Run It Up Resorts Rumble: A destination and a journey

Somerville's parents drove to Atlantic City from Long Island where Scott is a builder. They've been watching their son turn himself into a one-man online empire for the past decade, but they'd never seen him work a crowd. It would be a heady moment for any parent. It's one thing to see your son'd first paycheck. It's another thing to see him signing autographs.

"My wife and I thought he would be a lawyer because he's so good at arguing, so good at debating," Scott said. "This was his own creation."

That's not to say the first paycheck wasn't momentous, as well. A decade ago, when Somerville was still a teenager, he woke up his father at 3am to announce he'd just won $35,000 in a poker tournament. Scott, sleepy and nonplussed, responded as any father might.

"I said, 'Sure, son. Show me when the check comes,'" Scott said. "The check arrived, and we went out and bought him a new sports car. That made it real. From that point he has been a meteorite."

It's a marvelous and awe-inspiring thing for a man who thought his son would enter one of the more traditional professional fields.

"You and I come from different places. We're nuts and bolts guys. The kids though, the internet is in their blood," Scott said, marveling as his son made time for another fan. "He aspired to it. That microphone can be intimidating, but he knew he wanted to overcome it and get comfortable. He puts himself into it 24/7, even when he comes home to relax. He doesn't have time to relax because he's constantly trying to make what he does better."

His parents are not without concern for Somerville's workaholic ethic. There are nights Somerville will call his dad after a long stream and beg off the call because he has three more hours of work to do before the night is over. It's the kind of thing that makes a parent want to anchor their child and make sure he doesn't burn out.

At the same time, Jason's parents encourage him from a respectable distance, knowing that their son's success has come almost entirely through his own magic and his ability to make something from nothing.

"I call him The Rainmaker, because he made rain from nothing. He made money from nothing. You can't have anything but pride," Scott said.

Brain, heart, gut

In the middle of the room, Somerville is explaining himself for all to hear.

"I don't want to deal with other people," he says unapologetically.

This isn't some sort of blind and misguided misanthropy. It's something Somerville learned on his way up. He is good when he works with others. He's had partnerships with major sports organizations, daily fantasy businesses, and live casinos. His Run It Up life is intricately tied with both the Twitch platform and PokerStars. Nevertheless, Somerville's experience has taught him that he doesn't only want to be the only cook in the kitchen. He wants to own the damned kitchen, too. Or, to repeat: "I'm beyond the point in my life where I want to be a cog in someone else's machine."

This mindset translates into a man who is part professor, part showman, part motivational speaker, and part politician. At one point in the Q&A, Somerville turns a question about whether he can inspire a new poker boom into a diatribe about the short-sighted and hypocritical American gaming laws that--with the exception of a few states--prohibit Americans from playing online poker.

"Doesn't it make you angry? "Isn't it so dumb?" Somerville railed. "Let's use this angst," he said. "We can use this passion...for change."

If there a fuel additive for what drives Somerville to spend nearly every waking moment at work, it appears to be passion. It's a word he uses a lot but never lightly. Even when he may be flagging, he finds a little extra energy in people who still give a damn about wanting to see poker and poker players succeed. He recognizes that what he's doing is more than making money doing a thing he does better than anybody else. He sees that he, too, can be an agent of change. In other words, he may not want to be a cog in someone else's machine, but he's more than ready to be the driving wheel in an engine of progress.

"I haven't felt this passionate about poker in a long time," Somerville said.

And so he plans. Next week, he's taking his Run it Up show to Reno, and if he gets his way, he'll be doing this sort of live event as many as four times a year in America and maybe overseas. In between those, he'll stream on Twitch all the time. He also mentioned taking the occasional two-week break, but it's unclear if he actually believed he would.

His last bit of poker advice to the Resorts crowd was simple: "Use your brain, your gut, and your heart. That's more than enough to make money playing poker."

If you're Jason Somerville, that was also exactly what it took to be a rainmaker.

By the time the Q&A session ended, an hour had flashed by. Somerville waited for anyone to dredge up any more questions before telling the assembled fans he'd see them at the party that night. A couple of hours later, Somerville showed up at a fete that might as well have been hosted in his honor. He could've easily cloistered himself at a table full of people who wouldn't badger him. Instead, he walked the room, making sure he saw all of the people who had traveled so far to see him.

And then, just like that, he was gone, getting on a plane to fly back to Canada so he could hop right back on his Twitch stream and finish up the Spring Championship of Online Poker.

Somerville called himself an on-time kinda guy, and in the moment he was speaking literally. Regardless, for anyone watching him that day, the meaning was greater:

Somerville is not only a man who is prompt, but he is also a man who has appeared at just the right time for poker and the people who love it.