The first two days of SCOOP 2016 have been very good for Brazilian poker players. With three titles through the first 11 events, the Southern Hemisphere powerhouse nation was already doing well. A fourth title in the 12th event became a certainty once play became heads-up in Event #4-H, as both seats were filled by Brazilians. In the end, it was Rafael "GM_VALTER" Moraes who outlasted Kelvin_FP:AR after cutting a deal to earn another champion's watch for Brazil.

There's hardly a phrase in any language that can get poker players to turn out more reliably than "$1,000,000 guaranteed prize pool," and turn out they did for Event #4-H. The million guarantee came and went early, and the 887 players together built a total prize pool of $1,774,000, with more than $325,000 scheduled for whoever outlasted the field. The top 99 spots paid out a minimum of $4,080.20 and ended up filled with plenty of familiar names before the end of Day 1. Among those who earned a payday were Team Online's Naoya "nkeyno" Kihara (87th place, $4,435), James "Andy McLEOD" Obst (76th, $4,789.80), Shaun "shaundeeb" Deeb (73rd, $4,789.80), Andrija "cynicalfish" Martic (48th, $6,031.60), and Tomas "T 54 T 97s" Paiva (43rd, $6,031.60).

Team Pro's Jake Cody carried on to Day 2 but finished up early (23rd place, $8,870), as did Praytush "Shane Gamble" Buddiga (21st, $8,870) and Martin "nizmo jiz" Kozlov (19th, $8,870). By 9:40pm ET the last nine players were ready to begin the three-hour journey to the tournament's end:

Seat 1: MB TREMENDO (929,293 in chips)
Seat 2: Ben "Sauce123" Sulsky (935,424 in chips)
Seat 3: Ivan "BanicIvan" Banic (796,695 in chips)
Seat 4: Kelvin_FP:AR (1,319,529 in chips)
Seat 5: Rafael "GM_VALTER" Moraes (4,126,023 in chips)
Seat 6: Chance "ChanceCU" Kornuth (5,109,270 in chips)
Seat 7: BeerAndCoke (1,325,769 in chips)
Seat 8: Subv (766,382 in chips)
Seat 9: SeeYouAnte18 (2,431,615 in chips)

It took 34 hands to see the first player eliminated, spanning from the 16K/32K/4K level at the beginning, through the entire 20K/40K/5K level, and on to 25K/50K/6.25K. Nobody else at the table saw their stack go up, but 2012 SCOOP winner and 2014 WCOOP finalist Ben "Sauce123" Sulsky climbed from 935K to 3.05M, winning three different pots worth more than 1,000,000 chips, making him the only player at the table to win more than one such pot in the early going. Only the first of those - holding [Ad] [Qs] on a board of [Td] [2c] [9d] [Qc] [7c] for 1.24M chips - required a showdown.

Finally, Ivan "BanicIvan" Banic, who had watched his stack lose a third of its value through blinds and antes, opened all-in for 502K, holding [Ah] [Kd]. The action got to the small blind and Subv re-shoved to isolate. The tactic worked and Subv's [6d] [6s] got heads-up as a small favorite, eventually turning into a seven-high straight tot ake the 1.11M-chip pot when the board ran out [3h] [5h] [4c] [Ts] [7d]. With that, BanicIvan exited in 9th place ($23,062).

Subv picked up [9d] [9h] on the very next hand but couldn't win a second straight race, losing out to the all-in BeerAndCoke's [As] [Tc] to drop right back to 405K. Subv was chipped down to under 242K before picking up [Ad] [3h] in the big blind and calling all-in against a BeerAndCoke raise from the small blind. It was a steal attempt with [Ts] [2d], and a pair of treys on the river gave Subv a double back to 535K.

The next big blind saw Subv pick up another small ace, this time [Ac] [5d], and raise all-in after a button opener from 2013 SCOOP winner Chance "ChanceCU" Kornuth. Kornuth called with [Kh] [Qc] and ran down a king-high straight on the river of the [6h] [9c] [Jh] [Ad] [Tc] board, sending Subv to the rail in 8th place ($39,028).

That gave Kornuth the lead at 6.18M chips. Sulsky quickly cut into it for his fourth seven-figure win of the final table, raising under the gun and then calling Kornuth's late-position re-raise before check-raising all-in on the [9h] [Qc] [7h] flop to take the 1.81M-chip pot without showdown. Kornuth struck back with a 1.55M-chip win of his own three hands later, getting value from SeeYouAnte18 with leading bets on the [Ts] [3s] [6d] flop and [2d] turn before firing all-in on the [5h] river to take the pot.

2015 SCOOP winner and MicroMillions 8 champ Kelvin_FP:AR got in on the action too, re-raising all-in for 815K from the button on the next hand with [Ks] [Qh] and topping Sulsky's [4c] [4d] with a full house when the board came [2s] [Qc] [7d] [2d] [Qs]. Then MB TREMENDO did the same to Kornuth, re-raising all-in with [Js] [Jd] in the small blind and holding up on a [8h] [Ts] [9c] [5s] [4s] board to beat Kornuth's [Ad] [Jh] and double to 2.56M.

One orbit later SeeYouAnte18, a Sunday Warm-Up finalist last week and twice a SCOOP finalist, picked up [Ah] [Td] in the hijack seat and opened the betting by moving all-in for 813K. Rafael "GM_VALTER" Moraes, a Super Tuesday winner back in 2014, called in the big blind with [Ac] [Kc], caught a king on the flop, and never looked back. The board ran out [3s] [5d] [Kd] [8s] [Qc], and SeeYouAnte18 waved goodbye in 7th place ($56,768).

Chance Kornuth didn't have similar luck with Big Slick a few hands later, and Kelvin_FP:AR was the beneficiary. The Brazilian opened for 135K, a bit more than the minimum, and kicked off a raising war that ended with Kornuth calling Kelvin_FP:AR's all-in four-bet for 1.62M. Kelvin_FP:AR held [7d] [7s] and had to dodge so many outs after the [Qd] [Td] [5d] flop that the made hand was actually a 41.1-percent underdog to win after starting off the favorite. But the [4c] turn and [9h] river were safe, and Kelvin_FP:AR dragged the largest pot of the final table so far at 3.38M chips.

GM_VALTER didn't have to work quite as hard for the next pot to weigh in as the largest. After flopping a ten-high straight on the button with [9h] [7h], Moraes flat-called MB TREMENDO's 270K bet to keep the pot three-way with Kelvin_FP:AR. Then he got value from MB TREMENDO on the [9s] turn and [Ah] river, showing down the straight to drag the 4.73M-chip pot.

BeerAndCoke doubled up a few hands later after three-betting all-in with [As] [Ah] against Kornuth's [Ac] [Qs], but Ben Sulsky wouldn't fare as well two hands after that with his own big pair against A-Q. After opening for a modest 175K and seeing Kelvin_FP:AR re-raise to 455K on the button, Sulsky mulled his decision for a bit and then shoved for 1.86M. Kelvin_FP:AR called with [Ah] [Qc], looking for three outs, and caught one on the [As] [Jc] [8s] flop. Faint hope of a back-door flush or straight materializing was dashed on the [Jd] turn, and Kelvin_FP:AR scooped up the 3.88M chips in play after the [7s] river to send Ben "Sauce123" Sulsky out in 6th place ($74,508).

VAMOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

The last five players were led by the last two Brazilians in the tournament:

Seat 1: MB TREMENDO (830,546 in chips)
Seat 4: Kelvin_FP:AR (5,311,177 in chips)
Seat 5: GM_VALTER (6,993,086 in chips)
Seat 6: ChanceCU (2,424,895 in chips)
Seat 7: BeerAndCoke (2,180,296 in chips)

Not content just to hold down the top spots, the two looked to close out the rest of the international competition and make the final all-Brazilian. And with a little help from the deck, they cleared two-thirds of it relatively quickly.

Already the leader, GM_VALTER got richer at MB TREMENDO's expense thanks to a pair-over-pair cooler. Moraes held [Qd] [Qh] and caught top set on the flop, sinking [6h] [6c] and, by extension, MB TREMENDO in 5th place ($92,248).

Kelvin_FP:AR followed up with another pair-over-pair cooler, but the action all came after the flop. The Brazilian held [7c] [7d] on the button and raised the minimum to 140K, drawing calls from ChanceCU in the small blind and BeerAndCoke in the big blind to put 455K in the middle. The [5d] [Kc] [7s] flop gave Kelvin_FP:AR middle set, but it also made bottom set for BeerAndCoke's [5c] [5h]. Kelvin_FP:AR flat-called BeerAndCoke's check-raise to 533K, then moved all-in for 3M after BeerAndCoke led for 722K on the [3d] turn. The [Qs] didn't make quads for BeerAndCoke, sending the Swedish player out in 4th place ($132,163).

Game of skill, game of Chance

That 7.34M-chip win put the two Brazilian players within one big blind of one another as three-handed play began. They talked deal after the break leading up to midnight ET, but Kornuth wanted more than ICM so the negotiations were cut off genially and play resumed. With the blinds and antes still at 35K/70K/8.75K even Kornuth's shortest stack was worth 38 big blinds, leaving plenty of poker to be played.

For the better part of an hour Kornuth made a highly entertaining game out of it, climbing as high as 4.05M after an early loss to GM_VALTER and a few rounds of blinds and antes had cut him down to 717K. For most of that time Kelvin_FP:AR and GM_VALTER traded the lead back and forth. GM_VALTER threatened to pull away after taking down 11 of 12 pots to climb to 10.6M, but Kornuth caught two aces on the flop with [Ah] [9d] to crack his [Ts] [Td] and stay in the game.

From there the three players split the next 25 pots roughly equally, but GM_VALTER tended to win the more valuable ones. Then another one of those pair-over-pair situations popped up and changed the balance of power. Kornuth open-limped with [Jd] [Jh] and then re-raised all-in for 1.37M after GM_VALTER raised to 400K in the big blind. Moraes made the call with [Kd] [Kc], the board fell [6s] [5s] [2d] [Qs] [3d], and Chance "ChanceCU" Kornuth bowed out in 3rd place ($175,626).

Rafael "GM_VALTER" Moraes held better than a 2-to-1 chip lead over his compatriot Kelvin_FP:AR as heads-up play began, and the two quickly agreed to talk about another potential deal. Within five minutes they had agreed on their respective shares and to leave $20,000 on the table, so play resumed - and it didn't take long to conclude.

Eight hands after Chance Kornuth's departure, GM_VALTER opened for 200K on the button with [9s] [6h], Kelvin_FP:AR called with [Th] [8c] in the big blind, and things escalated quickly when the flop came [7c] [6s] [9c]. A check-raise, a three-bet, an all-in shove, and a call - just like that, Kelvin_FP:AR was all-in with a ten-high straight and an 82.3-percent chance to win the pot with two cards to come. Unfortunately that percentage dropped to zero when the [6d] hit the turn, giving GM_VALTER a full house, sixes full of nines. The [3h] came on the river, and the tournament came to its end.

After nearly 10 and a half hours of play on Day 2, two Brazilians had come out on top of Event #4-H. With the shorter stack at deal-making time, Kelvin_FP:AR took home $256,297.51 for 2nd place. And with the extra $20,000 on the table, Rafael "GM_VALTER" Moraes earned a total of $301,625.49, plus a SCOOP champion's watch. Congratulations to both players for adding significantly to Brazil's most impressive first day of play during SCOOP 2016!

SCOOP-04-H ($2,100 NL Hold'em) results
Entrants: 887
Total prize pool: $1,774,000
Places paid: 99

1. Rafael "GM_VALTER" Moraes (Brazil) $301,625.49*
2. Kelvin_FP:AR (Brazil) $256,297.51*
3. Chance "ChanceCU" Kornuth (Mexico) $175,626
4. BeerAndCoke (Sweden) $132,163
5. MB TREMENDO (Uruguay) $92,248
6. Ben "Sauce123" Sulsky (Canada) $74,508
7. SeeYouAnte18 (United Kingdom) $56,768
8. Subv (Canada) $39,028
9. Ivan "BanicIvan" Banic (Croatia) $23,062
*Reflects the results of a two-way deal that left $20,000 in play for the winner

We're two days into the 2016 Spring Championship of Online Poker and Brazil already has three titles.

Nelepo10 became the third Brazilian SCOOP champion this year after taking down the Sunday Million Special Edition and $209,095.00. It was a two-day event that drew 6,745 players and seven-figure prize pool of $1,349,00.00.

Most of the field was hacked away on the first day, but the big bucks came on day two. That's where Nelepo10 shined. The Brazilian player started the final table near the middle of the pack but then ran away from the rest of the field with five players left.

The final table

Seat 1: gmd68 -- 11,095,453
Seat 2: Nelepo10 -- 14,861,869 
Seat 3: Kovalski1 -- 3,767,224
Seat 4: BruceWizayne -- 11,470,462
Seat 5: allin0709 -- 8,069,598
Seat 6: zÿax -- 35,153,240
Seat 7: FLBonatto -- 21,762,001
Seat 8: Magardan -- 24,944,645
Seat 9: supergurkan -- 3,775,508

Kovalski1 was the final table short stack and the first to go all-in. On the second hand of play, Kovalski1 raised from the button and BruceWizayne moved all-in from the small blind. 

Kovalski1 called with a dominating [ah][9c] while BruceWizayne tabled [as][5s]. The flop came [qc][kh][qd] to give both players a pair of queens and then a [tc] came on the river to give both players the same kicker. 

Players chopped the pot, but then Kovalski lost with another dominating hand. 

Kovalski1 raised to 1.75 million from the hijack and zÿax re-raised to 3 million from the small blind. FLBonatto four-bet to 6.7 million, Kovlaski1 called all-in and zÿax folded.

FLBonatto showed [ah][qs] while Kovlaski1 turned over [ad][ks].

The flop brought a [qd] to pair FLBonatto and Kovalski1 couldn't improve. FLBonatto chipped up to 30.9 million while Kovalski1 won $10,522.20 for finishing 9th.

allin0709, all out

allin0709 was on a steady decline after getting to the final table. Then, when allin0709 was down to just 1.2 million, the Brazilian player made one last move: jam from early position. 

Magardan raised to 1.9 million from the cutoff and Nelepo10 reshoved for 5.5 million and Magardan called.

Nelepo10: [qh][qc]
Magardan: [3d][3s]
allin0709: [ac][6c]

The board ran [4s][5s][ks][jh][qd] and Nelepo10 won with a superfluous set of queens. 

Nelepo10 more than doubled to 13.0 million while allin0709 finished 8th and won $16,862.50.

gmd68 goes down

gmd68 was fourth in chips after allin0709's elimination, but the German player quickly dropped to seventh.

BruceWizayne raised to 1.24 million from middle position and zÿax re-raised to 3.2 million from the hijack. Action folded to gmd68's big blind and gmd68 threw in another raise. 

BruceWizayne moved all-in for 12.0 million and only gmd68 called. 

gmd68 showed [as][ks] and BruceWizayne tabled [kc][kd]. The [6d][2d][qs][2c][5s] board gave BruceWizayne the double to 27.93 million while gmd68 dropped to 6.8 million. 

A few minutes later, zÿax raised to 1.3 million and gmd68 moved all-in. zÿax called and showed a [as][qs] to gmd68's [ah][tc].

gmd68 needed some help, but the [3h][3c][qd][8h][jd] board brought it for zÿax. gmd68 won $29,678 for finishing 7th while zÿax took the lead with 45.9 million.

Top to bottom for FLBonatto

But things changed quickly. 

FLBonatto doubled up and won a big pot to take the lead with 55.4 million. Then FLBonatto became our 6th place finisher.

First, FLBonatto doubled up our champion, Nelepo10. 

Nelepo10 moved all-in for 21.3 million with [8s][8c] and FLBonatto called with [ac][kd]. Nelepo10 won the flip and doubled to 43.5 million while FLBonatto dropped to 34 million. 

Then Nelepo10 finished the job. 

FLBonatto raised to 1.76 million with a [ac][as] and Nelepo10 moved all-in for 41.5 million with [kh][jd].

FLBonatto called instantly but lost to trip jacks when the board ran [js][ts][5s][jh][7d]. Nelepo10 took a massive lead with 72.2 million while FLBonatto got a $43,168.00 payday.

Boom for Brazil

From that point on, it was Nelepo10's game. The Brazilian had more than the rest of the players combined. 

The short stacks went quick and BruceWizayne was the last player to not fall to Nelepo10. BruceWizayne moved all-in for 8.6 million from under-the-gun and zÿax re-shoved for 33.9 million.

BruceWizayne showed [qc][ts], but zÿax's [ac][tc] was in the lead. The [th][9d][4s][ks][9c] board was the last BruceWizayne saw and the Canadian player cashed for $56,658.00 for finishing 5th.

supergurkan was down to about six big blinds and moved all-in from under-the-gun. Nelepo10 called and the remaining two players folded.

Nelepo10 tabled [ah][7s] and had supergurkan's [ac][4s] dominated. The board missed both players and Nelepo10 took the pot. supergurkan's 4th place finish was worth $75,746.35 while Nelepo10's lead grew to 81.9 million.

King on the river

From that point on, Nelepo10's lead was so large that it collapsed and formed a black hole that sent the rest of the chips at the table flying towards it. 

Nelepo10 crossed the 100 million mark and zÿax moved all-in 15.26 million. Nelepo10 called with [as][kh] and zÿax showed [6s][6c]. 

The [jd][8s][td][tc] flop and turn brought some hope for zÿax, but a [kd] came on the river to crush it .

zÿax's 3rd place finish earned the Czech player $109,269.00 while the tournament went heads up.

Heads up

Nelepo10: 127,469,205
Magardan: 7,430,795

A few hands in, Magardan moved all-in for 5 million with [ac][2h] and Nelepo10 called with [7c][6d]. But not even Nelepo10 could take it down with six-seven offsuit. The board ran [ad][9d][2d][6s][2c] and Magardan hit a full house. 

But it wasn't the start of a comeback. 

It was more like Magardan's final act of defiance in the face of imminent doom. A shout of "Sparta!" to a hail of arrows raining down from the sky. 

Magardan moved all-in for 9.9 million the next hand with [qh][jc] and Nelepo10 called with [kc][9s]. The final board of the tournament came [jh][kh][kd][3d][7d] and Nelepo10 took it down with three kings.

Magardan won $155,135.00 for the runner-up finish while Nelepo10 won $209,095.00 and became the third Brazilian to take down a SCOOP title in two days.

SCOOP-04-M ($215 NLHE) results
Entrants: 6,745
Total prize pool: $1,349,000.00
Places paid: 855

1. Nelepo10 (Brazil) $209,095.00
2. Magardan (Austria) $155,135.00
3. zÿax (Czech Republic) $109,269.00
4. Supergurkan (Sweden) $75,746.35
5. BruceWizayne (Canada) $56,658.00
6. FLBonatto (Brazil) $43,168.00
7. Gmd68 (Germany) $29,678.00
8. allin0709 (Brazil) $16,862.50
9. Kogalski1 (Brazil) $10,522.20

When it comes to Progressive Super Knockout Events, few players have done quite as well as "etxnl01." For instance, on March 31 he took down the $1,050 Thursday Thrill Progressive Super-Knockout for $61,100, and prior to that, on February 13, he won the $27 Saturday Eliminator Progressive Super-Knockout for $8,130.86.

In Monday's SCOOP-02-H: $2,100 NL Hold'em [Progressive Super Knockout] finale, he once again proved his mettle. In that event, all players started with a $1,000 bounty on their heads, but each time a player was eliminated, 50% of their bounty at the time was awarded to the player who eliminated them, while the other 50% was added to that player's bounty. In the end, etxnl01 walked away with $53,134.75 in bounties and a $155,057.50 prize on top of that.

Others who cashed in the event were Ami "UhhMee" Barer (93rd - $4,000 in bounties & $1,943.50 prize), Elior "Crazy Elior" Sion (71st - $1,000 in bounties & $2,450.50 prize), Fedor "CrownUpGuy" Holz (44th - $3,937.50 in bounties & $3,211 prize), Ivan "Negriin" Luca (18th - $13,890.62 in bounties & $5,915 prize), and "WRUUUUM" (13th - $12,062.50 in bounties & $7,605 prize).

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

Luiz "Justholdplz" Duarte - 4,619,525
Marvin "Ron Jovi 7" Rettenmaier - 2,542,088
Stephen "woody1234321" Woodhead - 2,180,404
Jonas "donut604" Mackoff - 2,062,525
girafganger7 - 1,704,623
Secret_M0d3 - 1,463,597
etxnl01 - 1,323,006
AnyTw0_Card$ - 660,584
ollie_p - 343,648

Price Falls in First Hand of Final Table

In the first hand of the final table, the short-stacked Oliver "ollie_p" Price moved all in for 338,648 from the cutoff with the [6c][6d] and Marvin "Ron Jovi 7" Rettenmaier called from the big blind with the [as][th].

Price held through both the [2s][7h][9h] flop and [2h] turn, but then the [ad] spiked on the river to pair Rettenmaier's ace and send Price home in ninth place with $17,375 bounties and a $10,985 prize.

Woodhead Also Falls to Rettenmaier

After the elimination of the UK's AnyTw0_Card$ -- who won the PokerStars Sunday Warm-Up on December 6, 2015 - in eighth place for $21,562.50 in bounties and a $18,590 prize, Stephen "woody1234321" Woodhead followed him out the door in seventh. 

It happened in the 30,000/60,000/7,500 level when action folded to Woodhead on the button and he jammed for 671,290 holding the [Ah][5h[. Rettenmaier called from the small blind with the [Jd][Td], and wound up hitting after the board ran out [Qd][2c][3c][Jc][5d]. Woodhead was awarded $21,273.43 in bounties and took home a $27,040 prize.

Secret_M0d3 Out in Sixth After Running Fours Into Queens

With the blinds at 35,000/70,000/8,750, etxnl01opened for 150,000 from the cutoff and Secret_M0d3 three-bet all in for 514,292 from the button. Rettenmaier then four-bet to 1,001,700 from the small blind, but folded when etxnl01 five-bet all in for 4,452.456.

etxnl01: [Qc][Qs]
Secret_M0d3: [4d][4c]

Secret_M0d3 was in desperate need of a four, but it never came as the board ran out a clean [Ad][9d][5c][Kc][9c]. For his sixth-place finish, Secret_M0d3 was awarded $13,859.37 in bounties and a $35,490 prize.

Rettenmaier Crippled Then Eliminated

In the same level, girafganger7 opened for 161,000 from the cutoff holding the [7c][7d] and Rettenmaier called from the small blind with the [Ah][3h]. A [4c][6h][5h] flop saw Rettenmaier check, girafganger7 bet 188,315, and Rettenmaier check-raise to 514,814. girafganger7 made the call and then called a bet of 443,417 on the [8c] turn.

When the [Ad] completed the board on the river, Rettenmaier bet 1,309,815 and girafganger7 called off for 1,177,276. girafganger7 doubled to 4,671,764 on the hand while Rettenmaier was left with just 132,539.

A couple hands later, etxnl01 raised to 160,000 from the cutoff with the [Jc][3c], Rettenmaier called off his remaining 80,000 from the button, and both players in the blinds came along, though both folded to a bet of 300,000 from etxnl01 on the [Th][6c][Ac] flop.

Rettenmaier was ahead with the [ad][8h], and he held on the [5h] turn. Unfortunately for him, the [8c] spiked on the turn to give etxnl01 a winning flush. Rettenmaier took his leave in fifth place for $23,230.46 in bounties and a $43,940 prize.

Duarte's Kicker Issues Sends Him Home in Fourth Place

With the blinds at 40,000/80,000/10,000, girafganger7 raised to 161,000 under the gun and then called when Brazil's Luiz "Justholdplz" Duarte three-bet all in for 2,099,579.

girafganger7: [as][qc]
Duarte: [Ks][Qs]

Duarte had the inferior kicker, and it cost him his tournament life after the board ran out [8h][9h][Td][3h][5s]. For his efforts, Duarte won $32,453.12 in bounties and captured a $62,952.50 prize.

girafganger7 Loses Big Flip to Fall in Third

In the same level, girafganger7 limped the small blind and etxnl01 exercised his option with a raise to 240,000 from the big blind.  girafganger7 responded by check-raising all in for 2,176,771 and etxnl01 made the call.

etxnl01: [Ah][Kh]
girafganger7: [3c][3s]

It was a big flip, but not after the flop came down [6d][Ac][5h] to give etxnl01 a pair of aces. Neither the [Qs] turn nor [2s] river helped girafganger7, and he had to settle for third place, which came with $23,664.06 in bounties and a $83,655 prize.

Heads-Up Play Lasts Just Four Hands

etxnl01 began heads-up play with 13,355,810 in chips to Jonas "donut604" Mackoff's 3,544,190, and it took just four hands for him to seal the deal.

In what would be the final hand of the tournament, Mackoff raised to 160,000 holding the [Ac][9c] and etxnl01 defended holding the [8h][6h]. The [5c][9d][Ah] flop saw etxnl01 check-call a bet of 114,700, and then he check-called one of 387,200 on the [3h] turn. 

When the [7d] completed the board on the river, etxnl01 checked, Mackoff bet 1,073,880, and etxnl01 check-raised all in. Mackoff called off his remaining 2,148,410 with two pair, but he had to settle for second place after etxnl01 tabled the nuts.

SCOOP-02-H: $2,100 NL Hold'em [Progressive Super Knockout], $1M Guaranteed
Entrants: 845
Prize Pool: $1,690,000 ($845,000 in regular prize pool; $845,000 in bounty prize pool)
Place Paid: 99

1st - etxnl01 (Netherlands) $53,134.75 in bounties & $155,057.50 prize
2nd - Jonas "donut604" Mackoff (Canada) $5,000 in bounties & $110,695 prize
3rd - girafganger7 (Belgium) $23,664.06 in bounties & $83,655 prize
4th - Luiz "Justholdplz" Duarte (Brazil) $32,453.12 in bounties & $62,952.50 prize
5th - Marvin "Ron Jovi 7" Rettenmaier (Germany) $23,230.46 in bounties & $43,940 prize
6th - Secret_M0d3 (Slovenia) $13,859.37 in bounties & $35,490 prize
7th - Stephen "woody1234321" Woodhead (Mexico) $21,273.43 in bounties & $27,040 prize
8th - AnyTw0_Card$ (UK) $21,562.50 in bounties & $18,590 prize
9th - Oliver "ollie_p" Price (UK) $17,375 bounties & $10,985 prize

This year's SCOOP is just getting started, and you can keep tabs on it all at the 2016 SCOOP homepage. You can also find recaps for each event right here on the PokerStars Blog.

The opening weekend of the 2016 Spring Championship of Online Poker kicked off with three big opening Event 1 fields. The $1,050 buy-in high version drew more than 1,000 players to easily surpass the $750,000 guaranteed prize pool.

A total of 1,025 players put up their money, plus another 285 using the re-entry option after they went busto, to create a prize pool worth a whopping $1.3 million. The last 153 players getting a piece of the money with the top three set to earn a six-digit payday with the winner adding more than $225,000 to their bankroll.

The tournament paused action after Level 20 with 61 players still around with a chance for the title. The top ten list featured five players with runner-up COOP results looking to finish the deal this time, including WSOP bracelet winner Mark "AceSpades11" Radoja. He wasn't able to ride his stack to an online title and dropped out before the tournament hit the final table bubble.

As expected with the deep stacks and high stakes, the last ten played 90 minutes of hand-for-hand action before they formed the final table, getting there when rounder3989 won a flip with [7d][7h] against gusmaa's [ks][qc]. The final table featured WCOOP champion Matthew "mjw006" Wakeman, SCOOP title holder C. Darwin2, and Super Tuesday winner LStrelec.

Seat 1: Matthew "mjw006" Wakeman (568,216 in chips)
Seat 2: chicalltreta (630,734 in chips)
Seat 3: gordon0410 (919,586 in chips)
Seat 4: ZeGrimReaper (938,616 in chips)
Seat 5: rounder3989 (2,300,101 in chips)
Seat 6: C. Darwin2 (2,096,636 in chips)
Seat 7: ThoNapalm (450,193 in chips)
Seat 8: Respect_Lt (3,918,032 in chips)
Seat 9: LStrelec (1,277,886 in chips)

Blinds: 16K/32K with 3.2K Ante

ThoNapalm blows up, eliminated in 9th

ThoNapalm was in the danger zone to start the final table but found an early double up to get back in the game. He moved over 1 million in chips when he went into a pre-flop battle against rounder3989.

rounder3989 opened the action with a small raise and C. Darwin2 called on the button before ThoNapalm moved all-in from the small blind. rounder3989 called the bet and C. Darwin2 thought better of it then let his hand go.

ThoNapalm needed to find some help with [ac][js] against [8s][8h] but missed the [qh][5c][5s] flop. He picked up a gutshot draw on the [kc] turn then blanked the [2h] river to drop out in 9th place for $14,410.

Wakeman triples up in huge pot

Matthew "mjw006" Wakeman improved his chances of adding a SCOOP title to his 2015 WCOOP trophy when he won the biggest pot of the tournament so far, and one that could have been bigger. It began when C. Darwin2 opened the action with a small raise and Respect_Lt called next to act.

Wakeman moved all-in for 432,661 and C. Darwin2 popped it up again with another small raise to put the action back on Respect_Lt. Instead of a flat-call, this time he opted to move all-in on his own for more than 3 million to put himself at risk.

C. Darwin2 eventually let his hand go, abandoning more than 800K of his stack before the flop, and the other two were racing. Wakeman was ahead with [th][tc] against [as][kh] and never had a sweat as the board ran [jc][7s][5c][6c][9d] to give him the triple up.

LStrelec can't come back, eliminated in 8th

LStrelec was solidly in the middle of the pack for much of the latter parts of the tournament but watched as others improved while his stack dropped to only ten big blinds. He put those chips in the middle from the small blind after C. Darwin2 opened from the cut-off.

C. Darwin2 called with [ks][qh] to give LStrelec a chance with his small pair [6s][6c]. The [jd][jh][ts] flop was huge for C. Darwin2 but he missed the [8c] turn. LStrelec had 20 outs to dodge on the river but he was sent out when C. Darwin2 paired the [qc].

ZeGrimReaper cut down, eliminated in 7th

One orbit after C. Darwin2 took out LStrelec, he was at it again but with a premium hand doing the hard work this time. ZeGrimReaper found a big ace and moved all-in from early position for 820,616 and C. Darwin2 was sitting in the cut-off with [kc][kh].

He called the bet but couldn't get the last three players to take a stab and found himself up against ZeGrimReaper's [ah][qs]. Instead of finding his overcard, ZeGrimReaper's tournament came to an end as the board completed all-low [8h][5d][4s][7s][jc].

Matthew "mjw006" Wakeman value bets himself out in 6th

Matthew "mjw006" Wakeman picked up a huge hand, one that could propel him to a second COOP title, but instead sent him packing. He opened the action from the button with [ac][ah] and gordon0410 defended in the big blind.

gordon0410 check/called a bet after the [8c][7d][5s] flop then checked again after the [2h] turn. Wakeman moved all-in with the huge overpair and got a quick call from gordon0410 with the flopped straight holding [9h][6s] to leave Wakeman drawing dead to 6th place.

No respect for Respect_Lt, eliminated in 5th

Wakeman was knocked out shortly after a top-of-the-hour break and Respect_Lt took his shot a few hands later. He moved all-in from the big blind after gordon0410 opened the action with a min-raise.

The shove was quickly called by gordon0410 with [ts][tc] to dominate Respect_Lt's [4c][4h]. The virtual dealer didn't give Respect_Lt a sweat as it ran out [ks][qc][7c][5d][7s] to knock him out in 5th place for a very nice $64,485.

gordon0410 makes a move, fails and falls in 4th

gordon0410 was the shortest stack of the four remaining players but still had plenty of chips in relation to the blinds, he might have tried to move up the counts when he went against C. Darwin2. He started with a button min-raise then shoved after a big blind three-bet from C.Darwin2.

His moved in for a bit under 2 million holding [9d][8d] and C. Darwin2 called with [ah][ks]. gordon0410 had two live cards but that changed on the [kd][jc][6c] to leave him drawing thin, and then drawing dead after the [3c] turn to go out in 4th place for $91,176.

rounder3989 loses long battle, out in 3rd

The last three players settled in for a long grind with plenty of chips in play. They went back and forth for almost 90 minutes before they moved on to the heads-up portion of the tournament.

rounder3989 has several close COOP calls in his career, including both a second and third place TCOOP result, and missed once again. He was in perfect position to double back into the contest when his [9s][9c] dominated C. Darwin2's [ah][6s]. The [kc][4s][3c] flop seemed harmless and rounder3989 only had seven outs to fear after the [7d] turn.

One of them appeared in the form of the [5c] river to give C. Darwin2 the straight and send rounder3989 out in 3rd place for $124K, not a bad consolation prize.

Double SCOOP for C. Darwin2 in Event #1-H

Seat 2: chicalltreta (2,917,927 in chips)
Seat 6: C. Darwin2 (10,182,073 in chips)

Blinds: 80K/160K with 16K Ante

C. Darwin2 began heads up play with a big lead and the tournament almost ended two hands into the heads-up match. The two saw the a [qd][qs][ts] flop when all the chips went in the middle, chicalltreta with an open-ended straight draw [jd][td] against C. Darwin2's flush draw [7s][2s].

chicalltreta added a flush draw of his own after the [4d] turn but it was his jack kicker giving him the double after the blank [3c] river. The save was short-lived and chicalltreta was never able to gain the advantage over his Swedish opponent.

They pushed chips around for several minutes before chicalltreta took a shot after limping his button. He moved all-in after C. Darwin2 raised it up and the shove was quickly called. chicalltreta was in trouble with [as][3d] against the heads-up monster [qc][qd] and his situation worsened after the [tc][9c][5c] flop.

C. Darwin's flush draw took away one of chicalltreta's aces and the [6c] turn left the Brazilian drawing dead to second place. C. Darwin2 captured his second career SCOOP title, his first coming in 2012, and the $226,106 payout is by far the biggest cash of his tournament career.

SCOOP-01-H ($1,050 NL Hold'em) results
Entrants: 1,025 (285 Re-Entries)
Total prize pool: $1,310,000
Places paid: 153

1. C. Darwin2 (Sweden) $226,106.00
2. chicalltreta (Brazil) $163,750.00
3. rounder3989 (Germany) $124,450.00
4. gordon0410 (United Kingdom) $91,176.00
5. Respect_Lt (Lithuania) $64,845.00
6. Matthew "mjw006" Wakeman (Australia) $51,745.00
7. ZeGrimReaper (Australia) $38,645.00
8. LStrelec (Russia) $25,545.00
9. ThoNapalm (Croatia) $14,410.00

"I want some more money for a bottle of whiskey."

That was the request that nearly prevented a four-way deal being struck in SCOOP-01-M: $109 NL Hold'em [Sunday Kickoff SE], a tournament that more than doubled its $300K advertised guarantee by creating a $607,100 prize pool. You'll read about the deal negotiations below, but suffice it to say it was Belarus' Hitvil that walked away the winner with an $81,928.45 prize and no bottle of whiskey.

The prize pool was distributed to the top 765 players, but one player failing to earn a payday was defending champ SV(nmgn)EN, who saw his title defense come to an end in 2,406th place. Among those to finish in the money were notables such as Eugene Katchalov (575th - $206.41), Lex Veldhuis (318th - $267.12), Jason Mercier (163rd - $394.61), and Nicolas "niccc" Chouity, who was fresh off a fifth-place finish in the SCOOP-05-H: $700 NL Hold'em [6-Max] for $36,487.95.

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

Hitvil - 15,441,514
mendezoo - 11,957,998
nagayama0 - 10,520,337
DamoWain - 5,976,775
Zhagy27SLO - 5,224,155
amsi2712 - 3,761,605
Prof.ChaoZ - 3,224,206
J4d3dr4g0n - 3,105,315
"0PIGGYBANK" - 1,498,095

Prof.ChaoZ Flushed in Ninth Place; amsi2712 Meets Same Fate

The first final table elimination came when Prof.ChaoZ moved all in for 1,220,206 holding the [3c][3d] in the hijack. mendezoo called from the big blind with the [As][2h], and while he didn't find an ace, he caught four hearts when the board ran out [9h][Kh][Ks][Th][Qh]. Prof.ChaoZ took home $4,856.80 for his ninth-place finish.

Not long after, in the 150,000/300,000/30,000 level, the same fate befell amsi2712. That is when he jammed the button for 3,602,605 holding the [Ad][9d] and Hitvil called from the small blind with the [Kc][Qh]. Once again the board - [5h][Jc][2c][5c][4c] - four-flushed, and amsi2712 was sent to the rail in eighth place for $7,588.75.

This Little "0PIGGYBANK" Went to the Bank in Seventh Place

In the 180,000/360,000/30,000 level, "0PIGGYBANK" moved all in for 3,616,380 with the [5c][5d] in the hijack only to have Zhagy27SLO three-bet all in over the top for 7,167,155 from the button. Both blinds folded and Zhagy27SLO showed the [As][Ac]. 

The [Ad][Kc][Qh] flop left "0PIGGYBANK" drawing to running fives to win, but he picked up some chop outs when the [Jc] appeared on the turn. Unfortunately for him, the [Qs] river was not the ten he needed, and he was dispatched in seventh place for $13,659.75.

Andriamahefa Busts in Sixth After Running Into Pocket Kings

Not long after, with the blinds still the same, Kevin "J4d3dr4g0n" Andriamahefa moved all in for 3,258,630 from the button and DamoWain called from the big blind,

DamoWain: [Kh][Kd]
Andriamahefa: [Qd][Ts]

Andriamahefa needed some help, but he got anything but as the board ran out [3c][2s][Kd][9s][Ah] to eliminated him in sixth place for $19,730.75.

Walking Sticks Don't Do the Trick for DamoWain

After mendezoo opened for 720,000, DamoWain moved all in for 6,958,090 from the button with the [7h][7c]. Hitvil then three-bet all in over the top from the small blind, and mendezoo quickly folded. Hitvil showed the [9d][9c], and it held after the board ran out [Jh][3d][5d][4d][Th]. DamoWain took him $25,801.75 for finishing fifth.

Let the Deal Talk Begin

With four remaining, the players decided to take a look at the numbers. The negotiations were contentious with both Daniel "Nagayama0" Nagayama and Zhagy27SLO calling for an ICM chop. However, mendezoo, who was the short stack at the time, though not by much, wanted more.

"I have played 200000000 tournaments," he explained. "Think it's fair I ask for more."

He managed to get a little too as both nagayama0 and Zhagy27SLO agreed to give him some from their share. Meanwhile, Hitvil, the big chip leader, kept his equity, but he too wanted more.

"I want some more money for a bottle of whiskey," he demanded when a deal seemed imminent.

He must have had an expensive bottle in mind, as first he wanted an extra $2,000, which soon dropped to $1,000 and finally $500. However, the other three players refused, and just as the administrator was about to restart the tournament, Hitvil agreed to the following deal:

Hitvil - $75,928.45
mendezoo - $58,089.54
Zhagy27SLO - $55,925.25
Nagayama0 - $54,142.19
Left to play for - $6,000

mendezoo Bows Out in Fourth Place

With the blinds at 180,000/360,000/36,000, mendezoo moved all in from the small blind for 2,034,909 and Hitvil called from the big.

mendezoo: [Js][8h]
Hitvil: [Ac][Qc]

The [As][4s][Jd] flop paired both players, but of course Hitvil's aces had him out in front. Neither the [Kh] turn nor [6c] river helped mendezoo, and he was ousted in fourth place.

Nagayama Sent Packing in Third Place

In the 220,000/420,000/42,000 level, Nagayama shoved all in for 4,018,232 from the small blind holding the [As][5d] and Hitvil called from the big with the [Ks][8d]. Nagayama got it in good, but he fell behind on the [Jc][8s][Qc] flop. The [6c] turn didn't do him any favors, and he hit the rail in third place after the [7c] was run out on the river.

That set up the following heads-up match: 

Hitvil - 50,251.678
Zhagy27SLO - 10,458.322

Hitvil Clinches Victory After Out Flopping Zhagy27SLO

In what would be the final hand of the tournament, Hitvil limped the button with the [Qh][Jd] and then called when Zhagy27SLO raised to 1,020,005 with the [Ah][Jh] in the big blind. The [7h][Qs][2s] flop gave Hitvil the lead, but it was Zhagy27SLO who led out for 7,200,245.

Hitvil raised, Zhagy27SLO called off his remaining 4,881,272, and it was all over after the [4s] was run out on the turn followed by the [9c] on the river.

SCOOP-01-M: $109 NL Hold'em [Sunday Kickoff SE], $300K Guaranteed
Entrants: 6,071 (4,598 unique + 1,473 re-entries)
Prize Pool: $607,100
Place Paid: 765

1. Hitvil (Belarus) $81,928.45*
2. Zhagy27SLO (Slovenia) $55,925.25*
3. Daniel "Nagayama0" Nagayama (Brazil) $54,142.19*
4. mendezoo (Norway) $58,089.54*
5. DamoWain (Colombia) $25,801.75
6. Kevin "J4d3dr4g0n" Andriamahefa (Canada) $19,730.75
7. "0PIGGYBANK" (Austria) $13,659.75
8. amsi2712 (Israel) $7,588.75
9. Prof.ChaoZ (Germany) $4,856.80

This year's SCOOP is just getting started, and you can keep tabs on it all at the 2016 SCOOP homepage. You can also find recaps for each event right here on the PokerStars Blog.

A short review of all the major results from the weekend on PokerStars. 

Weekend highlights

* SCOOP 2016 is under way!

Round up of latest results

Well, it has finally begun. SCOOP 2016 is upon us and rushing into the weekend report to the tune of, well, one result. Yeah I know, it sounds vaguely anti-climactic. But when you consider it is Event 5 you get an idea how big the previous four were. 

Anyway, here is that result in all its glory. You can read a full report of how it played out by Alex Villegas right here. 

SCOOP-05-M ($82 NLHE 6-Max) results
Entrants: 3,361 entries, 1,117 re-entries
Total prize pool: $335,850.00
Places paid: 570

1. HhCMotU (Germany) $51,219.57
2. Anderbisse (Denmark) $36,943.50
3. Dhr. Awesome (Netherlands) $26,868.00
4. Karolijanas (Lithuania) $17,511.21
5. Puan29 (Argentina) $10,075.50
6. FiatEruditio (Russia) $5,709.45

The weekend's top online tournament winners

Click here for the major results on PokerStars for the weekend of May 7 to 8, 2016. 

That's all from the pre-SCOOP 2016 weekend. As always send your questions and comments to us on Twitter: @PokerStarsBlog.

Two Brazilians advanced to the final table of SCOOP Event #5-Low. SaLum18 and Bean1992 commanded the big stack and the short stack respectively. With two out of six of the final table players hailing from Brazil, the host country of the 2016 Summer Olympics seemed the logical choice to secure a bracelet on the inaugural day of SCOOP. However, it was small stacked Bean1992 who dismantled the big stack and engineered a rigorous comeback to land inside the winner's circle in SCOOP Event #5-L.

The 2016 installment of the Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP), with 165 tournaments and $40 million in guaranteed prize money, is designed to become the biggest, baddest, and richest series in the history of SCOOP. The opening day of SCOOP festivities kicked off with a specialty event. The "low" version of SCOOP Event #5-L $7.50 NL Hold'em (6-Max) attracted 9,919 runners and an additional 3,462 re-entries for a total of 13,381 entries. That tipped the prize pool over $91,258.41, which easily surpassed the initial $50K Guarantee. The top 1,800 places got a cut of the prize pool, with $12,511.82 set aside to the champion.

At first glance, SCOOP Event #5-Low appeared like any run-of-the-mill 6-max NL event, but under closer inspection you'd discover the varying level times, which increased as the tournament progressed. Event #5-L began like a turbo-event and the rapid-fire start featured five brisk 4-minute levels before accelerating to six 6-minute levels, followed by eight 8-min levels, then nine 10-min levels, then ten 12-min levels, then eighteen 15-minute levels, before finally settling on 20-minute levels. Event #5-L never went that deep, but the action slowed down considerably once the final three tables were seated.

Twitch streamer extraordinaire Jamie Staples embarked on a deep run on the opening day of SCOOP, but Staples busted in 300th place in Event #5-L with [Ah][5s] vs. [7c][7d].

Despite a protracted final table bubble, we finally saw a joust between a pair of short-stacks. Russian "Ch < 3snokov28" and Bean1992 rumbled Bean1992 took pocket fours into battle against the Russian's [Ac][Kh]. Big Slick failed to improve and the 6-max final table was set.

SCOOP Event #5-L - Final Table Chip Counts:
Seat 1: Bean1992 (14,712,194)
Seat 2: SaLum18 (36,428,041)
Seat 3: FishOnHeater (23,421,217)
Seat 4: alonzocr1995 (16,049,142
Seat 5: OnL|Ne93 (23,606,658)
Seat 6: WhatArunAA (19,592,748)

The final table commenced during Level 49 with blinds at 250K/500K and a 62.5K ante. Brazil's SaLum18 held the lead with over 36M. Fellow Brazilian, Bean1992, was the shorty by default with 14.7M.

A pair of Brazilians highlighted this final table that also included a member of the Two Timer Club, otherwise known an elite group of poker warriors who took down the Sunday Million not once...but twice. T.J. 'WhatArunAA' Slifka racked up over $2.4 million online with $1.7M, or the bulk of it on PokerStars. WhatArunAA shipped the Sunday Million twice, once in 2007 and the other in December 2013. WhatArunAA final tabled a pair of 2014 SCOOP events, but never actually won a COOP. The other notable player seated among the final six, FishOnHeater, boasted over $1 million in career earnings on PokerStars. The Hungarian won the Sunday Second Chance last year and shipped the Hot $55 Turbo on multiple occasions.

PASS THE MIC: WhatArunAA eliminated in 6th place

The slow-boil pace meant that no one busted at the final table during the first half hour. Short-stacked WhatArunAA slipped to under 13M and was determined to double up or go home. Chip leader SaLum18 opened to 1,760,000, FishOnHeater called, and WhatArunAA called from the big blind. Three-way action with the two biggest stacks versus the smallest. The flop of [9c][8c][6d] induced the action... WhatArunAA checked, SaLum18 checked, FishOnHeater fired out 3,139,850, WhatArunAA slyly check-raised all-in for 11,100,148, SaLum18 bailed, but FishOnHeater called. Heads-up.

WhatArunAA: [9h][8s]
FishOnHeater: [7d][7c]

WhatArunAA flopped top two, but FishOnHeater picked up an up-and-down straight draw. The turn was the [6c] and FishOnHeater improved slightly to two pair (but still trailing WhatArunAA's top two). The [Th] spiked on the river, which filled in a straight for FishOnHeater, who dragged the pot with a ten-high straight. WhatArunAA's two pair got drowned on the river and WhatArunAA became the first player to exit the final table. Sixth place paid out $1,103.31. The member of the exclusive Two Timer Sunday Milly Club will have to wait another day before he wins his first-ever COOP crown.

With five remaining, FishOnHeater seized the lead with 46.4 million, followed by SaLum18 (35.2M), Bean1992 (19.2M), alonzocr1995 (17.2M), and OnL|Ne93 (15.6M).

GROOVE HOLMES: SaLum18 eliminated in 5th place

Another full level played out before someone else hit the bricks. SaLum18 began the final six as the big stack, but the Brazilian became the second player at the final table to make an unscheduled departure. SaLum18 sunk to below 10M and was in desperate need of a double up. SaLum18 woke up with pocket Queens and made a final stand.

When OnL|Ne93 opened to 12,600,000, SaLum18 snap-called all-in for 8,390,838 with [Qh][Qc]. OnL|Ne93 held [Ad][8c] but the board ran out [Jd][8d][3d][6d][As]. OnL|Ne93 flopped a pair of eights and a nut-flush draw. The turn filled in OnL|Ne93's flush and SaLum18's pocket Queens were ravished. OnL|Ne93 flushed out SaLum18 in fifth place. Brazil's SaLum18 took home $1,825.16 for a fifth-place payday.

With four remaining, FishOnHeater was the biggest stack with 50.3M, followed by alonzocr1995 (30.7M), Bean1992 (28.8M), and OnL|Ne93 (24M).

FUNKY BOSS: OnL|Ne93 eliminated in 4th place

What a difference two hands can make. OnL|Ne93 went from being the executioner to the headless torso. FishOnHeater opened with a raise to 2,688,500, OnL|Ne93 bombed it all-in for 22,428,822, Bean1992 re-shoved for 28,496,548, and FishOnHeater bailed. Heads-up.

OnL|Ne93: [Kd][Qh]
Bean1992: [Js][Jh]

OnL|Ne93 needed an overcard...big time. The flop was [Jd][6c][3d] and Bean1992 improved to a set of Jacks. The turn and river did not help OnL|Ne93 as the board ran out... [Jd][6c][3d][7h][5h]. Bean1992 won the pot, which propelled the Brazilian into first place. For a fourth-place finish, Romania's OnL|Ne93 collected $3,194.04.

With three left in the hunt for the bracelet, Bean1992 led with 54.2M followed by FishOnHeater (49.7M) and alonzocr1995 (29.8M).

LIGHTEN UP: alonzocr1995 eliminated in 3rd place

Short-stacked alonzocr1995 bid adieu setting up the inevitable heavyweight bout between the two monster stacks. FishOnHeater kicked off the fracas with a raise to 4,98,500, alonzocr1995 shoved for 24,812,110 with [As][2c], and FishOnHeater snap-called with [Ac][Qc]. The board ran out [Ah][Js][8c][Ks][Ad]. Both players improved to trip Aces, however, the kickers came into play and FishOnHeater won with trip Aces and a Queen-kicker. Costa Rica's alonzocr1995 was dunzo in third place, which paid out $5,931.79.

HEADS-UP: Bean1992 (Brazil) vs. FishOnHeater (Hungary)
Seat 1: Bean1992 (60,469,370)
Seat 3: FishOnHeater (73,340,630)

The final two squared off during Level 55 with blinds at a cool 1M/2M and a 250K ante. That would be the next-to-last 15-minute level before the jump to 20-minute levels kicked in at Level 57.

SO WHAT'CHA WANT: FishOnHeater eliminated in 2nd place; Bean1992 wins SCOOP bracelet

Heads-up lasted only 24 hands. Mid-way through their quick bout, FishOnHeater had an opportunity to pick off Bean1992, but FishOnHeater failed to deliver a knockout blow. Bean1992 doubled up in a 55M pot with [Qc][Ts] against FishOnHeater's [Ac][8d]. Bean1992 turned two pair to stave off elimination.

FishOnHeater's stack was under assault, but the Hungarian bounced into attack mode to win eight out of the next nine hands and chip up to nearly 100M, while Bean1992 slipped to 35.6M. That's when it happened. Call it a collision of fortunes, but the tournament's momentum seismically shifted with a single hand when Bean1992 landed the biggest punch of the night. FishOnHeater shoved with [Kh][Jd] but Bean1992 woke up with [Ah][7s]. Although Bean1992 never improved, neither did FishOnHeater, which meant Bean1992 won the hand with an Ace-high kicker. Bean1992 won the 71.2M pot and snagged the chip lead. Bean1992 avoided another elimination with a timely double up. FishOnHeater failed to deliver a second knockout blow...and would never get another shot.

Going into the final hand, a relentless Bean1992 held the chip edge 71.3M to 62.5M. Bean1992 opened to 4.4M and FishOnHeater called. The flop was [As][Ks][6h]. FishOnHeater checked-called a 5,878,899 bet from Bean1992. The [Qc] on the turn incited fireworks. FishOnHeater checked, Bean1992 fired out 8,748,997, FishOnHeater check-raised all-in for 51,971,021, and Bean1992 insta-called.

FishOnHeater: [Kc][9h]
Bean1992: [Ah][Kh]

Bean1992 flopped top two, and FishOnHeater got caught with just a pair of Kings. The river was the [Js] and Bean1992 won the pot with two pair -- Aces and Kings. FishOnHeater failed to improve and busted in second place. For a runner-up finish, Hungary's FishOnHeater won $8,669.54.

Congrats to Brazil's Bean1992 for winning a SCOOP bracelet and Movado champion's watch. With only a single additional re-entry, Bean1992 parlayed $15 into over $12.5K! First place in Event #5-Low paid out $12,511.82.

WCOOP-05-L ($7.50 NL Hold'em, 6-Max) results
Entrants: 13,381 (9,919 entries, 3,462 re-entries)
Total prize pool: $91,258.42
Places paid: 1,800

1. Bean1992 (Brazil) $12,511.82
2. FishOnHeater (Hungary) $8,669.54
3. alonzocr1995 (Costa Rica) $5,931.79
4. OnL|Ne93 (Romania) $3,194.04
5. SaLum18 (Brazil) $1,825.16
6. WhatArunAA (Canada) $1,103.31

Pauly McGuire is a novelist and freelance contributor to PokerStars.