Champion Ben Tollerene

The biggest high-stakes PLO event in the history of poker reached a wholly fitting conclusion in Montenegro today with a heads-up duel between two of this game's masters and an exceptionally popular champion.

American Ben Tollerene and Hungary's Laszlo Bujtas were the last two left from a record-breaking field of 93 entries in the $100K PLO Main Event at the Triton Super High Roller Series trip to Montenegro. There was a first prize of $2.39 million on the line, the biggest ever on offer to the winner of a PLO event.

These two sluggers are perhaps better known to PLO fans as "ben86" and "omaha4rollz", two players who have struck fear into everyone else at the online tables for more than a decade. With the stakes and the pressure at their absolute maximum, it surprised nobody to find Tollerene and Bujtas as the final two, a pair completely impervious to the volatility that can destroy lesser mortals, and going at it hammer and tongs on the grandest stage.

The champion? It's Tollerene. The 38-year-old offered his respect to his final heads-up opponent, admitting they have played each other at the highest stakes for numerous years, with very mixed results. But in this one, Tollerene got the better of his old adversary, pocketing $2.39 million and leaving Bujtas with $1.645 million.

Heads up between Laszlo Bujtas and Ben Tollerene

"Feels amazing," Tollerene said, wiping away tears as he looked around the room at the cream of the high-stakes crop standing and applauding their dear friend. "It would have been hard to pick someone more suitable to be heads-up with...I've played him a ton and have a ton of respect for him. I'm glad that it was him."

Tollerene said that he had had a difficult previous 12 months, but had been able to draw on the support of all his close friends in the poker community, including Jason Koon, Seth Davies, Isaac Haxton, Dan Dvoress and Stephen Chidwick, all of whom led the cheering section for Tollerene tonight.

"Feels incredible," Tollerene repeated. "All of these guys helped me in a very big way. I have much appreciation and love for them. They all came through for me big."

Isaac Haxton, Dan Dvoress, Stephen Chidwick, Jason Koon and Seth Davies join Ben Tollerene to celebrate

The feelings run both ways. There is nobody more popular on the circuit than Tollerene, who is held in the highest regard both as a player and a person. He would have been many player's pick for this title, and duly delivered after a tournament that stretched into three days and left the rest of the world's best on the sidelines.

Tollerene has had a sensational trip to Montenegro. This win, which also earns him the exclusive Jacob & Co timepiece reserved only for Main Event winners on the Triton Poker Series, came only a couple of days after he took the biggest prize from the $150K NLH event, won by Koon. Tollerene and Koon chopped the prize money in that one, with Tollerene earning $3.44 million even though Koon got the trophy.

The two major results mean Tollerene has won close to $6 million in the space of a week.

It's also Tollerene's third Triton title, adding to previous wins in Monte Carlo and Cyprus.

Koon says he's the greatest of all time. Not many are going to argue.

One more for the new champ

TOURNAMENT ACTION

As players arrived in their droves, and fired as many bullets as they needed, it was quickly clear this was going to be huge. They passed the 83 entries of last year's event in Montenegro, then even the 91 of the same event in Jeju.

When registration closed and 93 entries were confirmed, this was the biggest $100K PLO event in history, with the scheduled first prize also eclipsing anything ever offered for a four-card tournament.

Now all that was missing was the identity of the player who would take it.

As it should be for a Main Event, there were still plenty of chips around the three tables when the bubble approached. For some, it was now all about leveraging the benefits of a big stack, while for others the challenge was simply to be hearing the TD say, "You're all in the money" while still in a seat, rather than while heading hastily out the door.

Jesse Lonis and Seth Davies departed in 17th and 16th. They've had good enough series that their bankrolls and pride can handle it. And then the three players who were most under threat next were Martin Dam, Samuli Sipila and Stephen Chidwick, who have similarly shared a good deal of success on the Triton Poker Series.

Dam was the first to double on the bubble. Then Sipila did it too. They were still short but were holding on. Chidwick did not outright double, but pinched some blinds to stay alive, and it was Dam's turn again to land in danger.

Then he found the boom-or-bust hand: pocket aces, specifically AA94. Jason Koon opened and then called Damn's three-bet jam with A9Q7. Koon hit. The board ran KKJ102, which filled a straight. Dam's aces were the busto kind.

Martin Dam was second in the first PLO event, bubble in the second

Everyone else locked up a cash, including Chidwick, who was out soon after but cashed for $160,000.

The pace of the Main Event is its big attraction to players. Big stacks and long levels means the most hands to allow the skills to shine. But all things considered, the final table got set quickly as the tournament scooted from its last 15 to it final seven.

Wai Kin Yong doesn't let a final table bubble upset good meal

The long-time chip leader Nacho Barbero was swept away in 12th. Hold'em hero Jason Koon, who max-late regged, was out in 11th. Then two-time Triton PLO champ Sipula finally had his fingers prised away from the table in ninth. When Wai Kin Yong was knocked out in eighth, the hero-heavy line-up was as follows:

Artur Martirosian - 5,675,000 (114 BBs)

Ben Tollerene - 5,320,000 (106 BBs)

Laszlo Bujtas - 3,920,000 (78 BBs)

Dan Dvoress - 2,885,000 (58 BBs)

Sean Rafael - 2,340,000 (47 BBs)

Phil Ivey - 1,930,000 (39 BBs)

Dan Cates - 1,180,000 (24 BBs)

Event 15 final table players (clockwise from back left): Phil Ivey, Artur Martirosian, Dan Dvoress, Dan Cates, Ben Tollerene, Sean Rafael, Laszlo Bujtas

Martirosian had accounted for Barbero and Joao Simao. Ben Tollerene busted Sipula and his friend Koon (gaining a measure of revenge for their hold'em heads-up battle a few days ago). That explained the two 100-blind stacks in the room.

But no one here was going to give up without a fight, and they made it to a dinner break—and well beyond—with seven still standing.

Eventually, the levels caught up with Phil Ivey, who was forced all-in pre-flop with QQ107 and had a chance to double his three blind stack against Dan Dvoress' AJ85.

The flop was good for Ivey. It came 382 and his queens led still, backed up by the flush draw. However, the A put Dvoress into the lead. The river was the one card that improved everyone, however. Although the 8 made Ivey his flush, Dvoress now had a winning full house, as Ivey was forced out of this one.

Phil Ivey couldn't spin up the short stack

Registration was still open for another hour on the $50,000 event that started today, which meant Ivey could reinvest some of his $433,000 payout if he so wished.

The delicate jostling on the final table gradually pushed Laszlo Bujtas to the top of the counts, and relegated Sean Rafael to the bottom. Both are PLO experts, but tournament poker is tournament poker and these things are inevitable.

Rafael was next to get knocked out and, yes, it was Bujtas who applied the finishing blow. It was actually a three-way pot in which Rafael might have tripled his six big blinds, but it ended up only boosting Bujtas further.

Artur Martirosian started things off with a raise from under the gun. He had K1093. Bujtas called on the button with A654, but then Rafael pushed with KQ83 in the small blind.

That now allowed Martirosian to three-bet, but it didn't shake Bujtas, who called to see a flop of K57. The two active players checked it. And they checked both the A turn and 9 river. Bujtas' aces-up were good, and Rafael was out. He took $549,000 for sixth. That's the biggest career tournament score of this recent arrival on the high stakes scene.

Sean Rafael with a telling absence of chips

The hour was getting late and tournament officials told the remaining five players that they would play only two more levels, or until one more player was knocked out, whichever came soonest. Registration would be closing very soon on the other event, and so there was no incentive to rattle to the end of this one.

In the event, Dan Dvoress was freed up to fire in the $50K. He became the next to fall at the hands of Tollerene, with the two friends colliding in a hand that was practically over by the flop. Dvoress raised the button with Q1097. Tollerene called from the big blind holding KQ102. The flop was all about Tollerene. It fell 289.

Dvoress couldn't have known his wrap was drawing dead (technically only an unlikely full house could save him) and after Tollerene checked, Dvoress bet almost everything he had. Tollerene raised to get the last in and Dvoress called it off.

The 3 turn and 5 river didn't change anything. Tollerene's flush took it down, while Dvoress added another $702,000 for a fifth-placed finish.

Dan Dvoress is drawing dead on the turn

The called it a day with Tollerene bagging a chip lead of 77 blinds, over Bujtas' 50. Martirosian and Cates were the shortest, with 19 and 9 blinds respectively.

The unscheduled Day 3 was short for Cates. He picked up queens, with no suits, and called Bujtas's UTG raise from the big blind. The 334 flop had little to recommend it for Cates, whose other two cards alongside the black queens were J10. But he had only four blinds left and called for all of them after Bujtas bet.

Bujtas had neither a three nor any clubs, but his hand of AAA4 was plenty good. No queen on turn or river meant Cates was out. His fourth place earned him $875,000.

The grind is over for Jungleman Dan Cates

Martirosian now had the smallest stack, but quickly doubled it through Bujtas. And another series of small pots went in Martirosian's direction, pulling him level with his Hungarian adversary. However, after Martirosian actually went ahead of Bujtas for the first time, the biggest pot of the afternoon developed to flip the script once more.

Bujtas and Martirosian got their near equal stacks all in pre-flop, with Martirosian's KK94 a slight favourite against Bujtas' AKJJ. But a jack on the flop vaulted Bujtas back ahead and, after a blank turn and river, left Martirosian back down with only seven blinds again.

It didn't take long for them to get in, but they followed the others into Bujtas' stack. This hand was another doozy. Bujtas opened the button with KQQ6 and both Tollerene and Martirosian called from the blinds. The flop was 983.

Tollerene checked and Martirosian jammed. Bujtas raised, presumably to persuade Tollerene out of it. Tollerene did eventually fold, though gave it plenty of thought. And Bujtas showed down his KQQ6. Martirosian had two pair and Bujtas had the over pair plus a flush draw.

The 4 turn changed nothing, but the 7 river hit Bujtas and sent Martirosian to the rail. He earned $1,080,000 for this one, his eighth cash of the trip to Montenegro. He'll go to Jeju in pole position in the PoY race.

No help for Artur Martirosian, who is knocked out in third

They reset the table for heads up. These two were now revisiting old online battles, with each of them fully aware of the other's heads-up game. They were looking at the best part of $800K riding on the contest. Rollz, indeed.

Bujtas led by 67 blinds to Tollerene's 49, and there was no talk of chopping it up. The biggest prize in live PLO tournament history was definitely going to go to someone.

Tollerene quickly swung into the lead. But Bujtas hauled it back. Then they levelled out again. And then, with characteristic ruthlessness, Tollerene put on the final surge to take him over the line.

Laszlo Bujtas: a very close second place

The final hand, watched closely across the room by all the other PLO sickos, was one more cracker. All the money went in on a flop of Q85. Bujtas, with the smaller stack, had top pair and some inside draws with KQ107. Tollerene had the mighty AA105. But the 7 put Bujtas ahead and seemed to be certain to prolong it further.

But the dealer had one last trick. The river was the A and, just like that, this one was done.

Contrasting emotions after the final hand

"What a couple of days, dude," said Jason Koon, bounding on stage to hug his friend, the same one he'd beaten heads up a couple of days ago. "Enjoy your moment buddy, but what a sick couple of days."

"The last hand was quite a wild ride," Tollerene said. But, like always, the best ride it out and come out on top.

The scrum comes to celebrate with Ben Tollerene