One of the most significant stories in poker is that of Chris Moneymaker entering the World Series Of Poker Main Event via a satellite and ending up a millionaire. This was the first-ever televised WSOP, and it was one of the cornerstones for the huge popularity of the game after the year 2000.
Although Marco Biavaschi did not really repeat the same success as Moneymaker, he definitely traveled the same road, as he managed to win the 2020 888poker LIVE Madrid €888 Main Event.
However, he did not pay the full price to be there. Instead, he became one of the 1,067 entries by playing in a satellite tournament that required a €100 buy-in. In the end, he managed to win €150,000 and a trophy for his great success. This is the biggest poker cash in his career so far.
The event took place at the Casino Gran Via Madrid, which is located right in the middle of the Spanish capital. When Biavaschi won, he did not realize it at first, but there was a good reason for that. Just a couple of hands before that, he started celebrating too early, since he thought he had won the tournament.
However, his heads-up opponent, Daniyar Aubakirov, rivered a straight and doubled up his small stack size. Therefore, Biavaschi had to make a reality check when he actually won the tournament to see whether it was real this time.
Apart from receiving a huge prize, there’s something more important than the Italian player was awarded — the 2020 World Series of Poker Main Event package. The player will, therefore, have an opportunity to travel to Las Vegas and test his poker skills against some of the best players in the world.
The Final Table Results — Who Made the Money?
Biavaschi had to face some really good poker players along the way, including the likes of Fernando Pons and Claudio Di Giacomo. Moreover, he had to fight his way against some of the local poker players such as David Gonzales Delgado, Marco D’Amico, and Ignacio Lopez De Maturana.
When it comes to the final table, the first player to hit the rail was Ruben De Pedro from Spain, who managed to win €11,200. He was soon followed by a player from Israel named Ran Shahar for €14,000.
The next one who lost all chips also happened to be from Israel — Gilad Yam-Hod, who won €18,000 as the seven-placed player.
Biavaschi’s fellow Italian, Marco D’Amico, ended up sixth for €24,000, and Miguel Tejero, who was playing on the home court, ended up fifth for €32,000.
Another Spaniard, Pablo Paez, won €45,000 for fourth place, and he was followed by David Gonzalez Delgado, who won a total of €70,000. He was the last one to hit the rail before Aubakirov and Biavaschi started their heads-up battle. Aubakirov had to settle for second place and a total prize of €105,000.