Elliot Smith Wins PSC Macau Main Event for $2,877,500 HKD

(Photo: Pokerstars.com)

The inaugural PokerStars Championship Macau was a rousing success that saw Canadian poker pro Elliot Smith come out on top in the Main Event to win $2,877,500 HKD ($370,000 USD).

Smith outplayed a field of 536 entrants who either bought in for $40,000 HKD or won their seats through PokerStars Spin & Go qualifiers. More than five dozen players entered the ME via the latter route, spinning their way to Macau and taking a seat for a small fraction of the entry fee.

(Photo: Pokerstars.com)

Setting Records

But it was Smith who hoisted the championship trophy after a brutal heads-up duel with runner-up Tianyuan “Terry” Tang. Smith and Tang chopped 1st and 2nd place prize money equally, save for $300,000 HKD that remained for the winner.

That winner wouldn't be determined for almost 11 hours, as the pair of poker pros competed in an epic HU battle. It went down as the longest-ever heads-up confrontation in the history of PokerStarstournament action.

Perhaps even more amazing was that neither of the two players went all-in over the course of that 11 hours until the final hand. More than 260 hands were played during that time, PokerStars blog reported.

Tang went home as second best but not before some drama played out on the last hand. The flop transformed his small pocket pair into a set and his rail cheered confidently. But Smith hit a flush on the river, creating an exciting finish to a hard-fought contest.

“I’m very excited," a victorious Smith stated. "It’s an accomplishment not many people get to achieve.”

Here are the final table payouts, with winnings in Hong Kong dollars listed first, followed by USD equivalents.

(Photo: Pokerstars.com)

Smashing Success

PSC Macau ran from March 30 thru April 9 and awarded more than $130,000,000 HKD over 52 tournaments. It was Asia's largest poker festival ever, exceeding the expectations of organizers with over 6,000 tournament entries.

“The PokerStars Championship has truly introduced the world to Macau by more than doubling the international turnout compared to last year’s APPT Macau event," said Mark Blake, Head of PokerStars Live Events in Asia.

Smith joins some elite company among 2017 PokerStars Championship winners. Christian Harder took the title at PSC Bahamas, while Kenneth Smaron took the crown at PSC Panama.

Next up for the PokerStars Championship tour is the French Riviera for PSC Monte Carlo. The festival runs from April 25-May 5, 2017 and features a €5,300 Main Event as well as several high rollers.