Ioannis Angelou-Konstas takes down Partypoker LIVE MILLIONS UK Main Event

The Greek grinder booked his biggest ever score, after outlasting a massive field of 1,015.

“I am in shock, I literally am in shock I think.”

After five days of action-heavy poker, the Angelou-Konstas was the last man standing in Partypoker [3]'s LIVE MILLIONS UK Main Event in the Dusk Till Dawn Casino, beating Alex Foxen heads-up. Before this score, Ioannis' biggest payday was $257,888, so it was obviously an overwhelming experience for him.

“I am in shock, I literally am in shock I think. I tried to compose myself all day and yesterday night. I slept alright; I slept like six hours. But I tried to keep cool because I knew, even though I was first in the chip counts, that doesn’t mean you’ll win. So, you have to play your best. And I did, and I got lucky.”

The Main Event so a huge field emerging, crossing the 1,000 and totaling at 1,015. The prize pool grew to £4,922,750 ($6,481,055) with £940,000 ($1,316,551) going for the winner's way. Only 127 players walked away with a profit, with Irish Dan Wilson becoming the first casualty after the bubble burst. Dan walked away with £10,300 ($13,560) for his performance.

Some other notables to make the money were: Manig Loeser (106th; £10,300), Andy Black (68th; £15,000), Dominik Panka (55th; £15,000), Maria Lampropulos (53rd; £15,000), Max Silver (42nd; £17,500), and James Atkin (10th; £40,000).

Only 9 players returned for the unofficial Final Table. It only took 10 minutes for them to create the first big pot when Alex Foxen double up on Michael Wang with Aces against eights in a preflop confrontation.

The player to miss the official Final Table of eight was none other than former WSOP Main Event champion, Ryan Reiss. Reiss finished 9th when his King-jack was unable to beat the Ace-ten of John Haigh's. The US pro walked away with a £50,000 paycheck.

The official Final Table

The first player to bust from the final table was Dara O'Kearney. Despite being the shortest stack at the start of the FT, Dara managed to ladder up one spot but eventually had to settle for 7th place, good for a £70,000 payday. The Irish was followed by John Haigh, whose pocket queens fell when both Alex Foxen and Hall flopped a king holding Ace-king. Haigh walked away with a cool £100,000 prize, which accounts for his biggest-ever score.

It took more than two hours for the players to find the next victim. It was Michael Wang, who made a big call for his tournament life, but Angelou-Konstas delivered bad news when he showed down pocket Aces on an ace-high board and took Wang's last chips. He finished 6th, which was good for £140,000 this time.

Former WSOP ME finalist, Sam Grafton exited 15 minutes later, calling off an all-in shove from Angelou-Konstas with 7-6. The Greek flopped two pairs and even managed to improve to a full house on the turn, meaning Grafton was out in 5th place for £205,580.

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Proving once again, how poker can change lives, it was a former employee of the casino, who got 4th in the £5,300 tournament, as Tom Hall played excellent poker for 5 days and earned £300,000 for his efforts.

Antoine Labat, who got 9th in this year's WSOP Main, finished 3rd this time and added £440,000 to his all-time earnings.

By the start of the heads-up Angelou-Konstas head an overwhelming lead over Foxen, with almost 90% of all the chips in play. After Alex pulled a double-up, they came to an agreement, which secured Foxen £720,000, while £840,000 for Ioannis. They continued the battle for a remaining £100,000 and the trophy.

Twenty minutes later, Ioannis check/shoved on the river of a board that read King-Ace-Four-Three-Ten, and Foxen went deep into the tank. He eventually made a call with pocket eights, but his opponent turned over Queen-jack for the nuts. It was all over, with £940,000 going for the champion's way, while runner-up Foxen added £720,000 to his winnings.

After his win, Ioannis praised his opponents: “A lot of the guys on the table were tough opponents, I respect them all, but Alex was probably the toughest. His stare is so intense, it made me feel uncomfortable, and he’s also really good at playing.”

Final results