Josh Duce Claims a Life-Changing Victory
The festival's opening tournament, the 1,500 A$ Opening Event, made history with an incredible 2,144 entries. The original million-dollar guarantee nearly tripled, pushing the prize pool to 2,787,200 A$.
From this massive field emerged local player Josh Duce as the champion, taking home a stunning reward of 438,400 A$ for his career-defining success.
In the final heads-up showdown, Duce defeated Eng Chhor. In the last hand of the tournament, his Q s J h held against Q d 3 d. This victory marks a breakthrough result for Duce, earning him nearly ten times his previous career-high.
Final Table Results for Event #1: 1,500 A$ Opening Event
|
Place |
Player |
Prize |
|
1. |
Josh Duce |
438,400 A$ |
|
2. |
Eng Chhor |
309,500 A$ |
|
3. |
Itsuki Aburatani |
220,300 A$ |
|
4. |
Michel Bouskila |
157,000 A$ |
|
5. |
Spencer Davies |
117,000 A$ |
|
6. |
Adrian Indoviro |
88,000 A$ |
|
7. |
Xin Li |
68,000 A$ |
|
8. |
Rachel Carolan |
54,000 A$ |
|
9. |
Dean Schneider |
44,000 A$ |
Mizrachi's Quest for the Title
Event 3: 5,000 A$ 6-Max thrived beyond expectations. Due to record player interest, the originally planned two-day format had to extend by an extra day to decide the winner of the record-breaking 341,635 A$ prize. Sixteen players from 305 entries made it to the final day, with poker legend Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi holding a commanding lead.
Mizrachi, who had already secured a minor ITM in the Opening Event in Melbourne, packed a massive stack exceeding 12 million chips into the final, putting him well ahead of the competition.
Top 10 Stacks Before the Final of Event #3: 5,000 A$ 6-Max
|
Position |
Player |
Stack |
|
1. |
Michael Mizrachi |
12,675,000 |
|
2. |
Ruben Padilla |
7,650,000 |
|
3. |
Higor Siebel |
6,300,000 |
|
4. |
Anton Lu |
6,300,000 |
|
5. |
Rick Shen |
5,875,000 |
|
6. |
Joe Sandaev |
5,825,000 |
|
7. |
Jason Wang |
4,725,000 |
|
8. |
Ben Pockett |
4,700,000 |
|
9. |
Nickolas Oiberman |
4,425,000 |
|
10. |
Rehman Kassam |
4,375,000 |
Joshua Cram Dominates the Fast-Paced Format
Joshua Cram became the third champion of Aussie Millions 2026 after winning the 1,500 A$ Hyper Turbo Event. This tournament attracted 138 entries, generating a prize pool of 179,400 A$.
Cram triumphed over Nicholas Williams in the heads-up final, claiming a prize of 46,640 A$. The final table featured notable names, including EPT Main Event champion Martin Finger, who finished third, and Natalia Rozova, the last woman standing, who finished fourth.
Final Table Results for Event #5: 1,500 A$ Hyper Turbo NLHE
|
Place |
Player |
Prize |
|
1. |
Joshua Cram |
46,640 A$ |
|
2. |
Nicholas Williams |
28,705 A$ |
|
3. |
Martin Finger |
18,925 A$ |
|
4. |
Natalia Rozova |
15,070 A$ |
|
5. |
Lucas Morritt |
11,570 A$ |
|
6. |
Joze Okmazic |
9,330 A$ |
|
7. |
Travis Endersby |
7,805 A$ |
|
8. |
George Hay |
6,550 A$ |
|
9. |
Adam Mills |
5,205 A$ |
Sources: Crown Poker, PokerNews
