For more than a decade, the Aussie Millions has been synonymous with some of the highest stakes in tournament poker. The event was one of the first to regularly host six-figure buy-ins, and the history-rich A$100,000 Challenge begins today.
The A$100,000 Challenge kicks off with nine levels lasting 40 minutes apiece. The unlimited reentry event will see players begin with 250,000 in their stacks at blinds and antes of 500/1,000/1,000. The last level to be played is 5,000/10,000/10,000 and registration remains open into Day 2.
The tournament also uses an action timer which will give players 30 seconds per decision. They'll get four time extensions apiece each good for an additional 30 seconds.
Thus far, Farid Jattin (A$25,000 Challenge) and Michael Addamo (A$50,000 Challenge) have been crowned high roller champs here at Crown Melbourne. If history is any judge, the winner int he A$100,000 Challenge figures to bank seven figures. Last year, Cary Katz topped a field of 42 for A$1,481,760.
Plenty of superstars are sure to show up. Action is scheduled to begin at 2:10 p.m. local time, although with tournaments the likes of this, you can never truly be sure. Stick with PokerNews to follow the nosebleed action, and in the mean time, here's a look at the long history of the A$100,000 Challenge:
| Year | Winner | Country | First Prize | Entries | Total Prize Pool |
|---|
| 2006 | John Juanda | Indonesia | A$1,000,000 | 10 | A$1,000,000 |
| 2007 | Erick Lindgren | United States | A$1,000,000 | 18 | A$1,800,000 |
| 2008 | Howard Lederer | United States | A$1,250,000 | 25 | A$2,500,000 |
| 2009 | David Steicke | Australia | A$1,200,000 | 23 | A$2,300,000 |
| 2010 | Daniel Shak | United States | A$1,200,000 | 24 | A$2,400,000 |
| 2011 | Sam Trickett | United Kingdom | A$1,525,000 | 38 | A$3,800,000 |
| 2012 | Dan Smith | United States | A$1,012,000 | 22 | A$2,200,000 |
| 2013 | Andrew Robl | United States | A$1,000,000 | 22 | A$2,200,000 |
| 2014 | Yevgeniy Timoshenko | Ukraine | A$2,000,000 | 47 | A$7,486,000 |
| 2015 | Richard Yong | Malaysia | A$1,870,000 | 70 | A$6,860,000 |
| 2016 | Fabian Quoss | Germany | A$1,446,480 | 41 | A$4,018,000 |
| 2017 | Nick Petrangelo | United States | A$882,000 | 18 | A$1,764,000 |
| 2018 | Michael Lim | Malaysia | A$931,000 | 19 | A$1,862,000 |
| 2019 | Cary Katz | United States | A$1,481,760 | 42 | A$4,116,000 |
and Addamo bet 4,000 in position, getting a fold from Burns and a call from van Blarcum. The 
hit the turn and van Blarcum checked to Addamo who cut out a bet of 32,000. Van Blarcum folded right away.
