The dates for the 2009 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure were announced this week; the marquee annual live poker tournament will begin on January 4th, 2009 from the Atlantis Hotel and Casino in Nassau in The Bahamas. This year’s champion of the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier, took home $2 million for the win. He’ll be back to defend his title in 2009, soaking up the sun in the process. Other superstars slated to appear – according to a press release distributed by the online poker room – include 2005 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion Joe Hachem, Fossil-Man Greg Raymer, and the man who started it all, Chris Moneymaker. PokerStars pro Daniel Negreanu will also be on hand.
The PCA Main Event boasts a $7,800 + $200 buy-in. This year’s tournament attracted over 1,100 players, creating a prize pool of $8.6 million. In the final hand of this year’s PCA Main Event, Hafiz Khan pushed all in on a bluff with 9-3 and was called by Grospellier, who held pocket eights. Khan’s hand could not improve, giving ElkY the win. Grospellier has also had success in the World Series of Poker, notching six career cashes for nearly $130,000 total. He finished 370th in the 2008 Main Event, cashing for $28,950. In the 2007 PCA, Ryan Daut overcame a 2.5:1 chip deficit heads up to defeat Isaac Haxton. Daut marched through a field of 1,000 players and took home $1.5 million.
Step tournaments start at $7.50 for a PCA seat all the way up to the sixth and final buy-in in the steps tournament, which has a $2,100 price tag. Double shootout tournaments begin at $11. PokerStars makes a concerted effort to promote its steps tournaments; its website notes: “Place in the top two spots in any of the PCA Steps events and we’ll give you a ticket to the next step. Make it all the way to Step 6 and you’ll play in a two-table tournament that gives the top three finishers a $12,000 2008 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure package.”
Grospellier commented, “The PCA is always a special tournament for poker players, especially because the location is so great, there are so many online qualifiers, and the atmosphere is very special. Players are usually much younger, too, and I know many more of them as we always play with each other on PokerStars.” The Atlantis is one of the most unique resorts in the world. It boasts a series of pools, an enormous sand beach, and even a speed slide that runs through the middle of a shark tank. Its world-famous “Bridge Suite” has hosted some of the biggest celebrities.
The PCA is also a stop on the European Poker Tour. It had previously served as a hallmark event of the World Poker Tour prior to 2008. The Great Dane Gus Hansen won the inaugural PCA in 2004. In 2005, John Gale pocketed nearly $900,000 for the win. A year later, PokerStars pro Steven Paul-Ambrose walked away with $1.4 million. Contestants must be 18 years-old to enter and the tournament regularly serves as one of the largest gatherings of online poker players in the world. I remember Joe Hachem playing like a little kid on the water slides in 2006.
Another online poker site, Ultimate Bet, is holding its annual Aruba Poker Classic at the end of September at the Radisson Hotel and Casino on the Caribbean Island.
We’ll keep you posted on the latest from the 2008 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure.
