Hasan “Huss” Onay has won the 2024 Australian Poker Open Main Event after a heads-up deal with Brazil’s Higor Seibel.
Onay, who is the second-most winningest player in Hustler Casino Live history, entered heads-up with a dominating chip lead, and eventually agreed a heads-up deal with Seibel.
The 549-player tournament took place at Doltone House Western Sydney at Club Marconi, with Onay taking home A$284,480 and the inaugural APO Main Event title. For his efforts, Seibel takes home A$255,520.
Australian Poker Open Main Event Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize (AUD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hasan Onay | Australia | $284,480* |
| 2 | Higor Seibel | Brazil | $255,520* |
| 3 | Lauchlan Swann | Australia | $120,000 |
| 4 | Georgina Vuksanovic | Australia | $90,000 |
| 5 | Daniel Tolomeo | Australia | $66,000 |
| 6 | Toby Giles | Australia | $51,000 |
| 7 | Michael Sleiman | Australia | $43,000 |
| 8 | Adi Dahari | Australia | $34,500 |
| 9 | Marc Seymour | Australia | $27,900 |
*denotes heads-up deal
Winner’s Reaction
“It was mentioned over the last couple of days, but I might retire from cash games and start taking up tournaments!” Onay told PokerNews following his victory. “Although this is the only place I can get a cash so I might just play here!”
“I might retire from cash games and start taking up tournaments!”
Onay entered the final day third in chips behind Lauchlan Swann and runaway chip leader Georgina Vuksanovic, who looked to run away with the tournament before ultimately falling in fourth place.
“We were all really deep so I felt comfortable playing,” said Onay. “I was short at one stage, and [Vuksanovic] had half the chips in play. So it felt like we were all playing for second. But that’s not how poker works. I guess she got unlucky a few times and I turned it around.”
The inaugural Australian Poker Open Main Event was a great success, with Onay saying he was proud to have been part of it.
“It’s really special for me. I know the organizers have put in heaps of effort, and it feels awesome to win it and be part of the team with them.”
“I know the organizers have put in heaps of effort, and it feels awesome to win it”
And does this tournament victory mean that the likes of Wesley Fei and Nik Airball will be waiting a while for Huss’s return to the US cash game scene?
“I’d like to say I won’t be over there very often, but I think I’ll be there for sure. Give me a couple of months with the baby and I’ll be over for sure!”
Final Table Recap
Vuksanovic was a woman on a mission to start the final table, sniffing out bluffs from Adi Dahari and Onay, before Dahari sent Marc Seymour to the rail as the first elimination of the final table.
By the first break, Vuksanovic was the overwhelming chip leader, before an hour of madness saw the field go from eight to four.
Michael Sleiman and Lauchlan Swann played out an entertaining pot that saw Swann move into contention, while Vuksanovic continued her rise by bluffing Toby Giles off pocket kings .
Then came the eliminations. Swann finished off Dahari and Sleiman in quick succession, before Onay got rid of Giles and Daniel Tolomeo. And while Vuksanovic still held onto her chip lead, proceedings felt much less processional.
Seibel had shown excellent game awareness, raise-folding on multiple occasions and using “safety-first” tactics to make it this far, and he would double twice four-handed to stay alive.
Meanwhile, there was a change in chip lead as Vuksanovic tangled with Swann. A raising war on a dry jack-high flop saw Vuksanovic three-bet with pocket sixes only for Swann’s shove with pocket aces to force her out of the hand.
Seibel would double again before Swann finished off Vuksanovic in fourth place.
Onay had timed his surge to perfection and when it came, it was perfectly timed. Seibel had secured yet another double through Swann, which meant he held the chip lead at the pivotal moment at this final table.
Onay had limped with Q♠Q♦ blind on blind, with Swann raising with 9♥9♦ in the big blind. Onay re-raised before Swann shoved for over 70 big blinds.
Onay took his time with his decision before eventually calling, his pocket pair holding to eliminate Swann.
“Looking back I feel like I slow-rolled him,” Onay told PokerNews later. “But it felt like ICM suicide and I didn’t know if I was supposed to call it off. If he had me covered I think I would have folded honestly.”
Heads-up was a brief affair. Seibel would double one final time before the two agreed to a deal that would see Onay take home the trophy and title as inaugural APO Main Event winner.
The Australian Poker Open action continues right here on PokerNews with ongoing coverage of the Platinum Player Championships and The $10,000 buy-in Trojan, which gets underway tomorrow. Stay tuned for all the latest from Sydney!
Managing Editor
Based in the United Kingdom, Will started working for PokerNews as a freelance live reporter in 2015 and joined the full-time staff in 2019.
He graduated from the University of Kent in 2017 with a B.A. in German. He also holds an NCTJ Diploma in Sports Journalism.