The $1,100 Thriller Bounty occasion on the 2025 Mediterranean Poker Celebration has formally wrapped up, smashing its assure by creating an enormous prize pool of $1,496,000 from a discipline of 1,496 gamers. The motion took practically 16 hours to unfold, culminating in an exciting closing desk on the Advantage Royal Diamond Resort On line casino & Spa.
The occasion noticed Alex Goulder emerge because the champion, dominating the ultimate desk by eliminating seven out of the 9 gamers. Goulder’s journey ended with a curler coaster heads-up battle in opposition to David Vinayagamoorthy, the place he finally clinched the title and took residence the $85,000 first-place prize.
$1,100 Thriller Bounty Remaining Desk Outcomes
Winner’s Response
After claiming the title, Alexander Goulder took a second to mirror on his victory.
“I suppose it nonetheless would not really feel actual,” mentioned Goulder. “The ultimate desk, for positive, was a blur. It is one of many largest titles of the sequence, however once I’m standing right here with the trophy, it’ll hit.”
Requested about his restoration plan after such an intense day, Goulder responded, “Sleep, however that is exhausting to do while you’re so wired after a win like this. It has been an extended day, and there’s nonetheless a lot extra to come back within the sequence. The plan is to simply hold enjoying.”
Wanting again on his efficiency, Goulder was humble, saying, “I didn’t suppose something shocked me about myself at present. I imply, while you’re working properly like that, the playing cards form of do the be just right for you. Successful all-ins, knocking folks out with the most effective hand, and even getting fortunate while you don’t have the most effective hand—it didn’t take an excessive amount of talent on my half.”
Goulder additionally credited his supporters: “Undoubtedly my spouse and my children—properly, my child daughter is a bit of too younger to know what is going on on. However my son, Daniel, was cheering me on the entire manner, and I had some nice mates supporting me as properly.”
The Remaining Day
When the playing cards acquired within the air at midday native time, the 224 gamers who had made it via to Day 2 had already secured at the least $800 for his or her efforts. Nevertheless, every participant had their eyes set on the highest prize and the eye-popping $100,000 bounty that awaited one fortunate participant.
Within the opening two hours, virtually 60% of the sector hit the rail as gamers took their probability to go bounty searching. Amongst these on the fortunate aspect of the bounty hunt was Mariia Aleksandrova, who pulled the most important accessible bounty, price a staggering $100,000. At that time, she had already made greater than what the event winner would earn, all due to deciding on the appropriate envelope.
As the sector continued to dwindle all the way down to the final two tables, Goulder constructed up a giant stack. First, he eradicated Dzmitry Budai from the event. Then, due to a stroke of luck, cracked Mekan Yusupov’s pocket aces with a backdoor flush holding ace-nine.
With the chip lead and momentum on his aspect, Goulder shortly shifted into overdrive, sending Naryman Yaghmaie to the rail in eleventh place. It wasn’t lengthy earlier than he burst the ultimate desk bubble, along with his ace-high holding up in opposition to Salim Usmanov.
Remaining Desk Motion
As the ultimate 9 gamers took their seats on the live-streamed closing desk, Goulder shortly made his mark. He used pocket sixes to ship Mazen Halabi out in ninth place. Not lengthy after, he eradicated one of the vital embellished gamers on the desk, Roman Stoika, with a queen hitting the river to ship Stoika residence in eighth.
The momentum continued to shift in Goulder’s favor as he began to tug away from the remainder. A little bit of unhealthy luck befell Andrey Pateychuk, who David Vinayagamoorthy knocked out. Then, Yusupov exited in sixth after check-shoving second pair, solely to see Goulder name with a greater kicker, claiming one other bounty on the closing desk.
At this level, Goulder held over half of the chips in play and appeared practically unstoppable. Nevertheless, Emad Ghadamian wasn’t about to go down quietly. After Jakub Sterba bumped into his pocket aces to bust, Ghadamian and Goulder clashed, and it was Ghadamian who ended up worse off. Ghadamian check-shoved with a straight draw, however Goulder referred to as with prime pair. No assistance on the flip or river meant that Ghadamian was eradicated in fourth, and solely three remained.
Yilu Yuan, who had been enjoying tight after choosing off an enormous bluff from Stoika, was the following to fall. Yuan’s ace-eight was no match for Goulder’s king-seven, and with that, the event moved to heads-up.
Heads-Up Battle
Goulder entered heads-up with a 2:1 chip lead, however issues shortly began to unravel. On the very first hand, Goulder bluffed away half of his stack with simply king-high, permitting Vinayagamoorthy to say an early benefit after calling down with second pair. It regarded like Vinayagamoorthy had discovered a crack in Goulder’s sport.
However Goulder shortly bounced again. After turning a flush in opposition to Vinayagamoorthy’s prime pair, Goulder doubled up and regained the chip lead. Slowly however certainly, Goulder chipped away at Vinayagamoorthy’s stack, grinding him all the way down to a brief stack.
Lastly, Goulder shoved from the small blind with ten-eight, and Vinayagamoorthy, with simply 9 massive blinds remaining, referred to as with king-high. Goulder had his first alternative to seal the win—and in true Goulder type, he flopped the nuts. Vinayagamoorthy was left drawing to a chop, however by the flip, it was throughout.
