Nagel takes it down

Another massive poker prize has been taken down with Canadian Quillan Nagel winning the inaugural Moneymaker Millionaire tournament in the Caribbean.

After five months of exciting online qualifying rounds the event concluded yesterday at the Atlantis Resort and Casino in the Bahamas’ Paradise Island.

Nagel outplayed a field of over 830,000 participants in the world’s largest free online poker tournament, organised by Pokerstars, winning a grand prize worth $1 million including an Aston Martin DB9.

The tournament culminated in a live, three table grand finale featuring 27 determined poker players all vying for their own piece of a $2.5 million prize pool. After 16 hours of intense poker action, Nagel and his final US opponent, Jerry Watterson of Jackson, Florida, had virtually even stacks when heads up play started.

In the third hand, Nagel was able to topple his opponent and take the stack of one million dollars in cash positioned in the center of the felt.

Participants from virtually every poker-playing country were represented in the Moneymaker Millionaire online tournament. The Canuck poker prowess was daunting. Canadians comprised over 13% of the playing field, 37% of round two finalists and 66% of the live final table in the Bahamas.

“This is a life changing experience that I will never forget,” Quillan Nagel said. “PokerStars and Chris Moneymaker have been an inspiration and catalyst for everyday poker players all over the world, reminding us that we too can overcome incredible odds and win the big one.”

Nagel plans to buy his wife a new Toyota Prius and a digital camera, and to pay off his student loans from the Norman Patterson School of International Affairs at Carleton University and Ryerson University. Nagel’s wife, Lisa Kisch, a stage actress in hits such as Mamma Mia and Beauty and the Beast, was there to congratulate the new millionaire.

The tournament was inspired by the historic victory of Chris Moneymaker, who at age 27 revolutionized the poker world by winning $2.5 million at the 2003 World Series of Poker main event after gaining entry through a $39 satellite tournament on PokerStars.com.

In honour of this big moment in poker history, PokerStars gave away $2.5 million throughout the course of the Moneymaker Millionnaire, including 27 all expenses paid vacations to the Bahamas and an Aston Martin DB9.