The final table of the 2009 PokerStars Asia Pacific Poker Tour Sydney Grand Final was contested today in Australia. Nine players returned for the final day from a starting field of 396 players. The total prize pool for the event was $2,376,000 AUD, and the first-place prize up for grabs was $594,000 AUD. The final-table contestants had played for three days to make it this far, and it was apparent that no one wanted to leave early. It took three hours of play before the first player was eliminated.

Multiple players doubled up before Thomas Slifka busted in ninth place. He was knocked out by Wayne Carlson, who claimed his second victim just one hand later. This time Carlson held pocket queens against the pocket threes of David Formosa. The board stayed neutral, and Formosa was eliminated in eighth place. The next elimination was a close race. Andrew Hiscox held A-K, and he had Barry Forrester dominated. Forrester was all in with A-Q, and the board did not bail him out. Forrester was knocked out in seventh place.

Andrew Hiscox was the next player to put his tournament life at risk and he pegged his hopes on pocket sevens. Aaron Benton (pictured above right) woke up with pocket aces and called him down. The aces held, and Hiscox was eliminated in sixth place. The next all in occurred with a board of A J 6 8 sitting on the table. Tom Grigg bet 250,000, and Carlson mucked. Benton check-raised all in, and Grigg made the all-in call for his final 700,000. Grigg rolled over Q J , and Benton showed A 7 . The river brought the 6 , and Grigg was eliminated in fifth place before the dinner break.

An hour later, the final four players returned, and action was slow to kick in once again. This time it took four hours before a player hit the rail, and the unfortunate soul was Carlson. His A-10 was dominated by the A-Q of Ernst Hermans. The board improved neither player, and Carlson was eliminated in fourth place. Third place was decided a few minutes later. Leo Boxell moved all in on a flop of 10 8 7 with 8 6 in the hole, and Benton called him down with 10 9 . The turn brought the 3 and the river fell 10 . Boxell was eliminated in third place.

Benton held 6,935,000 at the start of heads-up play, which gave him a nice lead over Hermans and his stack of 4,735,000. Hermans stole the lead away early in the final match, but Benton regained his footing and then won a monster hand. Hermans raised to 275,000 preflop from the button, and Benton made the call. The flop fell A J 2 , and Benton checked. Hermans bet 225,000, and Benton called. The turn brought the 7 , and Benton bet 880,000. Hermans made the call, and the river fell 10 . Benton checked, and Hermans bet 1.6 million. Benton made the call, and Hermans turned over 8 4 for a bluff. Benton showed down J 9 to win the hand and grow his stack to 9.96 million.

The final hand came a short time later. Benton raised to 325,000 preflop, and Hermans made the call. The flop was dealt 9 7 7 , and Hermans bet 375,000. Benton made the call, and the turn fell Q . Hermans moved all in, and Benton made the call. Hermans held 9 8 , and Benton was ahead with pocket kings. The river brought the 6 to seal Hermans’ fate of a second-place finish, and Benton was declared the APPT Sydney Grand Final champion. It was the first major win for the 32-year-old Australian.

Final-Table Results:

NOTE: All payouts listed below are in USD

1: Aaron Benton — $500,348

2: Ernst Hermans — $475,000

3: Leo Boxell — $213,840

4: Wayne Carlson — $166,320

5: Tom Grigg — $130,680

6: Andrew Hiscox — $106,920

7: Barry Forrester — $83,160

8: David Formosa — $65,340

9: Thomas Slifka — $47,520

Payouts adjusted for chop between the final two.