Dan Smith Wins Triton Monte Carlo $200,000 Invitational For $3.9 Million

Dan Smith has expanded his already impressive list of tournament poker victories with yet another monumental title. The 34-year-old American poker professional triumphed over a field of 73 participants in the 2023 Triton Super High Roller Series Monte Carlo, a $200,000 buy-in no-limit hold’em invitational event, securing a massive top prize of $3,870,000.

In an interview with Triton reporters, Smith expressed, “This is very special. I’ve had a few bigger scores in my career… but it’s different when you win a tournament with 70 players like this. It’s one of the biggest events of the year, and only so many guys get to win them.”

This win marked the fifth multi-million-dollar score in Smith’s career, with an additional five earnings falling between one and two million dollars. This latest seven-figure windfall catapulted Smith’s lifetime earnings to over $49,625,381, propelling him to the sixth position on poker’s all-time money list.

While Smith had previously claimed titles in World Series of Poker, World Poker Tour, and numerous high roller events, this victory marked his first win in a Triton Poker event. He had recorded 13 previous in-the-money finishes on the tour, with a career-best payday of $8,784,000, finishing third in the 2019 Triton London £1,050,000 buy-in charity invitational. However, he had not yet clinched a Triton trophy before this breakthrough. This event marked his second title and his 11th final-table finish of the year.

The tournament marked the beginning of the latest Triton festival, hosted at the Salle des Etoiles in Monte-Carlo Sporting, along the French Riviera. The event spanned three days, from October 24-26, with a unique twist. Recreational players were each required to invite a professional to enter the event. The pros and amateurs were segregated on day one, merged on day two, and played as in a standard tournament.

The top 13 finishers secured cash prizes, with a minimum cash prize of $300,000. Several prominent names survived the bubble but were eliminated before reaching the official final table, including David Yan (13th), Isaac Haxton (11th), and Paul Phua (10th).

The final day began with nine contenders, with Elton Tsang in the lead and Smith in second place. Haralabos Voulgaris was the first to be eliminated, losing a preflop showdown to Tsang and finishing ninth for $406,000. Another preflop showdown saw Ilkin Garibli exit in eighth place ($540,000).

Yet another preflop confrontation led to the elimination of two-time bracelet winner Fedor Holz, whose pocket nines were defeated by the A-Q suited of fellow poker pro Mario Mosbock. Mosbock hit a nut flush on the river, ending Holz’s run in seventh place ($694,000) and increasing Holz’s career earnings to $41.8 million.

Bracelet winner and four-time Triton champion Danny Tang went all-in with K-9 against Jean-Noel Thorel’s A-Q, who completed jacks full of aces on the river. Tang secured $875,000 for his efforts, surpassing $20 million in lifetime cash earnings.

Russian businessman Alexander Shelukhin went all-in with 8-7 suited against Mario Mosbock’s J-9 suited. Although Shelukhin had a straight draw on the flop, Mosbock secured a pair. Shelukhin was unable to improve further and was eliminated in fifth place ($1,125,000).

Thorel ultimately finished fourth, earning $1,390,000 and increasing his career earnings to $15,288,164, surpassing Bertrand ‘ElkY’ Grospellier ($14,742,921) for the top spot on the French all-time money list. Thorel’s final hand saw his A-4 in the big blind fall to a pair on the river for Mosbock, who had pushed all-in preflop with J-9 from the small blind.

When three-handed play began, Mosbock held a significant chip lead. Elton Tsang slipped to the bottom of the counts after doubling up Dan Smith, and Tsang was eliminated in third place, earning $1,780,000. The 2016 Big One For One Drop champion now boasts more than $17.3 million in career earnings.

Heads-up play began with Mosbock holding 14,325,000 chips to Smith’s 7,550,000. Smith narrowed the gap and ultimately took the lead in time for the decisive hand. Smith raised on the button with ASpade Suit8Club Suit, and Mosbock defended his big blind with KClub Suit8Heart Suit.

The flop revealed AClub Suit9Club Suit6Spade Suit, and Mosbock checked. Smith, holding top pair, made a continuation bet and was met with a check-raise from Mosbock. Smith made the call, and the turn brought the KSpade Suit, giving Mosbock a pair of kings. Mosbock checked and called Smith’s bet of 1,350,000. The river brought the 8Spade Suit, giving both players two pairs. The pot swelled to 7,400,000, while Mosbock had only 4,500,000 remaining in his stack. Mosbock checked, and Smith went all-in. Mosbock called but was eliminated in second place. The payday of $2,690,000 marked the largest win yet for Mosbock.

Triton Invitational Monte Carlo Final Table Results