Out of 418 players, just 36 remained at the start of day four of the five-day Australian Poker Championships, better known to poker fans as the Aussie Millions. With the bubble having burst and each remaining player already in the money, the final three dozen continued to battle it out for the top prize in the richest poker tournament held in the southern hemisphere.

More major names dropped off the tournament roster during the course of day four, such as Michael Gracz and Kathy Liebert, as well as the notable disappearance of Antonio "The Magician" Esfandiari. With the playing field having been whittled down to just seven players, the multinational final table is now composed of two native Aussies, a Canadian, a Kiwi, and three Americans. The big surprise of the tournament so far has been the performance of 20-year-old U.S. college dropout Shannon Shorr. With the third biggest chip stack giving him a very decent shot at becoming the Aussie Millions champ, Shorr may think twice about ditching Australia until he's old enough to gamble back in his native United States.

Source: Poker777 Staff

Thursday, 19 January 2006