As one of the most highly-anticipated online poker events of the year, the Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) on PokerStars, draws in players from around the world to compete for massive prize pools and bragging rights. With the 2023 SCOOP set to take place from May 7-31, the excitement is already building among the online poker community.

Throughout the years, SCOOP has produced some of the most skilled and successful players in the game. These players have not only achieved impressive results during SCOOP events but have also proven their prowess in other online and live tournaments.

So, as we gear up for the 2023 SCOOP, let’s take a moment to recognize the players who have left their mark on this prestigious event and continue to shape the future of online poker.

Calvin “cal42688” Anderson – 10 Titles

The godfather of SCOOP, Calvin “cal42688” Anderson is one of the most successful and consistent players in the history of the series, with a record-setting ten titles to his name.

Picking up his first SCOOP win back in 2010, Anderson found himself in the top stop on nine more occasions, with his last victory coming in 2018. He is particularly renowned for his proficiency in mixed-game events and has won SCOOP titles in 8-Game, H.O.R.S.E and Stud Hi/Lo, just to name a few.

Anderson’s SCOOP record is a testament to his exceptional skills and consistency as a player. His impressive performance in the series has cemented his legacy as one of the all-time greats of online poker.

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Mike “sirwatts” Watson – 7 Titles

Mike “sirwatts” Watson is a highly successful and respected Canadian poker player who has made a name for himself on the international poker scene. Watson has won an impressive seven SCOOP titles, with his victories spanning from 2015 to 2021.

Watson’s SCOOP titles have come in a variety of different formats, including obscure games like Badugi and 2-7 Single Draw. Watson has consistently shown his versatility and skill in these different games, which is a testament to his overall prowess as a poker player.

Beyond his SCOOP accomplishments, Watson has also established himself as a fixture in the high-roller circuit of the European Poker Tour (EPT). He has amassed over $18 million in lifetime live tournament earnings and is a respected figure in the poker community.

Watson’s seven SCOOP titles stand as a remarkable achievement, and his consistent success in high-stakes tournaments both online and live further cements his status as one of the best poker players of his generation.

Jussi “calvin7v” Nevanlinna – 7 Titles

Jussi “calvin7v” Nevanlinna is a Finnish poker player who has achieved great success in SCOOP, with a total of seven titles on his resume. Like Anderson and Watts, Nevanlinna has shown his skill in a variety of different games and formats.

Nevanlinna’s SCOOP victories date back to 2014 when he won the 2014 $215 PL Omaha Heads-Up event for a prize of $26,979. His most recent SCOOP titles came in 2021 when he took down both the high and low versions of the FLO8 8-Max event.

Impressively, Nevanlinna has turned a couple of dollars into thousands on more than one occasion, and his continued success in SCOOP events is a testament to his dedication and hard work in the game of poker.

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Benny “RunGodLike” Glaser – 7 Titles

Benny “RunGodLike” Glaser is a highly successful online poker player from the United Kingdom and joined the “Seven SCOOP titles” club last year after he won the $2,100 H.O.R.S.E event for a prize of $31,080.

In addition to his seven SCOOP titles, Glaser has also won six World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) titles and four World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets. He also finished as the runner-up in the inaugural 2022 WPT World Championship Main Event for a career-best cash of $2.83 million.

With a record like the one listed, is there any doubt that he is the greatest poker player of all time to hail from the UK?

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Ole “wizowizo” Schemion – 7 Titles

It may come as a surprise that German professional poker player Ole “wizowizo” Schemion only secured his first wins under the SCOOP umbrella in 2018. Since then, he has been on an absolute heater and has become one of the most successful SCOOP players ever, thanks to bagging a trio of titles in 2022.

Impressively, five of his seven triumphs have been for six-figure paydays, with his largest being $283,261 after he was the last player standing in the 2018 $10,300 PLO 6-Max High Roller. And unlike anyone else on this list, he is the only player to have three SCOOP wins in tournaments that have buy-ins of more than $10,000.

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Players with 5+ SCOOP Titles

The roster of top-tier poker pros with five or more SCOOP titles is impressive, with many still in the game and poised to add more trophies to their collection during SCOOP 2023. It’s worth keeping an eye out, as the festival could produce a new crop of legendary SCOOP players and shift the hierarchy of the greatest of all time by the end of the series.

After nearly 12 hours of play on Day 2, PokerStars ambassador Sam Grafton has topped a field of 74 entries to claim the title in the €10,200 Mystery Bounty event. The 2023 PokerStars EPT presented by Monte-Carlo Casino® is well underway now, and the first winner has been crowned, pocketing Grafton a total of €145,400.

Grafton overcame a huge heads-up deficit in order to claim the victory, his first of 2023. Grafton was on the edge of defeat multiple times in his heads-up battle with Sam Greenwood but managed to avoid disaster each and every time. The big turning point for the British poker pro was a two-outer he hit with pocket threes against the pocket jacks of Greenwood. Grafton took a commanding lead after the big double-up and finished the match just moments later.

The two players embraced in a hug after the match, and Grafton admitted that he was very lucky to come out as the winner. “You deserved that one, Sam. Very unlucky, sorry about that.” Grafton will take it any way he can as he joked earlier in the day that he was playing with the top 0.1% luckiest players in the world.

€10,200 Mystery Bounty Final Table Results

Day 2 Action

There were 29 players who returned to their seats from Day 1 with late registration open for an additional two levels into Day 2. That encouraged plenty of action for the first hour with stacks coming and going throughout. When all was settled, a total of 74 entries were recorded, and just 26 players made it to the first break.

In total, there was €370,000 up for grabs in the bounty prize pool, spread across 26 envelopes. The largest prize was the €50,000 envelope, and two of them were made available. The first one belonged to Conor Beresford, who was one of the first players to draw from the treasure chest. Couple that with four additional bounties, Beresford managed to walk away with €127,650.

The other top bounty went to Nacho Barbero, who only picked up one knockout on the day. Barbero made good use of it, picking up €50,000 to go along with his seventh-place finish. The other big bounty winners included Erik Seidel (€25,000), who failed to cash, and Artur Martirosian (€25,000) who bowed out in fourth place for an additional €34,750.

The chip lead in the early part of the day belonged to Felipe Ketzer, who was dominating the field, but a slight overstep in aggression while chasing down the bounties led to Ketzer becoming the short stack at the hands of Grafton. Ketzer was eliminated just short of the money but was able to pick up a couple of bounties in the process.

The unwanted bubble belonged to Sosia Jiang, who was grinding the short stack bit couldn’t make it last any longer. Her big slick was no match for the suited connectors of Beresford and the money bubble burst on the very first hand. The rest of the field was guaranteed at least €8,700 and some of the min-cashes went the way of Kayhan Mokri, Joao Vieira, Paul Newey, and Guram Andronikashvili.

The eliminations at the final table slowed drastically with just six players left at the dinner break. Over the next two hours, Julien Sitbon was the only player eliminated in that time frame. Eventually, the blinds would catch up with the short stacks as Maksim Vaskresenski and Martirosian were forced to get their chips in the middle with subpar holdings.

It was a swingy match for the final three players, who took turns taking the chip lead and spent their fair share on the short stack. Beresford eventually bowed out in third place but not without the dramatics as all three players had their entire stack in the middle at the same time. Greenwood’s pocket jacks prevailed, which left him as a massive favorite entering heads-up with Grafton.

Greenwood was on the brink of capturing another title multiple times in the heads-up match, but a combination of bad luck or no luck at all left the Canadian frustrated. In the end, Greenwood went for the hero call on the river, but Grafton was able to turn over the goods with a straight to earn the victory. It is expected that many, if not all of these players, will be back in the ring tomorrow when the single-day €25,000 event takes place.

That wraps up this event for PokerNews but keep it tuned in here as there will be plenty more action over the next week at the 2023 EPT Monte Carlo.