PokerStars SuperStar Showdown: Viktor Blom Up Nearly $100,000 Before Match Postponed
In December 2010, PokerStars launched the SuperStar Showdown featuring Viktor Blom, who was then known simply by his online handle — "Isildur1". After a nine-month hiatus, the SuperStar Showdown returned last Sunday with Blom squaring off against his opponent from that inaugural match, Isaac "philivey2694" Haxton. The latter won $41,701 in their first meeting, but Blom was well on his way to redemption this weekend, up nearly $100,000 in 692 hands, before the match was postponed.
For those who don’t know, the SuperStar Showdown is designed as a high-stakes match where challengers face off against Blom in a heads-up match of 2,500 hands. The match is played across four tables of $50/$100 or higher no-limit hold’em and/or pot-limit Omaha, dependent upon the competitors’ preference. The winner is decided by whoever shows a profit at the end of the match or felts his or her opponent in the process.
In the latest match, Blom and Haxton agreed to play $100/$200 no-limit hold’em, each prepared with 15-buy-in bankrolls. Action kicked off around 12:00 p.m. EDT, and Blom immediately jumped out to an early lead. According to the , the first all-in hand developed on a flop of 9♣8♦7♦ and Haxton three-bet all in with K♣K♥, prompting Blom to call off his remaining $9,300 with J♣10♠. The flopped nuts held, and Blom raked in the $40,000 pot.
Here are a couple of the other notable hands in the match:
Biggest Pot of the Day: After Blom opened for $600 and Haxton called, the flop fell Q♠J♦10♦. Haxton proceeded to check-call a bet of $1,000 before leading out for $2,400 on the 10♥ turn. This time Blom was the one who called, leading to the 9♣ river. Haxton fired again, this time $5,280, and Blom responded with a raise to $23,600. Haxton made the call but quickly mucked when Blom rolled over JxJx for a full house, and raked in the $55,200 pot.
Nice River for Haxton: Not long after the hand just described, Blom opened for $600 holding 8♦8♥ and then called Haxton’s three-bet to $2,100. Haxton, who held J♦10♦, fired out $2,400 on the J♠4♠2♥ flop, Blom called, and the 2♠ was put out on the turn, prompting two checks. Blom needed an eight on the river to win the pot, and wouldn’t you know it, the 8♦ spiked. Haxton checked, Blom moved all in, and Haxton called off his remaining $15,700. With that, Blom was up $94,954.
At that point, Haxton’s Internet connection began acting up. While he tried to find a quick fix, he couldn't and the decision was made to postpone the match with 1,808 hands remaining. Haxton was clearly disappointed with mother nature and took to TwoPlusTwo to :
“Hey everyone,
I'm really sorry about all this. I know it's ruining the flow of the match for spectators.
To clarify the weather stuff: There was a really bad storm 2 days ago. My internet was completely down for 2 hours and has been a little unstable ever since. I think something between the ISP and my apartment must have been damaged.
Yesterday my internet only went out once or twice all day and I thought I'd be fine to play. Obviously, it's been a lot worse today but I'm optimistic we'll still be able to get the match done. I haven't had any problems for almost 10 minutes and if holds up for a couple more we're gonna start playing again.”
The Haxton-Blom match will reconvene at 2pm EST (18:00 GMT) Tuesday, while a new match will take place on March 18 at 12:00 p.m. EDT against high-stakes no-limit hold’em specialist Andrew “Kanu7” Millar.
SuperStar Showdown Breakdown
| Date | Opponent | Profit/Loss | Record |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec. 19, 2010 | Isaac "philivey2694" Haxton | -$41,701 | 0-1 |
| Jan. 2, 2011 | Antanas “Tony G” Guoga | +$44,280 | 1-1 |
| Jan. 30, 2011 | Daniel “w00ki3z” Cates | +$51,196 | 2-1 |
| Feb. 13, 2011 | Eugene “MyRabbiFoo” Katchalov | +$111,750 | 3-1 |
| Feb. 27, 2011 | Attila “DodgyFish72” Gulcsik | +$10 | 4-1 |
| March 20, 2011 | Daniel “KidPoker” Negreanu | +$150,000 | 5-1 |
| March 27, 2011 | Daniel “KidPoker” Negreanu | -$26,500 | 5-2 |
| April 3, 2011 | Scott “urnotindangr” Palmer | -$5,425 | 5-3 |
| April 10, 2011 | Scott “urnotindangr” Palmer | +$66,607 | 6-3 |
| April 24, 2011 | "Mastermixus" | +$1,279 | 7-3 |
| June 19, 2011 | Rui "PepperoniF" Cao | +$150,000 | 8-3 |
| March 11, 2012 | Isaac "philivey2694" Haxton | +$99,886 | To Be Continued |
| March 18, 2012 | Andrew “Kanu7” Millar | ??? | ??? |
Total SuperStar Showdown Profit to Date: $601,382
For more information, visit the .
Get all the latest PokerNews updates on your social media outlets. on Twitter and on Facebook today!
