Poker Boom Great Erick Lisata kigandgren Wins Million Dollar Game Seat Via Satellite

Table Of Contents

• Full Tilt Poker Pro Dominates Final Table
• Million Dollar Game Satellite Final Table Results

Erick Lindgren, once considered among the best poker players in the world, is back.

The former Full Tilt Poker pro took down the $25,000 buy-in Million Dollar Game satuellie at Hustler Casino in Los Angeles Sunday night. As such, he eanred a seat into Day 1 of Hustler Casino Live's$1 million buy-in cash game, which takes place Monday on YouTube.

Full Tilt Poker Pro Dominates Final Table

Lindgren, aka "E-Dog," defeated a field of 51 players, four of whom were paid. But only the tournament's champion earned a seat in the Million Dollar Game.

Lindgren, who has over $11 million in live tournament cashes, held the chip lead throughout much of the final table. His lead was significant at times, including during his heads-up match against Coach Collins, a wrestling coach from Kansas City.

The unique satellite tournament featured some familiar faces, including Lindgren, Ethan "Rampage" Yau, "Wes Side" Wesley Fei, and Alexandra Botez. Only four players cashed, however.

Million Dollar Game Satellite Final Table Results

Dr. P found himself in the unfortunate situation of being tiny stacked with five players remaining, right on the bubble. He'd go all in with his crumbs and 8x3xbut lose to the 9x9xheld by Britney, a regular on Hustler Casino Live.

Britney escaped the bubble in the turbo one-day tournament, but would be eliminated shortly after in fourth place for $50,000. Ala was next out the door in third place for $75,000. That left Lindgren heads-up against Coach Collins, who trailed better than 4-1 in chips.

The wrestling coach battled for a good hour, showing aggression against the season pro. He'd drop down to under 10 big blinds before turning a flush with A♣J♣to crack Lindgren's flopped set. But the blinds would soon force the recreational player into an all-in-or-fold mode, which inevitably ended with Lindgren flopping top pair with Qx10xto beat Jx2x.

Coach Collins received $150,000 for his performance. Lindgren, on the other hand, received $1 million to play on Day 1 of the Million Dollar Game. Ryan Feldman, Hustler Casino Live'sco-owner, said the satellite tournament winner must play at least eight hours or until the show ends, whichever comes first.

"This was a group of battlers," Lindgren told Feldman in the postgame interview. "From the first hand today to the end, these guys have no give-up in them. So, it was unique and it was tough, and I thought it was my spot because it was a tournament spot. They didn't care. So, everybody played well and they played aggressive, and it just happened to be my day and I didn't mess it up."

Lindgren, a two-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner and two-time World Poker Tour (WPT) champion, once dominated the poker world during the poker boom era. But he fell on hard times in the early 2010s financially, running up debts and admitting to struggling with a gambling addiction. He hasn't won a major tournament since 2013, but he'll have an opportunity on Monday to win some life-changing money.

The first of three Million Dollar Game streams will include a star-studded lineup, featuring Lindgren, Michael "Texas Mike" Moncek, Alan Keating, Peter Wang, Steve, Jack, and Pav. Coverage begins on the Hustler Casino LiveYouTube channel with the pregame show at 1:30 p.m. PT.

Hustler Casino will host a second $25,000 Million Dollar Game satellite on Tuesday at noon. The winner will earn a seat into Wednesday's cash game.